I don't get Atheism

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why?

I'm 23 and supposedly most my age aren't religious, but I don't understand how you can just say you don't believe in God anymore? Do you think you're more intelligent because you're an Atheist? I'm pretty free thinking myself, so I obviously don't let religion influence my thinking. So what is it about Atheism that is appealing to you all?

I didn't "just say." I examined my beliefs carefully over an extended period of time. I *tried* to be religious because my family is Catholic and I was raised Catholic. I did not find any rational evidence for believing in God. I didn't find any emotional need to believe in God. I couldn't justify it emotionally and I couldn't justify it rationally.

What's appealing about atheism? I don't know. It wasn't like I was shopping for cars and picked the one that I liked the best. I don't find less wonder in the world because I don't believe in God. Read some about quantum mechanics or the multiverse theory or theories on the Big Bang or theories on what time is and you won't find anything less mysterious or wonderful in science than in religion. I dotn't find people more cruel as an atheist. People do so many wonderful, kind, loving things and all of that comes from inside them, not God. They want to be kind and loving and good and they are. That's amazing. I don't find a lack of externally imposed meaning to be distasteful. I can choose what my life will mean and make that meaning real. (I'm going to nursing school at the moment. That's the meaning in my life.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - I am with you on not getting atheism.
I think many of these atheists have never witnessed the miracle of birth.
People talk about the “randomness of the universe.”
It is not random at all.
The fact that so many, many things can go wrong with the birth of a child and most often, a baby is born nearly perfect proves to me that God’s hand is at work and that we have a good and loving God.
And, to think that a giant maple tree can grow out of a seed that is the size of a pea - simply miraculous.
I have witnessed miracles nearly every day.
There are some things that we simply cannot understand or explain through science.

So if a seed doesn't sprout or a baby does in childbirth is it an anti-miracle?

[Anonymous]

No, they assume I'm dumb specifically because I'm religious. Don't act like Atheists are somehow more tolerant than religious folks because that is bullshit

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - I am with you on not getting atheism.
I think many of these atheists have never witnessed the miracle of birth.
People talk about the “randomness of the universe.”
It is not random at all.
The fact that so many, many things can go wrong with the birth of a child and most often, a baby is born nearly perfect proves to me that God’s hand is at work and that we have a good and loving God.
And, to think that a giant maple tree can grow out of a seed that is the size of a pea - simply miraculous.
I have witnessed miracles nearly every day.
There are some things that we simply cannot understand or explain through science.

So if a seed doesn't sprout or a baby does in childbirth is it an anti-miracle?

Not at all. It simply was not meant to be - for whatever reason.
Not everything can be explained.
I don’t have all the answers, but I do have a strong faith in God.
There have been many unexplainable miracles in my life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, they assume I'm dumb specifically because I'm religious. Don't act like Atheists are somehow more tolerant than religious folks because that is bullshit

So you're saying Atheists don't get your beliefs, but you're also saying you don't get Atheists?

I think this is a "treat people how you want to be treated" situation." I don't now you enough whether to think you're "dumb," but I do think you have a little double standard going on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, they assume I'm dumb specifically because I'm religious. Don't act like Atheists are somehow more tolerant than religious folks because that is bullshit

Why are religious people so ANGRY all the time?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - I am with you on not getting atheism.
I think many of these atheists have never witnessed the miracle of birth.
People talk about the “randomness of the universe.”
It is not random at all.
The fact that so many, many things can go wrong with the birth of a child and most often, a baby is born nearly perfect proves to me that God’s hand is at work and that we have a good and loving God.
And, to think that a giant maple tree can grow out of a seed that is the size of a pea - simply miraculous.
I have witnessed miracles nearly every day.
There are some things that we simply cannot understand or explain through science.

So if a seed doesn't sprout or a baby does in childbirth is it an anti-miracle?

Not at all. It simply was not meant to be - for whatever reason.
Not everything can be explained.
I don’t have all the answers, but I do have a strong faith in God.
There have been many unexplainable miracles in my life.

Just because YOU don't understand the science doesn't mean that the explanation is "God" instead of biology.

[Anonymous]

I'm not angry at all, I'm stating the facts. Just because I believe in God doesn't mean I reject evolution and the big bang.

It's shit like that that pisses me off. I'm judged just because I go to church on Sunday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, they assume I'm dumb specifically because I'm religious. Don't act like Atheists are somehow more tolerant than religious folks because that is bullshit

So you're saying Atheists don't get your beliefs, but you're also saying you don't get Atheists?

I think this is a "treat people how you want to be treated" situation." I don't now you enough whether to think you're "dumb," but I do think you have a little double standard going on.

Ugh, excuse the broken English. I spilled my coffee and my brain is a little off this morning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - I am with you on not getting atheism.
I think many of these atheists have never witnessed the miracle of birth.
People talk about the “randomness of the universe.”
It is not random at all.
The fact that so many, many things can go wrong with the birth of a child and most often, a baby is born nearly perfect proves to me that God’s hand is at work and that we have a good and loving God.
And, to think that a giant maple tree can grow out of a seed that is the size of a pea - simply miraculous.
I have witnessed miracles nearly every day.
There are some things that we simply cannot understand or explain through science.

So if a seed doesn't sprout or a baby does in childbirth is it an anti-miracle?

Not at all. It simply was not meant to be - for whatever reason.
Not everything can be explained.
I don’t have all the answers, but I do have a strong faith in God.
There have been many unexplainable miracles in my life.

Cool. Whatever works for you. I'm an atheist but I genuinely don't care what other people believe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, they assume I'm dumb specifically because I'm religious. Don't act like Atheists are somehow more tolerant than religious folks because that is bullshit

The closer people come to death, the more sense religion makes. Even atheists pray on a crashing plane. Outspoken atheists are usually in a physically healthy time of their lives. God brings them in when reality hits.

[Anonymous]

Most atheists are liberal, upper middle class white people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, I get the feeling that because I'm religious, people are always viewing me as some unintelligent mongo and to the person who said I'm not a free thinking individual, why don't you go suck a big fat one.

If you can't wrap your mind around people thinking differently from how you do, then you are, by definition, unintelligent. Or at the very least, uninformed and closed-minded.

The anger I see on this particular thread comes from religious, not atheist people.

For the record, I am a moderately religious Christian (Lutheran).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - I am with you on not getting atheism.
I think many of these atheists have never witnessed the miracle of birth.
People talk about the “randomness of the universe.”
It is not random at all.
The fact that so many, many things can go wrong with the birth of a child and most often, a baby is born nearly perfect proves to me that God’s hand is at work and that we have a good and loving God.
And, to think that a giant maple tree can grow out of a seed that is the size of a pea - simply miraculous.
I have witnessed miracles nearly every day.
There are some things that we simply cannot understand or explain through science.

So if a seed doesn't sprout or a baby does in childbirth is it an anti-miracle?

Not at all. It simply was not meant to be - for whatever reason.
Not everything can be explained.
I don’t have all the answers, but I do have a strong faith in God.
There have been many unexplainable miracles in my life.

Just because YOU don't understand the science doesn't mean that the explanation is "God" instead of biology.

Ahh... but science does not have all the answers.
Science explains SOME of the miracles of life, but not all.
God’s hand at work.
I don’t expect you to believe. You can choose your course in life.
I choose to believe because of the miraculous events I have witnessed.
One of which is the birth of a child.
It doesn’t get much more miraculous than that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not angry at all, I'm stating the facts. Just because I believe in God doesn't mean I reject evolution and the big bang.

It's shit like that that pisses me off. I'm judged just because I go to church on Sunday.

Erm.

Anyway...

I don't assume all religious people are dumb. But I do assume people who are religious because that's just how they were raised, or they can't explain their beliefs, or they can't break down why they believe what they believe, and do so "just because," are probably a bit dim.

There are some very bright religious people. But a lot of people follow because they feel like they're supposed to or were brought up that way, and can't really try and rationalize it.