I'd call such people seekers not atheists/agnostics. IMHO atheists/agnostics are people who already made up their mind.
Maybe by pandering to them by telling them that Richard Dawkins is the latest dispensation of their messiah Charles Darwin? o_O
They wrote to me twice, unsolicitedly. After the second time, I sent them a "nice" reply. They didn't contact me anymore. :D Here's the letter.
Dear Sir or Madam,
I do not normally respond to unsolicited promotional correspondence, but as this is the second time you have attempted to write to...
Then let's make it more difficult. Assumed your colleagues at work and your boss were "omnivores" and you were allowed to eat kosher or halal food only. Howmany times can you decline their invitations unless they think you're "weird"?
Assumed you were a Jehovah's Witness and your child wasn't...
If there are church bells ringing or the Mulim call to prayer is chanted, then the religion in question doesn't affect believers only, but the entire neighborhood.
No man is an island although some may wish or pretend to be.
How would your buddies react if they offered you a beer and you...
The story is called "Indra's lute".
Gautama was having difficulty deciding whether or not to give up the extreme austerities He had been practicing. Lord Indra comes to advise him.
Indra is seen with his lute-like instrument, which has three strings. He plucks one of the strings, which is too...
As a European, I can only view the religious landscape in the United States through the lens of the media, but I watched another Simpsons vs. Flanders episode (when they take a trip to the Grand Canyon), and I noticed in that in The Simpsons, the Flanders family, as Christians/Protestants, are...
In case you're referring to the 1999 film, I liked it too, but it did refer to an aphocryphal gospel, the Gospel of Thomas. I thought it was outside the framework of the Catholic Church. But it was great entertainment and also made me think a bit.
Hare Krishna belongs to Hinduism although they are considered a controversial group by many Hindus (and non-Hindus too).
At the beginning of Hare Krishna mid-1960s to early 70s, Prabhupada, the founder of the Hare Krishnas, found his audience among hippies and as there were many hippies who...
I don't quite understand what you mean by arbitrators. What first came to my mind were intercessors or mediators. These also may have advantages. Having an intercessor takes away some of the responsibility or worry connected to religion. Or the god could be portrayed as wrathful or inaccessible...
Only God knows this. Perhaps she turned to the unloved and miserable because she inwardly perceived herself that way, and perhaps her inner sense of God-forsakenness and the outward sight of people in misery reinforced each other negatively. You may also remember that in Catholicism suffering...
Dunno. Some people may have received a lot of affection / support / positive feedback etc. in their childhood or in their life, so they are absolutely convinced that Daddy (in Heaven) loves them and supports them in whatever they would like to do.
Others may not have received as much positive...