Belief is God is by faith, not argument.

Why do I need an argument for not believing if I do not have faith?

The idea of God simply doesn't resonate with me--and it never has, for whatever reason.

The thing I particularly can't wrap my brain around is why anyone would choose to worship a God who would choose to cause so much suffering to those who very clearly have done nothing wrong. If there is someone up there deciding that a baby should die after living only days, for example, then I think he's not worthy of my adulation.

I also think the idea of God was created to make people feel better. It's really sucky to think a baby would die for no reason, or that when your husband dies you'll never see him again. Humans are designed to find meaning in things. Hence, God.

OP here...thank you for your thoughtful responses...please keep them coming...I just wanted to clarify something important:

I did not mean that atheism=unhappy lives. Rather, I meant that many weighty topics are hashed out here on a daily basis, but almost wholly lacking from these discussions is faith. People seem to face the hardest issues of human life on their own, without any sense of a Truth larger than themselves. So I wondered why. Was that a deliberate, thoughtful decision? Or something that just never seemed important? And if it was a conscious decision, what motivated that choice?

I hope this makes sense. And I will gladly answer the opposite question, just not this moment. I really just want to hear from y'all for now.

Anonymous wrote:I've found, totally anecdotally of course, that those who rail most against people with faith are those who struggle with it themselves at a certain level. As someone who does not believe in God and doesn't struggle at all with the question, I don't have any snarkiness or disdain for those who do. As PP mentioned, I think it could be comforting to have such beliefs. But, I'm not hardwired to have them. I wonder if there is a God gene or a series of God genes. What makes some people capable of believing and others not capable? It's not entirely upbringing and I'm sure it's not entirely genetic. Maybe it's some combo?

Maybe some, not all, hardcore religious people have a gene similar to an addiction gene. A guy I went to high school with was really into drugs, drinking, etc. while in high school. Then when I ran into him a couple years after he graduated, he had completely cleaned up and "found god". He is now born again christian and very active in his evangelical church. This may be an extreme example, but DH and I have known other people with similar stories.

Forget for a minute the snide people. We have snide Christians too.

But even Christians define faith as a gift from God, ie beyond reason and proof. If that is the case, why would you expect nonbelievers to understand or agree? They don't see the point in believing in something that cannot be proven. Can you blame them?

If you think about the universe, many of the people with the most insight into its creation do not believe in God. If you think about the Bible, many of the people in it did not believe that Jesus was God, even though they met him.

Some people could be nicer about it, but the plain truth is that faith is incomprehensible based on physical evidence.

I've found, totally anecdotally of course, that those who rail most against people with faith are those who struggle with it themselves at a certain level. As someone who does not believe in God and doesn't struggle at all with the question, I don't have any snarkiness or disdain for those who do. As PP mentioned, I think it could be comforting to have such beliefs. But, I'm not hardwired to have them. I wonder if there is a God gene or a series of God genes. What makes some people capable of believing and others not capable? It's not entirely upbringing and I'm sure it's not entirely genetic. Maybe it's some combo?

Occam's razor. I'm a science girl.

Also, I'm very happy, love DC and DH beyond measure, and am financially prudent and healthy (workout and watch what I eat). I grew up religious and the churchgoers at my church were gossipy, small-minded, and judgmental. I hated everything about it, and it always seemed silly to me that we were worshiping some long-dead Middle Eastern dude who had a few good ideas and some really bad/misogynistic ones.

However, I realize faith is very powerful for some people, so to each his own -- it's just not for me.

It's not dumb to believe in God. I often envy people who seem to have an unshakable faith. I just haven't been able to believe. I can't get past the "thresshold" issue (for me) that if there were an all-powerful God, why is he letting people, especially kids, suffer in unspeakable ways? Child sex abuse, torture, mass murder, mass rape, and so on.

I grew up in a non-religious family - wasn't part of our lives at all, though I did go to church a handful of times with friends over the years. I think adopting a faith as an adult is fairly difficult - I suppose I like the notion of a church community and the comfort that religious beliefs give to others, but not having grown up with religion in my life it seems like I'd have to really set a lot of logic aside to go there at this point in my life. I also second the above PP - my marriage isn't broken, not depressed, not overwhelmed by my kids. You can have a happy life without following a particular faith.

Anonymous wrote:My marriage is not broken, I'm not depressed and I'm not overwhelmed by my kids. I also do not believe in God. I believe in Science.

I do not believe that human beings are the highest form of life and I'd be sad if there weren't something bigger/better out there, but God...don't need him/her/it.

Bottom line: I don't think you need to have faith in order to be a good person.

I don't have any disdain or disrespect for those that do believe, but I'd prefer that they not shove it down my throat just as I respect their beliefs and do not force mine on them.

Why do you believe in God?

Same here.I was raised Christian and my parents are pretty religious. My parents used to beat us. They were also emotionally abusive in addition to physically abusive and I used to pray to god to help me. Help never came and when I was around 12-13 I started realizing what a farce it all was. My parents believe they are good Christians, they were and are highly respected members of their church. But I have lost all respect for them and I most certainly do not believe in god and haven't since childhood.

I simply see no objective evidence, and no reason to.

Now why are you assuming that the snarkiness, broken relationships, misbehaved children, etc only come from atheists and their families?

I think it's human to want to understand the environment and control it, but I think science is a better instrument for that than religion or magic. Not perfect, but better.

My marriage is not broken, I'm not depressed and I'm not overwhelmed by my kids. I also do not believe in God. I believe in Science.

I do not believe that human beings are the highest form of life and I'd be sad if there weren't something bigger/better out there, but God...don't need him/her/it.

Bottom line: I don't think you need to have faith in order to be a good person.

I don't have any disdain or disrespect for those that do believe, but I'd prefer that they not shove it down my throat just as I respect their beliefs and do not force mine on them.

Why do you believe in God?

I don't think it's dumb; I just don't believe. To me, it's akin to believing in Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. I haven't "wrestled with it" and it doesn't bother me. It also doesn't bother me if others believe. To each their own.

I have been reading DCUM for a while now, and I feel steeped in broken marriages, angry/depressed/overwhelmed parents, misbehaving children, and general snarkiness. Almost never do I see a reference to a deep and profound faith, or even a thought about a Creator. I do see plenty of snide comments about faith being only for the stupid, the weak, the unthinking, but I can't recall a single specific reason as to why belief in a Creator is so obviously dumb.

So now is your chance: if you do not believe in God, why not? Have you wrestled with this question and constructed a tight argument, or do you just not particularly care?