Any Downside to Atheism?

[Willamena]

Compassion is demonstrated by helping fulfill a physical need. The compassion of Christ was always demonstrated in healing, feeding and protecting people from physical harm. This is something that is found lacking among those who simply preach some Christian dogma.

In short, serving others is the only true witness of the heart of Christ. And such "witnessing" is extremely difficult and hardly ever attempted. I would recommend the movie "Entertaining Angels" as a sample of what I am talking about.

The compassion of Christ was demonstrated on the cross.

 

[Vile Atheist]

Sometimes because of social conditioning you will say ''Oh My God'' or ''Jesus ******* Christ'' or ''Christ on a cracker'' or '' ******* Jesus ******* Christ or '' Jesus ******* wept'' or '' what in god's name is this ******* ****'' or '' Jesus, Mary and Holy St Joseph, can you believe this ******* **** again'' or '' well **** on the five wounds of Christ and call me a heretic'' or ''what in the ******* name of God is this ****'' Then you feel like kind of a hypocrite

Oh mercy, if I could give you more frubals for that, I would!

 

[Autodidact]

WOW so what i get from a lot of the responses is that ONLY atheist live their life to the fullest and soooo much more fun than believers....

Please quote the post that says this.

that is just ignorance i think. most of my family are very successful people and are strong christians and that has helped them become successful. im a believer and know a lot of athiests. pretty sure they don't have all kinds of fun and i don't. ha.

They do on Sunday mornings.

it is true that if you are an athiest you don't know God. fact.

Well it's also a fact that if you're a theist you don't know God. No one knows God. Because there is no God.

you admit that you don't know God and the only way to know that he exsist is to have just a little bit of faith and it will prove it to you.

You have to believe God exists in order to believe it? Kind of like Tinkerbell. Y'know, we have a word for things you have to believe in before you can experience them. We call them "imaginary."

and why attack God? or Jesus? why is it always that? there are other religions out there. ya know what i think? it's because he is the TRUE God. the one true God and in case you don't know. there is a battle going on between God and Satan. so.... Satan is going to attack God and his followers through anything or anyone.

Did you see someone attacking God or Jesus in this thread? I must have missed it. Can you cite that post for me?

what is so wrong with following something that promotes being a good person?

A good person like Fred Phelps you mean?

if you don't believe why worry about it?

Oh I don't know, I have this weird hangup about the truth.

why critisize? it is a Christians job to witness to people that don't know God.

I see. Christians should tell atheists they're wrong, but atheists shouldn't tell Christians they're wrong? Does being a good person include being a hypocrite?

 

[Autodidact]

well.... that's what im saying! you don't have faith, you don't believe in faith so you don't believe in God.

That's right. I don't believe things just because I believe them. I need evidence.

the earth and humans and their conscience proves the existence of God to me but i guess that's not good enough for athiest.

It's not good enough for you, either. Otherwise you'd be Muslim. Also Hindu. Oh, you're not? It's not enough evidence to believe in those God, just your God? Why are you Christian rather than Muslim? Let me take a wile guess. Were you possibly raised Christian?

just like you don't understand me i dont' understand you. and trust me im NOT what you are thinking...

You presume to know what I'm thinking?

im a very liberal open minded person. i totally respect you for standing up in what you believe and don't believe that's what im doing. i believe in peace. wish everyone did. it's just my job as a Christian to "sew the seed"

Well it's my job as a decent human being to sow the truth.

 

[MSizer]

Well it's my job as a decent human being to sow the truth.

And it is knowledge that reduces suffering, not mythology. (although admitteldly, I never have tried a sacrificial goat ceremony, so who knows?)

 

[Thief]

Are you KIDDING me? I'm looking forward to my lunchtime walk in the sunshine through naked trees radiant with winter light. I'm looking forward to making beautiful music tonight with friends, and curling up in the arms of the love of my life at the end of the day. I'm looking forward to driving through the Rockies next month to grandma's house to spend another wonderful winter solstice with my extended family.

I'm alive. What more could I possibly desire?



If you need God to give you a cookie at the end of your life in order to make it meaningful and purposeful, I pity you. Honestly.

Wake up!....obviously when I say nothing to look forward to...I am referring to the next life.
If you don't believe in the life after death....eternal darkness of the grave will have you.

I believe in life after death...not because of a book...not because someone told me to....etc, etc,etc,....
I believe because I have suffered serious injury, and those injuries failed to stop my thinking and my feeling.
I believe because there are 6billion opportunities for the making of unique spiritual lives. (souls)

Now if all you have is this immediate moment....fine...enjoy.
But when you lay down to breath your last breath, you might be surprised.
What if you keep on thinking....feeling...dreaming....

What if your apathy and disbelief should render you unable to escape your flesh? You can't do so now...even though you think you are in control.

If philosophy and religion fail you in such matters....try Edgar Allen Poe's ...Premature Burial.

There is nothing in atheist logic that makes certain there is no life after death.

 

[MSizer]

There is nothing in atheist logic that makes certain there is no life after death.

That is true, but likewise, there is nothing in "theistic logic" that "makes certain" there is life after death.

When we toss out atheism and theism and just worry about logic alone, again, there is nothing that even suggests life after death is even remotely possible.

 

[Vile Atheist]

There is nothing in atheist logic that makes certain there is no life after death.

You mean brain death? No we don't need philosophical speculation to demonstrate that. We can already do so quite well with science and have for quite a few years. When someone's brain completely shuts down. That's it. Game over, man. Game over.


Now I imagine you mean that on your deathbed as you slowly slip out of consciousness, you'll find yourself waking up in some sort of virtual reality world, complete with angels and demons. There is no reason nor evidence to suggest this would happen.

 

[Alceste]

Wake up!....obviously when I say nothing to look forward to...I am referring to the next life.
If you don't believe in the life after death....eternal darkness of the grave will have you.

The next life? What's so wrong with THIS life that I should need or want another one?

The "eternal darkness or the grave" won't "have me" after my death any more than it "had me" before my birth.

Again, I pity you for feeling you need or want some other life, some other world, some escape from the finality of death which inspires so many awake and aware people to make the most of this life, right now, today.

The fact is, you could die tomorrow and you don't know what will happen after that. Today, you are living your life as if it doesn't matter - it's all just preamble to the post-mortem bliss you expect to receive as a reward for your faith. But whatever you believe, at the end of it all your consciousness could be snuffed out like a candle, all opportunities lost. Your whole, miraculous life wasted waiting for a better deal. That's what I pity.

I believe in life after death...not because of a book...not because someone told me to....etc, etc,etc,....
I believe because I have suffered serious injury, and those injuries failed to stop my thinking and my feeling.
I believe because there are 6billion opportunities for the making of unique spiritual lives. (souls)

Now if all you have is this immediate moment....fine...enjoy.
But when you lay down to breath your last breath, you might be surprised.
What if you keep on thinking....feeling...dreaming....

What if your apathy and disbelief should render you unable to escape your flesh? You can't do so now...even though you think you are in control.

Why would I want to escape my flesh? The miraculous, beautiful package that shelters and transports my consciousness?

If philosophy and religion fail you in such matters....try Edgar Allen Poe's ...Premature Burial.

There is nothing in atheist logic that makes certain there is no life after death.

Yes, there is. Here it is: Where were you before you were born? What is more likely: that you will return to the nothingness from which you came, or that you'll go somewhere else entirely with all your memories, character and physical self-image intact? Is it likely that if you were stuck with all your memories, character and physical self-image FOREVER, packed onto a cloud with everyone who has ever lived - a cloud which got more and more crowded every day - you would feel blissful?

Face it: There is absolutely nothing "logical" about your belief in an afterlife. It's nothing but window dressing for your desperate fear of death, which is the flip side of your desperate fear of really living, right now, today.

Me, I'm not a fearful person.

 

[Vile Atheist]

Face it: There is absolutely nothing "logical" about your belief in an afterlife. It's nothing but window dressing for your desperate fear of death, which is the flip side of your desperate fear of really living, right now, today.

Nail...meet Mr. Head.

 

[Thief]

The next life? What's so wrong with THIS life that I should need or want another one?

The "eternal darkness or the grave" won't "have me" after my death any more than it "had me" before my birth.

Again, I pity you for feeling you need or want some other life, some other world, some escape from the finality of death which inspires so many awake and aware people to make the most of this life, right now, today.

The fact is, you could die tomorrow and you don't know what will happen after that. Today, you are living your life as if it doesn't matter - it's all just preamble to the post-mortem bliss you expect to receive as a reward for your faith. But whatever you believe, at the end of it all your consciousness could be snuffed out like a candle, all opportunities lost. Your whole, miraculous life wasted waiting for a better deal. That's what I pity.




Why would I want to escape my flesh? The miraculous, beautiful package that shelters and transports my consciousness?



Yes, there is. Here it is: Where were you before you were born? What is more likely: that you will return to the nothingness from which you came, or that you'll go somewhere else entirely with all your memories, character and physical self-image intact? Is it likely that if you were stuck with all your memories, character and physical self-image FOREVER, packed onto a cloud with everyone who has ever lived - a cloud which got more and more crowded every day - you would feel blissful?

Face it: There is absolutely nothing "logical" about your belief in an afterlife. It's nothing but window dressing for your desperate fear of death, which is the flip side of your desperate fear of really living, right now, today.

Me, I'm not a fearful person.

Too many assumptions on your part.
I don't live in fear.
I have anticipation....great expectations.
This life is a generating experience.
We are here to learn all that we can before we die.
This linear existence makes each one of us unique and interesting.

Too bad you won't be around ....later on.

 

[Alceste]

Too many assumptions on your part.
I don't live in fear.
I have anticipation....great expectations.
This life is a generating experience.
We are here to learn all that we can before we die.
This linear existence makes each one of us unique and interesting.

Too bad you won't be around ....later on.

Too bad you're not around.... right now.

 

[Cobblestones]

The compassion of Christ was demonstrated on the cross.

I used to think that too except that the reality of what that implies is beyond my ability to accept. It implies that reconciliation with God was necessary. The reason for this need? The "fall of man" as recorded in Genesis which is neither factual nor "true" in any sense. It further implies that God required a perfect human sacrifice before reconciliation was possible. This idea is completely contrary to the very nature of forgiveness and reconciliation and indeed to the life of Christ as recorded in the Gospels wherein he freely forgave without any sort of sacrifice being a prerequisite.

I don't doubt that the historical Jesus was crucified but I cannot accept that it was a willing and necessary sacrifice from the point of view of reconciling man to God.

 

[Vile Atheist]

Too many assumptions on your part.
I don't live in fear.
I have anticipation....great expectations.
This life is a generating experience.
We are here to learn all that we can before we die.
This linear existence makes each one of us unique and interesting.

Too bad you won't be around ....later on.

Do you mean to suggest that what actually happens to someone is dependent on their beliefs?

As in you do not believe there exists an afterlife and everyone goes to it, such that x event happens to group A and y event happens to group B?

But you believe that atheists who don't accept the afterlife will merely rot in the ground and nothing will happen to them (in accordance with what science currently suggests)...and that people who do believe in an afterlife, the universe will jet out this fantasy world afterlife?

....You can't be serious....

 

[Cobblestones]

And it is knowledge that reduces suffering, not mythology. (although admitteldly, I never have tried a sacrificial goat ceremony, so who knows?)

Sacrificing ferrets is far more effective.

 

[Thief]

Do you mean to suggest that what actually happens to someone is dependent on their beliefs?

As in you do not believe there exists an afterlife and everyone goes to it, such that x event happens to group A and y event happens to group B?

But you believe that atheists who don't accept the afterlife will merely rot in the ground and nothing will happen to them (in accordance with what science currently suggests)...and that people who do believe in an afterlife, the universe will jet out this fantasy world afterlife?

....You can't be serious....

Would you be willing to say your thoughts and beliefs have no consequence?

 

[Vile Atheist]

Would you be willing to say your thoughts and beliefs have no consequence?

On their own, I would be willing to say exactly that. If my thoughts and beliefs translate into actions, they do have consequence. But that's not what we're on about here. We're talking about death where all our thoughts and memories and knowledge is erased.

 

[Alceste]

Do you mean to suggest that what actually happens to someone is dependent on their beliefs?

As in you do not believe there exists an afterlife and everyone goes to it, such that x event happens to group A and y event happens to group B?

But you believe that atheists who don't accept the afterlife will merely rot in the ground and nothing will happen to them (in accordance with what science currently suggests)...and that people who do believe in an afterlife, the universe will jet out this fantasy world afterlife?

....You can't be serious....

A lot of Christians take that angle, which is based on "For god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him shall never die, but have everlasting life". (Or whatever).

As far as Christians are concerned, the jury is out as to whether infidels "rot in the ground", as the above implies, or live eternally, only to be tortured forever in the fiery pits of hell, as other verses imply. (Oddly, very few Christians will admit there are contradictions in the Bible, despite this serious ambiguity on such an important question. IMO, this is because different sects advocate different beliefs on what happens to infidels, and very few Christians read any part of the Bible that has not been selected for them by their superiors.)

 

[Thief]

A lot of Christians take that angle, which is based on "For god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him shall never die, but have everlasting life". (Or whatever).

As far as Christians are concerned, the jury is out as to whether infidels "rot in the ground", as the above implies, or live eternally, only to be tortured forever in the fiery pits of hell, as other verses imply. (Oddly, very few Christians will admit there are contradictions in the Bible, despite this serious ambiguity on such an important question. IMO, this is because different sects advocate different beliefs on what happens to infidels, and very few Christians read any part of the Bible that has not been selected for them by their superiors.)

I don't rely on Scripture.

 

[Vile Atheist]

A lot of Christians take that angle, which is based on "For god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him shall never die, but have everlasting life". (Or whatever).

As far as Christians are concerned, the jury is out as to whether infidels "rot in the ground", as the above implies, or live eternally, only to be tortured forever in the fiery pits of hell, as other verses imply. (Oddly, very few Christians will admit there are contradictions in the Bible, despite this serious ambiguity on such an important question. IMO, this is because different sects advocate different beliefs on what happens to infidels, and very few Christians read any part of the Bible that has not been selected for them by their superiors.)

I think many just gloss over that and think "atheists will die and go to hell" and then make a distinction between mortal death and "spiritual death". At least the Catholics do, to my last recollection.