Is there a single word for “patronized, insulted & creeped-out”?
-Coffeeguy
There are certainly people who are raised Jewish who are atheists as adults, if that’s any help to you.
I can’t speak to the situation in Muslim countries, except it would be astounding to me if there weren’t some atheists who come from Islamic cultures.
p.s. I have a friend who’s atheist whose family is Hindu. Don’t know why I didn’t think of that as I was composing my post, except that I don’t really think of him in a Hindu-type context.
Offended, might work, though it has become rather trite.
Okay, where’s the formal proof of that?
Again, if you want it to be formal, you must have a formal proof. You simply can’t point to your own nose and assert that.
If you have no proof, you are just being indecisive.
“…patronized, insulted, & creeped out” by what? That others (in this case, Christians) see you differently than you see yourself?
Since there is no god, Triskadecamus, your statement makes no intelligible sense.
Since this is GQ rather than GD, let me stick to facts. Atheists are not Christians, Buddhists, Taoists, Unitarians, theists, deists, or members of any other religious body. Atheists may certainly believe in any of the multitude of philosophies that have been developed over the years, and the line between a secular philosophy and a religious philosophy may be blurry at times, but atheists will on that side of the line away from the religious philosophies.
Atheists believe that god was created in man’s image - over and over and over. This makes god less real rather than more.
So “theism” means “god?” I cannot see how to arrive at that meaning otherwise.
So you are assigning the same probability of a god existing and not existing? That is an abuse of the Principle of Indifference.
It doesn’t matter. Either way, you need to make a decision.
You either hold a belief or not hold a belief. There is nothing in between. In between is not a valid position.
Coffeeguy I am at a loss as to how my belief that you might be beloved of God is condescending. I understand that Christianity is not your belief. I simply don’t share your belief that God does not exist. Is it so insulting believing that you might be loved? Which is creepy, God, me, or love?
Exapno Mapcase I wasn’t trying to make sense. I was reporting that there is a place in my religion for atheists. The same place, in fact that I occupy. You are right; it is not logical.
Tris
Patronised, insulted, & creeped out in much the same way as when the lady down the street keeps yelling at me that I have babies growing in my arms because the CIA agents that hide behind my car keep shooting me with “baby bullets”. But I guess she just sees me differently than I see myself.
-Coffeeguy
That’s only fair, since we atheists are quite certain that the consciousness of Christians is consigned to Oblivion when the body dies.
Very interesting opinions on a completely binary matter. Atheist = No god.
Perhaps we can start a great debate on the results of 1+1?
18% of Unitarian Universalists considered themselves atheists in a recent survey. If generalized in this country, that would translate to about 20,000 people.
atheist = non-believer.
How do you get that, Kalt? Atheism is derived from the greek; a- without, and theos, god.
You seem to be rather heavy-handed in your “religious philosophies” decision, however. This sounds more like a GD assertion than GQ fact.
No Internet citation here, but perhaps these from a book will help - Stephen Batchelor is a respected Western author on Buddhism, and he wrote a book solely about the philosophical aspects of it, Buddhism Without Beliefs. I’m going to cite just a few quotes from this book, which should easily fall within the fair use guidelines:
The book is an analysis of the origin of Buddhism as a philosophy, and provides some insight into how, over time, religious significance was imparted to it, to Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha), and other religious trappings were attached to some sects of it.
[sup]1[/sup] Dharma: "a fundamental Buddhist term having several meanings, the broadest of which is phenomenon. […] Thus dharma also means law; ultimate truth; the Buddha’s teaching; and the doctrines of Buddhism. (Kapleau P, Straight to the Heart of Zen, 2001, p. 162, Shambhala Publishing, Boston)
re·li·gion ( P ) Pronunciation Key (r-ljn)
n.
Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion
Sorry, Urban Ranger, but even in mathematics ‘undecidable’ is an option, in some cases an unavoidable one. You speak as if not deciding is a sign of weak will. If the only way to decide is to break logic and take a leap of faith, then you’re jumping out of either impatience or fear. And which way you jump will be an emotional or arbitrary decision.
‘Undecidable’ is not comfortable, but in some cases it’s the only thing that is true.
Theism = Belief in a god.
Atheism= belief in no god
Are you making a point or splitting hairs?
I said no such thing. If you want to consider the probabilities then my position is because I have no firm evidence to suggest either, I have no way of assessing the probabilities. The probabilities are irrelevant anyway. Belief is a matter of faith, no matter how improbable.
Are you making a point or constructing strawmen?
But my point is there are two things to believe here. Belief in a god. And belief that there is no god. My position is to believe neither. That is a valid position.
As a take-off on the OP - - are Christians athiests because of the number of gods they don’t believe in?