Why are you an atheist?

Hank_Jones

Beruthiel wrote: »

Brought up in a very religious, catholic home.

Just came to the realisation that religion is a load horsesh!t which is clearly man made once you take a good, hard look at it.

This is exactly my experience with regards religion.

Was always forced to attend mass as a child, but eventually realised that
it is all just a series of stories that have very little bearing in reality.

Malari

Rasheed wrote: »

Sorry, am I the 'op'? I'm new to this so I don't know if that's me!

Also who is Odin??

Yes, you are the OP - Original Poster. Or what you've written in the first post is the OP - Original Post

Plus...you've never heard of Odin? :eek: Time to look up your Norse mythology

shizz

Rasheed wrote: »

Sorry, am I the 'op'? I'm new to this so I don't know if that's me!

Also who is Odin??

Father of Thor, king of Asgard.

Rasheed

Malari wrote: »

Yes, you are the OP - Original Poster. Or what you've written in the first post is the OP - Original Post

Plus...you've never heard of Odin? :eek: Time to look up your Norse mythology

Thanks lads, sorry I'm not hectic on computers! Il look up Odin now, ye have me curious!

Sarky

The Norse Pantheon really are a great bunch of lads and lasses. Some of the sh*t they got up to, it makes the Abrahamic god's adventures look like Ann And Barry Go To The Shop While Nothing Happens. Definitely the kind of gods you'd buy a pint for.

Sonics2k

Sarky wrote: »

The Norse Pantheon really are a great bunch of lads and lasses. Some of the sh*t they got up to, it makes the Abrahamic god's adventures look like Ann And Barry Go To The Shop While Nothing Happens. Definitely the kind of gods you'd buy a pint for.

I don't see any Ice Giants around here... Odin must be real!

real_irishken

I suspect I probably will be one of those 'hypocrites' who doesn't believe in God yet will have my children reared as Catholics. Just for my parents sake, the hassle, could you imagine!

oldrnwisr

Rasheed wrote: »

I don't know anyone that is an atheist and was just wondering why people are atheists, were ye religious at one stage and did something change your mind? Or where ye parents atheists and pass it on? Just curious about it!

I was raised as a Catholic. My parents were devout in an activity sense more than a belief sense (they went every Sunday and novenas, bdms etc. but rebuffed my questions about religion).

I'm an atheist because it's important to me what is actually true. Not knowing is great. It means there's something to find out and there's always something to find out. I can happily say "this is what I know to be true" and say I don't know to everything else.

Was there something that changed my mind? Not one, no. It's kind of a gradual deconversion. As you start to critically examine beliefs, you chip away at the false ones and sometimes when you're finished you're left with atheism.

Sorry I'm kind of rambling a bit now.

If there was one video series I would recommend to explain the process of deconversion it would be this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12rP8ybp13s

Liamario

Well, wouldn't the fairer question be- why are you a theist?

Your question is like asking; why do you not support Manchester united?

Rasheed

^^^^ thanks, tis nice to see it explained in easy to grasp terms!

The Big Red Button

real_irishken wrote: »

I suspect I probably will be one of those 'hypocrites' who doesn't believe in God yet will have my children reared as Catholics. Just for my parents sake, the hassle, could you imagine!

But when you become a parent, won't your kids, and their wellbeing, be the priority? Not making your parents happy, and not avoiding hassle. If you bring a child into the world, you owe it to them to prioritise them.

I won't have my children raised as Catholics because it would be dishonest to tell them stories as truth, when I don't believe the stories to be true myself.

I don't want them to feel that their actions should be justifiable to some sky fairy (or, worse, that they should confess their "sins" to men in strange white coats. FFS, you do your "First Confession" at 7-8 years old, what child that age has "sins" to confess and beg forgiveness for?! )

I want to bring my children up to be good honest people, with strong morals, for the right reasons. Not out of fear of eternal damnation. I want them to want to be good.

I want my children to appreciate the value of life. To understand that this is their one and only chance at life - it's not just a few years you spend on earth, and then an eternity of "bliss" in heaven. This life is your life, this is it, it's the only one you've got. I'd like my children to understand this, and to make the most of the time that they've got here.

Rasheed

Liamario wrote: »

Well, wouldn't the fairer question be- why are you a theist?

Your question is like asking; why do you not support Manchester united?

I'm sorry if my question, or maybe the wording of my question, offended or annoyed some people, I honestly did not mean it to.

My main point was that I don't know any atheists and am curious to know how people made this decision or were they just always atheists if you get me.

If I knew atheists I'd ask them, but the people commenting here are good at explaining it to me and I enjoy getting a few people's point of view!

Liamario

The point I was making Rasheed, is that Atheism should be the default position.

Until I see proof of time travel, I'm not going to believe in it.
Until I see proof of the existence of a god, I'm not going to believe in it.

Personally, I was raised a catholic (although, in hind sight- it was mainly cultural)- but I am also a free thinker and I can't ignore the fact that everything I've been told is based on fiction and wishful thinking.

The Big Red Button

Rasheed wrote: »

I'm sorry if my question, or maybe the wording of my question, offended or annoyed some people, I honestly did not mean it to.

My main point was that I don't know any atheists and am curious to know how people made this decision or were they just always atheists if you get me.

If I knew atheists I'd ask them, but the people commenting here are good at explaining it to me and I enjoy getting a few people's point of view!

You say that you don't know any atheists - it's extremely unlikely.

The majority of my friends and family would assume that I'm Catholic, as I was baptised a Catholic (like most Irish people) and I was brought up Catholic (like most Irish people) and I attended Catholic primary and secondary schools (like most Irish people.)

I don't feel the need to broadcast the fact that I'm not Catholic. Religion isn't important to me, simple as that. So why would it come up in conversation?

Rasheed

chatterpillar wrote: »

You say that you don't know any atheists - it's extremely unlikely.

The majority of my friends and family would assume that I'm Catholic, as I was baptised a Catholic (like most Irish people) and I was brought up Catholic (like most Irish people) and I attended Catholic primary and secondary schools (like most Irish people.)

I don't feel the need to broadcast the fact that I'm not Catholic. Religion isn't important to me, simple as that. So why would it come up in conversation?

Fair enough, I probably do now an atheist but none of my close circle of friends are and I wouldn't bother asking anyone else!

wench

Rasheed wrote: »

Fair enough, I probably do now an atheist but none of my close circle of friends are and I wouldn't bother asking anyone else!

I wouldn't be so sure about that.
There is a very good thread here where a poster found out his grandmother doesn't believe in god, but has never told anyone
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77310163

Bannasidhe

wench wrote: »

I wouldn't be so sure about that.
There is a very good thread here where a poster found out his grandmother doesn't believe in god, but has never told anyone
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77310163

I just informed my mother her 93 year old uncle is an Atheist, as is his 88 year old wife. She squeeked a bit and said 'They never told me that - I just thought she was an Anglican.'

swampgas

Liamario wrote: »

Well, wouldn't the fairer question be- why are you a theist?

Your question is like asking; why do you not support Manchester united?

Well, if everyone in your community seemed to be a Man U fan, and Man U was taught in every school, and invocations to Man U were used before sessions of the Dáil, and if at 6pm every day the national TV station broadcast Man U propaganda, it might seem like a reasonable question.

Liamario

swampgas wrote: »

Well, if everyone in your community seemed to be a Man U fan, and Man U was taught in every school, and invocations to Man U were used before sessions of the Dáil, and if at 6pm every day the national TV station broadcast Man U propaganda, it might seem like a reasonable question.

True, but my point still stands. As the saying goes, don't believe everything you read in the papers.

swampgas

Liamario wrote: »

True, but my point still stands. As the saying goes, don't believe everything you read in the papers.

Well, I think someone can ask why I'm an atheist, and it's not necessarily an unfair question.

It's not like Irish people are likely to ask you why you don't believe in Zeus - they have no expectation that you do. However there is a reasonable expectation that you might be a roman catholic, or christian. Any curious person might be inclined to ask why you don't conform to their expections.

Obviously the burden of proof is with the theist, not the atheist, but this often needs to be explained to people who are encountering atheism for the first time.

JuliusCaesar

My parents were both atheist. I was brought up atheist.

Religious grandmother almost had me converted at age 8 when I accompanied her to daily Mass and other devotions, but it wore off when I got home.

I remember thinking, if people have to get married to have children (it was the 60s!) how can the priest's mumbo-jumbo cause them the ability to have children? My mother, when I asked, said that people could get married in a civil ceremony. This satisfied me for a couple of years, till I thought "hey, wait a minute..."

Which just shows how gullible children are to cultural influences! Because she'd already explained the mechanics of sex to me (being atheist AND progressive for her times).

eviltwin

Raised Catholic, I was one of those kids who was in every religious group going and would have been more religious than most of my peers. I never really got it though, I always felt I wasn't as committed to it as I should have been.

I finally stopped going to church aged 16 and finally came to the conclusion that I don't believe in any of it aged about 25.

I got married in a registry office, my husband is Catholic but non practicing and he wasn't pushed about the whole church thing. Our first child is christened something which I have always regretted but I was very young when she was born, living at home and put under a lot of family pressure to do it, my second child is not.

So far I am the only one in the family to "come out" as Atheist, its a step too far for the rest of my family even though they haven't been to church in years. I think for some people its a kind of safety net to say you are Catholic or whatever religion while not actually practising.

Rasheed

swampgas wrote: »

Well, I think someone can ask why I'm an atheist, and it's not necessarily an unfair question.

It's not like Irish people are likely to ask you why you don't believe in Zeus - they have no expectation that you do. However there is a reasonable expectation that you might be a roman catholic, or christian. Any curious person might be inclined to ask why you don't conform to their expections.

Obviously the burden of proof is with the theist, not the atheist, but this often needs to be explained to people who are encountering atheism for the first time.

I hope nobody thinks I'm trying to convert ye or that one idea had more basis than another or anything! It's purely curiosity that made me ask the question, no offence intended, i don't think I've even made my beliefs clear here, maybe I did, sorry if I did!

Basically I think in such a staunchly Catholic state, especially in times gone by, it is/was a brave and admirable move to question what a lot of you grew up with because it didn't make sense to ye and go with your beliefs. Probably s more atheists out there if they bothered to think deeply enough about it.

Daniel S

Daniel S wrote: »

TBH, it's great that people have religion. It gives them specific morals to follow, but common decency suits me just fine. I've never felt the need to explain why I'm here, nor have I given life after death much thought.

Malari wrote: »

I don't think religion came before morals!

No, you're right it didn't, but religion does sets specific morals for it's followers to follow and that was what I was trying to say in the first place. I know what's right and wrong, I don't need to be given a lot of examples to get the idea.

FouxDaFaFa

I was raised a Catholic but I don't actually remember ever believing in God. Nor did I not believe, I just kind of went along with it because (as silly as it sounds) I didn't understand that there was an alternative. We weren't really taught about other religions or atheism.

When I was 17, our religion teacher asked us if any of us didn't believe in God and I was one of two people in the class that put up our hands. That was when I kind of "came out". I had realised that it was okay not to believe in God.

I go to funerals and weddings and everything but wouldn't get married in a church or baptise my kids.

People generally don't react badly if it comes up and are just curious about stuff like what the alternative to christenings and christian burials are. I have been verbally attacked by preachers but I don't think they're representative of ordinary christians. They make it their business to get up in people's faces about religion and would likely attack fellow christians who didn't conform to their ideals.

PBroderick

GarIT wrote: »

I have read the bible fully and found that many things in the bible defy the laws of physics. There are so many mistakes in the bible that I feel it couldn't possibly be true.

A quick example of one is where god is quoted saying "all the lands that floats on all the waters". Simply physics or geography will tell you that countries arent floating but if someone created the earth they should know that.

The Bible also says that if you ever question gods existance, even just think to yourself "I'm I sure got is real?" that is a sin that can never be forgiven no matter what you do. Therefore theres no chance of me or many other people getting in ever.

Then there is the changability of the church. All Catholocism is based on the bible, yet they think they can change their views on things freely, if they want to live be the bible they should do it right. Cutting your hair is as bad as murder, or stealing as far as the bible is concerned, so if the bible has any truth were all sinners.

If you take articles from the sun newspaper that equal the length of the bible, there will be more things wrong in the bible.

I'm currently writing a book on all the mistakes in the bible.

This is a pointless exercise. The bible is not an encyclopedia. It is written to spread a morality and a code of living that is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago.

PBroderick

swampgas wrote: »

Well, I think someone can ask why I'm an atheist, and it's not necessarily an unfair question.

It's not like Irish people are likely to ask you why you don't believe in Zeus - they have no expectation that you do. However there is a reasonable expectation that you might be a roman catholic, or christian. Any curious person might be inclined to ask why you don't conform to their expections.

Obviously the burden of proof is with the theist, not the atheist, but this often needs to be explained to people who are encountering atheism for the first time.

Atheism is the lack of belief. It is not something that is "encountered".

It's not some amazing new belief, it's been around since the pagans and in that sense is deeply old-fashioned.

I am very glad of this new anti-catholic trend. It will bring people to the catholic church without force...a force which should never have existed really and has done more harm than good.

Sarky

Because wearing clothes made of two different fibres is a pressing issue of our times?

Sonics2k

PBroderick wrote: »

This is a pointless exercise. The bible is not an encyclopedia. It is written to spread a morality and a code of living that is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago.

I take it as you haven't actually read it then.

PBroderick

Sonics2k wrote: »

I take it as you haven't actually read it then.

Yes I have read it, both Old and New Testament.

The message of the New Testament is very simple: treat others as you would like to be treated.

That is the Christian message in one sentence. If we ignored everything else and concentrated on that, the world would be a perfect place.

As relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago.