For the atheists...

[stevebabin 0]

How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god? Was it a sudden thing or was it a slow process? How was it recieved by those closest to you?
Thanks in advance for sharing...

"Science, logic and reason will fly you to the moon. Religion will fly you into buildings."
"Because figuring things out is always better than making shit up."

[JohnnyMarko 1]

....I thought about adding some asshole comment, but since I haven't chatted in a while with you, I refrained :P . Btw, did my first real paid photoshoot for a couple and their 1 and 2 year old this past Sunday, could use a good critique of the photos.........Should I have PM'd this?!

[stevebabin 0]

Probably. Email 'em to me. Glad you're posting again!

"Science, logic and reason will fly you to the moon. Religion will fly you into buildings."
"Because figuring things out is always better than making shit up."

[Andrewwhyte 1]

I was raised a Christian and continued with my faith into my early twenties. I was firmly of the belief that my morals came directly from my faith and was puzzled about the source of atheists' morals. My apostasy arose slowly as I formed my worldview through my belief in the value of logic and reason. I was firmly in the agnostic (no evidence, no decision) camp when I was challenged during one of my frequent pilgrimages to that cathedral of wisdom, the university pub. My friend introduced me to the Easter bunny argument. Forcing me to agree that I had no hard evidence either way on the existence of the Easter bunny, he challenged me to state my lack of a conclusion as to the Easter bunny's existence. I was an atheist within days.
Richard Dawkins uses the magic teapot theory to similar effect.

[quade 3]

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How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god?

Same way I concluded there is no Santa Claus and honestly I came to that conclusion at roughly the same age. As I got older and started studying mythology and science it became apparent to me that they both did the same thing, but came to wildly different conclusions. A person didn't need Zeus to explain thunderbolts coming from the clouds as long he understood how raindrops created static charges. As more and more of the universe was explained to me, it was clear there was simply no reason to think that one or any gods were required for it to work.

Then there's the history of how religious leaders and kings controlled people. Religious leaders claiming knowledge of god's will, kings claiming a fiat from god had placed them into power and both promising a "better" life as long as you followed their orders in this one. Kind of the macro version and parallel to the Santa Claus is Coming to Town song.

So, to me, pretty much all religion is about controlling people's behavior and a belief in god is simply not required at all since I can understand the science of it and can easily discount the mythology.

I do understand that it can bring some people comfort and if the mother of a dying child finds comfort in praying for his soul, that's fine. What I can not tolerate are the TV preachers that ask people to send in money "for god" and then live the highlife off of other people's faith. Even more so, I can not tolerate any political leader that says he was told to start a war or says he has the backing of god. That's clearly just rubbish and again preying on those who pray.

Contrary to what people may think as a result of the back and forth on this web forum, I really have no beef with the people that are simply looking for answers and think they can find them through god. It's when they force the issue that the gloves come off.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[Meso 38]

For me, I had been brought up in an extremely Christian household and was always told never to question, so I never did... Though in my late teens I began to at least wonder...

Then what actually kick-started it was an episode of Penn and Teller's 'Bullshit' on the bible. Which prompted me to read more into it and it was like having a ball of yarn and never touching it, then one day deciding to pull on the loose string - all of a sudden everything unwound very quickly. Things that had made sense in a religious perspective made absolutely none when looked at logically.

Began to read more about Christianity than I had as a Christian, looked at the information and history of the writings, the details to the scriptures, the similarities between Judaism etc.

After that there was no doubt left in my mind, ironically, the term "I once was blind, but now I see" was very much a concise phrase to the way I felt afterwards.

[skinnay 0]

I was never exposed to religion as a kid, just mentions of it on tv. I grew up around scientists, spending my after school time at my father's work lab. When I first encountered people who believed these stories I was shocked and saddened, I thought it was generally accepted as a joke.

[shropshire 0]

When I was a child, I thought like a child..
But when I grew up, I put away childish things... and imaginary friends

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[nigel99 151]

I was brought up in a devoutly christian family and told it was wrong to question etc. As a teenager I was told bluntly by someone in the church that I had just enough christianity to make me un-happy. I was told that I needed to "lose" myself in Christ to be truly happy.

Ironically it was a happy clapper church (my father was a pastor/elder) and I was forced to be involved - normally running the sound desk. Quite frequently my best mate and I would get high on pot prior to the evening service and it was ALWAYS on those days that I got told that I was "really in the spirit"

I struggled with the whole concept until my late twenties, until I gradually realised that I simply did not believe it and felt the evidence was that it was a fairy tale.

My parents don't know, and frankly the relationship with them is more important than talking about my beliefs. My wife is devastated by my lack of belief, I know that it hurts her.

Experienced jumper - someone who has made mistakes more often than I have and lived.

[mirage62 0]

No secret that I don't agree with Quade on a lot, I'm sure he loses a lot of sleep over it.

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I can not tolerate are the TV preachers that ask people to send in money "for god" and then live the highlife off of other people's faith. Even more so, I can not tolerate any political leader that says he was told to start a war or says he has the backing of god. That's clearly just rubbish and again preying on those who pray.

+1

While I am a believer the above is so true.

FWIW while it may not pass the test of science. At and early age I decided that I did exsist. Therefore there was a God. The earth came from somewhere, how ever it started (Cooling gases...where did the gases come from...just follow it back as far as you like) was related to a "God"

Other than that the details are VERY fuzzy.

Kevin Keenan is my hero, a double FUP, he does so much with so little

[winsor 192]

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How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god?

Same way I concluded there is no Santa Claus and honestly I came to that conclusion at roughly the same age. As I got older and started studying mythology and science it became apparent to me that they both did the same thing, but came to wildly different conclusions. A person didn't need Zeus to explain thunderbolts coming from the clouds as long he understood how raindrops created static charges. As more and more of the universe was explained to me, it was clear there was simply no reason to think that one or any gods were required for it to work.

Then there's the history of how religious leaders and kings controlled people. Religious leaders claiming knowledge of god's will, kings claiming a fiat from god had placed them into power and both promising a "better" life as long as you followed their orders in this one. Kind of the macro version and parallel to the Santa Claus is Coming to Town song.

So, to me, pretty much all religion is about controlling people's behavior and a belief in god is simply not required at all since I can understand the science of it and can easily discount the mythology.

I do understand that it can bring some people comfort and if the mother of a dying child finds comfort in praying for his soul, that's fine. What I can not tolerate are the TV preachers that ask people to send in money "for god" and then live the highlife off of other people's faith. Even more so, I can not tolerate any political leader that says he was told to start a war or says he has the backing of god. That's clearly just rubbish and again preying on those who pray.

Contrary to what people may think as a result of the back and forth on this web forum, I really have no beef with the people that are simply looking for answers and think they can find them through god. It's when they force the issue that the gloves come off.

While Paul and I do not see eye to eye across the board, this pretty much sums it up.

[Doyle 0]

I was born into a religious family, mothers side being Methodist and my fathers side being catholic. I was baptized Catholic and went to catholic schools where we were forced to go to church and study religion. While I was young I thought it was boring but burning in hell for not following scared me enough to go along with it. Towards the end of primary school and the start of high school I really started questioning my religion and what I was being taught. The atrocities and contradictions in the bible had me baffled. I became aware of how ironic it was that belief without question or evidence (faith) was one of the biggest teachings in our religion classes/church, I knew this was not the way to learn, it did not make sense. The final blow was when a teacher at my high school was fired because she fell pregnant but was not married. She was a great teacher, I never recall anyone having problems with her, she seemed to do her job well and get along with the kids. It seemed absurd to me that she should be fired for this and that both her and the school should suffer for its beliefs.

Ever since then I've been an "agnostic atheist". The more I looked into it, the more apparent it became that the god I had believed in did not exists any more than the tooth fairy. I shared my beliefs with my family and began (and still continue to) strive to be a better person, sharing my morals and and logic with them to prove we do not need religion to be good people and to live a full life. Some of them think its great, some of them hate it and honestly believe that even if your the greatest, loving, moralistic person in the world, you WILL be burning for eternity because you do not share their delusions.

[Marinus 0]

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How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god? Was it a sudden thing or was it a slow process?

It took me an estimated 29 years, 364 days and 5 1/2 hours from the moment I was born.

I'm not one of those people that claim a religious upbringing is child abuse, but it can be child abuse, and mine most certainly was. I'm not blaming my parents, they were as much a victim of that brand of Christianity as I was, but I do blame my paternal grand-parents. They f-ed up my father, a kind, caring and intelligent man, pretty bad with their religious crap, and bullied him most of his life into staying true to the faith. But in the end they did the right thing, they stopped breathing, and made the world a better place. ( )

Anyway, despite the proper brainwashing I was pretty quick with doubting things. When I was 7 I first uttered the sentence: "but maybe God doesn't exist" the counter argument was a slap in my face, but that actually made the question that much more interesting. When I went to high school it became clear to me that the bible was full of shit: creation didn't happen, the great flood didn't happen etc. etc. I tried to let my faith coexist with science, but science always won out. My faith started to die from the lethal disease of reason.

And then, around age 20 I relapsed! And not just your average relapse, but a relapse with the lowest form of Christianity: Charismatism. (Charismatics are Christians that are too stupid to be real christians, I've been one, so I'm entitled to that opinion) Anyway, I did it all, street evangelism, speaking in tongues, faith healing, Jesus camp, voting for the Dutch Christard Union.. I did it all. Then, after a year or so I got myself babtized, and the day after that I started to loose my faith again. You got to love the irony.

This time around I searched my soul much more thoroughly. And in the process I tore my faith apart. I still considered religion to be good, right until that day I was getting drunk with my best friend whilst watching those planes fly into those buildings over and over again on the news. Anyway, I kept my faith more or less on life support for almost 6 years after that. and half a day before I turned 30 I finally pulled the plug on it. I felt both relieved and sad, I think. And then I got monumentally drunk

[shropshire 0]

Attached says it all to me...

(.)Y(.)
Chivalry is not dead; it only sleeps for want of work to do. - Jerome K Jerome

[RonD1120 58]

Thank you for starting this thread. As I read through the candid and honest replies I see a very clear pattern emerging.

I fully understand each response.

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[Marinus 0]

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As I read through the candid and honest replies I see a very clear pattern emerging.

Could you elaborate a bit about that pattern?

[Doyle 0]

Do share Ron ;)

[RonD1120 58]

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As I read through the candid and honest replies I see a very clear pattern emerging.

Could you elaborate a bit about that pattern?

Yes, but later on after I read more.

Look for the shiny things of God revealed by the Holy Spirit. They only last for an instant but it is a Holy Instant. Let your soul absorb them.

[beowulf 1]

Religion never really made any sense to me. Growing up I was indoctrinated in Christianity and when I was about 13 or 14 years old I really focused on Christianity and started asking questions. I found that the more questions you ask the fewer answers you get. When all the answers I got were you just you have to have faith I started rejecting the whole idea of religion or god. The more I studied religions the more I became convinced that gods and religion were a construct of humans. Faith and prayer are not any different then wishful thinking. The harsh reality that many people can't deal with is that we were not made we evolved on this planet the evidence supporting evolution is abundant and is available for study to anyone willing to do the work. There is no afterlife so make the most of what life we have right now instead of wishing for a fantasy afterlife.

[Tink1717 2]

For me the thing that set it in motion was transferring from a private religious school to the local public school in the early 8th grade. I had to unlearn virtually everything I had been taught at the Brethren school. What made this an issue was the public school could prove what they were saying and the religious school couldn't. It was all downhill from there.

Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off.
-The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!)
AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717

[pirana 0]

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How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god? Was it a sudden thing or was it a slow process? How was it recieved by those closest to you?
Thanks in advance for sharing...

I have no proof that there is no God; that is an impossible thing to prove. The burden is on the believer to prove something exists, and after roughly 4000 years there is no evidence.

Our growing body of knowledge has reduced the God Of The Gaps (which is really all that is left) to a very small niche. I accept that if there is a God, the only role He might have played was calling the Universe into existence and setting it in motion. The only gap available for faith is that God may have got the ball rolling in the very first tiniest fraction of time. After that, it's just matter obeying the laws of physics, and humans trying to assign meaning to everything.

So basically, since we can never unravel the events of the Universe's birth; that is the only matter open to interpretation based on faith alone.

" . . . the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley

[Marinus 0]

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How did you arrive at the conclusion that there is no god?

A small addition: I never came to the conclusion that there isn't a God, but shortly after noon on June 26th 2007 I concluded that there was no reason whatsoever to assume there was a God.

[beowulf 1]

With the absence of any evidence of any deity the logical conclusion is that there are no gods.

[Marinus 0]

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With the absence of any evidence of any deity the logical conclusion is that there are no gods.

That's probably true, so I never drew that conclusion. However, I did the next best thing, the absence of any evidence of any deity means that deities, whether they exist or not, are irrelevant to humanity.

It's called apatheism. Apatheism is also known under the name "practical atheism" if I'm not mistaken.

[charlie5 0]

I grew up with a Agnostic parents. Despite this I went to a Catholic school while living in Japan, my parents actually signed me up to be in the "Christian" religion class. Every day we said the lord's prayer, although to me it was more just routine.

I found religion class to be more like a history class, I never found any of it spiritual or enlightening, I thought it was all a bit silly even as a little kid. My parents thought perhaps putting me in that class would give me something to believe in for whatever reason.

I turned into a hardcore Atheist in middleschool through college. Then after college I started to back off from the Atheist stance and become more of an Apathetic Agnostic, I found it hypocritical to be 100% for/against something that honestly no matter how scientific we believe ourselves to be can/cannot be proven.

Since then I can't be bothered to argue for/against either side as I find it to be pointless. Belief in a god or lack thereof and arguing about it is no longer a part of my interest, I have no ill will against those of faith as long as they don't use it to condone force against others, or proselytize their stance, that goes for atheists as well.

My only beef is with organized religion that is used as a cover for force against people. Weather it be Islam for extremists or crazy doomsday cults. I despise what organized religions does/did to the progress of science and its suppression for the betterment of humanity with the exception of people like Louis Pastor.

In summation, arguing about the existence of god is a waste of fucking time. Organized religion however is archaic and fickle when you take a look at religions that have come and gone over the course of our existence.

/wall of text

The feather butts bounce off ya like raindrops hitting a battle-star when they come in too fast...kinda funny to watch. - airtwardo