Why do atheists post on the Religion forum?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

You can rationally assert it if you believe it is true on the basis of the available evidence that you have thoughtfully considered. A rational assertion is not the same as scientific proof. I can rationally assert that my wife isn’t a spy under deep cover. But I don’t really know for sure, of course.

You also don’t have to be 100 percent convinced to make a rational assertion. We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief. Very few people who have walked down the aisle can say that they were 100 percent certain that the marriage would work on the day they got married. I am an attorney and we make all kinds of decisions in the legal world based on less than 100 proof. People go to prison every day based on clearing the reasonable doubt bar. But it can’t be any other way because if we demanded 100 percent proof for every crime, there would be very very very few convictions.

What believers CANNOT do is scientifically prove that there is a God. That’s impossible. I am a believer and I absolutely admit this. At some point, you must have faith to fill in the gap.

But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either. If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong and you have made this cosmic bet based on something that you cannot prove. As a result, you are living your life on faith too. It’s a different “type” of faith, but it’s faith all the same.

Neither side has a monopoly on rationality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

It is not possible for you to be more wrong.

No matter how much you wish it were so.

Religion is a societal problem now and that is the issue and the only issue. It has nothing to do with individual psychology. Some people are just willing to look at the facts and realize there is insufficient reason to believe in a god and absolutely no reason to inform public policy based on that bullsh*t.

That’s been posted over and over again in this forum, but you refuse to believe it because it doesn’t fit your bronze age myth narrative. That’s your psychological problem not anyone else’s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

You can rationally assert it if you believe it is true on the basis of the available evidence that you have thoughtfully considered. A rational assertion is not the same as scientific proof. I can rationally assert that my wife isn’t a spy under deep cover. But I don’t really know for sure, of course.

You also don’t have to be 100 percent convinced to make a rational assertion. We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief. Very few people who have walked down the aisle can say that they were 100 percent certain that the marriage would work on the day they got married. I am an attorney and we make all kinds of decisions in the legal world based on less than 100 proof. People go to prison every day based on clearing the reasonable doubt bar. But it can’t be any other way because if we demanded 100 percent proof for every crime, there would be very very very few convictions.

What believers CANNOT do is scientifically prove that there is a God. That’s impossible. I am a believer and I absolutely admit this. At some point, you must have faith to fill in the gap.

But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either. If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong and you have made this cosmic bet based on something that you cannot prove. As a result, you are living your life on faith too. It’s a different “type” of faith, but it’s faith all the same.

Neither side has a monopoly on rationality.

Hey look:

Someone who doesn’t understand that atheists don’t claim there is no God only insufficient evidence to believe in one.

Someone who doesn’t understand the burden of proof.

Someone who thinks they invented Pascal’s wager and that atheists haven’t heard it 1 million times.

Someone who thinks only the atheist has the problem of hard solipsism.

Not a good argument in your post, not one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They likely post because it is a discussion group about religion, in which anyone can have an opinion. It's not a discussion group for religious people.

That is certainly part of the reason I post -- much to the consternation of some of the religious posters. It seems like people of different religions have learned to have respect for each other, but not for atheists.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

You can rationally assert it if you believe it is true on the basis of the available evidence that you have thoughtfully considered. A rational assertion is not the same as scientific proof. I can rationally assert that my wife isn’t a spy under deep cover. But I don’t really know for sure, of course.

You also don’t have to be 100 percent convinced to make a rational assertion. We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief. Very few people who have walked down the aisle can say that they were 100 percent certain that the marriage would work on the day they got married. I am an attorney and we make all kinds of decisions in the legal world based on less than 100 proof. People go to prison every day based on clearing the reasonable doubt bar. But it can’t be any other way because if we demanded 100 percent proof for every crime, there would be very very very few convictions.

What believers CANNOT do is scientifically prove that there is a God. That’s impossible. I am a believer and I absolutely admit this. At some point, you must have faith to fill in the gap.

But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either. If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong and you have made this cosmic bet based on something that you cannot prove. As a result, you are living your life on faith too. It’s a different “type” of faith, but it’s faith all the same.

Neither side has a monopoly on rationality.

Hey look:

Someone who doesn’t understand that atheists don’t claim there is no God only insufficient evidence to believe in one.

Someone who doesn’t understand the burden of proof.

Someone who thinks they invented Pascal’s wager and that atheists haven’t heard it 1 million times.

Someone who thinks only the atheist has the problem of hard solipsism.

Not a good argument in your post, not one.

I don’t know where you are drawing any of these points.

My argument was in response to his claim that you can’t rationally assert that there is a God, when, in fact, you can.

I am a former atheist. I know very well what most atheists believe. I used to believe these things myself. I used to mock people of faith until I realized how all of my own beliefs were based on faith. I couldn’t prove any of them.

All we can do is rationally examine the evidence and different people land in different places after doing that. But it is entirely rational for an individual to reach the conclusion that they think it is more likely than not that God exists and they are going to live their life accordingly. Just as it is entirely rational for an individual not to believe that. But neither side has a monopoly on rationality. That’s my main point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

Sounds like a lot of the religious posters to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

You can rationally assert it if you believe it is true on the basis of the available evidence that you have thoughtfully considered. A rational assertion is not the same as scientific proof. I can rationally assert that my wife isn’t a spy under deep cover. But I don’t really know for sure, of course.

You also don’t have to be 100 percent convinced to make a rational assertion. We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief. Very few people who have walked down the aisle can say that they were 100 percent certain that the marriage would work on the day they got married. I am an attorney and we make all kinds of decisions in the legal world based on less than 100 proof. People go to prison every day based on clearing the reasonable doubt bar. But it can’t be any other way because if we demanded 100 percent proof for every crime, there would be very very very few convictions.

What believers CANNOT do is scientifically prove that there is a God. That’s impossible. I am a believer and I absolutely admit this. At some point, you must have faith to fill in the gap.

But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either. If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong and you have made this cosmic bet based on something that you cannot prove. As a result, you are living your life on faith too. It’s a different “type” of faith, but it’s faith all the same.

Neither side has a monopoly on rationality.

Atheists know very well that it's impossible to disprove God. They also know that it's impossible to disprove any made-up invisible supernatural beings, like fairies or goblins. They are childish things that we outgrow believing in.

[Anonymous]

I don’t know where you are drawing any of these points.

Really? Would you like me to outline them one by one?

What Atheists Believe and Burden of Proof : But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either
Pascal's Wager: If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong
Hard Solipsism: We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief and the rest of that dopey paragraph

My argument was in response to his claim that you can’t rationally assert that there is a God, when, in fact, you can.

Well then why haven't you done that?

I am a former atheist. I know very well what most atheists believe. I used to believe these things myself. I used to mock people of faith until I realized how all of my own beliefs were based on faith. I couldn’t prove any of them.

This is stupid and false. What other beliefs did you have on faith? That your marriage was a good idea? Most people make those decisions based on evidence.

All we can do is rationally examine the evidence and different people land in different places after doing that. But it is entirely rational for an individual to reach the conclusion that they think it is more likely than not that God exists and they are going to live their life accordingly. Just as it is entirely rational for an individual not to believe that. But neither side has a monopoly on rationality. That’s my main point.

And I think your point is completely incorrect, evidenced by the fact that you don't hold any other beliefs to that standard. You don't believe in Leprechauns. You don't believe rubbing a talisman will make your lottery numbers come out. You don't believe I have a heard of tiny flying pink elephants in my garage, even though I assure you, I do!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I don’t know where you are drawing any of these points.

Really? Would you like me to outline them one by one?

What Atheists Believe and Burden of Proof : But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either
Pascal's Wager: If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong
Hard Solipsism: We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief and the rest of that dopey paragraph

My argument was in response to his claim that you can’t rationally assert that there is a God, when, in fact, you can.

Well then why haven't you done that?

I am a former atheist. I know very well what most atheists believe. I used to believe these things myself. I used to mock people of faith until I realized how all of my own beliefs were based on faith. I couldn’t prove any of them.

This is stupid and false. What other beliefs did you have on faith? That your marriage was a good idea? Most people make those decisions based on evidence.

All we can do is rationally examine the evidence and different people land in different places after doing that. But it is entirely rational for an individual to reach the conclusion that they think it is more likely than not that God exists and they are going to live their life accordingly. Just as it is entirely rational for an individual not to believe that. But neither side has a monopoly on rationality. That’s my main point.

And I think your point is completely incorrect, evidenced by the fact that you don't hold any other beliefs to that standard. You don't believe in Leprechauns. You don't believe rubbing a talisman will make your lottery numbers come out. You don't believe I have a heard of tiny flying pink elephants in my garage, even though I assure you, I do!

Actually, almost all major decisions in life are held to that same standard and involve some combination of looking at the evidence and then having faith in your ultimate decision. You have no real rebuttal to my marriage example (you can gather all the “evidence” you want but it’s always a leap of faith when you walk down the aisle), my example about my wife being under deep cover, or my example about legal standards. I served on a jury once and our decision led someone to go to prison for a very long time. Do I scientifically know that he did it? No. I looked at the evidence and faith filled in the gap. That’s how all legal decisions are made in fact — reasonable doubt, preponderance of the evidence, etc.

It’s also very interesting how the response immediately jumps to juvenile name-calling — “stupid” — which is how I have found many atheists tend to debate these issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I don’t know where you are drawing any of these points.

Really? Would you like me to outline them one by one?

What Atheists Believe and Burden of Proof : But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either
Pascal's Wager: If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong
Hard Solipsism: We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief and the rest of that dopey paragraph

My argument was in response to his claim that you can’t rationally assert that there is a God, when, in fact, you can.

Well then why haven't you done that?

I am a former atheist. I know very well what most atheists believe. I used to believe these things myself. I used to mock people of faith until I realized how all of my own beliefs were based on faith. I couldn’t prove any of them.

This is stupid and false. What other beliefs did you have on faith? That your marriage was a good idea? Most people make those decisions based on evidence.

All we can do is rationally examine the evidence and different people land in different places after doing that. But it is entirely rational for an individual to reach the conclusion that they think it is more likely than not that God exists and they are going to live their life accordingly. Just as it is entirely rational for an individual not to believe that. But neither side has a monopoly on rationality. That’s my main point.

And I think your point is completely incorrect, evidenced by the fact that you don't hold any other beliefs to that standard. You don't believe in Leprechauns. You don't believe rubbing a talisman will make your lottery numbers come out. You don't believe I have a heard of tiny flying pink elephants in my garage, even though I assure you, I do!

Actually, almost all major decisions in life are held to that same standard and involve some combination of looking at the evidence and then having faith in your ultimate decision.

Again, you are talking about hard solipsism here. For all of those decisions, there is sufficient evidence, as you admit. For a belief in god, there is not.

You have no real rebuttal to my marriage example (you can gather all the “evidence” you want but it’s always a leap of faith when you walk down the aisle), my example about my wife being under deep cover, or my example about legal standards.

Yes, I do - you have evidence your wife is a good person, and loves you, and you vow to be committed to each other and the marriage. Plus, you have evidence your wife exists!

As for your example about legal standards - that point is for my position, and weakens yours. Are you actually a lawyer? "Evidence beyond a reasonable doubt". That's the standard in a court of law, and that is NOT the standard you use for your god.

I served on a jury once and our decision led someone to go to prison for a very long time. Do I scientifically know that he did it? No. I looked at the evidence and faith filled in the gap.

No it didn't! Logic and reason filled the gap. If you had evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, there is no need for faith!

That’s how all legal decisions are made in fact — reasonable doubt, preponderance of the evidence, etc.

Again, that's MY position, not yours when it comes to your god. Why not?

It’s also very interesting how the response immediately jumps to juvenile name-calling — “stupid” — which is how I have found many atheists tend to debate these issues.

I am done not calling stupid arguments stupid. Don't wanna hear it? Stop making stupid arguments, and stop your stupid arguments from infringing on the rights of others.

[Anonymous]

And — to be clear — I *never* said that I “invented” Pascal’s wager nor did I say that “only atheists have the problem of hard solipsism” — infact, I was very clear that believers have the same issue. It always amazes me how atheists so frequently jump to putting words in your mouth that you never said.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because religion infringes on the rights of atheist in the US, and all over the world.

What are the "rights of atheists" and how does posting here help?

What the atheist wants is the right to not be judged for their sins, especially homosexuality and adultery which carried a death sentence in Israel until Rome demolished their temple and thrashed their nation, dispersing its people.

The atheist wants “No God” so as to do what is right in their own eyes, such as changing the grammar to apply pronouns for their sinful and perverse actions.

In the end, the atheist is going to get his wish: no God. The books will be opened, deeds judged, and all those who were not found in the Book of Life will be cast into the Lake of Fire to perish.

You avoid this Lake by believing upon the name of the only begotten son of God: Jesus. There is no other name by which you can be saved, not Moses, Buddha, Allah, or any Hindu deity nor any other name.

Not all Christians believe this. The above is an extreme form of Christianity.

The true Christians believe this, the ones who read the Bible which is God’s word.

But a time is coming, which even now is occurring, when people (like you) will not endure sound doctrine —Jesus is the only way to heaven, and will heap to themselves pastors and teachers who will tickle their ears and tell them they are “good” because they think they are good for tolerating and approving sin.

God will give these false believers a strong delusion. They will believe a lie that the coming Man of Sin is God, and they will takes his mark in the hand or forehead.

“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that friendship of the world is enmity with God?” —James 4:4

This is like telling me you believe in Papa Smurf and the power of his magical mushrooms. Truly, it's no different.

Self-quoting your own religion doesn't really help your case, because ALL religions claim truth and have their own testimonies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

Sounds like a lot of the religious posters to me.

+1000

It's a lot of projection. There are a lot of religious people who use religion as a way to give them solace and peace over their trauma.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I have read, it seems like many atheists posting here have unresolved childhood trauma and differences of opinion with family.

Instead of working it out in therapy or putting boundaries in place with family, they come here and blame strangers for their family problems and trauma.

You are incorrect. I have no issue with the moderate level of faith that I was brought up in (a progressive Muslim family). But logically, I cannot believe in any of it. It's as illogical to believe in any god, as it's illogical to believe in Santa or the Easter Bunny.

Or to believe in the myth of Moses, but not believe in the myth of Poseidon.

They're all fabricated stories by humans to try and explain things, but they're all made up - you cannot factually, logically, rationally assert that one is more truthful or accurate than another.

You can rationally assert it if you believe it is true on the basis of the available evidence that you have thoughtfully considered. A rational assertion is not the same as scientific proof. I can rationally assert that my wife isn’t a spy under deep cover. But I don’t really know for sure, of course.

You also don’t have to be 100 percent convinced to make a rational assertion. We make all kinds of decisions in life without 100 percent belief. Very few people who have walked down the aisle can say that they were 100 percent certain that the marriage would work on the day they got married. I am an attorney and we make all kinds of decisions in the legal world based on less than 100 proof. People go to prison every day based on clearing the reasonable doubt bar. But it can’t be any other way because if we demanded 100 percent proof for every crime, there would be very very very few convictions.

What believers CANNOT do is scientifically prove that there is a God. That’s impossible. I am a believer and I absolutely admit this. At some point, you must have faith to fill in the gap.

But atheists CANNOT scientifically prove that there isn’t a God either. If you are intellectually honest as an atheist, you have to admit that there is at least some small chance that you might be wrong and you have made this cosmic bet based on something that you cannot prove. As a result, you are living your life on faith too. It’s a different “type” of faith, but it’s faith all the same.

Neither side has a monopoly on rationality.

Of course not. But nobody can prove that anything doesn’t exist. That is impossible. I cannot prove that there are no little green men. I can only offer up an alternate explanation of a UFO that does not involve a little green man and conclude that little green men do not have to exist to explain things. That’s it. You cannot disprove God any more than you can disprove any other non testable hypothesis. You can test the products of what someone might claim to be the work of God. So far, everything can be explained by reasons other than God so folks are free to push back on the God hypothesis. Why does this matter other than as an intellectual exercise? When the public square imposes rules on all of us (abortion) based on someone’s understanding of Gad.