Do atheists fancy themselves as nonconformists?

[Anonymous]

Here's a chart to better explain it

http://www.religionfacts.com/big-religion-chart

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Buddhism is a spiritual and atheistic religion. It is not rare or bizarre to have spiritual beliefs and also lack a belief in deities. The Asian world has a few religions that are based on a collective consciousness, and not a deity.

Atheism is a lack of belief in a god. It does not define belief in an afterlife, spiritual powers or anything else. Look beyond your own narrow definition of religion, and you will see there is a very wide variance in beliefs. The focus on exactly what every atheist believes is bizarre.

could you answer how you define spirit and spiritual? are they beyond nature? are they entities that people can imagine but that other people don't imagine? are they like ghosts? Do the spirits have powers and abilities that humans do not have? can you call upon the spirits to intervene in your life or the lives of others?

I personally don't believe in spirits. I am not going to try to answer those questions for other people because those beliefs are not defined by the term "atheist.". You should do some reading on Buddhism, or any of the eastern religions. In monotheistic religions, god is a separate entity that acts kind of like a parent. In many eastern religions, people and earth are all part of god, or those things are together and not a god at all.

Not bizarre - it's very simple -- nothing supernatural - i.e., beyond nature -- no angels, demons, fairies, gods, or any beings imagined beyond nature. It seems odd that you are so sure about the exact terms/beliefs of Buddhism without willingness to explain it. From what you say, it sounds like the word "god" is used differently, not meaning supernatural at all. I'm not particularly interested in pursuing this, just wanted to clarify what you meant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Buddhism is a spiritual and atheistic religion. It is not rare or bizarre to have spiritual beliefs and also lack a belief in deities. The Asian world has a few religions that are based on a collective consciousness, and not a deity.

Atheism is a lack of belief in a god. It does not define belief in an afterlife, spiritual powers or anything else. Look beyond your own narrow definition of religion, and you will see there is a very wide variance in beliefs. The focus on exactly what every atheist believes is bizarre.

could you answer how you define spirit and spiritual? are they beyond nature? are they entities that people can imagine but that other people don't imagine? are they like ghosts? Do the spirits have powers and abilities that humans do not have? can you call upon the spirits to intervene in your life or the lives of others?

I personally don't believe in spirits. I am not going to try to answer those questions for other people because those beliefs are not defined by the term "atheist.". You should do some reading on Buddhism, or any of the eastern religions. In monotheistic religions, god is a separate entity that acts kind of like a parent. In many eastern religions, people and earth are all part of god, or those things are together and not a god at all.

Not bizarre - it's very simple -- nothing supernatural - i.e., beyond nature -- no angels, demons, fairies, gods, or any beings imagined beyond nature. It seems odd that you are so sure about the exact terms/beliefs of Buddhism without willingness to explain it. From what you say, it sounds like the word "god" is used differently, not meaning supernatural at all. I'm not particularly interested in pursuing this, just wanted to clarify what you meant.

There is no 'god' in buddhism. There is a belief that all living things are connected. And there is an importance put on that and a desire to celebrate and find deep appreciation for that. In addition it inspires Buddhists to have empathy for all things because all things are connected. Buddha is the first person who realized and embraced this, but he is not a god. More a mentor to Buddhists.

In Buddhism people seek Nirvana instead of Heaven. Nirvana being defined essentially by true knowledge and acceptance that all living things are equal and together and fundamentally connected and realizing your place in the universe as a tiny but essential but also inconsequential part of a greater whole.

I would explain 'spirituality' in the context of atheist belief as being kind of analogous to love. I do not believe in spirits or an afterlife where previous humans are conscious and still 'them'.

I do have a very deep and powerful love for humanity and for the earth and a very deep and powerful gratitude for being a human on this earth and able to experience all that allows me to experience. I don't 'worship' my husband and my children, but the love I feel for them feels deep and different and important and fundamental. And that is the same type of love I have for life on this planet in all its incarnations. I believe that that is what most atheists are describing when they say they feel a spiritualness in their life (although I'd welcome perspectives that differ from this). It is what I imagine your love for God feels like.

-AA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Not bizarre - it's very simple -- nothing supernatural - i.e., beyond nature -- no angels, demons, fairies, gods, or any beings imagined beyond nature. It seems odd that you are so sure about the exact terms/beliefs of Buddhism without willingness to explain it. From what you say, it sounds like the word "god" is used differently, not meaning supernatural at all. I'm not particularly interested in pursuing this, just wanted to clarify what you meant.

I'm not a Buddhist, but I did study the religion. I'm telling you it's atheistic. If you want to know what they believe about spirits, you can read about it online. I don't need to type it all out here. I'm pointing out that spirituality and atheism can coexist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Buddhism is a spiritual and atheistic religion. It is not rare or bizarre to have spiritual beliefs and also lack a belief in deities. The Asian world has a few religions that are based on a collective consciousness, and not a deity.

Atheism is a lack of belief in a god. It does not define belief in an afterlife, spiritual powers or anything else. Look beyond your own narrow definition of religion, and you will see there is a very wide variance in beliefs. The focus on exactly what every atheist believes is bizarre.

could you answer how you define spirit and spiritual? are they beyond nature? are they entities that people can imagine but that other people don't imagine? are they like ghosts? Do the spirits have powers and abilities that humans do not have? can you call upon the spirits to intervene in your life or the lives of others?

I personally don't believe in spirits. I am not going to try to answer those questions for other people because those beliefs are not defined by the term "atheist.". You should do some reading on Buddhism, or any of the eastern religions. In monotheistic religions, god is a separate entity that acts kind of like a parent. In many eastern religions, people and earth are all part of god, or those things are together and not a god at all.

Not bizarre - it's very simple -- nothing supernatural - i.e., beyond nature -- no angels, demons, fairies, gods, or any beings imagined beyond nature. It seems odd that you are so sure about the exact terms/beliefs of Buddhism without willingness to explain it. From what you say, it sounds like the word "god" is used differently, not meaning supernatural at all. I'm not particularly interested in pursuing this, just wanted to clarify what you meant.

There is no 'god' in buddhism. There is a belief that all living things are connected. And there is an importance put on that and a desire to celebrate and find deep appreciation for that. In addition it inspires Buddhists to have empathy for all things because all things are connected. Buddha is the first person who realized and embraced this, but he is not a god. More a mentor to Buddhists.

In Buddhism people seek Nirvana instead of Heaven. Nirvana being defined essentially by true knowledge and acceptance that all living things are equal and together and fundamentally connected and realizing your place in the universe as a tiny but essential but also inconsequential part of a greater whole.

I would explain 'spirituality' in the context of atheist belief as being kind of analogous to love. I do not believe in spirits or an afterlife where previous humans are conscious and still 'them'.

I do have a very deep and powerful love for humanity and for the earth and a very deep and powerful gratitude for being a human on this earth and able to experience all that allows me to experience. I don't 'worship' my husband and my children, but the love I feel for them feels deep and different and important and fundamental. And that is the same type of love I have for life on this planet in all its incarnations. I believe that that is what most atheists are describing when they say they feel a spiritualness in their life (although I'd welcome perspectives that differ from this). It is what I imagine your love for God feels like.

-AA

In this explanation, Buddhism sounds like an early form of humanism, and what pp describes is humanism as well. Many atheists are humanists. As has been said here before, atheism is a simple lack of belief in the supernatural. Humanism is a framework for living.

[Anonymous]

Atheism does not define a belief in the supernatural. It only describes a lack of belief in gods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Atheism does not define a belief in the supernatural. It only describes a lack of belief in gods.

with the assumption that the "gods" are supernatural entities

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheism does not define a belief in the supernatural. It only describes a lack of belief in gods.

with the assumption that the "gods" are supernatural entities

Why are you having a hard time separating a belief in god and supernatural beliefs? The redefinition of "atheist" appears to be an issue here.

[Anonymous]

Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

+1

Saying I believe I my own self-awareness and consciousness is like saying I believe in the sandwich I ate for lunch. I experienced it; it was there. There's no faith or supernatural deed behind it. As far as I know, my awareness and consciousness are the product of electrical impulses going through my brain. That doesn't make them any more or less important than anyone else's.

-Humanist Jew

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

That's not objectively verifiable. It may not be honest either. There's no way for someone to verify your claims.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

+1

Saying I believe I my own self-awareness and consciousness is like saying I believe in the sandwich I ate for lunch. I experienced it; it was there. There's no faith or supernatural deed behind it. As far as I know, my awareness and consciousness are the product of electrical impulses going through my brain. That doesn't make them any more or less important than anyone else's.

-Humanist Jew

No it's not the same at all. Other independent observers can see an object called a sandwich and watch you engage in the behavior of consuming it. To believe that there is a sentient intelligence with self-conscious awareness behind the words you have typed, requires us to take it on faith. Maybe a squirrel has been jumping around on a computer keyboard somewhere and typed "your" words. It requires a pure exercise in faith to believe otherwise. No different than religious belief at its core.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

That's not objectively verifiable. It may not be honest either. There's no way for someone to verify your claims.

Of course there's no real way to verify sentience but it is an assumption I have to make to believe anything. If you don't believe in your own sentience you are unable to progress any further. My positions and beliefs are based off of what I can perceive, experience and think about.

-AA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Atheists seem to have no problem believing in their own self-awareness and consciousness but as consistent materialists an atheist's self-awareness and consciousness is a contradiction in terms. You're all just programmed sacks of protoplasm exhibiting somewhat interesting behaviors from time to time. Yet you have no way to prove that what you claim to be your self-awareness or consciousness isn't any less of an imaginary illusion than Santa Clause is.

I experience self-awareness and consciousness. I don't "believe" it. I can't explain it either. That's honest - not contradictory.

That's not objectively verifiable. It may not be honest either. There's no way for someone to verify your claims.

I never claimed it was objective. My experience is subjective, naturally.

I can tell you that I experience consciousness, but I can't claim it to be objectively true.

I may be batshit crazy and this is all in my head, or this could be the Matrix and I'm waiting for Keanu Reeves to save me. I really hope it's not the latter.