southernhybrid

Atheism offers one the freedom from that pretend invisible sky man who seems to make people feel guilty and fearful. So, you could say it offers peace of mind, and freedom.

It also allows one to focus on enjoying this world and all of it's marvels instead of waiting to enjoy a make believe life after death. So atheism offers the chance to enjoy/participate in this life to its fullest. ( assuming that most atheists do not believe in an afterlife. )

I don't ever try to convince anyone to lose their god belief as I think each person should be responsbile for their own belief system. Not all atheists feel this way. That's another benefit of atheism. There is no atheist dogma. Atheism allows one to be an individualist as opposed to a sheep.

My personal favorite is that atheism offers you the chance to spend your Sundays at home playing on the II.

Viti

Of course Koy is an exception ....but even you Koy, do you go into churches and knock on people's doors telling them they are deluded (holy shit, you just might)?

WJ

Koy,

Is it working? I just saw your major project belittled to rant and raves! The moderator's are smarter than you think.!

Remember, fighting fire with [political] fire, backfires. Two wrongs don't always make a right.




For f*cks sake!

bonduca

We don't hold these opinions for the perks. We believe it to be truth.

As the former target of many doorbell-ringing-pamphlet-pushers, what I wouldn't give to watch that...LOL

[ July 16, 2002: Message edited by: bonduca ]</p>

Viti

Anyway most people don't "choose" to be atheists....it's simply the accepted label when you have no beliefs in deities.

AtlanticCitySlave

First, WJ is wrong. Atheism does not offer truth in a subjective sense. Most atheists are not subjectivists, especially concerning things "out there", although sure, many more may be subjectivists in a moral sense.

Second, even if atheism could offer no beneficial reasons for believing it, it doesn't matter. That doesn't make the arguments we put fourth for it useless. Rather, their value is aimed at one purpose: finding out what is true. Whether or not this makes us happy is irrelevant, and it does not make our arguments useless.

Third, the only thing theism has to offer is slavery, since one has to constantly live their lives around a God, worry about what will happen in the afterlife, and live their life based on the subjective morality of God. Theism is a subjective morality (the belief of God), not necessarily atheism.

Fourth, atheism is not a worldview as many have said. Some atheists may feel that atheism has nothing to offer. They may feel life is ultimately meaningless, a waste, and full of misery, while other atheists may feel life is full of beauty, opportunity, etc.

Fifth, I personally feel atheism has a lot to offer. All of your positives that you list for theism are basically for those who are weak at heart (i.e. cowards). I don't care if there is any purpose to life or if I'm a speck in the universe. I'm not going to live a lie simply because it makes me feel good. If my girlfriend cheats on me I want to know about it, whether or not it will make me feel good. If God does or doesn't exist I want to know about it, whether or not it will make me feel good.

Sixth, the fact that logic doesn't work with theists only shows their own stupidity.

Seventh, atheism frees you from the bonds of superstition, forces you to bring meaning to your own life (rather than waiting around for "fate" t come in), helps you develop a sound morality (rather than relying on a thousand year abhorrent Bible), and helps you to live a better life. How does atheism do this? By rationality. The majority of atheists base their lives on being reasonable, not superstitious or "faith". The question is not what Atheism has to offer, but what Reason has to offer, and Reason has to offer a hell of a lot. Simply applying reason to religion leads to atheism, since all religions only take reason so far.
If someone wants to live their lives believing in imaginary beings so they feel good, that's up to them. I think I speak for many of the atheists on the board when I say I couldn't care less. Just keep your imaginary beings out of the schools, out of science, and stop spreading religious myths as truth when they are anything but.

nogods4me

20% off at Walmart if you bring in your Evil Atheist Conspiracy membership card on Halloween, and any Friday the 13th. Now you can't beat that deal with a stick.

Icarus

peteyh,

I think you might need to reframe the issue in your mind before you can understand why some individuals on the metaphysical bubble choose atheism rather than deism, for instance. Arguments against theism are simply that; they are not arguments for atheism. I may be alone on this one, but atheism became my only option when all others proved unsubstantiated, inconsistent, or worse, incoherent. I didn't choose atheism because it was attractive; I chose it because theism doesn't offer truth.

It could be argued that deism is of little practical difference to atheism, so it might provide some providential comfort to know that a creator exists. I admit I cannot disprove deism; neither can I prove atheism. One simply cannot prove that god does not exist. So why do I choose atheism over deism? I don't know. Maybe I prefer the idea of self-directed life brought about by nothing more than the mechanics of nature over life that is created and then abandoned by an 'ineffable' god.

But does it really matter? When do the perks about anything have any part in determining if it is true?

Icarus

[ July 16, 2002: Message edited by: Icarus ]</p>

John Page

Peteyh

Basically, freedom from religion - but what are the specific benefits? I had a stab at this topic <a href="http://www.reconciliationism.org/god.htm" target="_blank">here at this link</a> trying to capture both sides of the equation.

Also, there seems to be an assumption by theists that the "advantages" of organized religion (IMO a topic that can be separated from belief in god per se) will be denied them if they stop believing in god. This is not so, non-theistic groups such as ethical culturalists are good examples. On the other hand, I'm a particular fan of a church where god is an optional guest so I'm biased.

Cheers, John

Anunnaki

When is the next Friday 13th? I`ll take my father to Walmart and get him something nice to make up for smashing his belief in a heavenly meeting with grandma.