I'm just wondering, what's gurochan's religious beliefs?
Agnostic with a slight mistrust of religion here. What about everyone else?
...Please, no trolls or drama.
>religious beliefs
>no trolls or drama
Thanks, I got a good laugh out of that.
I'm a borderline Traditionalist - borderline, since I'm quite an illiterate at ancient wisdom and I walk my own ways and find logical fragments fitting into this religion's certain aspects. I would say that I'm a pioneer (and not follower) of the way of the Left Hand.
Atheist, except for Christmas and Easter - Im a very good catholic whenever presents are involved
Atheist, apathetic about religion and I don't give a shit about anyone else's beliefs.
Not even gonna bother.
>>5
That is simply the most honest answer we could ever hope for!
Thanks!
Explosionist. At least, that's what I put on my census.
>>9 I think that's from a song. Or at least it was the first thing that came up in Google.
I'm more of a old school Taoist.
Agnostic. I believe there's something out there, but I don't feel compelled to practice any specific religion and "praise" it.
And Christianity deeply infuriates me.
>>9
As far as I was informed on this matter, the Right Hand is the one that takes and the Left hand is the other that rejects. The way of the Left Hand is when you reap (take) the fruits of Hell - When you use what is given by the natural degradation of reality, descending or rather crumbling from the "upper" astral realm to the "lower" material realm. Traditionalists believe that the vision of evolution and the disappearance of arcane knowledge such as magic are symptoms of this happening. The aim of a traditionalist is to ascend or at least keep his or her altitude, basically gain redemption from the oblivion that would await him after death. Actually, this part isn't clear to me, since I'm not that into it, it's just matching my philosophy at certain key points so I became a little interested - but not as obsessed as to do research aside from asking around at my buddy who's more interested.
agnostic, but i have my own views about how everything works,
used to go to a christian church but i pretty much got bullied out for asking to many questions
Atheist.
There are times in life when it is helpful to at least pretend you have a religion. At those times I'm catholic.
atheist
I don't even pretend I have a religion
>>16
Atheist.
There are times in life when it is helpful to at least pretend you have a religion. At those times I'm a good Jew like my parents want me to be when they visit on holidays.
I'm atheist yet spiritual. I may not believe in divinity, yet I still believe that people have worth, that suffering is bad, and so forth.
The closest religion to what I believe is probably Wicca (the real sort, not what the whiny "non-conformist" emo adolescents all do). I like the morals associated with it, but don't believe in magic.
My upbringing is Jewish, though, and I still participate in the associated holidays, since I feel that family is important.
atheist yo, it's the most reasonable way to go
Atheist reporting.
>>19
I thought that those ideas(that a human is worth of something, suffering is bad etc) is merely humanism. Not based on a spiritual values, but on conscience.(Unless you base those values on some concept of soul or spirit and I'm just being stupid over here)
>>21
As far as I can see, you're right Anon. Using the argument of 'at least the Bible gives us some good lessons' has always irked me because most of the lessons are common sense if you want a society to continue functioning smoothly.
>>>21 I thought that those ideas [..] is merely humanism.
And here I was about to say the same thing.
Religion did not invent empathy and good will towards your fellow man, they are not solely theist concepts.
Atheist.
Pantheist. I view God and the universe interchangeably. However, I'll usually just say I'm an atheist cause it's easier to explain that "I don't pray or worship in god because I don't think god exists due to the evidence" than it is to say "I don't pray or worship in god because god doesn't care about me or any one for that matter."
Apatheist. I don't know if god/gods/spirits/magic/whatever might exist, and I don't think it would matter if they did. I try to be 'good' as much as I can, not because of some silly belief, but because it is the smart thing to do. Avoiding hurting or stealing, tolerating or accepting differences, and helping others when I am able to encourages people to work together.
Intelligent cooperation is how we've built our civilization so far. Despite its flaws, which are just a reflection of our own, more people are living better lives than ever before in history. Further cooperation, learning, and experience could enable us to eventually create a world without the need for violence, theft, or hate. It may even allow us to reach the planets and stars around us, and bring true immortality within our reach.
>Intelligent cooperation is how we've built our civilization so far.
Despite the fact that I'm thinking very much alike, the above quote is not true. It COULD work out that way, but today's people are dumb, narrow-minded and selfish, and only tyranny and war induced major developments in our last 1000 years of history - cozy asphalt roads and nuclear energy, and even this very internet we use are based on military projects. Of course it's bad, but you can't change the past, only try and make the future brighter.
The worst part is that people are growing up in a hostile world of humans, where many people tend to hurt, or virtually cripple each other just to become king of the hill. "I will win, no matter the cost!" means that you would even lose more than you invested just to make others lose even more... Isn't that a typically 21st century way of thinking?
>>>26 Intelligent cooperation is how we've built our civilization so far.
I thought civilization so far was built on slavery, conquest and a rigid caste system.
Agnostic. I don't actually think any supreme being exists, but I'll acknowledge that one COULD be out there, hiding or something.
When I'm in a bit more spiritual of a mood, I'm almost maltheist. Which is to say I believe that God exists and he is an evil being that I want nothing to do with.
Asatruar/Heathen here. Don't have much to say for myself, just wanted to break the atheist combo.
Quite right, Envy. Only in the mid-late 20th Century have 'the people' gained the power to properly organise/represent on many causes. Maybe a little extreme of me to overlook the early 20th Century trade movements, etc, but even those tended to be exclusive and male.
The maltheist idea sounds about right. A being cannot be both omnipotent and benevolent if there is suffering in the world (which there certainly is). If any being is omnipotent and allows suffering then we may conclude that said being is an asshole.
I belive in "the paradox" in which each person's view of the world changes their own personal 'world'.
A kid who believes he has his own 'lucky' socks for his baseball game, the socks are actually 'lucky' for him while he still believes it. if someone switches the socks without telling him, he still thinks they are his lucky socks and they still give him luck. on the other hand the guy who believes that god is cursing him and putting him down will always give himself bad luck.
...yeah, it sounds really dumb, but it's my view...
>>33
My theory is similar:
First, there was magic - power humans wielded to keep things under control on Earth. They somehow degenerated and let these powers run lose, so magic became gods that required sacrifice to do what they were told... and today... "Where's your precious God now, huh?"
The answer: people had 'em, then threw 'em away.
not really, I think that if this is true, science became the new magic, since magic could only be understood by a few people who devoted their life to it, but then science came and made everything easy to understand, so it became the 'dominant' world.
Very proud LaVeyan Satanist!
Agnostic Absurdist - I think there may be a god, and if there is he's pretty much there just to fuck with us.
I'm a Deist, and am the only one that I personally know of.
There is a God, he/it is just above and beyond humanity; God will be forever unknowable.
Takamachist Nanohist
I believe when you love someone the best way to show it is to beat them up until they submit
Wait... WUT???
Dadaist - wait, that's no religion, right. So I guess atheist.
In all seriousness, Yukiism/Reiism aside, I'm atheist. Religion is simply incorrect. It's like saying that the sky is green because of the way unicorns eat the edges.
>>36
Most people are Laveyan Satanist's. They live by the code, yet they have never heard about it.
Its pretty funny to look at Christian zealots with that in mind.
Sounds interesting. Any relevant links on the topic? I've certainly never heard of it.
If Laveyan Satanism is the branch of Satanism that takes ignorance and stupidity as its cardinal sin, that may well be most people's unknown religion.
Agnostic.
If there is indeed a god, it must spend all day cutting and crying about that huge failure called mankind.
>>42
Since when is rehashing old texts and generally just being obstinate something that merits your name to be associated with any idea?
Pathetic liberal hedonistic vermin is always pathetic liberal hedonistic vermin, whether they call themselves "LaVeyan Satanists" or something else pretentious, or call themselves nothing at all.
Nihilist atheist. While I dislike religion, I accept everyone's right to believe whatever religion they want, even if I don't like it. However, I demand 4 things from religion:
1) Teach REAL science in public classrooms, not creationism. They can teach religious education in private schools if they want.
2) Stop denying gay couples their right to marry because you think it's 'sinful'. It's none of your business.
3) Don't circumcise your children, it's not your right to choose. If your children really want to get circumcised they can have it done when they're mature enough to make that decision.
(I am against this, not only because I see it as unfairly coercive, but because it's one of the most sensetive parts of the penis and taking it away reduces sexual pleasure.)
4) Churches above a certain income bracket must pay tax just like secular businesses and organizations.
>taking it away reduces sexual pleasure
Actually studies on this are constantly conflicting. Religious circumcision I think is rather stupid, but tbh I'm all for it cleanliness-wise.
>>47
This is not a judgement by any means, but I have some thoughts on your thoughts.
To be specific, I feel your thoughts on parent's rights are a tad erroneous. By the virtue of the fact that children are minors, parents do in fact have the right to choose. To use an analogy, one may insist that parents have no right to make their kids visit the dentist. After all, the children may choose to take care of their teeth as adults, but there is a distinct advantage to not waiting 18 years for one's first dental cleaning.
To use another analogy, it could be said that parents have no right to have their kids vaccinated, for the reasons stated above. Anybody who's ever seen (or had) measles, rubella, or whooping cough (to name a few preventable diseases) knows that the disease is far worse than the vaccine, and any of those individuals with children would certainly want to protect them. Right?
(And yes, I know that vaccine reactions occur occasionally, but the probability is very slim.)
Again, I stress that this is not a judgement, or an attempt at trolling. I simply wish to present a different viewpoint on the issue.
>studies on this are constantly conflicting
It's proven to be the most sensetive part because it has the most nerve endings. For me, the fact that people disregard this seems to me like sexual repression, which is probably why this issue offends me so personally... especially considering the hygienic advantages are minimal and can be achieved simply by more thorough cleaning.
>it could be said that parents have no right to have their kids vaccinated, for the reasons stated above
You're applying an extreme circumstance to a much less serious issue. Lack of vaccination kills tens of thousands of people worldwide. Lack of circumcision does not, and I feel the very minor health benefits provided by it are outweighed by the violation of choice. Although it does have a small role in preventing STDs, there are much, MUCH more efficient methods we can implement to prevent the spread of sexual diseases that don't reduce sexual pleasure in the long term.
Parents should not be allowed to decide something that can positively ruin their children' sexual life because of religion. Several religions enjoy forcing things upon young followers just because they are not old enough to pick their own way. This is nothing but a form of coercion to me.
Not getting vaccinated or your teeth checked can lead to major troubles - and in some cases, death, though this is rather rare for dental problems. Keeping your genitals the way they came in the first place can't : at least, I don't think anyone managed to prove it to be dangerous in a non-bigot, purely scientific way so far.
Again, just opinion from a former christian catholic.
You guys ever heard of George Carlin?
Grew up fundamentalist christian. Currently agnostic, and researching older religions.
Well in that case when it comes to things like vaccination and dental care I agree the parents should have the right to force it on their children. However the reason I make an exception for circumcision is because it's a much less urgent situation, and it has advantages and disadvantages that I want the individual to consider when they're old enough. Waiting until you're an adult to get circumcised has an ridiculously small chance of doing any harm to you, whereas not being vaccinated is a serious threat.
If satanists believe in Satan and nihilists believe in nihil... what do colonists believe in?
I find my self extremely agnostic religious, I attempt to connect with god through the use of my head, cause its all I got.
>>55
What about religion itself? Do parents have the right to raise their kids according to a specific religion (and therefore to have their kids undergo religious circumcision)? The two will be part and parcel, after all.
>>60
Whether parents have the right to isn't the issue, it's about responsibility. Parents have the responsibility to not indoctrinate their children with biased opinions and beliefs that a child is likely to latch on to because, well, they're gullible and will believe just about anything their parents tell them. Rather parents should educate their offspring as to the arguments for and against any one matter and let them come to their own decision.
>>61
That, unfortunately, entails the parents to have some form of intelligence themselves, which is not the case IRL. Not only are the children gullible, the adults are just as naive. Rather that exercising their own free will, they will follow the herd and are brainwashed into rabidly believing complete garbage that, sadly, it the cause of most of the world's problems.
That is one of the reasons I gave up on Biblical retoric. I got tired of hearing biblebeater after biblebeater proclaim THEIR version was the right one and everyone else's was wrong. Religious adults need to grow up more than their kids.
Correct Parenting (4)(U)(U)
Enchantment
(U): Educate for and against target argument. You own the next decision played this turn.
"I realized my parents were the best ever. Never tasted such delicious meat in my life!"
>>62
This is why I love you people. Also, I urge you anti-clericals to listen to George Carlin (R.I.P) on YouTube or LiveLeak. He was a really smart guy and an awfully open-minded old fuck.
"As Sheila Collins writes, 'Theology is ultimately political. The way human communities deify the transcendent and determine the categories of good and evil have more to do with the power dynamics of the social systems which create the theologies than with the spontaneous revelation of truth from another quarter.'"
Quoted from the book, When God Was A Woman by Merlin Stone
I'm just boring old atheist. I have no belief in afterlife or a greater power. I think it is up to us, being the smartest beings we know, to create Heaven.
I think religion ion general is just silly. The existence of any higher entity is irrelevant to our lives, so I don't take it into account while I live my life. maybe I'll go to hell, maybe not, but at least I had fun for my life.
>Not only are the children gullible, the adults are just as naive.
this is a concept lost on a lot of people. like any child dying is completely tragic and the saddest thing ever. yet adults dying is just another one to chalk up and yell out "next!".
I believe in a creator.I hate how people try to humanize the Being.Man kills man of his own accord.we were born with intellect and free will.With out someone to shape it we'd be creatures of instinct.I.e. do what's necesscary for survial.We still do this but I like monks because they take time out of their day to devote to themselvs.unlike us who run around stressed all the time and forget to take of ourselves phyically and mentally.I feel religon shouldn't be followed for the whole good and evil thing.I feel it should be a way of life for instance fasting meditation and doing good things can be good for your mental health which should reflect on the phyiscal.also people should quit believing magical miracles of the holy books.They could all be allergorical.Its up to us as a race to find the path to enlightment.However too many greedy and close minded people stand in everyones way.
If we are born with free will, it is impossible for a higher being to shape said free will. To do so would negate the very concept of free will.
18 for a few months now
>>73 Freedom is relative. Also, from my point of view, will is always free, as the player character of a game inherits your free will, you inherit a higher free will to fulfill something in this cosmos. (A.I. programming of foes is also their free will if random values are given :D)
An imaginary character has no will, free or otherwise. They are nothing but the sum of the author(s)'s imagination.
Also, freedom and free will are two completely different concepts.
You might be a sum of your author's imagination.
Free will is freedom of will, the ability of will to act on its own, without any influence... Just how free is your will when you are affected by even my posts on a pure virtual community board?
I believe that there are gods and angels that we have made, I believe that they die with us and are born with us, but some have more to them than stories or names. All things have energy and though no one is going to fly down in a flaming chariot to save you from a bus, serendipity and chance are always in action in crazy ways. I also believe in karmic balance and that everyone pilots there own vessel, if ya know what I'm sayin'
people define themselves and their beliefs, religion should be very personal and if possible private. big herd based religions tend to garble the meaning of the original teachings and mess shit up. that's why you hand pick your religion at the peak of flavor to fit with your own personal morals, beliefs, standards and coping systems.
I'm a shamanistic neodruid Wicca christian Hindu Taoist Buddhist pagan myself. I have created my own frankenstien-type faith that works for me.
>>77
My authors were my dad (donated sperm) and my mom (donated an egg and a place for me to gestate). Science has shown that that the parents imagination has very little to do with what is born.
dictionary.com lists this as one definition of free will:
>The ability to choose, think, and act voluntarily. For many philosophers, to believe in free will is to believe that human beings can be the authors of their own actions and to reject the idea that human actions are determined by external conditions or fate. (See determinism, fatalism, and predestination.)
My original post regarding free will was not suggesting that I believe or disbelieve the theory of free will. I was merely pointing out an inconsistency in >>72 who believes that we have free will that is shaped by a higher being.
You were only pointing out that you believe that someone else believes that we have free will that is shaped by a higher being. Your will is always guided by a chain of events, so it's either wholistic planning, or wholistic chaos anomalies. But there's still one thing that remains. What is the basis of reality? There are set rules, even though we can't prove if other parts of the universe behave the same way as our tiny solar system does. There is no proof of any higher existence, nor is there any against it.
For example: suppose some "God" is almighty over this world. You try and make a mistake and an unforseen event occurs, like, end of the world, or something. But then, God just rewinds time and recompiles your mind so that it doesn't make the same mistake again. :)
I have no issue with religion so long as it serves it's basic purpose, which is to be a good person, treat others right, and have a good set of morals. What I don't agree with, is when it's taken to far (i.e. Westboro Baptist Church).
I, as a person, cannot follow something that essentially means I can't question them, or that my way of life is wrong (gay male here), and that it's a huge sin, etc. I can't follow a "loving, all-knowing God" that doesn't help people who truly need it, or would allow terrible things to happen to people. I never get a straight answer other than- "It's God's Plan." "It's because he gave us free will." "I have to ask my priest." etc.
As for my own beliefs...well, I do believe there's something after we die, maybe not a heaven and hell, but something. Mainly because I've seen enough evidence, personal and scientifically, to prove that ghosts/spirits/hauntings, exist.
I also believe that perhaps, after we die, maybe we're reborn again, into something else, be it a person or an animal, or something else entirely.
There are some faiths that I could logically see myself following and agree with their dogma's. The only two that I can see that I've agreed with, are Shinto and Wicca. Both religions talk about living with the world, not against it. Shinto I agree with moreso, it contains no hateful messages or tells you to act a certain way or else you'll be condemned to eternal hellfire. It also teaches that everything has a soul/spirit. Rocks, plants, water, people, animals, etc. And that there is a higher spirit that watches over those things (A high spirit for water, a higher spirit for horses, a higher spirit for cats, and so on).
Christianity however, I've always been confrontational, and distrustful of it. Mainly because my experience with it has been, dissatisfaction at receiving answers, hate messages, the deaths it causes (look in the past AND present), the insanity it can create, and the hypocrisy in it.
I just don't believe in things i can't see or demonstrate. It may be a very simple logic, but every time i start to think about religion, i feel in the middle of a giant lie.
>I believe you were only pointing out that you believe that someone else believes that we have free will that is shaped by a higher being.
Fixed.
Seriously, if you are pointing out that I'm making assumptions that may or may not be correct, you shouldn't make the same error regarding me.
Personally I gave up on any kind of personal god a long time ago (about 6 years but only being 25 that's a long time to me).
I was brought up in a divorced home with a single mother as a Christmas + Easter Catholic. In high school, I got VERY into my faith; so much so that when I was 15 I wanted to be a priest when I grew up (mostly because my church had an exceptionally wonderful priest who made me want to be a better person and devote my life to helping people). After I went through the church's "confirmation" program (the classes they make you take to be recognized as a consenting adult member of the church), I realized that they spent a lot of time talking about the church and its rules and beliefs but very little about what we didn't believe.
I was at a point in my life where I was first becoming in tune with my skeptical intuition and decided to stop feeling and start thinking. I started learning about all kinds of different faiths. I read pseudo-apocrypha and studied the work of ancient nutjobs the world over. I took a world religions class as well. When it was all said and done, I had to acknowledge that I rejected every other faith I'd learned about not because they lacked profound lessons or beautiful poetry, but because they all lacked convincing evidence. Therefor I was forced to concede that my own religious beliefs fell victim to this same skepticism as well. I couldn't well accept every religion as true since they often made incompatible claims, so I had to reject my own as well.
And thus, I do not belong to a church or believe in the supernatural (that is NOT to say that I don't believe there are things we have yet to or may never explain). I think that religion and churches provide many things that are good for us, but they bring much poison to humanity too. I hope that some day humanity can find a way to fulfill its spiritual needs without believing in shady ideas and drawing lines that divide us and tell us to hate each other.
And I'd pose the question that even if everything is pre-determined if by nothing more than the physical laws of the universe all the way down to the atomic level... does it make a difference free or determined if nobody knows yet? It's just as interesting as you ask me. To quote Dr. Manhattan "only what can happen does happen."
Not surprisingly.. I suppose I am the only Muslim here. And I am just fine with that!
>>88 you also seem to be among the very few people that follow any sort of monotheistic religion. congrats
Nihil means nothing... so nihilism is a belief in nothing
Satanists dont believe in Satan, either
WORSHIP ME OR ELSE
DON'T WORSHIP ME OR ELSE
>>91
Your worshipment of disambiguation has arrived:
I adorn thy cunt.
I blaspheme thy cock.
I envelop thy world.
I shun thy temple.
I'm a hard polytheist. I believe in multiple deities, and I believe that they are separate, rather than masks of one grand creator. Even so, I don't think any 'being' created the universe. I believe it always has been and always will be. The universe will eventually collapse back in on itself, and then burst forth again in a never ending cycle.
Personally, I follow a deity that calls himself Coyote. Whether that's a god, totem, or random spirit, I can't say. I've had 'visions' and such, and since a few psychiatrists have seen no problem with it, I'll just assume I'm not crazy, though I accept the fact that I'm probably deluding myself. I don't think it matters as long as get something out of it, and it doesn't hinder me. He's warned me of shit, and given me pretty good advice, so I'll trust him for that.
I don't know the true nature of what deities are, probably just higher beings.
Agnostic/polytheist. I believe in several deities rather than one god. I'm not sure if they exist though.
Christian with a closeted S&M fetish.
....what?
Athorist. That is, I specifically don't believe in the Norse god Thor. Anything else is game though.
Burger King believer. I have it my way.
But it boils down to about 45% Buddhist, 55% Jewish (Mostly due to blood). I'm very religious, in a I respect your beliefs, you respect mine kinda way.
Karaite Jew :D
Wiccan/Christian.
Interesting combination, I know.
Interesting, care to elaborate on how that works? I'm curious.
my biggest struggle with religion is in separating human opinions from the genuine word of god. There are too many obviously fabricated and arbitrary traditions masquerading as divine law, like the doctrine of the nicene creed which is completely fucking made up yet is the source of most modern christian tradition(and as a result most western values we unthinkingly follow today) and is often in contradiction with REAL scripture. The only religion that ever had a chance in my eyes is the mormon church, because they're doctrine is the most internally consistent and scripturally consistent.
The problem for me often comes down to sex, or more specifically the attitude that sexual desire/arousal in and of itself itself is sinful(I understand sexual sins like adultery and agree with them though). It's one of the most sensationalized 'wrongs' but also the least explained 'wrong'... not to mention a necessary part of life AND a part our our natural function(aka implanted by god). It feels really really arbitrary and baseless. I can't find anything intrinsicly harmful about it, and so it feels like a glaring example of a fabricated sin as opposed to all the others which have pretty natural and obvious negative consequences.
Christian and follower of science. Just because it's not recommended in the bible or it's labled as a mental disorder doesn't stop me from being sexually aroused by suffering, though.
I'm a spiritual Satanist, I believe Satan is an embodyment of man's free will not a big red dude with horns and goat legs
Agnosticism
No preference for god's existence or inexistence, does not agree with any organized religions.
Gnostic Christian. Quite religious actually.
This thread has been like a puddle of dirty water I try hard not to step in to, for quite some time now. But since I'm extra frustrated tonight, with this pointless post I will make an angry splash and walk away.
Religion is for underdeveloped slum people and adult children. You're all no different than scientology hobos with their intergalactic ninja overlords and Tom Cruise. If you think you are, get stronger medication and think again.
Nihilists belive in nihilanth http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Nihilanth
I'm an Atheist and i'v never been nor do I think I will ever be religous
i tried very hard to believe in some higher being as a child. it didn't work, i just can't.
religion was originally created in order to explain the natural world, but ended up being used mostly to control people. in this day and age, when we have scientific explanations for just about everything, there isn't a point; the entire concept of religion is outdated.
I don't feel like talking on the boards but MSN is great for me. Plus the site is killing my computer, lol. I know, it's lame, I can barely get porn, ugh. cough My MSN is kittenkaito@hotmail.com
I don't feel like talking on the boards but MSN is great for me. Plus the site is killing my computer, lol. I know, it's lame, I can barely get porn, ugh. cough My MSN is kittenkaito@hotmail.com
I am God.
>>110 I think that we can't even tell if our physics apply to other time and space... We are nowhere near any sort of answer. The world is just too vast to bluntly state that anything is as it is - as we sense that it is. Physics are also about modeling the possible structure of things around us, and the theories are proven only by a number of experiments with different input. Also, sensing is a way of altering. Whatever you recept is caught by you: the hairs on your skin tremble at the blow of a wind, your eyes swallow the light that hits them, you dampen voices with your very body and you feel cold, but at the same time, you slightly heat up your surroundings. Of course, you don't alter an object by looking at it... but you only see the photons coming at you. Senses are easy to trick, and I'm not talking about only the five major ones, but the unaccounted too, such as balance, empathy or comprehension. They are all guidable and trickable. And sometimes nature tricks man, whether there be any intention or just on a random factor.
Ethnically Jewish atheist. I love reading about the mythology of different religions ... people can invent some pretty crazy stories, and some of them can make for some great reading.
Daoist.
dawkinist
Atheist here. Parents didn't go out of their way to fill my head with religious thoughts, so it wasn't a big hurdle to cement my convictions. Actually it was some lame TV courtroom drama I saw as a kid that pushed me way over the edge. Some simpleton was under oath and mentioned something like, "It's not what I think that matters. It's what my God tells me to think that matters." Or something to that effect.
Not the best screenplay, granted, but it was enough to send steam flying out my 11-year old ears and hours of lost sleep raging at the inanity of it all. Sadly, most of those early pre-conceptions have not been dimmed with time. Too much evidence on TV, news, print, online, etc of people who seem to act/think exactly like that brainwashed bimbo on TV all those years ago.
Anyway, I'm an atheist for much more rational, emotional and moral reasons then that. It just helped galvanize my worldview at a younger age then would have otherwise...
>87 Bravo. Well spoken, and nice quote :)
I'm one of those people (I assume there are others) who just doesn't give a shit about an afterlife or any divine consequences for not giving a shit. I'm not religious, I'm not atheist, and I'm not agnostic. In fact, I only ever think about such things when I see a discussion like this.
If the Christian/Catholic thing turns out true, and I go to hell, that doesn't bother me much either. I'd rather not be with that big creepy weirdo in the sky and sitting on his knee for all eternity in some perpetual orgasm. At least in hell I'd have a purpose: to get back at god for sending me there, and you can bet I'd be helping myself to some succubus pussy during my stay. Hopefully hell would turn out to be something like it is in the Forgotten Realms D&D campaign setting and I'd be able to rise up through the fiendish ranks and kick some ass.
>>120 LOL
But I kind think the same as you.
except ! when they( religious people ) act like their god is the only way to live and talk bullshit about science, hell we wouldn't be talking right now ( internet ) if wasn't for science..
but yeah I don't give a crap about religion while they don't try to convert me.
Started atheist.
Went Christian.
Am now Agnostic.
Pretty much the same as you guys but I tend to give a lot of thought to possibilities of why a godlike being (if not a group) would create everything like the way things are anyway. You know, it's stupid to go by superstitions when you have some way firmer facts to start tracing back to the "original purpose". Of course, even if we found it, we wouldn't know if it really was a higher will or just a start for random things to happen...
Was a strong Christian til 18, then went to Deism, then Agnosticism, then Atheism. The more I learned the less I believed in any god.
I don't take much issue with people who are religious unless they either use it to validate and shield their own hatred/prejudices, or if they don't practice what they preach. I don't go out attacking people for believing in the bible or anything like that, but I love to ask questions of those who are religious.
What I really fucking hate though are people that get offended when religious debates/discussions come up. If you don't have the testicular fortitude to not lose your shit when someone doesn't believe in god like you do, fuck you. If that's what you truly believe you should have no problems debating with people who disagree with you. People like that don't have the willpower to question their own faith are a pestilence on mankind, and rightly should be looked down upon by both religious and non-religious folk alike.
Had to vent that. That exact situation occurred today and I was told to drop the religion talk immediately as a result because someone was getting upset that their beliefs were being questioned. I wanted to turn and mention to SOMEONE how that was bullshit, but the only people I could talk to at the time were the ones who told me to stop or the guy who got offended.
>>124
Addendum:
For what it's worth, when I was 17 I attended a Wednesday night church service in Logan, WV while on a mission trip with my church. The minister there asked the probably 350 person audience if there was anyone who was willing to come up to the front of the church and affirm their faith in front of everyone. Myself and 3 other people did it. As a result, the minister there tells me that my name is now written in the book of life, so that I will always have a place in heaven no matter what.
tl;dr: If on the infinitely small chance the christian heaven does exist, I'm still set, even as an atheist.
>>124
Just out of curiosity, where did this scenario take place? A lecture hall?
>If that's what you truly believe you should have no problems debating with people who disagree with you.
Having no religious beliefs nor encountering them in my daily life I've never participated in such a debate, but doesn't it essentially come down to two sides with immovable beliefs? Why should either party debate?
I don't think it has to do with testicular fortitude on either side rather it's more about not wanting to waste time. You could debate a brick wall for a few hours too but it's not going to get you anywhere.
However if people lose their shit I agree that's dumb.
