I do mean the ones who claim to “believe” shit that no sane person - barely even any insane people - could honestly believe.
Examples:
God is a being who exists somewhere
all the details in the Bible are true
Jesus came back to life after being dead for three days
if you pray, God will respond
there’s a savior
I’m not saying you’re wrong; that goes without saying. What I am saying is: You’re full of shit. You don’t believe those things, you never did, every time you say them you know you’re lying, and every time you hear someone else say them you know either they’re lying just like you or they’re fucking morons, and it hardly matters which is which, cause the effect is about the same. At least stupid people have an excuse - you don’t.
“Believe in” and “can prove” are not equivalent. Things which I believe in may have no provable influence on objective reality but that does not make them any less real.
I believe my dog is the greatest fog in the world. You can have any number of criteria which prove her to be average at best and well below most standards but that doesn’t make her any less of the best dog ever. (I recognize that everyone else in theveorld believes they have the best fog. None if them are wrong, either. Except for Pepper who is a neurotic ugly little yapping furball.)
I’m a card carrying Atheist, but this is the shit that gives us (or would) a bad name. It’s also just plain not true. Many Christians fully believe all or most of the things you mentioned. Even if they didn’t, so what? Calling them fucking morons, liars and full of shit are the makings for a ‘militant atheist’ and you know what it does? It makes those people pray harder for you, become more vocal to help you, proselytize even more.
In short, name calling really helps and usually hurts.
This logic is no better than when a Christian says that atheists are all liars and just don’t want to believe there is a God.
There are indeed some Christians who lean on the more agnostic side of things. Still others who are pretty sure, but have doubts. But there are also very, very many who believe with absolute certainty. They’ve had an experience that proves to them that God exists. My pastor (nominally–I don’t really attend the church, but I am a member) believes he saw a literal miracle happen in front of his eyes: a healing of some sort of physical deformity. He is 100% certain that God exists.
I’m not saying there aren’t some who lie. I’m rather sure that Benny Hinn, for example, doesn’t really believe in God. I do think other Prosperity preachers may believe, though. Their own prosperity is proof to them.
I would suggest that the OP look up the definition of “liberal Christianity”, and more specifically, two of its offshoots, progressive Christianity and liberal Protestantism.
Liberal Protestantism tends to be associated with a historical and symbolic view of the Bible, with the view that “God created and controls the processes that account for the universe and life (e.g. evolution), as continually revealed by modern science”, that regardless of a diversity of views on salvation and an afterlife, “what is most important is how you show your faith and conduct your life on earth”, and with an acceptance of contemporary progressive views on matters like abortion and gay rights.
And from Wikipedia: Progressive Christianity is characterized by a willingness to question tradition, acceptance of human diversity, a strong emphasis on social justice and care for the poor and the oppressed, and environmental stewardship of the earth.
The trouble with your rant is that you’re attacking a straw man, and, as I’ve often said, I have as much of a problem with crusading atheists as I do with crusading Christians.
But, in life, that rarely works. For example, if you’re in an argument with someone, it’s easier to just walk away than try and get the last word in. If someone wants to shove their religion down my throat, I could make Atheist arguments back, which isn’t going to do anything, or I could just ignore it and move on with my life.
In general, not just with this kind of stuff, I try to chose the ‘ignore it and move on with my life’ option. Look at the OP, what difference does it make if someone believes every word in the bible, especially when it has no impact on your life. I guess it’s just sort of a mindset change. It’s like realizing that you don’t have to correct everyone on the internet, even if they’re worng.
It’s another good example of ‘sometimes you win by letting the other person think they won’.
In general, I feel the same way as long as it’s kept within the religion/denomination/individual place of worship. As soon as it spills over to affecting others on the “outside”, I object.
Example: Just as I believe that any church shouldn’t be required to perform a same-sex marriage, they shouldn’t be able to interfere with same-sex marriage on the civic level.
Sure, but in terms of the thread theme that’s neither here nor there, as the OP makes no accusations about aggressive proselytizing or policymaking, but takes umbrage at the very expression of belief itself.
Or just “hate God” for some personal or ideological reason.
The OP is postulating is that there is no such thing as an actual sincere believer, and when you read the OP you realize it does not even apply to Christians specifically:
Right off the bat he is declaring that there can be no sincere belief in there being a God at all. Christians, schminstians, he might as well have not bothered with doctrines in the creed and stopped right there at disqualifying most religions as being beyond even insanity. Because rather than just stop at delusional he proceeds to:
So every believer, even Mr. & Mrs. Joe and Jane Citizen down the block who just do their thing quietly, say their grace before meals, go to church/temple/mosque once a week and offer their prayers if someone’s sick, are and have always been deliberately lying and know it and must be called out as Lying Sacks Of Shit, and their every expression of faith is something that gives offense? …Ooookaayy…
Y’know, touchscreens will be the death of us all when someone accidentally summons Cthulhu.
If we’re keeping score, these are my results too. And does one ever really get over another person pissing in their Cheerios? I’m not sure if there are enough Hallmark cards in the world to get over that.
There’s nothing wrong with believing in one or more of the various deities. Different people have all sorts of different belief systems with regards to politics, relationships, diets, child rearing and a host of other things.
It’s only the people who use their chosen belief system to manipulate and oppress others that it becomes a problem.
Calling anyone who believes in something you don’t “fucking idiots” is the other side of the same coin.
