I think I am now an atheist

[YoursTrue]

Maybe everything just dies and thats it.
Maybe heaven is just a made up dream.
Maybe god is just a made up thing for comfort.

What do you think?

I will pray for you sounds better than **** happens.
Going to hevan sounds better than you just die and thats it.
Etc.

I think, upon contemplating the universe and life on earth, that God exists. I don't think I'm going to heaven, by the way. I also don't think I'll burn in hell. Have a nice night.

 

[We Never Know]

No, I didn't miss it. Animals have a natural desire to avoid death. Usually. There's no saying why this elephant carried the dead baby. Maybe the elephant didn't like the fact it died and was showing it to the elephant god, you think? Could be you consider that as a possibility maybe. And maybe it was an instinctive action. There are, I believe, gods that look like elephants, aren't there? 'Oh, wait, take your choice or not, has an elephant spoken to you yet about this? Maybe the elephant's brain just didn't evolve yet to contemplate building a casket, or burning the baby's corpse, or buying burial insurance. Maybe they're smarter than humans who go through expensive funeral rites usually.

Have you spoken to others species to confirm that ""No other creature on earth contemplates life and death, morality and spirituality"

 

[YoursTrue]

Have you spoken to others species to confirm that ""No other creature on earth contemplates life and death, morality and spirituality"

Have you? (I can use my eyes and mind.) Again, there are those who assert they have visited in spaceships, met aliens at the Pentagon. Have you? Perhaps you have no reason not to believe them, right?

 

[We Never Know]

Have you? (I can use my eyes and mind.) Again, there are those who assert they have visited in spaceships, met aliens at the Pentagon. Have you? Perhaps you have no reason not to believe them, right?

I don't speak dog, cat, horse, dolphin, elephant etc.
I have no clue what they think.

 

[We Never Know]

Have you? (I can use my eyes and mind.) Again, there are those who assert they have visited in spaceships, met aliens at the Pentagon. Have you? Perhaps you have no reason not to believe them, right?

Even grass seems to be more aware than we think.

"The smell of cut grass in recent years has been identified as the plant's way of signalling distress, but new research says the aroma also summons beneficial insects to the rescue.

Mown grass smell sends SOS for help in resisting insect attacks.

 

[YoursTrue]

I don't speak dog, cat, horse, dolphin, elephant etc.
I have no clue what they think.

Yeah you do when they get hungry. Or maybe they don't think about it. But I figure you'll know.

 

[YoursTrue]

Even grass seems to be more aware than we think.

"The smell of cut grass in recent years has been identified as the plant's way of signalling distress, but new research says the aroma also summons beneficial insects to the rescue.

Mown grass smell sends SOS for help in resisting insect attacks.

So? Erosion tells you something too.

 

[We Never Know]

So? Erosion tells you something too.

What distress signal does erosion put off?

 

[We Never Know]

Yeah you do when they get hungry. Or maybe they don't think about it. But I figure you'll know.

No I don't speak dog. I also don't speak plant but I know when they need watered.

 

[YoursTrue]

What distress signal does erosion put off?

Some things just are elusive aren't they.

 

[YoursTrue]

No I don't speak dog. I also don't speak plant but I know when they need watered.

I would think so. Sometimes people can over water.

 

[Dao Hao Now]

Well, my non-belief is most certainly a belief system, obviously I cannot speak for others

This statement by itself is nonsensical:
i.e. “My non-belief is the basis for my belief system.”
One needs to hold a belief in order to build a “belief system” around it.

I'm inclined to say Atheism is a belief system that is based around the non-belief in something (I.e. God), if that makes any sense?

I (and certainly many others) am self-consciously practicing Atheism as a belief system

Or should I say a disbelief system????

Regardless of what others say it is clearly practiced by many as a belief system therefore it is reasonable to classify it as a belief system....

or disbelief system

You understand there is a difference between;
1.) “I believe X is not true”
And
2.) “I don’t believe X is true”
Yes?

With these statements it sounds as if you are conflating “atheism” (the lack of belief in a god) with “skepticism” (a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma), which might be construed as a “belief system” in that all beliefs need to be demonstrated in order to be deemed as true.
Is that your meaning?

When I was a teenager I described myself as an "Atheist" and advocated a position I called "Atheism"

This was an instance of Atheism being someone's belief system

Is this when you were/started believing “the superintendent super-intelligence who runs The Projection (what I call the simulation) began communicating with me”?

Anything that needs a Supreme Being at its centre I now reject

So in answer to your question, I abandoned it as I can no longer support the notion of there being a Supreme Being -

Sounds like a lack of belief…..atheism.

An observation which leads to a belief - or rather a disbelief.........

So, if disbelief…..atheism.

That there is no good reason to listen to what God/The Gods supposedly has/have to say

That there is no reason to listen to religious authorities who quite scripture and claim to know the will of God

That they can be dismissed and ignored without suffering any ill consequence from anyone other than other humans

So, “no good reason to listen to what God supposedly has to say”….if because you don’t believe that God exists and therefore nothing has been said…….lack of belief = atheism.

“No reason to believe religious authorities who claim to know the will of God”……if because you don’t believe there is no God to know the will of……
lack of belief of God = atheism.

“They can be dismissed without consequences”….if because you don’t believe there is a God to cause consequences = atheism.

It fosters a belief system that structures beliefs around a rejection of religious and scriptural authority

Sounds like religious skepticism “a type of skepticism relating to religion. Religious skeptics question religious authority and are not necessarily anti-religious but skeptical of specific or all religious beliefs and/or practices.
Religious skepticism is not the same as atheism or agnosticism, and some religious skeptics are deists (or theists who reject the prevailing organized religionthey encounter, or even all organized religion).“Religious skepticism - Wikipedia

I dismiss the notion and have walked away from it

I do not outright hate God

I simply dismiss him

If you don’t believe in God, how can you hate him?
If by “dismiss” you mean don’t believe in him = atheism.

To me that's just one example of Theism being at odds with reality

It means that Theistic accounts are less credible to me than naturalistic accounts

I'm hoping that if God is real he would inspire me or send me a sign.........

But right now I lack reasons to believe

This is exemplary of religious skepticism.

It’s true religious skepticism often leads to atheism.
However, not all religious skeptics are atheists, and not all atheists are religious skeptics.

On the other hand, having a belief in a known only to you “superintendent super-intelligence who runs The Projection” that communicates with you falls short of skepticism.

Just out of curiosity;
If this superintendent “communicates” with you, but not by “hearing voices”….how does he/it communicate with you?
Is this simulation a computer simulation?
If so is it through computers that he/it communicates with you?

 

[Eddi]

You understand there is a difference between;
1.) “I believe X is not true”
And
2.) “I don’t believe X is true”
Yes?

I think I do

But please, enlighten me

If this superintendent “communicates” with you, but not by “hearing voices”….how does he/it communicate with you?

By touching my body in various places to signify "yes" and "no"

Also, it puts things into my subconscious

Is this simulation a computer simulation?

Sort of

But the "computers" used do not at all resemble our computers, they are way more advanced

The difference is far greater than the difference between an ancient abacus and our most powerful super computers

If so is it through computers that he/it communicates with you?

I believe that myself and everyone else are sentient computer programs

 

[KWED]

You will know once you have found Him. And He finds you.

But as all religionists of all faiths make basically the same claim about mutually exclusive gods, how do you know that you are right and they are wrong? (Remember that any answer based on strength of belief, etc, applies equally to others).

So with all these religions out there, one needs to pray for help to find God, to know who He is.

Yeah, but they might have already found him. It might be you that needs to keep looking.

There is a balance in reasoning.

Meaningless platitude.

I have come to the conclusion that life did not "just appear," as if by a binding of chemicals that just happened to happen.

And on what do you base that "conclusion"? What do you know that all the physicists, biologists, chemists, etc don't?

But that God put it all together, creating the heavens and the earth. I don't want to get too wordy, so I'll leave it there.

Although abiogenesis does not yet have a working explanation, most other things do. We know how the earth was formed and no god was required. Your position just seems to be the argument from personal incredulity. You don't understand something so therefore it must be magic.

 

[KWED]

Isn't that partially the human race? With or without god, especially if you think they "evolved."

So as humans are capable of great evil with or without god, what is the point of god?

As Stephen Weinberg said ... "Good people will do good things and bad people will do bad things, but to get good people to do bad things requires religion [or other similar ideological belief]" (my addition)

 

[Tinker Grey]

Isn't that partially the human race? With or without god, especially if you think they "evolved."

You've missed the point. You worship a god that is genocidal, misogynistic, homophobic, and narcissistic. That's what's ugly.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

The thing is though, it can be treated like a belief system

Me existing proves this

Also, there are plenty of people here on RF who give their religion as "atheist" on the info that appears above their posts

Including me. But it's not a religion.
That's an act of communication, rather than technical accuracy.

It would simply read 'none' otherwise.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

The thing is though, it can be treated like a belief system.

Do you think theism is a belief system?

Me existing proves this

Nope. Your belief system isn't atheism. Atheism is a part of your belief system.

Also, there are plenty of people here on RF who give their religion as "atheist" on the info that appears above their posts

They can...of course...be religious and atheist. They can be irreligious and not atheist. Or any other combination.

But atheism isn't a religion. I know this because the Atheist Pope said it.

(That was a joke. No head of atheism. No authoritative body. No agreed rituals. No dogma. No tattoo. No circumcision. No secret handshake.)

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

I don't know, that's a tough one!

I'm inclined to say Atheism is a belief system that is based around the non-belief in something (I.e. God), if that makes any sense?

No that doesn't make sense.

Non-belief is not a belief. Let alone a belief system.


You need to believe something (= accept a claim as true or at least likely true) for it to be called a belief.

NOT accepting a claim as true, ie NOT believing a claim, is not a belief.

 

[TagliatelliMonster]

Except that Atheists expand huge quantities of time and effort arguing against Theism

Were it just an absence of belief they wouldn't

If trekkies (hardcore star trek fans) would have so much presence and power that they are able to shape public policies by governments in favor of their star trek fantasies, then non-trekkies would be spending a lot of time arguing against that as well.


The reason theism is being debated is NOT because "atheists want to recuit" or "be correct".
It's just because theists try to impose their religious beliefs on secular society.

And also, off course, the vast majority of atheists actually spends exactly zero seconds debating theists on theistic issues. Just because you meet a few atheists who like debating on a forum like this one - where they would naturally gravitate towards, that doesn't mean it is representative of all atheists everywhere.

I'ld even dare say that many atheists spend so little time thinking about theism / atheism that they don't even realize that they are atheists.