*[I believe] Atheism is an absurd worldview

[McBell]

What heinous act would you commit if it were suddenly proven God did not exist?

Pssst...
Dont egg him on.
I mean, if he were to think that there is no god to punish him, he gonna be out raping and killing, and thieving, and who knows what all else.....

 

[Curious George]

I observe that we tend to be materialists, but not all of us are.
(Some have weird spiritual otherworldly beliefs.)
Does a majority opinion mean that all atheists share a worldview?

It is only part of the atheist worldview if atheism entails such.

 

[Reflex]

The first sentence appears to agree with me.
But the 2nd appears to be somewhat the opposite.
Explain?

Can you explain why it's not inconsistent? To be an atheist on one hand and on the other hand have concern for things of the spirit -- the vital principle or animating force within living things (God) -- is self-contradictory.

To say one is a spiritual person because they experience awe or feel empathy without understanding where those feelings come from or why is shallow. It best, it's an arbitrary emotional idealism.

 

[Revoltingest]

Can you explain why it's not inconsistent? To be an atheist on one hand and on the other hand have concern for things of the spirit -- the vital principle or animating force within living things (God) -- is self-contradictory.

The definitions of "atheism" from Dictionary.com.....
noun
1. the doctrine or belief that there is no God.
2. disbelief in the existence of a supreme being or beings.

Both worldviews exhibit no belief in gods, so there is no inconsistency with atheism.

To say one is a spiritual person because they experience awe or feel empathy without understanding where those feelings come from or why is shallow. It best, it's an arbitrary emotional idealism.

"Shallow" is the wrong word.
If one experiences something, but cannot explain why one does, this is simply ignorance of the cause.
The word "shallow" doesn't apply because this isn't about superficiality.
If anything, it is the height of depth, ie, to eschew simplistic mythological explanations, & allow for greater complexity of origins.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

I observe that we tend to be materialists, but not all of us are.
(Some have weird spiritual otherworldly beliefs.)
Does a majority opinion mean that all atheists share a worldview?

Naw. It's a broad view of reality. The only thing all have in common is their beliefs, morals, whatever, does not have a deity component in it.

 

[Reflex]

"Shallow" is the wrong word.
If one experiences something, but cannot explain why one does, this is simply ignorance of the cause.
The word "shallow" doesn't apply because this isn't about superficiality.
If anything, it is the height of depth, ie, to eschew simplistic mythological explanations, & allow for greater complexity of origins.

That doesn't explain why it's not inconsistent, arbitrary, or turtles all the way down.

“There is only one God, who is all love; every human being has an immortal soul, whose highest destiny is to be united with God; if we live virtuous lives, we will join our heavenly Father after death, but if we do not, justice will be dc done; we must humbly yield to the divine will, accepting with equanimity whatever life brings us; to be attracted to the sensual pleasures of this world is to be distanced from God, the Good we seek but never find in material pursuits. And then there is the Christian conception of spirituality, which I won't bother to summarize.” (From Return to the One) The author was giving a brief description of the teachings of Plotinus, a Greek pagan philosopher in the third century.

The point is, even this pagan had a central idea/ideal that brought together cosmology and morality. The question I have is this: what ultimate explanation for reality do atheists have that also provides guidance and justification for moral behavior? I mean, besides turtles all the way down,

 

[Gambit]

Atheism, though, is precisely the godless world created by people exercising their free will. It stands in contrast to the surrender to god's will, which is the theist. Isn't that Genesis I in a nutshell?

This is a non sequitur.

By the way, why are you talking about Genesis?

 

[Gambit]

What a load of crap.
In the godless world of the atheist it is all free will.
Why?
Because there is no plan of gods that can be screwed up by us mere mortals.

Free will presupposes a telos for which your worldview denies.

 

[Revoltingest]

Naw. It's a broad view of reality. The only thing all have in common is their beliefs, morals, whatever, does not have a deity component in it.

We heathens don't have any other beliefs or morals in common.
Disbelief in gods is all we share.

 

[Revoltingest]

That doesn't explain why it's not inconsistent, arbitrary, or turtles all the way down.

Both views are consistent with atheism's definition.
What other standard should be met?

“There is only one God, who is all love; every human being has an immortal soul, whose highest destiny is to be united with God; if we live virtuous lives, we will join our heavenly Father after death, but if we do not, justice will be dc done; we must humbly yield to the divine will, accepting with equanimity whatever life brings us; to be attracted to the sensual pleasures of this world is to be distanced from God, the Good we seek but never find in material pursuits. And then there is the Christian conception of spirituality, which I won't bother to summarize.” (From Return to the One) The author was giving a brief description of the teachings of Plotinus, a Greek pagan philosopher in the third century.

The point is, even this pagan had a central idea/ideal that brought together cosmology and morality. The question I have is this: what ultimate explanation for reality do atheists have that also provides guidance and justification for moral behavior? I mean, besides turtles all the way down,

Atheism doesn't have any explanations which are fundamental to it.
We disbelieve in gods.
This is the singular thing we have in common.
All other beliefs are optional.

 

[McBell]

Free will presupposes a telos for which your worldview denies.

bull ****.
The only reason you think it does is because of your own dependence on your god.
There are those who do not have a dependence on a deity.

This is nothing more than a sad attempt at claiming without god {insert something here} does not exist.
A claim that is as empty a claim as "god exists".

 

[Reflex]

Both views are consistent with atheism's definition.
What other standard should be met?

Atheism doesn't have any explanations which are fundamental to it.

That's the point.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

We heathens don't have any other beliefs or morals in common.
Disbelief in gods is all we share.

Basically. So your worldview is basically deitiless

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Culture comes apart when the predominant myths are no longer plausible because people can no longer communicate and cannot coordinate their actions.

Then why are things in Scandinavia going so well with all those atheists running around?

With one God (however that God may be conceived), we have one creator of the universe and one giver of moral order. God is therefore the ultimate explanation for reality and the ultimate justification of our behavior. When God loses its plausibility, when final explanations and justifications become too diversified, the moral order disintegrates and culture disintegrates. God as a person alongside other persons won't do, God as a computer won't do, and turtles all the way down won't do, either.

That statement is a load of crap, and I can only hope that one day you will realize just how offensive it is.

That's true. Atheists do tend to be superficial and inconsistent.

How so? Theists tend to condemn people based on what an ancient book tells them, they tend to believe very silly things that aren't possible, and they tend to turn to an external source for "moral guidance" rather than developing the strength and wisdom to think things through for themselves.

 

[Willamena]

This is a non sequitur.

Not if you're an atheist.

By the way, why are you talking about Genesis?

The comparison was irresistible.

 

[Gambit]

Not if you're an atheist.

What atheists fail to understand is that to create a purpose is to act on some higher purpose.

 

[Rick O'Shez]

OP's assertion is absurd. There is no "atheist worldview". Atheism only defines a person's position on one specific thing. Trying to color someone by a single attribute is a very futile way to try to judge a "worldview".

Exactly. A person's world-view has many different aspects, belief/disbelief in God is just one of them.

The whole discussion is silly.

 

[ArtieE]

What heinous act would you commit if it were suddenly proven God did not exist?

Muslim suicide bombers seem to be perfectly capable of committing heinous acts even though they believe their god exists...

 

[Reflex]

Self-professed atheists who are spiritually-inclined have thoughts running through their heads that are at cross-purposes to the sense-impressions entering into their consciousnesses. It's a philosophy of life that's open to being accused—if not actually convicted—of hypocrisy: they experience the material as the ultimate truth but also believe in spirit. This produces an unavoidable tension between what is immediately apparent and what is believed. Atheists who are materialists don't have this problem, but live lives that are incommensurate with freedom.

How so? Theists tend to condemn people based on what an ancient book tells them, they tend to believe very silly things that aren't possible, and they tend to turn to an external source for "moral guidance" rather than developing the strength and wisdom to think things through for themselves.

A perfect example of atheist superficiality. Thank you. (You really should read what you called "crap," especially the last sentence.)

 

[ArtieE]

That's the point.

Theism is just a belief in the existence of one or more gods. If a person says he's a theist it tells you nothing about the person other than that he believes some god(s) exist. It tells you nothing about his worldview or morality or anything else. He could be a "saint" or a Muslim terrorist suicide bomber. Not being a theist tells you nothing about worldview or morality either.