Dirty

I'll say right off the bat that I consider myself an atheist and I'm not angry or a 12 year old. I'm pretty uncaring about labels, but by definition I would be an atheist since atheism is basically the non-belief in a God or Gods. I don't know why you equate atheism with anti-religion. I know some atheists are anti-religion but that's not what atheism is.

For myself, religion just is not a part of my life. It isn't something I really think about or care about. I don't care what others believe in either, though I do find it stupid that some people let religion run their lives. I personally don't consider atheism a religion. Like you said in your first paragraph, I consider atheism a term given to people who do not believe in a God.

TockTockTock

Well put.

You're right, but I am laughing more at the concept of a non-religion (I don't consider it one) of having a church. Maybe a meeting place/group/gathering, but I wouldn't refer to it as a church (but I'd rather argue about semantics at this point).

GeddyBass2112

One of the best posts I've read.

MOST atheists I've met are happy for me to practice my religion as long as I leave them to their own beliefs.

Burning Down

You hit the nail squarely on the head there regarding atheism.

djchameleon

ty for that. I used to think that all Atheists were strong ones and I didn't know about the ones that just simply lack belief all together.

__________________

Fame, fortune, power, titties. People say these are the most crucial things in life, but you can have a pocket full o' gold and it doesn't mean sh*t if you don't have someone to share that gold with. Seems simple. Yet it's an important lesson to learn. Even lone wolves run in packs sometimes.

crukster

My friend, you've already proven it with your assumptions on my ethnic kin.


There's a lot more to life than the words compassion and love. Take your compassion and love to the darkest corners of the globe and see how far they get you.

Establish a society based on your "compassion and love" and see how long it lasts.

If you don't want to follow a faith, or pledge to a religion, that's your own decision. But any sane, morally upstanding person on the planet, whether they're religious or not, can't deny the inherent practicality, functionality, and pure basic righteousness of the Abrahamic system. Either you don't know it well enough, in which case, study. Or you do know it, and you think the whole lesson of love thy neighbour, love thy Planet, love and assist your fellow Human in the name of Humanity and Almighty God is MOOT and worthless.

In which case this discussion is moot and worthless, because you're obviously using the word "moral" as some sort of semantic wordplay, referring to the idea of appeasement and a good looking "social image."

Fuk social image that's as fickle as a cat. What WORKS is better than what "looks nice". I'm talking about doing actual good, actual progressive things, having a clean heart and mind and approaching the World for what it is. You don't HAVE to be religious to do that.

If you do that, though, you'd have no problem with religion itself, only the people that corrupt it. Because religion itself is the establishment OF those rules and ideas, passing them down to each generation, building on them and continuing to progress. If you think a certain idea that's been passed down has been corrupted, or isn't functional, then fine, sure that's your own intelligent right and let's all look into it.

But at the very basic core of what RELIGION is, set aside any specific religion, but religion itself, at it's core:

Well it's the idea of writing down what works, and passing it on to the next group of people. So that they dont spend a long time kicking around in the mud, trying to solve the same problems that were solved a millenia ago.

We have new problems. We've got a healthy body but rotten leaves. And you wanna pull up the tree by the roots and start over?

Before you can even do that, anyway, you would have to be an expert on every religion in order to say that every tenent in EVERY religion, every rule, every moral, every guideline, is wrong.

Thou shalt not Kill, is that wrong?

Thou shalt not steal, is that wrong?

Honour thy Mother and thy Father, is that wrong?

You see where I'm going with this.

I'm not saying people should neccessarily follow them unquestionably, or that they should follow them because they've been "told" to, or that they should follow them for fear of Hell. I'm not saying that at all. I am saying they should follow them because they choose to, because they believe in them, and because they recognise their practicality in the real World.

Hell, I AM going to Hell. That's what Islam says - me, you, everyone, regardless of what you believe, burns in the flames as penance relative to their sins. Who can say they've never sinned, never done anything they knew was wrong? But through that penance you understand your sins and progress onwards to Paradise, Heaven; whatever that may be - EVERYONE. So long as they accept their sins and understand the functionality of the Universe. How long you burn is up to you. Not that I'm judging or anything, simply stating what I believe. If you disagree and think I'm crazy, so-be-it, good luck to you man. That's your choice, if you like fire, play with fire, what can I say.

I'm not saying be a sheep and follow the herd. I'm also saying don't go to the other extreme and be a stubborn sheep and stop the herd.

I'm saying stop being a SHEEP. Be a shepherd. Be a Human. Don't form ideaologies adjacent or parallel or "anti-" to others, because when they fall, you'll fall with them. I am saying form intelligent functional ideas, that will welcome any shared goal with any group, because the ideas are functional, and intelligent I.E. It is important what you DO, not what you call it. Muslim, Jew, Christian, Buddhist, Agnostic hell even "atheist" - I don't give a ****, I care about what people DO.

If you write off every religion just because it's a source of authority, then you're as bad as the fundamentalists.

I am saying approach religious ideas with an intelligent mind, apply what works, and fix what doesn't.

I am saying have faith in Existence.

Have faith in Almighty God.



It's personally speaking - if I weren't religious I wouldn't call myself an atheist. I'd just say "I'm not religious, I have no belief about that stuff"

Either it factors into your life and the way you approach things, if that's the case you are religious.

Or it doesn't and you're simply not a religious person.

I don't like labels, maybe some people like the term atheist because it gives a collective "group" to the non-believers, a collective "voice"

well if I weren't religious, I wouldn't want a collective voice, personally. I'd just have my own voice. Because I think if you want to lend your voice to a "collective voice" or group, then it's better to actually have something to say, instead of just "I don't believe in what those other groups are saying", get what I'm saying?

Like I said, I don't care, it matters more what people do. I just think the name is innaccurate, and I think a lot (not neccessarily all) of "atheists" aren't doing good things for the Planet. The idea of atheism is self-defeating imo.

GeddyBass2112

Well said crukster!

Sneer

My two cents on the subject...

There is absolutely no way of proving the existence of a god, yet there is also no way of disproving the existence of a god. Obviously, this is where belief comes in.

I personally see the most rational stance on the subject as being Agnostic. There is no way of knowing either way, so just live your life as it unfolds before you.

I used to be very anti-religious, I freely admit that. I viewed the idea of living your life by a set of codes and regulations as constricting; alienating yourself from the true nature of being. As I mature and accrued a modicum of perspective, however, I came to appreciate that people's religious beliefs are just their own way of dealing with a world that, ultimately, is alien to all human beings in some aspect. It's necessary to assert meaning to an existence that often appears meaningless, and Judaism, Christianity etc etc are just some of the ways in which people do that. They offer structure and security.

Others will disagree, and I respect everybody's beliefs, these are just mine.

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djchameleon

hmmm, I thought Agnostics were more of the belief that something may exist but they aren't sure what. They do believe there might be a higher power so they consider themselves at least spiritual. That was always my impression of what an Agnostic is. I could be completely wrong though.

__________________

Fame, fortune, power, titties. People say these are the most crucial things in life, but you can have a pocket full o' gold and it doesn't mean sh*t if you don't have someone to share that gold with. Seems simple. Yet it's an important lesson to learn. Even lone wolves run in packs sometimes.

music_phantom13

As long as I'm here, I'll put my views up for the world since I'm a little different than a lot of people. I was raised Christian and I'm still Christian, though I don't consider myself the best example. I grew up in the Lutheran Missouri Synod faith, going to church every Sunday. What I didn't like is that most people didn't do anything. They went to church and maybe were involved in meetings for the church and all, but no form of community service. The youth group, which I was involved in, did a tiny bit of community service events, but still not much. And for the adults, the extent of the community involvement was a yearly event holding up signs saying that abortion kills babies and the like. That really pisses me off. Also, during my mid to late teenage years a lot of members sort of looked down on me and thought I was a bad person because of what I did outside of church (drugs). The hypocrisy of a group that preached living like Jesus but, for a majority of members, never bothered to actually try to help anyone that needed it, just doesn't do it for me. Instead I volunteer my time helping people. This further separated me from my church, because I chose to volunteer in DC at a needle exchange clinic. I was actually told to my face by multiple people that I was doing a horrible thing, so I said **** it I'm done. I'd prefer to spend my time helping people that need it than worshiping God and saying Christians should help everyone but then deeming some people unworthy.