Do you hide your Atheism?

pH · 04-10-2006 12:23PM

I think this has more to do with how humans relate to each other.

Why would you ask someone you don't know well if they thought your mother had gone to heaven?

And if they know you well (and know you are an atheist) then the very question would seem to be some sort of direct challenge (possibly caused by the anger component of grief) - "Hey you - ATHEIST - do YOU think my mother is in heaven now?"

I think that in either case a respectful "I personally don't believe in heaven, but I feel sorrow for your loss and offer my deepest condolences." would suffice.

That said, I would also have no objection to a simple "Yes", and like all other posters here think that a "No you idiot, heaven doesn't exist - she's worm food now" would be entirely inappropriate in the situation, even if you believed it to be true.

Dades · 04-10-2006 01:05PM

My wife wears pants too small for her and says: "does my bum look big in these?"
There are two possible answers:

1. The honest one
2. The right one

Tar.Aldarion · 04-10-2006 01:24PM

I like to argue, I like to argue a lot. So no, I don't hide that I'm an agnostic/alatrist. I wouldn't proclaim it by any means. I would only discuss my two strongest 'beliefs', (religion and vegetarianism) when questioned about them.
When questioned about them though, I am a very enthusiastic debater.

Zombrex · 04-10-2006 01:35PM

The Atheist wrote:

My wife wears pants too small for her and says: "does my bum look big in these?"
There are two possible answers:

1. The honest one
2. The right one

ROFL ... funny cause its true

(the answers, not your wifes bum, which I'm sure is lovely

)

Asiaprod · 04-10-2006 01:42PM

The Atheist wrote:

My wife wears pants too small for her and says: "does my bum look big in these?"
There are two possible answers:

1. The honest one
2. The right one

And you like I would pick no 2.

legspin · 04-10-2006 02:07PM

Asiaprod wrote:

And you like I would pick no 2.

Especially if thr answer is .... HELL YEAH:D

robindch · 04-10-2006 02:23PM

> "does my bum look big in these?"
> 1. The honest one
> 2. The right one

3. Desperately play for time: "Er, which bit?"

Asiaprod · 04-10-2006 02:35PM

robindch wrote:

3. Desperately play for time: "Er, which bit?"

Time is limited, pick wisely:D It's going to get you in the end.
You could try, "Its to dark to judge inside, I can give you an honest answer in the daylight.
Then run like hell.

Dades · 04-10-2006 03:12PM

Asiaprod wrote:

Time is limited, pick wisely:D

Response time in such situations is measured in femoseconds.
Any delay whatsoever results in the assumed default answer of (1), together with ensuing consequences.

Beruthiel · 04-10-2006 04:04PM

The Atheist wrote:

Any delay whatsoever results in the assumed default answer of (1), together with ensuing consequences.

Never a truer word was spoken

scrattletrap · 04-10-2006 04:53PM

All who know me know I'm atheist, but the fact that I have been since I was born helps. My born-again friend keeps trying to convert me but I stand firm, and other Christian friends tease me about it, I respect their beliefs for them, their just not for me.
My family never had a problem with it as there are Two bible catholics, One Protestant, two Agnostics, two Atheists (including me) one former Jehovah witness (not sure if he still is) and one undecided. And that is just my parents and siblings, it makes for interesting dinner parties.

Tar.Aldarion · 04-10-2006 04:56PM

Do a lot of people here have Christian friends? Would the amount vary with what age you are?

I am 20 and don't know a single Christian.

Sangre · 04-10-2006 05:04PM

scrattletrap wrote:

All who know me know I'm atheist, but the fact that I have been since I was born helps. My born-again friend keeps trying to convert me but I stand firm, and other Christian friends tease me about it, I respect their beliefs for them, their just not for me.

Rofl, I would love for someone to give me *that* opening.

To answer Tar's question, I can probably count on one hand the amount of people I know that regularly go to mass (at least once a month), that would be the 18-25 group.

Zombrex · 04-10-2006 05:18PM

Tar.Aldarion wrote:

Do a lot of people here have Christian friends? Would the amount vary with what age you are?

Loads. They vary from christmas/easter christians (those who only go to church then) to people who are quite religions.

I also have a few Muslim friends.

Not many of my friends would admit to being athiest. I suspect that a few of the Christmas/Easter christians are, but as for the point of this thread, for what ever reason (mostly family) they don't state they are Athiest.

To be honest I don't think a lot of my friends think about the "big questions" (TM) that much.

scrattletrap · 04-10-2006 06:18PM

Tar.Aldarion wrote:

Do a lot of people here have Christian friends? Would the amount vary with what age you are?

I'm 27 and I have friends of almost every religious persuasion.
I know quite a few people who go to mass every week, and my born again friend has extra prayer meetings twice a week. I have the Christmas/Easter Christians and the "I haven't been to mass since I was a child but I'm still a catholic" ones too.
A lot of the weekly mass goers are in their early thirties and bring their kids.

colm-ccfc84 · 04-10-2006 10:39PM

no i dont hide it, no reason to.

Byrno · 05-10-2006 01:02AM

I don't hide my atheism to my friends but my family I'd be a bit cagey of. It been a souple of years now since I had, as I like to call it, "My Awakening"! Most of my friends would know at this stage that I'm an atheist but in my family it's only my sister and the cousins that are around my own age that know. I haven't told my parents as it has never properly arisen though I do get the feeling that they are starting to cop on, though granted thay could just think that I'm just lazy. Actually now that I think of it my mam did ask me once but I was still in bed and she had just woken me up and I was in no mood to have a God debate at that time so I just grunted at her! Like many of the other posters I don't think it would serve any purpose to tell my grandparents though. At this stage it would only put increased anxiety onto them.

Tar.Aldarion · 05-10-2006 10:12AM

What age are you Wicknight?
Scattletrap is 27, is it posible that such a change could be in just seven years?
Or are the people I meet just a statistic anomaly with none being religious.
Sangre, being around my age knows a few people who go to mass, but no more. This probably doesn't include people who go to mass rarely...

Thinking about it, I do have one friend who calls himself catholic but his beliefs are so 'un-catholic' that satanists look devoutly catholic compared to him. So I don't really call him one, but I wouldn't know what to call him. Religious I suppose, albeit knowing nothing aboiut religion.

Anyway, that is aside from the point.
I take it the older you are the more christians you know, the more people who would not confess to being atheist etc?

Beruthiel · 05-10-2006 11:32AM

Tar.Aldarion wrote:

I take it the older you are the more christians you know, the more people who would not confess to being atheist etc?

I think that likely.
Also, religion is not something I would tend to discuss with my peers. Now that I think of it, I have no clue one way or another what they are or what they believe in this area. Religion is not something that seems to be discussed like other subjects, perhaps it's too personal for most people.

aidan24326 · 05-10-2006 11:46AM

I really don't see what all the fuss is about with revealing that you're atheist. It's not like 'coming out' as gay or lesbian, which I'm sure is a difficult thing to do. I don't believe in God, so what. Mine is the rational belief, or rational lack of a belief in this case. Anyone has a problem with that, well it's their problem in all fairness. (fragile grandparents excepted). It's my view/opinion, and should be respected as such, in the same way that I respect other people's right to believe in the bearded man in the sky, or whatever else keeps them happy. So to those hiding their atheist views I say stop apologising for what you believe to be right. People of strong religious faith delude themselves with all kinds of absurd and ridiculous fantasies, yet I don't see too many of them apologising for their closed-minded worldview. So us non-believers most certainly shouldn't be apologetic for the fact that we've managed to use our own minds and think for ourselves rather than simply swallowing every ounce of snake-oil passed our way.

legspin · 05-10-2006 11:53AM

aidan24326 wrote:

I really don't see what all the fuss is about with revealing that you're atheist. It's not like 'coming out' as gay or lesbian, which I'm sure is a difficult thing to do. I don't believe in God, so what. Mine is the rational belief, or rational lack of a belief in this case. Anyone has a problem with that, well it's their problem in all fairness. (fragile grandparents excepted). It's my view/opinion, and should be respected as such, in the same way that I respect other people's right to believe in the bearded man in the sky, or whatever else keeps them happy. So to those hiding their atheist views I say stop apologising for what you believe to be right. People of strong religious faith delude themselves with all kinds of absurd and ridiculous fantasies, yet I don't see too many of them apologising for their closed-minded worldview. So us non-believers most certainly shouldn't be apologetic for the fact that we've managed to use our own minds and think for ourselves rather than simply swallowing every ounce of snake-oil passed our way.

For the sort of folks that would have a problem dealing with atheists, they are more than likely to have the same problem with homosexuality. Indeed some of the more vehement spokespersons equate the two almost directly.

Dades · 05-10-2006 11:57AM

aidan24326 wrote:

So to those hiding their atheist views I say stop apologising for what you believe to be right.

I think you're missing the point.

People aren't running around to underground meetings using secret handshakes and avoiding the Inquisition.

From what I gather the views of most people here are known, they just reserve the right to spout them in certain situations, e.g. around old people or someone not of your views who has experienced a recent death of a love one.

Beruthiel · 05-10-2006 12:21PM

The Atheist wrote:

From what I gather the views of most people here are known, they just reserve the right to spout them in certain situations, e.g. around old people or someone not of your views who has experienced a recent death of a love one.

Indeed.
I don't think it manners for me to shove my views on others unless they invite them, just as I would wish for them not to shove theirs on me.

aidan24326 · 05-10-2006 12:29PM

The Atheist wrote:

I think you're missing the point.

People aren't running around to underground meetings using secret handshakes and avoiding the Inquisition.

From what I gather the views of most people here are known, they just reserve the right to spout them in certain situations, e.g. around old people or someone not of your views who has experienced a recent death of a love one.

I haven't really missed the point. I totally agree about keeping your mouth shut in certain sensitive situations. That's just commonsense. And I did say in a previous post that I would not at this stage reveal my atheism to my grandmother as it would only cause her undue worry (although I hinted at it a good while back and I'd say she knows I'm not exactly a Ned Flanders churchgoing type). I was only responding to the tone of a few posts which seemed to be overly apologetic. e.g Byrno who said he'd be 'a bit cagey about it..' Why? That is my question.
Legspin suggested that the same people who have a problem with atheism are likely to be the same one's who have a prob with homosexuality. Well as far as I'm concerned for anyone who has a problem with either of those things, well it ain't my problem, it's theirs. And I would still maintain that revealing one's atheism is surely not in the same league of difficulty/initial awkwardness as revealing oneself to be gay/lesbian.

aidan24326 · 05-10-2006 12:35PM

Beruthiel wrote:

Indeed.
I don't think it manners for me to shove my views on others unless they invite them, just as I would wish for them not to shove theirs on me.

Beruthiel, no-one's shoving their views on anyone, it's simply the right to express them in the same way that a religious person would express theirs. In a completely unaplogetic way, and without any thought or fear of 'offending' someone with religious beliefs. If they don't like it too bad (allowing for previous exceptional circumstances)

Beruthiel · 05-10-2006 12:53PM

aidan24326 wrote:

Beruthiel, no-one's shoving their views on anyone, it's simply the right to express them in the same way that a religious person would express theirs. In a completely unaplogetic way, and without any thought or fear of 'offending' someone with religious beliefs.

I don't disagree with that at all. As Dawkins said, we need to come out of the closet

TerrorFirmer · 15-10-2006 11:15PM

Rather then create a new thread I must ask what Atheists believe in after death?

As a fairly strict Catholic - and no, I do not attend mass, I cannot believe that some people are naive enough to apparently use mass attendance as a yardstick to test ones true faith, I've already seen it several times on casual viewing of this forum - It is hard at times to believe truly in everything that is offered forth as both an answer and explanation to questions.

Just being rational....but I would never consider myself an Atheist, ever.

that said though, I'm not a strict catholic either, I don't know why i actually said that initially, but I believe in god, but that does not necessarily mean he is the exlusive god of the christian faith...he is just god, and a god to every man woman and child on this earth. Or every living organism, rather.

Sangre · 15-10-2006 11:18PM

eh...nothing.

I don't see the reason why we have to 'believe' in anything after death.

TerrorFirmer · 15-10-2006 11:21PM

Well then as such surely you 'believe' in nothing?

Its not possible to truly not believe in anything....

Dave! · 15-10-2006 11:36PM

HavoK wrote:

Well then as such surely you 'believe' in nothing?

Its not possible to truly not believe in anything....

Are you playing with words now?

I 'believe' that after death there is nothing. Nada. Zilch. Nowt.

The whole concept of an afterlife to me fits too nicely into the 'fairytale' framework. As in, the kind of thing you tell a child when their grandparents die -- they're gone to heaven, you'll see them there when you're finished on the earth.

Don't you see why it is helpful for people to invent the concept of an afterlife? Do you not think that's it's a bit 'handy' to include in a religion? Do you have any logical reason for believing in an afterlife?

Do you hide your Atheism?

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