Viti

I'm with livius...I did the church thing, Bible study thing, said the sinner's prayer...nothing happened so I blew off the whole idea and looked for something else. Simply not a big deal for me...HOWEVER...it is a painful experience for many and I am flabbergasted by how fast so many Christians turn on those who question or begin doubting.

seebs

Me too. I don't get it. Some people have more doubts than others; this doesn't make the others better people, or even necessarily better Christians, it means they're free of doubts. Personally, I don't think I'd give up my doubts and questions for anything; they keep me from getting complacent.

beth

Why honestly I don't give a crap what they say. I'm mainly reading the atheist replies. I already know the Christian point of veiw. Oh to satisfy you Christians,as long as my kids want to go to my church, I will take them and attend. Once they decide they no longer want to go, that's it!


edit: and thank you Christians for your love and offers of prayer. I think I have only seen one truly Christian remark out of you guys. Thanks to all the support from the atheists and non-Christians. I'm still not sure if Atheism is where I'm leading, but I know I'm not abnormal.

BibleBelted

Hi BlondeGoddess,

I came here in much the same way you did, only I started in the library instead of the forums. When I read the piece I've linked to below, the most amazing thing happened. I was freed. I could almost feel the shackles and chains falling off.

Today I'm not only happy, but also proud to be godless.

Here's hoping the same happens for you.

Take care

BB

Robert Ingersoll - About the Holy Bible

From the introduction:

seebs

No, you aren't.

southernhybrid

I was also going to suggest that if you want to leave out all the negative Xian remarks, you would be very welcome to post in secular support. We have had many former Xians who suddenly see the light and are a bit confused as to how to fit their new beliefs into their lifestyle.


I just received a book from Amazon.com entitled Women without Superstition. I think it might be a good one for you. When I was lsearching for the one true religion, I didn't have access to such literature. I think it would be something you might enjoy.

I think you will find your journey away from superstition may be filled with happy surprises. It doesn't have to be a negative experience. If fact, for many of us it was the beginning of a life filled with joy, peace and happiness. Throughout my youth I was told that only Xians could experience those things. Nothing could be further from the truth.

While I agree that you need not equate atheism with evolution, I think the more we learn about science, the more sense it makes that god is just a myth.Although I've been an atheist for over 25 years, in the last few years, I've read more books on evolution than in my first 50 years of life. I would highly reccommend anything by Carl Sagan. My favorite is Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors. It's a delightful book which I'm sure you would enjoy. The Demon Haunted World is another Sagan book which helps one debunk things for which there is no evidence.

I almost envy you. Discovering what lies beyond religious myth can be a very exhilarating experience. I hope you enjoy it . As others have said, it's totally up to you to decide whether to share your beliefs with others.

Dr Rick

It's not at all funny; it's pathetic that someone could recognize the cognitive dissonance that a thoughtful evalutation of religion induces and still choose faith over rational thought:

It is almost unbelievable that someone would suggest forsaking rational thought is some kind of ideal state; if that is the case, why not just pith yourself?

Rick

seebs

It seems odd to me that both sides attract people who must desparately cling to the belief that people who feel or think otherwise are somehow lacking. I know there have been and will be people smarter than me who agree with me, and who disagree with me, and I don't see this as a big deal.

Is it that horrible to comprehend that some people, competent in the ways of rational thought, would eventually conclude that some things were beyond it? If so, then prepare to be disappointed; if there are still people a thousand years from now, they'll still fall in love.

Dr Rick

What's really weird is that someone would express a preference for a lack of rational thought, and then someone else would just ignore or fail to comprehend the admission and claim that those who understand the ramifications of such a position are "desperately cling[ing] to the belief that people who feel or think otherwise are somehow lacking" when the first person clearly proclaimed that they prefer lacking [rational thought].

Quote:

I know there have been and will be people smarter than me who agree with me, and who disagree with me, and I don't see this as a big deal.

That's a strawman fallacy; the issue isn't about who is smarter than whom; it's about deliberately not using whatever intelligence one has.

Quote:

Is it that horrible to comprehend that some people, competent in the ways of rational thought, would eventually conclude that some things were beyond it?

That's another strawman; the argument made by TM wasn't that some things are beyond rational thought but that faith is preferable to rational thought.

That's a non sequitur.

Rick

Amos

I'd say 'good for you' BibleBelted. The Catholic Church has held this opinion right along and maybe millions have died because they waged war against her words of wisdom. As you may have read, at one time blondegoddess would have sacrificed her own life to defend the salvation that she now rejects (for good reason). The proper imagery here is that she "was at the foot of the cross with the burning desire for atonement" while her plea was not heard.