Anonymous wrote:OP here:

I care very much what others think of me and will continue to do so in order to be liked and not made fun off or viewed as some kind of freak.

You said you were 23, right?

One of the great things about getting older is becoming more comfortable in who you are and settling into your beliefs, while at the same time being able to have empathy for the beliefs (or nonbeliefs) of others.

It makes up for the aches and pains and saggy skin.

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.

Also, things go wrong with pregnancies and childbirth ALL THE TIME. Miscarriages, stillbirth, preemies, chromosomal abnormalities. Have you not experienced friends or family dealing with these things?

And, just because you are unable to understand or explain doesn't mean that it can not. Or even that something today is unexplainable won't be explained through science in the future.

Anonymous wrote:It is the latest American fashion, nothing else. I will die out just like it did in most cultures that tried to instill it as the official state religion.

I grew up in a mostly atheist household, although my parents were not nearly as militant as some atheists on DCUM LOL I find atheism kind of pointless and very narrow-minded. It's a pitiful way to go through life. I'd rather be happy (or at least at peace) than right.

I agree with the bolded part but not the rest. I think you see world in black/white... aka narrow minded.

It has nothing to do with intelligence.

No reason or need to believe in any gods existence + lack of evidence = atheist (for me, anyway).

I never decided to be an atheist. In fact, I was raised in an evangelical Christian home and loved going to church. I just realized at some point that I didn't believe in Christianity any more. Then I realized that I didn't believe in God at all. No drama, no conscious rejection of faith; my beliefs just evolved.

I'm a pretty happy person and completely uninterested in others' religious beliefs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here, I'm not a troll. Yes, I'm VERY insecure, but I don't lack any critical thinking skills at all and I find offense with your post. I am a free thinker because I don't let religion influence my beliefs.

"Free thinker" is term that was historically used to describe atheists. You may be a critical thinker, but you aren't a "free thinker."

I haven't seen any evidence that OP is capable of critical thinking. I don't say that to mean or nasty, just factual.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:God created matter, time , physical laws, and science. He exists outside of all these creations. That's a lot for our tiny minds to comprehend. I'm sure our heads would explode quickly if we were exposed to Gods intellect in their present capacity.

I mean, you can't deny science. The Universe was made 13.8 billion years ago. Until I see otherwise I'm inclined to beleive so. God may have played a part, but I don't know about that.

Have you seen the Universe created 13.8 billion years ago? O for goodness sake!

Another Agnostic/Athiest here (like to refer to myself as agnostiest), however I was raised Catholic. I don't see any evidence as to what happens when we die (aside from our body decomposing). I do think there is a spark or spirit within us, but again, no idea what happens to it. I think religion was developed by man (I mean the bible was written hundreds of years after Jesus died).

I believe in evolution and science, but with that being said, I don't feel that the absence of proof in a higher power necessarily means one doesn't exist. I think there's a lot we don't know, and may never know.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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.

Science has the ability to explain everything in time.

I have delivered two children personally and been present at other births. There is nothing miraculous about biology and technology. Sorry.

And you know that exactly how?

It's really funny how much ignorance can be demonstrated by those who claim to be enlightened.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, for me the question is... well which version of "God" should someone believe in, and why? There are thousands of versions of god that humans have created. Which one is the right one, and why are all the others the wrong version of God? For example - do you believe in a vengeful god or loving god? Why? How are you making your decision? What qualities and attributes are the right and wrong ones, and how are you making your decisions? Based on what?

There's an oft quoted saying: "I just believe in one less god."

Atheism is more than not believing in anthropomorphous gods. It is materialistic in its essense, i.e. if I can't see it, it must not exist. It is a lot more restrictive than many people realize. It's one thing to say you don't believe in, say, Christian gods. It's quite another to say that what we can't observe/explain in materialistic terms cannot possibly exist.

I don't find it restrictive to limit my world view to concepts and beliefs that are evidence based. There is no objective evidence for the existence of God or gods. God or gods was the explanation that pre-Enlightenment people used for events that they could not explain. There is no less wonder in the world if we rely on science instead of mysticism.

There is a lot of nuance between atheism and any particular religion. But if you don't find it "restrictive to limit," I'll find it hard to explain to you. I don't believe in the Book the way Christians and others believe. Still, I'm nowhere near atheism. I think it is because I allow myself not to limit my observations to today's science.

Anonymous wrote:OP here,

I don't care what you believe in, I just don't get why you believe in it and the only thing that bothers me is the disrespect and intolerance I get from Atheists.

Apparently you do care, and if it didn't bother you wouldn't have started this thread which shows disrespect and intolerance of atheists.

We don't need you to get it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:God created matter, time , physical laws, and science. He exists outside of all these creations. That's a lot for our tiny minds to comprehend. I'm sure our heads would explode quickly if we were exposed to Gods intellect in their present capacity.

I mean, you can't deny science. The Universe was made 13.8 billion years ago. Until I see otherwise I'm inclined to beleive so. God may have played a part, but I don't know about that.

Science is a creation. God exists outside of science.

Where is your measurable proof of this? Which god are you talking about? What are your sources?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:God created matter, time , physical laws, and science. He exists outside of all these creations. That's a lot for our tiny minds to comprehend. I'm sure our heads would explode quickly if we were exposed to Gods intellect in their present capacity.

I mean, you can't deny science. The Universe was made 13.8 billion years ago. Until I see otherwise I'm inclined to beleive so. God may have played a part, but I don't know about that.

Science is a creation. God exists outside of science.

Anonymous wrote:OP here,

I don't care what you believe in, I just don't get why you believe in it and the only thing that bothers me is the disrespect and intolerance I get from Atheists.

NP. While I agree you are overly concerned with what others think about you, I believe that you have experienced these attitudes from others.

But I think the point you are missing OP is that the disrespect and intolerance you receive from 'Atheists' is actually from a small subset of atheists, and likely those in your age bracket as your age group tends to generally be more overtly evangelical in their positions, whatever they may be - it is a hallmark of your phase in life.

An equivalent but flipped position would be me writing off all Christians based on the folks picketing outside the Planned Parenthood clinics.

I can't speak for all atheists, but I know that most people wouldn't even know I am one - I (irregularly) attend Church with my family as it matters to my spouse and rarely discuss religion in my every day life. I also have respect for those who hold to other belief systems. The only time I might feel disrespect or intolerance to someone with religious beliefs is when they use those beliefs to justify activities that harm others.

I am an agnostic/atheist because I have never seen any evidence that god/s or an afterlife exist. The stories written by men thousands of years ago and then rewritten and translated and re-translated don't count as evidence for me.

I find it difficult to believe in a higher being who creates an imperfect world with imperfect creatures in it and then lets us have at it while expecting us to worship him/her/it even though he/she/it doesn't ever show a face or pop in to say hello every once in a millenia.

Also I always felt the angry god of the old testament was fairly repulsive. What about that story where he sends the angel to kill all the first borns of the Egyptians? Horrifying. They didn't do anything to deserve that. (By the way, do you think those innocent babes went straight to heaven?) Or sending a flood to kill all of humanity (including children) except for one family because he couldn't stand us anymore? Maybe he should have made us better beings in the first place. Anyway, this is not a god I want to believe in.

Jesus had some pretty great teachings and I'm cool with that. Doesn't mean I believe he had to "die for our sins" (never made sense to me) or that he rose from the dead. The idea that god impregnates a teenager with his own son just seems bizarre.

You probably don't believe in Greco-Roman deities or the Norse gods/goddesses. Why not?

In the end, I actually don't care what you believe. It's your call. Religion brings a lot of comfort to people. Fine. But it doesn't bring comfort to me and I don't know why that bothers you.