The Atheist path; a path of liberation or of necessity?

[Ken-1122]

I'd rather be a believer. I find the idea of death being a void like finality to be pretty sad and depressing.

I understand your point. But I’m not an atheist because I find atheism attractive. I'm an atheist because I don't believe the people who claim that gods exist, and I haven't seen any other evidence. Atheism actually comes with a lot of downsides. Religion offers answers and responses to loss, death, tragedy, inequality, and injustice. Atheism takes all of that away and offers nothing in return. But that doesn't matter because I'm not sitting here doing a cost-benefit analysis. For me atheism is the only option because I don’t believe God/Gods exist.

 

[Landon Caeli]

I understand your point. But I’m not an atheist because I find atheism attractive. I'm an atheist because I don't believe the people who claim that gods exist, and I haven't seen any other evidence. Atheism actually comes with a lot of downsides. Religion offers answers and responses to loss, death, tragedy, inequality, and injustice. Atheism takes all of that away and offers nothing in return. But that doesn't matter because I'm not sitting here doing a cost-benefit analysis. For me atheism is the only option because I don’t believe God/Gods exist.

So for you and @Tanj, it seems more like a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you in regards to the title.

 

[Ken-1122]

So for you and @Tanj, it seems more like a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you in regards to the title.

I don't know if I would call it a necessity, but I definitely wouldn't call it liberating. I think of it as more of an answer to a question

 

[jacknife]

Y

...Surely Atheists, as individuals, must have some sort of alternative community?

You try online gaming?

 

[jacknife]

I'd rather be a believer. I find the idea of death being a void like finality to be pretty sad and depressing.

Im the opposite i find the odea of an eternal after life sad and meaningless.

 

[essentialsaltes]

I'm willing to bet you have a really good relationship with your significant other, to be so fearless of death.

Good for you, essentialsaltes. You're a lucky guy.

Fearless of death? Well. I wasn't always so. But 40 years gives you time to come to terms with reality.

Yes, thanks, I'm lucky. The spouse and I have a cruise planned in a few weeks. It won't keep death away, but time will be better spent than at work.

 

[Tanj]

So for you and @Tanj, it seems more like a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you in regards to the title.

I don't consider it (atheism) liberating, in part because the only time it really comes into play is in discussions like this. Most of the time it's just in the background. Also not sure about "necessity". I have spent the last 30 years as a data scientist, if something doesn't involve statistically sound evidence then, apart from a few personal axioms that I have chosen, it isn't.

 

[Tanj]

Im the opposite i find the odea of an eternal after life sad and meaningless.

Depends on the after-life. At any rate, meaning is where you put it, just as meaningless is. I'm going to spend a few hours this week pushing up my flowchart completion on "Detroit: Become Human". The sense of self-accomplishment is meaningful to me, even if it wouldn't be to the vast majority of people.

 

[Par5]

As someone who respects atheists and enjoys befriending them, I was just curious to hear some peoples personal views on how they feel about their atheism.

...Do you feel liberated, free and happy in it?

...Or do you basically feel like it's just where life landed you?

Thanks for sharing your story,
Landon

A very interesting question, but I don't think I can enlighten you further other than saying that being an atheist feels as natural as I feel about my nationality and I've had 72 years of both. My parents were atheist, so perhaps it was as you said just where life landed me.
I live in Northern Ireland, a place steeped in religion, which unfortunately has produced division and bigotry between the two main Christian denominations of Catholics and Protestants. Thankfully it is not as rampant as it once was, but seeing the effect religion had on people simply strengthened my lack of belief.
Having said that, most of my friends would consider themselves to be Christian, both Catholic, and Protestant and we get on just fine, although some have told me that they don't understand how I can't believe in god. But then for my part, I don't understand how they can.

 

[Allandavid]

I’m in Occam’s camp. I’ve never held religious beliefs at any stage of my life, as far as I am aware. I used to read the Greek myths as a younger person and found them quite intriguing, but I knew they were invented stories. I feel the same way about all of the various religious texts....

 

[Allandavid]

A very interesting question, but I don't think I can enlighten you further other than saying that being an atheist feels as natural as I feel about my nationality and I've had 72 years of both. My parents were atheist, so perhaps it was as you said just where life landed me.
I live in Northern Ireland, a place steeped in religion, which unfortunately has produced division and bigotry between the two main Christian denominations of Catholics and Protestants. Thankfully it is not as rampant as it once was, but seeing the effect religion had on people simply strengthened my lack of belief.
Having said that, most of my friends would consider themselves to be Christian, both Catholic, and Protestant and we get on just fine, although some have told me that they don't understand how I can't believe in god. But then for my part, I don't understand how they can.

I guess you know the one about the feller that was stopped at the Nthn Ireland checkpoint and asked what his faith was....?

“No, no...I’m actually an atheist” he replied.

“Yeah, but are you a Catholic atheist or a Protestant one....?!

 

[KCfromNC]

So for you and @Tanj, it seems more like a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you in regards to the title.

Maybe in the sense that not believing gravity is fake is a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you.

 

[Landon Caeli]

Maybe in the sense that not believing gravity is fake is a "necessity" as opposed to something that liberates you.

Yeah, I'm having a hard time finding a single word that describes 'ended up'/'came to conclude'/'no other choice' in this language.

...And of course, this is the only language I know.

 

[Desk trauma]

Atheism is not liberation or cynicism to me, it’s just the nature of things.

 

[Desk trauma]

Atheism actually comes with a lot of downsides. Religion offers answers and responses to loss, death, tragedy, inequality, and injustice.

I find the opposite personally. Having buried both family and friends in the past few years I found the religious rites hollow, more like denial then closure or acceptance of what happened, and religious thought about death contradictory.

As for tragedy, injustice, an indifferent universe makes that easier to accept as there is no intelligence causeing the rocks to fall just indifferent physics.

 

[Desk trauma]

Or do you think that you have some soul/spirit/conciousness which is not part of your body and is not physicall ?

Consciousness is a product of the brain.

 

[Landon Caeli]

Here's a gift to all of you! My new atheist friends!

Bug History - Phish.net
To the entomologist in all of us, the life of an insect can seem blissfully simple. A “Bug” likely does not spend significant portions of its day pondering the infinite. The meaning of it all does not weigh heavy on the brow of the dung beetle. The existence of God is inconsequential in the everlasting search for the freshest heaving pile of waste. The lyrics of “Bug” evoke images of a much more complex being in the throes of existential wondering. As the swirl of their thoughts regarding God and (karmic?) debt faded, the grand conundrum of consciousness was best answered through the eyes of an insect.

 

[Belk]

As someone who respects atheists and enjoys befriending them, I was just curious to hear some peoples personal views on how they feel about their atheism.

...Do you feel liberated, free and happy in it?

...Or do you basically feel like it's just where life landed you?

Thanks for sharing your story,
Landon

I found my path from believer to atheist painful and difficult. I feel I just have ended up here because no other option seemed correct. There are times I wish I could go back to the sense of security I had as a theist.

 

[Landon Caeli]

 

[Landon Caeli]

I found my path from believer to atheist painful and difficult. I feel I just have ended up here because no other option seemed correct. There are times I wish I could go back to the sense of security I had as a theist.

I think I understand what you're saying Belk. That's how I would feel.