Spoke to an Atheist Today

[bigbird123456789]

A colleague of mine at work and I started rapping today and the conversation ended up towards the G word. Thought previously that he was a muslim but as he was nyaming out a piece of pork I thought I would ask what the faith was, turns out that he was raised stricked Christian Orthodox, then he said that he read a book called the God Delusion. When I heard that I kinda thought Oh dear, and well I gave him my view of things, and he replied by saying that he was almost convinced by time I had finished.

Noticed that he blamed God for nuff things, well Im in the athesist forum so I guess most people hear are God HATERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only joking.

Seriously though, anyone read that book, the God delusion?

 

[Kilgore Trout]

I had a really big meal for dinner last night. It was roast chicken with vegetables, then I had some ice cream - a rare treat for me. Then I helped my wife study for the GREs while having a couple of drinks. It's been pretty dry as of late, so I also pulled out the humidifier, ran some diluted bleach through it, and filled it up. It helped a lot.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

A colleague of mine at work and I started rapping today and the conversation ended up towards the G word. Thought previously that he was a muslim but as he was nyaming out a piece of pork I thought I would ask what the faith was, turns out that he was raised stricked Christian Orthodox, then he said that he read a book called the God Delusion. When I heard that I kinda thought Oh dear, and well I gave him my view of things, and he replied by saying that he was almost convinced by time I had finished.

Noticed that he blamed God for nuff things, well Im in the athesist forum so I guess most people hear are God HATERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only joking.

Seriously though, anyone read that book, the God delusion?

Never read it. Seems dull though.

 

[Alceste]

Nope, never read it, but the Greatest Show on Earth was a great book. I recommend it to everyone. If I were a biology teacher I would use it as my text book.

I did read most of Hitchens' God is Not Great. Probably pretty much the same. I didn't finish it, though, since there really isn't a whole book worth of interesting things to say about being an atheist. He is a very clever writer and I enjoyed his prose, I just can't see any point in reading a book about nothing.

 

[Photonic]

A colleague of mine at work and I started rapping today and the conversation ended up towards the G word. Thought previously that he was a muslim but as he was nyaming out a piece of pork I thought I would ask what the faith was, turns out that he was raised stricked Christian Orthodox, then he said that he read a book called the God Delusion. When I heard that I kinda thought Oh dear, and well I gave him my view of things, and he replied by saying that he was almost convinced by time I had finished.

Noticed that he blamed God for nuff things, well Im in the athesist forum so I guess most people hear are God HATERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only joking.

Seriously though, anyone read that book, the God delusion?

I've read through God Delusion a few times, it's ok I guess.

I HIGHLY prefer Christopher Hitchens "God is Not Great" and,

most importantly, "Pale Blue Dot" by Carl Sagan.<---That's one of my favs.

 

[yourhopeboundheart]

the God Delusion is a book that is a great start for someone completely unfamiliar with any arguments against the Judeo-Christian god concept. but the important thing to keep in mind is that it's a START. too many people read this book and consider themselves 'expert atheists' and attempt to regurgitate as much of it as they can when picking fights with theists. i've observed a certain immaturity amongst most* people who've read the book, in that rather than taking the concept of scientific inquiry and, well, inquiring; they instead treat it more like a holy book that can be used to trump other's arguments simply by merit of being a published work.

i'm not going to say that your profession of belief and reasons for believing are not convincing enough to change someone's mind on the subject - but my suspicion is that if your friend had not done any follow up reading or personal reflection on the topics discussed in the God Delusion, then his mind had not truly been made up and he was most likely not entirely convinced by his own arguments (dawkins' arguments). part of my suspicion comes from the comment "he blamed God" for things. an atheist, who does not believe in any gods, would have a very difficult time blaming a god for anything, just as i wouldnt claim that i was late for work because a unicorn was blocking my driveway or that a leprechaun had hidden my keys from me.

i would suggest that if you have questions or curiosities about the book that you should read it. but also keep in mind there's a great deal of literature out there (much of it written by dawkins as well) that can lead one toward convincing arguments against the existence of gods, but more importantly convincing arguments toward the importance of a scientific approach to life. i always try to read things that will foster new understandings, rather than simply break down my old ones (although sometimes the latter is imperative to success in the former).

*forgive my generalization, but i think most of us can probably agree that a lot of our frustrations with our fellow non-believers has stemmed from their attitude after reading this book, or books like it.

 

[Dirty Penguin]

A colleague of mine at work and I started rapping today and the conversation ended up towards the G word. Thought previously that he was a muslim but as he was nyaming out a piece of pork I thought I would ask what the faith was, turns out that he was raised stricked Christian Orthodox, then he said that he read a book called the God Delusion. When I heard that I kinda thought Oh dear, and well I gave him my view of things, and he replied by saying that he was almost convinced by time I had finished.

Noticed that he blamed God for nuff things, well Im in the athesist forum so I guess most people hear are God HATERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only joking.

Seriously though, anyone read that book, the God delusion?

I never read the book......got a new Kindle for the wife. Her boss gave her a $500 Amazon gift card....I guess I should get started on some book reading...

Don't let your friend influence you to think that (all) Atheist are like him. I'm Atheist. I was born that way. I don't blame "God" for anything as I don't have a belief in gods. If I see no reason and have no evidence of the existence of gods then I can hardly blame them for anything.

Some people simply believe we're evil and we eat babies....But I assure you that's hardly the case....We eat puppies....:drool:

 

[waitasec]

A colleague of mine at work and I started rapping today and the conversation ended up towards the G word. Thought previously that he was a muslim but as he was nyaming out a piece of pork I thought I would ask what the faith was, turns out that he was raised stricked Christian Orthodox, then he said that he read a book called the God Delusion. When I heard that I kinda thought Oh dear, and well I gave him my view of things, and he replied by saying that he was almost convinced by time I had finished.

Noticed that he blamed God for nuff things, well Im in the athesist forum so I guess most people hear are God HATERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! only joking.

Seriously though, anyone read that book, the God delusion?

i wouldn't say god haters but haters of the idea of a tyrannical god...

oh and i eat kitties....with some fava beans and a bottle of chianti

 

[FlyingTeaPot]

I had a really big meal for dinner last night. It was roast chicken with vegetables, then I had some ice cream - a rare treat for me. Then I helped my wife study for the GREs while having a couple of drinks. It's been pretty dry as of late, so I also pulled out the humidifier, ran some diluted bleach through it, and filled it up. It helped a lot.

:biglaugh:

 

[shanedawson]

Yes.

It's a good read for a novice (like me) in the arguments proposed and explained.

 

[Falvlun]

I enjoyed the book. It was entertaining, and a good overview.

 

[Twilight Hue]

I like Dawkins as well.

 

[Skorzeny]

The God Delusion has some good arguments, but Dawkins is an idiot. In fact, he humbly states in the blurb of a new, recently published version (from '08, '09 I think. Probably wrong, it's been a while) that he hopes that every religious leader who reads the book will put it down and be a complete atheist by the end. The man is a psycho, and just as ignorant as the people that he believes he combats (delusional, presumptuous religious advocators. Not all, of course).

 

[cablescavenger]

the God Delusion is a book that is a great start for someone completely unfamiliar with any arguments against the Judeo-Christian god concept. but the important thing to keep in mind is that it's a START. too many people read this book and consider themselves 'expert atheists' and attempt to regurgitate as much of it as they can when picking fights with theists. i've observed a certain immaturity amongst most* people who've read the book, in that rather than taking the concept of scientific inquiry and, well, inquiring; they instead treat it more like a holy book that can be used to trump other's arguments simply by merit of being a published work.

i'm not going to say that your profession of belief and reasons for believing are not convincing enough to change someone's mind on the subject - but my suspicion is that if your friend had not done any follow up reading or personal reflection on the topics discussed in the God Delusion, then his mind had not truly been made up and he was most likely not entirely convinced by his own arguments (dawkins' arguments). part of my suspicion comes from the comment "he blamed God" for things. an atheist, who does not believe in any gods, would have a very difficult time blaming a god for anything, just as i wouldnt claim that i was late for work because a unicorn was blocking my driveway or that a leprechaun had hidden my keys from me.

i would suggest that if you have questions or curiosities about the book that you should read it. but also keep in mind there's a great deal of literature out there (much of it written by dawkins as well) that can lead one toward convincing arguments against the existence of gods, but more importantly convincing arguments toward the importance of a scientific approach to life. i always try to read things that will foster new understandings, rather than simply break down my old ones (although sometimes the latter is imperative to success in the former).

*forgive my generalization, but i think most of us can probably agree that a lot of our frustrations with our fellow non-believers has stemmed from their attitude after reading this book, or books like it.

The God delusion is not a start for anything. You can be an atheist without it.

I was an atheist before I knew what an atheist was, and and long before Dawkins and Hitchens appeared on the scene.
The book that led me to the conclusion that God did not exist? - The bible.

 

[cablescavenger]

The God Delusion has some good arguments, but Dawkins is an idiot. In fact, he humbly states in the blurb of a new, recently published version (from '08, '09 I think. Probably wrong, it's been a while) that he hopes that every religious leader who reads the book will put it down and be a complete atheist by the end. The man is a psycho, and just as ignorant as the people that he believes he combats (delusional, presumptuous religious advocators. Not all, of course).

:slap:

 

[Splarnst]

The God Delusion is a middling book on atheism. I've read plenty of others that were much better, but it wasn't bad. It's famous mostly because of the author, not because of the content.

 

[Falvlun]

The God Delusion has some good arguments, but Dawkins is an idiot. In fact, he humbly states in the blurb of a new, recently published version (from '08, '09 I think. Probably wrong, it's been a while) that he hopes that every religious leader who reads the book will put it down and be a complete atheist by the end. The man is a psycho, and just as ignorant as the people that he believes he combats (delusional, presumptuous religious advocators. Not all, of course).

The exact quote would probably help since Dawkins is notoriously, and often purposefully, taken out of context.

But, I fail to see how it is idiotic to hope that the book you wrote would convince a group of people to come to the conclusion the book supports. It might be arrogant and unrealistic, but I don't see how that is any different than anyone else who writes a book advocating a provocative worldview.

 

[yourhopeboundheart]

The God delusion is not a start for anything. You can be an atheist without it.

I was an atheist before I knew what an atheist was, and and long before Dawkins and Hitchens appeared on the scene.
The book that led me to the conclusion that God did not exist? - The bible.

clearly, considering atheism has been a position held for the entirety of human life (being the default). i'm simply saying that someone reading this book does not need it to be their end.

the bible is a good route as well, but what it did for me was not foster disbelief, but incredible hate. the god delusion and arriving at true atheism helped me to lay that down and relax.

 

[backwateru]

Nope, never read it, but the Greatest Show on Earth was a great book. I recommend it to everyone. If I were a biology teacher I would use it as my text book.

I did read most of Hitchens' God is Not Great. Probably pretty much the same. I didn't finish it, though, since there really isn't a whole book worth of interesting things to say about being an atheist. He is a very clever writer and I enjoyed his prose, I just can't see any point in reading a book about nothing.

many of us enjoyed a television series about nothing for 8 years....it topped the ratings for much of that time

 

[Vile Atheist]

the God Delusion is a book that is a great start for someone completely unfamiliar with any arguments against the Judeo-Christian god concept. but the important thing to keep in mind is that it's a START. too many people read this book and consider themselves 'expert atheists' and attempt to regurgitate as much of it as they can when picking fights with theists. i've observed a certain immaturity amongst most* people who've read the book, in that rather than taking the concept of scientific inquiry and, well, inquiring; they instead treat it more like a holy book that can be used to trump other's arguments simply by merit of being a published work.

I've read it. Years ago, I was in every sense of the word a fundamentalist Christian. The God Delusion was a book recommended to me by atheists. Since I actually cared whether or not my beliefs were true, I gave the arguments in that book a fair shake. I had never heard very many arguments against Christianity at that point, but with the sheer power of logic and science, it exposed how ridiculous my beliefs were.

I then entered a state of mind where my brain was convinced that God probably doesn't exist, but my "mind" had a desire to want God to exist. There was a deep psychological fear of going to hell and The God Delusion ended up quelling a lot of that fear by giving me constant reassurance that Hell probably doesn't exist and I won't roast for being a generally good person who doesn't believe in a concept that is unsupported by evidence or reason.

Of course, I didn't just stop at The God Delusion. I kept reading more and more. The Portable Atheist, The Missionary Position, Hitch-22, and God is Not Great by Hitchens. Letter to a Christian Nation by Harris. Why Evolution is True by Coyne. The Greatest Show on Earth, The Blind Watchmaker, The Selfish Gene, The Extended Phenotype, The God Delusion, Climbing Mount Improbable by Dawkins. The God Hypothesis by Stenger. The Counter-Creationism Handbook by Isaak. The Theory of Everything, The Grand Design, A Brief History of Time, Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays by Hawking. Pale Blue Dot by Sagan. Bones, Rocks, and Stars by Turney. And more.

Then I started going to talkorigins and learning even more. I picked up physics textbooks. I started watching YouTube shows like The Atheist Experience to see these ideas put to the test. Thunderf00t's Why Do People Laugh At Creationists series. I became a regular reader at Pharyngula. I also looked at the Hovind videos, both father and son, Ken Ham, the Discovery Institute, William Lane Craig, Dembski, and I could immediately see the fallacies in their positions.

For me, atheism is not just a mere absence of a belief in God, but a rejection of all claims that are unsupported by evidence. My transition from fundamentalist Christianity to atheism was accompanied by a natural curiosity to learn and learn more. When you care about whether or not your beliefs are true, "God did it" is an insufficient explanation for everything. The God Delusion was the book that opened the floodgates for me.