Q's for atheists and maybe hardcore agnostics

[adio 5,000+ posts]

I wouldent do that, you can post in all my threads //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/cuddle.gif.bd1b29c179c0482f8313dbd790b74c94.gif

thanks

 

[97gp 5,000+ posts]

thanks

If it was someone else's thread I might have tried to get people riled up with racism, but I find this thread interesting.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[educatedink 10+ year member]

As someone raised in the midst of the Bible Belt, in a split Catholic/Southern Baptist home, and after pursuing many years of higher education; I have the following thoughts:

1) Religion is complete and total crap; created by man to gain power and wealth. Religion differs from faith in regards to a person may have and hold faith without religion. I do not have any problems with faith. This applies to all beliefs in an higher power.

2) Evolution really did happen. I'm not sold complete on the ape theory. Have religious people explain dinosaurs.

3)All Chrisitan sects believe they're the only ones going to heaven. Southern Baptists just feel they should be first.

 

[dragnix 5,000+ posts]

As someone raised in the midst of the Bible Belt, in a split Catholic/Southern Baptist home, and after pursuing many years of higher education; I have the following thoughts:
1) Religion is complete and total crap; created by man to gain power and wealth. Religion differs from faith in regards to a person may have and hold faith without religion. I do not have any problems with faith. This applies to all beliefs in an higher power.

2) Evolution really did happen. I'm not sold complete on the ape theory. Have religious people explain dinosaurs.

3)All Chrisitan sects believe they're the only ones going to heaven. Southern Baptists just feel they should be first.

that's pretty much the only problem with religion. Who's to say who's right about what?

 

[educatedink 10+ year member]

And....

4) See my picture to the left.... snowing in Louisiana..... or is that God's dandruff?

 

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

As someone raised in the midst of the Bible Belt, in a split Catholic/Southern Baptist home, and after pursuing many years of higher education; I have the following thoughts:
1) Religion is complete and total crap; created by man to gain power and wealth. Religion differs from faith in regards to a person may have and hold faith without religion. I do not have any problems with faith. This applies to all beliefs in an higher power.

2) Evolution really did happen. I'm not sold complete on the ape theory. Have religious people explain dinosaurs.

3)All Chrisitan sects believe they're the only ones going to heaven. Southern Baptists just feel they should be first.

Turn or burn.

 

[3kracing 10+ year member]

I'm not sure if I'm the only one that thinks Scientology is kind of like Christianity when it first started. 2000 or so years ago when Christianity began everyone laughed at it and called it a cult/a joke. Just like we do now with Scientology. Maybe in 2000 more years Scientology will be the main religion.

I just think religion causes wars and without it mankind would be better off

 

[educatedink 10+ year member]

For a complete all around laugh, wouldn't it be funny if L. Ron Hubbard's great (many generations) grandfather started Christianity for sh.its and giggles and to make a few more bucks too?

 

[3kracing 10+ year member]

For a complete all around laugh, wouldn't it be funny if L. Ron Hubbard's great (many generations) grandfather started Christianity for sh.its and giggles and to make a few more bucks too?

Haha just what I'm sayin!

 

[Mitch86 5,000+ posts]

Religion is an excuse for not knowing all the answers to the universe. It's easier to yell that the guy in sky did it than to figure out how it actually happened...it just went WAYYYYYY too far. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[Tiger Bass 5,000+ posts]

i always enjoyed this story whether its a true story or not...
A University professor at a well known institution of higher learning challenged his students with this question. "Did God create everything that exists?"

A student bravely replied, "Yes he did!"

"God created everything?" The professor asked.

"Yes sir, he certainly did," the student replied.

The professor answered, "If God created everything; then God created evil. And, since evil exists, and according to the principal that our works define who we are, then we can assume God is evil."

The student became quiet and did not answer the professor's hypothetical definition. The professor, quite pleased with himself, boasted to the students that he had proven once more that the Christian faith was a myth.

Another student raised his hand and said, "May I ask you a question, professor?"

"Of course", replied the professor.

The student stood up and asked, "Professor, does cold exist?"

"What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never been cold?" The other students snickered at the young man's question.

The young man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat. Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-460F) is the total absence of heat; and all matter becomes inert and incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We have created this word to describe how we feel if we have no heat."

The student continued, "Professor, does darkness exist?"

The professor responded, "Of course it does."

The student replied, "Once again you are wrong sir, darkness does not exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact, we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present."

Finally the young man asked the professor, "Sir, does evil exist?"

Now uncertain, the professor responded, "Of course, as I have already said. We see it everyday. It is in the daily examples of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.

To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist, sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the darkness that comes when there is no light."

The professor sat down.

I don't agree. I feel it is completely plausible to have a completely neutral moral disposition. You don't desire to hurt people, but you don't desire to help them. With neutral being the base, you describe evil being the desire to hurt people to the left of the neutral side and humanity being the desire to help to the right of neutral. Much like a number line set at 0, left side is negative, right side is positive.

 

[DejaWiz 5,000+ posts]

i was thinkin about some stuff last night. i was also gonna include some questions that i had found on the web (yahooed 'tough questions for atheists', but decided to just use my own) plus i woulda just PM'ed ppl who i feel are atheists on here, but that woulda took too long.
1.) wouldn't it benefit you to hoard everything now, i mean right now, since you believe there is no afterlife?

2.) to hoard more, you probably have to do some sheisty things. but why wouldn't you do it, since ultimately, you'd have no one to answer to?

3.) does an atheists have morals?? if so, where do they come from/what are they based on?

4.) if u are an atheist with morals, why? who or what does it benefit?

5.) if an atheists says 'i'm a good person', who are you/they comparing themselves to?

6.) instead of believing in God, do atheists believe strictly in brain power/human intelligence only?

7.) would an atheist ever practice yoga or meditation? looking at the background and the the intended purposes of both of these, why would you/they?

9.) do atheists try to discredit religions that are not one of the big 3?to me, i always hear about atheists hating christianity only (so it seems)

 

8.) this is my favorite one, but i never got an answer to it....... if humans descended from apes, why do apes still exist, since humans are more advantageous?? ((u don't have to answer this, but i always wanted to know. its a silly question, but i like it.))

 

1. No, I'm not paranoid of the world ending, so hoarding stuff is foolish and selfish.

 

2. I have society to answer to. "Shiesty" actions would likely constitute breaking laws, and I'm not about to do that for any one or any reason.

 

3. Morals? Yes. Based on how I was raised to utilize my conscience to my advantage. Although I prefer to use the term ethics, as acting ethical is going about life in a manner acceptable to a given society.

 

4. It benefits me and those I come in contact with.

 

5. Comparing themselves to other ethical people- people that act in a manner that is acceptable to society. Usually written and enforced laws lay the foundation for ethical action.... a good conscience takes over from there.

 

6. While I don't place faith in any kind of deity, I do place faith in other people. This faith will either be strengthened or weakened on a case by case (individual person) basis dependent on the results of interaction.

 

7. It depends on the purpose of the yoga or meditation. There have been many sources for and reasons to do either. Yoga as a form of exercise doesn't mean one has to partake in it to pay homage to a god or way of life. Meditation as a way to shut out the outside world/distractions to be able to apply some critical thought to something or to just as a means to relax and unwind also doesn't meant it has to have pious implications. Martial Arts is a good example for both... partake in yoga or another form of extreme stretching/kata to improve flexibility and practice stances and moves, as well as meditate on those stances and moves so it's the only thing of focus at that time.

 

8. Same reason there are differing genus's of insects, arachnids, birds, and primates in the same family: adaptation to changing environments over a long period of time. Yes, the continental shelves are still moving and environments will continue to change, and species will need to adapt or face extinction. Humans are placed in the family hominidae, which also contains chimpanzees, orangutans, and gorillas.

 

9. A structured belief system is a structured belief system, regardless of what it tells people to believe in or worship.

 

[adio 5,000+ posts]

deja,

i just read the answers to my Q's and then noticed your sig 'george carlin RIP'. if YOU are an atheist, why would george be resting? and who or what would give him peace?

 

[dragnix 5,000+ posts]

deja,i just read the answers to my Q's and then noticed your sig 'george carlin RIP'. if YOU are an atheist, why would george be resting? and who or what would give him peace?

 

Perhaps it is just an expression pressed on to people by the idea of Christianity and some atheist have no problem in accepting it as it really does no harm, especially when we're talking about the "comfort" of the dead.

 

Or perhaps peace here is just not having people cursing his name while he is dead. It may not be actual peace for him but maybe peace for those who are still alive and are around to hear such criticism. As far as resting goes, could just mean he doesn't have to have to deal with being alive anymore, which some people can consider that to be a good thing.

 

I'm not even sure of what i'm saying //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crazy.gif.c13912c32de98515d3142759a824dae7.gif

 

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

I'm not even sure of what i'm saying //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crazy.gif.c13912c32de98515d3142759a824dae7.gif

No more alcohol for you before noon.