Buildings are interesting. Traditition is interesting. Stories are interesting. Hope is interesting. It's an unfortunate fact that atheism lacks all four.
Please cite the authoritative source for the information that non-cited information is null and void. Or is it the atheist view that their opinion is valid whereas the opinion of others is invalid. This seems to violate the do unto others as you would have them do unto you rule. And my authoritative source for this rule is Matthew 7:12. But you may say that is not an authoritative source, so again it comes down to your opinion offering information (not an authoritative source) without a citation from a source I accept as authoritative. See the problem??
Van; if the bible is your source, that's fine. If the passages are asked, please quote them, in discussions of faith holy books can be used to validate arguments. If you have an opinion, that's fine, just state that it's your opinion! I only put this little disclaimer in because, well, it is the interwebs. You see lots of claims such as (one that I witnessed on another website, much to my lulz) 'If the world is billions of years old, why is it still underpopulated??' In such cases I would like people to tell me where they got this information from....but only when it is asked.
For example: Somebody states 'the bible says homosexuality is wrong'. You may quote biblical passages if it is asked. If you state 'research shows homosexuality is wrong', be prepared to show where your info comes from.
I mean any kind of source here, be it a holy book, a web site, a book, an article, someone's blog, even a youtube vid.
PS: If you would still like me to cite this I would be more than happy
Last edited by RealityPixie; 7th November 2009 at 12:16 AM.
Alizera and marlowe007, I can answer your questions together:
I was raised in a secular household. My father is an atheist and my mother is a 'spiritual agnostic'. Paternal grandparents Roman Catholic, maternal Church of England. As far as religion goes, they let me come to my own conclusions and ask my own questions. All I was taught was that if it doesn't make sense to you, always ask 'why'. It is only since I was perhaps 17 or so that religion and faith were discussed in my house, and by that time I was agnostic. I still live at home with my older brother as well, and religion, philosophy and such are now hotly discussed around our dinner table.
I was in a private baptist school for 9 years, from age 8 to 17. There are good reasons for this, if you are interested please ask. So anyway, I have been exposed to religion from a young age, and as a young person I would have described myself as xtian. From about age 10 I started to question. By age 12 I considered myself agnostic. By 17 I was agnostic leaning towards atheist. After highschool I started doing my own research into religion and philosophy and became a proper atheist at age 18. For the record, I'm 20 now.
Neither BBQ nor honey glaze, kittens don't have nearly enough meat. Puppies are best, and the best sauce would be soy with sweet chilli to taste.
The last time I checked, Australia 'non-religious' population settled at around 20% (according to 2006 census, I think, will look into it for you).
However, it is estimated that it is in fact higher. Many people were raised in a faith, and although they may not really believe it or follow it in any way they will still classify themselves as this faith without really thinking. Actually, particularly in urban areas, there arn't many people at all who attended a religious service regularly, and anybody who believes in creationism is generally looked at with a raised eyebrow.
My day has only just started really, had a good sleep in *yawn*. Thanks for asking
Supreme:
For most atheists, the thought of atheism is far from boring. It cannot be ignored that life as we know it is an incredibly unlikely event. This makes me appreciate it so much more! I find there is so much beauty in a world without god, how ecosystems have grown and flourished, how the universe spins around, even looking at my self and going 'Wow....that's awesome!'
I also find a lot of hope and inspiration in the thought that I have no 'purpose'. I am in control of my own life. I make my own purpose. I don't have to worry about the sky fairy hanging over my shoulder. What wonder is there in life, what creativity, if we cannot be independant? When bad things happen I don't ask a god why, I recognise that these things happen and that there was probably no real reason (in cases of disease, natural disasters, etc). I find that helps me to deal with things much easier than when I still clung to a belief in god as a young one.
I see atheism as being far from clinical, boring and restrictive. I see it as bright, colourful, wonderful and creative.
Also, I cannot believe how many cliches I managed to pack into a single post. Apologies if your eyes bleed from the sickly sweet nature of it
Or is it the atheist view that their opinion is valid whereas the opinion of others is invalid.
To each their own opinion. Dibs on the facts though.
See the problem??
Sort of, no one is everyone's boss, ie ultimate athority doesn't exist. But it's really not a problem here as I DON'T think mere opinions really matter. I'm all about the observable facts. So we're in agreement.
Buildings are interesting. Traditition[sic] is interesting. Stories are interesting. Hope is interesting. It's an unfortunate fact that atheism lacks all four.
oooo! burn! Implying that atheists are hopeless! but no, I've got plenty of hope. Life will go on (unless russia nukes us all).
And as far as interest goes, the real immediate world is plenty interesting enough to hold my attention for at least a century. Did you hear they're working on space elevators! AWESOME!
i was raised in a moderate christian home all my life (Disciples of Christ). when i was eighteen i began to go to college, while i was there i had my first experiences with atheists. i have always enjoyed debate, so i would seek out discussion with them (similar to why im here ). the people i talked to were the first to challenge my ideas about reality, and i found that they would pose arguments that i had not thought about. so, in effort to become a better christian (i live in the buckle of the bible belt in the usa btw) i looked up apologetics. the first few i learned were teh cosmological argument, TAG, and teleological arguments. wanting to know what they would come back with, i looked up the answers to these arguments for god. when i found that the answers all successfully refuted the arguments for god, i started to disbelieve a little bit. i took a NT class the next semester. there i read all of the NT (minus a couple psuedo-paul letters i think). through my assignments i began to become aware of contradictions within the biblical text. i looked to the internet for answers because i could not go to my family and tell them i did not believe in god anymore (i am actually still in the closet to certain members of family, namely the conservatives and the pastors, not because im not proud to be a freethinker, but because of the emotional stress that would ensue). again the atheist answers won out every time. eventually i decided that christianity was wrong, and after a short stint as an agnostic, decided that i did not believe that any gods exist.
and there it is, wall of text crits you for 1000000
__________________ 15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, (1 peter 3:15)
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