I'm doing some research here about "Brights".... that is a fairly new word that describes people who have a naturalistic worldview... i.e. they don't believe in mystical or supernatural stuff.
(Christians especially) What do you think of "Brights"?
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Eudaimonist
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I can't tell you how much that label annoys me, and I'm an atheist. I hope it fades into obscurity soon.
My personal view is that there is nothing that unites atheists other than being "not-theists". Once you start looking for shared beliefs in something, rather than what they don't believe, you quickly find that there aren't any such universal beliefs. The same goes for personal qualities. Some atheists may indeed be "bright", whether that means that they are intelligent, rational, or enlightened to the nature of reality. However, one simply can't say this is true of all atheists.
The search for positive labels can only result in labelling atheistic philosophies, of which there are several. For instance, we can talk about Secular Humanists, or Objectivists, or Existentialists, etc. These terms do not simply mean "not-theists" -- they have positive content -- even though they imply atheism. I think this is the direction one should go in, even if it does not provide the solidarity among atheists that the "brights" desire.
My personal view is that there is nothing that unites atheists other than being "not-theists". Once you start looking for shared beliefs in something, rather than what they don't believe, you quickly find that there aren't any such universal beliefs. The same goes for personal qualities. Some atheists may indeed be "bright", whether that means that they are intelligent, rational, or enlightened to the nature of reality. However, one simply can't say this is true of all atheists.
The search for positive labels can only result in labelling atheistic philosophies, of which there are several. For instance, we can talk about Secular Humanists, or Objectivists, or Existentialists, etc. These terms do not simply mean "not-theists" -- they have positive content -- even though they imply atheism. I think this is the direction one should go in, even if it does not provide the solidarity among atheists that the "brights" desire.
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Well the thing is, "Bright" isn't used to describe all atheists - because some atheists might believe in ghosts or astrology or reincarnation or something. "Bright" is meant to be a term to describe Naturalists, though the problem with that word is that it is commonly used to describe people who study nature - and it is also often confused with Naturist (nudist).
They chose "Bright" because they wanted to model it after "gay"... after all, many of the definitions of "bright" mean light and cheery. When they first thought up the word they apparently didn't think there were any bad connotations... (i.e. the association of "bright" with intelligence")
BTW, they point out that they're not saying "I'm bright".... they say "I'm a Bright". Since there is no predefined noun-meaning for "bright", they can define the meaning for themselves... (and their definition is that it is someone with a naturalistic worldview...)
They chose "Bright" because they wanted to model it after "gay"... after all, many of the definitions of "bright" mean light and cheery. When they first thought up the word they apparently didn't think there were any bad connotations... (i.e. the association of "bright" with intelligence")
BTW, they point out that they're not saying "I'm bright".... they say "I'm a Bright". Since there is no predefined noun-meaning for "bright", they can define the meaning for themselves... (and their definition is that it is someone with a naturalistic worldview...)
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Dennis Moore
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Hate it, hate it, hate it. Thought it was snobbish the first time I saw it, still think it's snobbish today. Their intentions may have been all well and good, but they can't expect to create a new use for a word whole-cloth and not expect the social denotations and connotations to follow it. I could choose to redefine the F-word tomorrow as a conjunction that can take the place of "and," and I'd still be deluded if I didn't expect people to react to it as if I'd just swore in front of them.
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ravenscape
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Dennis Moore
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Ravenscape, I believe a Pagan, if you actually believe in the existence of a God/Godess and that magic actually works, would be considered "a believer in the supernatural" for purposes of the poll.
The true ponderable, though, is why not a single Christian has answered the poll question ... ?
The true ponderable, though, is why not a single Christian has answered the poll question ... ?
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arunma
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I abstained from voting because I've never heard the phrase before. As many people here have noticed, I don't really mind other religions very much, but I find it impossible to be tolerant of atheism. Now this is just my personal opinion, and you don't have to agree with it. But I think atheism is devil-worship.
Maybe you guys can figure out from this how I would have voted if I knew what a "bright" was.
Maybe you guys can figure out from this how I would have voted if I knew what a "bright" was.
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T
The Seeker
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Well then you're utterly, utterly wrong. Absolutely brimming over with wrongability.arunma said:
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T
The Seeker
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I'm not a fan of the term bright myself, if I'm talking about non-theists in general, then that's what I'll say. Call a spade a spade and all that.
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arunma
Flaming Calvinist
The Seeker said:
Well, I said you don't have to agree with it, because I realize that statement is quite controversial. Nonetheless, I think that atheism is a false religion built on worship of the devil. That isn't the kind of belief that can be proven or disproven, so I would argue that your statement is false (unless you also state it as an opinion).
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Where's the option that says "I'm a Christian and the word is just really weird-sounding" option?
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Lokisdottir
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T
The Seeker
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What you said wasn't an opinion. It was wrong. Completely and totally wrong. I know that for a fact based on the following:arunma said:
- I am an atheist
- Many of my friends and family are atheists
- I do not worship the devil
- Nor, to the best of my knowledge, do any of the other atheists that I know.
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...it's good that you haven't heard it before because I'm looking for people's first impressions. But the point is, you've heard of the phrase "I'm a Bright" now!arunma said:
Please do a real vote so I can see what Christians think... a majority of Americans are Christians after all.
You can find more informations on Brights by doing a google search...
but anyway I explain it in my first post... basically they're naturalists who joined the Brights' movement and have labelled themselves a Bright. Naturalists in this context are people who don't believe in supernatural or mystical stuff. (i.e. they're atheists - who also don't believe in ghosts, the afterlife, astrology, etc)
It's good that you haven't heard of it before because I want you to say how you think the phrase itself "sounds" to you... rather than you saying how you think members of the group actually act. Remember that the poll is kind of anonymous.
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Well the only thing this poll is polling is your beliefs and how snobbish you think the phrase "I'm a Bright" sounds. So if you think the phrase is really weird-sound but not snobbish then you should pick "I'm a Christian, the phrase doesn't sound snobbish." Thanks.Dark_Lite said:Where's the option that says "I'm a Christian and the word is just really weird-sounding" option?
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Dennis Moore
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It's only fair, then, since I tend to see religion as a form of mental deficiency or even a serious mental illness, in some cases. Whatever floats our personal boats, eh?arunma said:
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