I my family could care less about if I am an Atheist or not, its the kids at my school that are the intolerant jerks.
Poll: A Question To Atheists
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I chose "other" because my family was quite religious as I grew up, but weren't conservative in the least. I was raised Catholic and attended a somewhat liberal church (as far as churches go, anyway); I was even an alter girl and went to catechism for years. I stopped believing in Christianity when I was around 13. I didn't abandon religion in order to go against my family's ideals, it just didn't sit well with me personally.
Well, it all depends on what you mean by 'greater meaning'. As far as some sort of meaning beyond what humans attach to life, then no, I don't think such a thing exists (or could exist) without deities or other supernatrual phenomena (for the purposes of this discussion let's group deities together with any other supernatural concepts)SODAssault said:
IMHO, people are just intelligent animals... we've evolved to the point where we start seeing meaning where there is none, and people start to belive there's some sort of greater plan or meaning to the universe... which personally, I don't belive. I only belive life has meaning insofar as what we attach to it...
This doesn't mean I think life is meaningless... I believe going around killing people/causing people pain is absolutely wrong, as you are taking life away from others, and causing pain and grief to those they left behind. However 'greater meaning' in the way that religious people often mean it, I don't believe in. That's just my opinion though, I'm not trying to start an argument.
Religion barely exists in my family. No church, no prayer, nothing. I don't think that has anything to do with my own beliefs though.
Well my dad is Atheist and will sometimes mock Religion in a joking manner, but that doesn't mean he believes people who believe in religion are stupid, he just likes to poke fun.
My Mom is catholic but not a strict one. She believes in a God but doesn't go to church or anytihng like that but doesn't force her beliefs on me or anyone because she believes people are entitled to their own opinion.
Weirdly, I am Atheist but am closest to my Mom.
My Mom is catholic but not a strict one. She believes in a God but doesn't go to church or anytihng like that but doesn't force her beliefs on me or anyone because she believes people are entitled to their own opinion.
Weirdly, I am Atheist but am closest to my Mom.
I'm fifteen, and have only recently ceased believing in some kind of divine entity. I never really believed in a "god" as proposed by most monotheistic religions, but for a long time I thought that there was some kind of supernatural force that couldn't be explained. My family has never been strictly religious, with my Dad being an Agnostic, and my Mom a Universalist. So I doubt that my religious upbringing had anything to do with my newly found outlook.
It was a very tolerant upbringing, that encouraged experiencing as much as possible. The transition into agnosticism was just a result. It led to the understanding that there might be a god, or gods, or there might just be a universal divinity that could be interpreted as science, as magic, or as the power of some god. With a questioning belief in something, the alterior options have their own merit, which is what led to my position.
If I'm not mistaken, that's pretty close to Gnostism.Evilbunny said:
http://www.gnosis.org/gnintro.htm
I'm not that familiar with it, though.
I am Atheist.
My mother attempted a couple times to get us all active in church when I was younger. We would go to a church on Sundays and I would have fun. When we moved, my mother got me and my sister to join this church youth group and I had a blast. I even went to a Prayer Group my school hosted every week. At that time, I was Christan but I started questioning God and my beliefs changed. I was encouraged but never forced. Both me and my sister are Atheist now and when we mention in front of my mom that neither of us believe in God, she gives us bad looks. I know she doesn't like it...
My mother attempted a couple times to get us all active in church when I was younger. We would go to a church on Sundays and I would have fun. When we moved, my mother got me and my sister to join this church youth group and I had a blast. I even went to a Prayer Group my school hosted every week. At that time, I was Christan but I started questioning God and my beliefs changed. I was encouraged but never forced. Both me and my sister are Atheist now and when we mention in front of my mom that neither of us believe in God, she gives us bad looks. I know she doesn't like it...
I wonder that all the time... I still do not know. Since I question it, I do not call myself a Christan. To me, if you commit to a religion, you know there is a God... you don't wonder.letsnoobtehpwns said:
Agnostic-atheist ftw.
I don't believe (and am damn sure) that God doesn't exist, but I know that you can't disprove it.
Don't take this the wrong way, but if you went to a different country and they said that an invisible man in the sky created the earth and that you should obey his commands, would you believe them?
Would you even think for a moment that this could be possible?
No. It's stupid! An invisible dictator of everything! HA!
Step back and look at your religion. Simplify it.
does it include an invisible being?
do you have to blindly obey him?
is there any proof that he exists?
Not to be offensive, but most religions are like this. And most followers do not question it.
I don't believe (and am damn sure) that God doesn't exist, but I know that you can't disprove it.
No... because it's so ridiculous.letsnoobtehpwns said:
Don't take this the wrong way, but if you went to a different country and they said that an invisible man in the sky created the earth and that you should obey his commands, would you believe them?
Would you even think for a moment that this could be possible?
No. It's stupid! An invisible dictator of everything! HA!
Step back and look at your religion. Simplify it.
does it include an invisible being?
do you have to blindly obey him?
is there any proof that he exists?
Not to be offensive, but most religions are like this. And most followers do not question it.
I suppose I'm semi-agnostic, I do believe in certain otherworldly concepts, I just haven't found a convenient label for them yet. But I'm not religious in any traditional sense.
Mum was raised a Catholic but never completely swallowed the doctrine, I would have described her as agnostic, Dad was raised in Nazi Germany so religion probably seemed a bit laughable in that context, so he was athetist. My parents didn't talk to me about religion much. They did however give me a Bible to read when I was very young. I really wanted to believe in it but saw a distinct lack of supporting evidence in the real world to back up what was in it. The world of the Bible seemed kind of exciting, with an almighty God interveing in human lives on a regular basis and doing all sorts of crazy, wonderful and tragic things on a grand scale that everyone could see and leaving lots of evidence behind - of course in my actual real life God didn't seem to be really doing anything like that. He certainly wasn't smiting down the bullies at school who were beating me up on a regular basis, or raining fish and bread on the starving people in Ethiopia at the time. The conclusion I reached - it's a fairytale. My parents also gave me other religious stuff to read like tales of the Greek and Egyptian gods etc. I didn't believe in those either for the same reason.
Although I don't believe in any orthodox religion and probably never will, I'm actually quite jealous of religious people. Having a set of rules laid down that you can follow and also a sense that you'll potentially go somewhere nice when you'll die is a much more comforting option than the idea that right and wrong is all relative and when you die nothing happens. The closest thing I've read that matches my actual worldview is the Satanic Bible, but even that has whole chapters worth of stuff in it that I think is just kinda silly.
Mum was raised a Catholic but never completely swallowed the doctrine, I would have described her as agnostic, Dad was raised in Nazi Germany so religion probably seemed a bit laughable in that context, so he was athetist. My parents didn't talk to me about religion much. They did however give me a Bible to read when I was very young. I really wanted to believe in it but saw a distinct lack of supporting evidence in the real world to back up what was in it. The world of the Bible seemed kind of exciting, with an almighty God interveing in human lives on a regular basis and doing all sorts of crazy, wonderful and tragic things on a grand scale that everyone could see and leaving lots of evidence behind - of course in my actual real life God didn't seem to be really doing anything like that. He certainly wasn't smiting down the bullies at school who were beating me up on a regular basis, or raining fish and bread on the starving people in Ethiopia at the time. The conclusion I reached - it's a fairytale. My parents also gave me other religious stuff to read like tales of the Greek and Egyptian gods etc. I didn't believe in those either for the same reason.
Although I don't believe in any orthodox religion and probably never will, I'm actually quite jealous of religious people. Having a set of rules laid down that you can follow and also a sense that you'll potentially go somewhere nice when you'll die is a much more comforting option than the idea that right and wrong is all relative and when you die nothing happens. The closest thing I've read that matches my actual worldview is the Satanic Bible, but even that has whole chapters worth of stuff in it that I think is just kinda silly.
My Dad brought me and my sister to church every Sunday until for 2 years but I was too young to ever really pay attention in church. But we stopped going and basically stopped caring about it all.
Yes. But my theory is that if there is a god and he built me, then he built me to be an athiest so its his fault. Probably not a reasonable theory but meh.letsnoobtehpwns said:
My mom is very open and not very religious. My dad is a bit religious but doesn't care that I am an atheist. He seems to think that suddenly one day I will change. But neither of them pushed it on me besides getting me baptised.
I was baptised and all, grew in a religi(Spelling fail) family, However under all these circumstances I turned Agnostic. I personally didn't care about religeon(fucking spelling) but couldnt give two hoots if someone else did. Its their personal opinion and I have no right to object to it, Unless you come flying at me with a bible demanding I convert in which case I'll be cruel about it.... Drink the "Holy Water" perhaps?
My mom(who I live with) is agnostic and always gave me the option on what I want to believe. My father is atheist and also said he would support anything I wanted to do. My grandmother(who I see many times a week) is religious and I believe she grew up in a very religious household brought me to church once and I have not gone back. My aunt however tried to get me to like convert or something while I was visiting. She said it was because she loves me but if she did, she would accept me. Anyway, I myself am Atheist.