Hey, I got a question for y'all more experienced Atheist out there. I've probably only been a Atheist for a year and a half but I don't get how everyone around me believes in God and how should I acted around them?
I don't want to shut them off because this includes my some friends and ALL of my family and I love them all very much. Also its not like I can make a club at my high school to talk to people about this because well, my public high school is the one that does the prayers after the pledge and pep rally.
Also in my family (Mom, dad, and siblings) I used to be the only one to go to church during middle school ( I went with a friend) then I stopped because I started to questioning things zombie Jesus and the invisible man that watches you like Santa Claus does. Despite the other church kids asking me to come back, I didn't. This makes me wonder why cant everyone see whats right in front of them ughh.
And sometimes deep down I feel that they're right, so do any of any tips of how to restore the logic within?
-Love Mckayla
Subscription Note:
Choosing to subscribe to this topic will automatically register you for email notifications for comments and updates on this thread.
Email notifications will be sent out daily by default unless specified otherwise on your account which you can edit by going to your userpage here and clicking on the subscriptions tab.
I don't really know what to tell you. I still struggle with it.
One of the most shocking experiences in my life happened when I was very young. When I realized that lots of adults believed the bible stories we were being told. Up to that point I had assumed they were stories like the three little pigs; ludicrous stories told with the purpose of teaching a lesson, not meant to be a description of an actual event.
Well, I would believe myself, if there were clear demonstrable objective evidence of a woo woo magic feiry's existence. Until there is...it is irrational and beyond reason to believe. If the topic comes up, and it does, I just point out I am atheist by default. There default questioning leaves me to say, I am waiting for evidence to believe in his/her woo wooness. Dealing with believers in woo woo magic puff didies, is ok for me, as I look at them as delusional, and not worthy of rational consideration.
@Mckayla
Welcome, I see you've already jumped in, good for you.
"And sometimes deep down I feel that they're right, so do any of any tips of how to restore the logic within?"
Keep it simple; if one is unable to believe god exists, how can one then believe any religious tradition, based on the existence of god(s) is also true?
Start demanding proof, if only of yourself when you feel you should believe any religious claim.
Perhaps read the bible critically. Begin with the four accounts of the resurrection, taking written notes of the contradictions. Or there are web pages which will do that for you.
I'm suggesting scholarly method and intellectual honestly, both often missing with with the apologist drips we get here.
Perhaps go to a JEWISH source and have a look at their prophecy about the messiah. Spoiler; they show how jesus could not possibly have been the Messiah; Just one; The Messiah is to be a warrior king in the tradition King David AND is NOT divine. There's heaps more which simply did not happen.
Perhaps have look at some of the video clips and even lectures by Bishop John Shelby Spong available on Youtube .
Do the same with lectures by world respected biblical scholar Bart Ehrman. I also recommend his books: " Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why" and " Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew"
((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((9)))))))))))))))))))
John Spong: The church is in the control business and scam: (2 min 33)
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=john+spong+thechurch+is+con...
Bart Ehrman " DiD Jesus claim to be god?" (14 min 15)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JU9J0XVlzQ
Thank you Cranky Ill be sure to check out Mr. Spong vid and the JEsUs cLaim GoD one :)
Kayal: Nice Kitty! Welcome to the forum. Hope you will stick around!
RE: I don't want to shut them off because this includes my some friends and ALL of my family and I love them all very much.
This is absolutely the correct mindset. Keep in mind that you are the one who has changed. You no longer share their beliefs. "THATS ALL" You still love them, you still want to be their friend, you still want to do things with them, you are still emotionally attached to them. THIS IS EXACTLY THE WAY YOU SHOULD BE!!
Now, they have a choice to make. Can they accept you the way you are? Can they accept the fact that you are no longer a believer and have no desire to believe? Some of them are prisoners of their belief system. They will not be able to make this transition. You will lose some friends, you will change the very nature of your relationship with many of your friends. You will grow away from some but a few, probably not as many as you would like, will remain friends.
This is life. I don't have the same friends I had when I was in elementary school. I don't have the same friends as I had when I worked my last job. People grow, move on, and friendships change. No matter what we want.
George Gurdjieff has a wonderful quote that I really like:
"Life is real, only then, when I am."
The Oracle of Delphi says something very similar "Know Thyself."
When you are real with the world around you, the world around you is real as well. Be who you are and true friends will manifest. Pretend and all your friends will be pretend.
RE: Restoring Logic within.
Having a curiosity about the world and a willingness to explore the things you hear would be a good start. Understanding the basic fallacious apologetics of the theists is also useful. How about watching shows like "The Atheist Experience" on YouTube? Listen to debates. When you hear something like Pascal's Wager, go to YouTube or just type in "Pascal's Wager Debunked" into your browser. Look at the arguments for and against and see which seems more reasonable.
Have you seen "non-stamp collector" great YouTube site. Others will recommend some of their favorites I am sure.
So what can you do? Being logical is like a muscle, if you don't use it, you lose it. See if you can spot the fallacies when watching TV commercials. There are millions of them.
Finally, when you have a question, post it. Someone around here will have some sort of response that you may find useful.
Thank you sooo much for your reply, it explains so much and means a lot to me, I'll be sure to copy in down into my online notes and check out the atheist experience <3
I've been an atheist for 5 decades (a doubter before that)
I'm rather indifferent to people's religious belief or not. I know some nice Christians and also know some truly obnoxious atheists. I've got a cousin who started as an engineer but became a preacher. Worked with a local neighborhood improvement group that was based in a Baptist church. Went to a co-worker's Pakistani Muslim wedding celebration.
If the people are decent, don't let it get in the way.
理解和遵循特定的格式要求是作业代写 https://www.yydaixie.com 的基础。在北美，学术论文通常需要遵循特定的格式要求，如APA（美国心理学会）、MLA（现代语言协会）、Chicago（芝加哥）、Harvard（哈佛）等格式。每一种格式都有其独特的规范和要求，包括标题页、页眉页脚、段落格式、字体和字号、行距、页边距等方面。代写服务必须了解并严格遵循客户指定的格式要求，以确保论文符合学术标准。为了做到这一点，写作者需要熟悉各类格式指南，并在写作过程中不断查阅和参考相关资料。此外，代写机构可以提供专业培训，帮助写作者系统地掌握各种格式要求，提高其写作水平和效率。