Question for the Atheists: Why?

[AThousandLullabies]

i probably spelled atheists wrong. oh wells.


Anyway, basically my question is why do you believe that there is no God at all? I just want to know your reasoning behind it.  

[.Vindicated.Of.Sanity.]

Ehh, logical/ scientific reasoning reasons for me.
I just... I can't believe it. If God existed, why would he allow stuff like 'religious wars' to occur? Stuff like child poverty, disease, genocide, etcetera? It just doesn't add up to me. People who commit murder get a short sentence and are allowed to go out and do it again, people who are truly good people die at young ages of diseases we should be able to cure if it wasn't for the greed of mega multinational corporations. It doesn't make sense. I don't believe God would allow it.
There's more to it, it's just... hard for me to put into words.
And I don't mean to offend anyone, but I feel like religion is merely a device to control the public. 'If you're a good citizen, you'll spend the rest of eternity in Heaven'. Rather than: 'Just please make our lives easier by doing what you should and then when you're done, you'll rot in some damn pine box.' I understand that it is important for some people to believe in something, it gives them hope, rather than facing the fear of unanswered questions, but moreover I feel that it's just a way of manipulating the public.

 

[2A30128]

Well, you're so filthy. I'm better off without you and you're better off without me.

Nope. It's spelled right.

To be honest, I'm not exactly Atheist. If He were to be proven to exist, I'd of course follow suit, but my religious views would be very different from what the Bible states. I have a number of reasons as to why. Note that I am not attacking all people who believe. I am just stating why I dislike it and I personally have no problem with people who do believe. :]

First of all, I'm a very scientific person. The Bible states that the Earth is under ten thousand years old, whereas it has been proven that it is actually 4.54 billion years old. The Adam and Eve theory would be impossible as well. It has been shown that 1000 of a species is needed to produce without mating with a related being. I could go on, but I'll spare you.

Second of all, the controversy within the churches is another reason. There are many cases of Catholic priests who are accused of child molestation. These are people who are supposed to be helping others, not hurting them! The Fundamentalists are getting on my nerves too. These people have been protesting at funerals of soldiers, insulting the deceased and the mourning attending them. While I do not agree with the war, I do not agree that anybody has the right to call insulting names at a funeral of all things! They also have prayed for Obama's demise. Can you honestly call yourself righteous by this? Not to mention that many of them are against the separation of church and state and shove beliefs down others' throats.

I also believe in a woman's right to choose. There are many overtly religious people calling women "baby murderers" and telling them they cannot decide what to do to their bodies. Even if they were raped. Yes, there is adoption. But many of these kids do not get adopted, or are put into homes that cannot support them or abuse or neglect them. There are horror stories of teenage mothers (who can barely take care of themselves, much less an infant) who never tell anyone they are pregnant and hide it, starving themselves and their unborn child, only to give birth to a dying baby that may survive with proper care. Many of these babies end up in the trash and their mothers are never punished for this. THAT is more cruel than an abortion, and yet there are people who protest them.

Again, I have more on this reason, but I will spare you. Now on to reason three: hypocrisy of the Bible. It states that you should love your neighbor, treat them the way you wish to be treated and not judge others. And yet it also states that homosexuals and other people who are different are wrong and "evil." Those funeral protests I mentioned had people saying that the soldiers who died did because they were "fags" and that "God says they deserved to die for their sins." This is not loving your fellow man. This is hatred and it is sickening. I am bisexual myself. I am not a "freak." I do not rape little girls or hit on every girl I see. I am not a sexual deviant of any sort and yet many of those with a different orientation are lynched because of fear and hatred for those who are different. This is an abomination.

I also see that God is not as perfect as the Bible claims. If he is so omniscient, then why is it that there are people who treat others poorly and get away without being punished? Why are there thousands of murderers sitting idly at home or in jail, instead of being smited? Why are there people dying on the street praying for help when there are other people living beyond their means in multimillion-dollar mansions with a full four-car garage? I cannot accept anyone, person or god, that does not carry out promises. Again, I do not have anything against religious people in general. Do not take offense to this, as I am not attacking you personally.

Well, I'm so ugly. You're better off without me and I'm better off alone.

 

[viper_353]

.Vindicated.Of.Sanity.

Ehh, logical/ scientific reasoning reasons for me.
I just... I can't believe it. If God existed, why would he allow stuff like 'religious wars' to occur? Stuff like child poverty, disease, genocide, etcetera? It just doesn't add up to me. People who commit murder get a short sentence and are allowed to go out and do it again, people who are truly good people die at young ages of diseases we should be able to cure if it wasn't for the greed of mega multinational corporations. It doesn't make sense. I don't believe God would allow it.
There's more to it, it's just... hard for me to put into words.
And I don't mean to offend anyone, but I feel like religion is merely a device to control the public. 'If you're a good citizen, you'll spend the rest of eternity in Heaven'. Rather than: 'Just please make our lives easier by doing what you should and then when you're done, you'll rot in some damn pine box.' I understand that it is important for some people to believe in something, it gives them hope, rather than facing the fear of unanswered questions, but moreover I feel that it's just a way of manipulating the public.

Hmm...well, I guess that goes back to earthly justice/heavanly justice. I think (and I'm gonna say there is a God) that just as he gave us free will, he also gave us a world to manage, and do ith as we pleased. I guess that's a biblical idea too, dating back to genesis. Haha, don't worry I understand that. it's something I wonder and pray about all the time. And I think that religion truly causes more social unrest and contreversy than anything else right now. Sure, I'm sure some would use it for that. But not effectively. If that were the reason, it would have died out after whoever thought it up realized it didn't work. Hmm...though I should answer this one before I posted. Sorry OP if I'm taking up too much room!!  

[viper_353]

I think, well since I believe in GOd maybe I shouldn't be answering this one, but I think the same question would be asked by any athiest to us: Why DO you believe in God? And that to some degree, is the same answer both ways: Because of faith. To be an Athiest would take even more faith for me than Christianity. It wouldn't be worth it, but it would be even more blind to follow. (Besides I guess, the fact that everyone or so we're always told believes it. And you'd be in big company.)  

[Zaviire]

Well i don't think of myself as an atheist, although i do not beleive in god or any religion for that matter. For me, i don't beleive in it because i don't see there as being a reason to. Science is slowly making religion obsolete anyway.

Anyone who want's to hear my complete views can PM me. XD But that's the reason i don't believe in God. sweatdrop  

[Sioga]

I am not totally an atheist. I believe in a universal force [perhaps the force XD] that does work with those inexplicable instances. But science just seems so much more believable. It makes more sense, and you don't have to rely on blind faith.

I am raised in an all-catholic family, so it is hard to get around the whole, church every sunday thing. But when I am in there, I feel nothing. Christianity itself has been twisted and warped like some muslims have done with Islam, making the terrorists we have today. What religion would require you to go to war and kill yourself? I mean, seriously! This is well seen in the last two seasons of Stargate SG-1 with the Ori, for any of you who know the show. Religion is supposed to be a good thing, not a reason to go to war.

But anyway, as I have grown older, and gotten more and more involved in math and science, I find that god becomes more and more like fiction to me. Even my brother, agrees with me. The two of us personally hate Christianity to the core. Judaism and Islam come close, Buddhism, Hinduism, Daoism, and Confucianism are a bit better, and more believable seeing as they are based more on philosophies that faith.

As a semi-atheist, I like to call myself a philosopher rather than an atheist.  

[KinaMorii]

I don't believe in any one God so much as I believe in myself to make a good decision. No offense to you, but I believe that those who do good just because God would like it if they did are doing it for the wrong reason. One should do good because they want to, not because it'll help them get in good with the Big Man in the Sky.

I also agree with Sioga that most people have perverted the ways of some religions, and in doing such, create wars that should not be fought(even if they have been for centuries now). I'm more of a philosopher than an atheist.  

[I Am A Mountie]

Well I guess its not because I flat out refuse, I've always been atheist. I've gone to Church probably 2 times in my life and I've never been forced into any religion.
Sorry if this doesn't make sense ;/

But I do believe in a lot of random stuff from Hinduism, Buddism, Taoism, Shintoism, etc... Like karma. I've seen it happen to me and others.  

[AThousandLullabies]

KinaMorii

No offense to you, but I believe that those who do good just because God would like it if they did are doing it for the wrong reason. One should do good because they want to, not because it'll help them get in good with the Big Man in the Sky.

i don't understand why you think this is the wrong reason. Christians [and i suppose other religions do too, but i don't know much about them] believe that God made us. And although we sin against Him, instead of killing us all, He decided to spare us because He loves us that much. so why shouldn't we do good things just to please Him?  

[Bonafide Warning]

My parents have been extremely lenient on religion and haven't forced any on me, however, if that did happen though, I would not have been able to take it, no offense to anybody. Faith is a feeling,,, I mean, why does one believe in God, right? Because they feel he's there and the believe in Him. Well, me... I just... don't. I don't feel like there is a God and I just don't have faith. I like science because one can explain the reasoning or the reason behind something. Science can prove that something exists, and it can solve problems. I mean, it's not possible to prove that God is there, and people who have had religious and holy encounters with Him were alone at the time so there is no way to confirm if they are lying or not. So, basically, I'm just saying that I can't believe in something that may or may not be there. I just don't have faith. I don't have that feeling.

Plus, if God was good and almighty why do innocent people get hurt because of anothers actions? Why do all these terrible things exist? If God loved us all and protected us all, then why are there so many dead? I mean, I know a lot of people believe that God gives us a choice, but what about natural disasters, those which we cannot control? Haiti is an example. So many people died because of an earthquake? If God is so good and almighty, why did he let all those innocent people die? Along with hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans, and the two more recent earthquakes in Chile and Argentina (a 6 and a 9).

And not only natural disasters, but apparently God likes people killing themselves over Him or some other God. Wouldn't He be able to stop all these religious wars? And if He were so powerful, wouldn't He be able to make the Earth a more equal place for both men a women? For example, in some places in the world, men are allowed to have several wives, women have to cover their whole bodies, they cannot get into any car without male family member, they cannot leave the house without a male family member... It seems that they're being belittled and treated unfairly. Also, if He were so kind to all, then why is there the saying that goes something like "The worst things happen to he best people."

Plus, and I'm sorry if I am offending anyone, the Bible has a lot of false... statements.  

[AThousandLullabies]

Bonafide Warning

Plus, and I'm sorry if I am offending anyone, the Bible has a lot of false... statements.

such as..?  

[A Bloody Band Aid]

The world.....

I'm just gonna put this simple as it is. If God is real why are we suffering in the world? And his 'miracles' are just pure luck. Well that's my option.

Is mine.....! .icons by mockingbirds99.

 

[dormant lime]

I'm in no mood to write a giant wall of text over this right now, however;

I'm not sure I'm atheist. I mean, I personally for logical reasons do not believe in a God...yet I'm not so quick to tell religious people He (or She) doesn't exist.

The majority of the worlds dominant religions condemn homosexuality...seeing as I'm a lesbian and believe that it was not my choice to be this way, I can't bring myself to deny myself.
Pretending to be straight is a very miserable thing to do, and if God doesn't accept me for falling in LOVE...well sucks for him I guess.

Plus you know...the 'Holy Bible' was initially written by fallible mortal hand, and not only that has been changed through out the centuries to suit the writing styles as well as political needs of the rulers all through history.
(the 'King James Version' in most bibles means just that...it was the version published in the era of King James. Meaning it was re-written).

A lot of Christians pass off, for example, Greek mythology and Native American practices as "uneducated, primitive people trying to explain the world as it was without the use of science or enlightenment"...when really the Bible could very well be considered the same thing.
A very elaborate story used as a way to try and explain the things that the people of the time period could not.



Long story short...if a God does exist that's fine and dandy. I will admit that I was wrong and humbly offer my sincerest of apologies... but if God is homophobic I'll pass, thanks.  

[Zephyrkitty]

AThousandLullabies

KinaMorii

No offense to you, but I believe that those who do good just because God would like it if they did are doing it for the wrong reason. One should do good because they want to, not because it'll help them get in good with the Big Man in the Sky.

i don't understand why you think this is the wrong reason. Christians [and i suppose other religions do too, but i don't know much about them] believe that God made us. And although we sin against Him, instead of killing us all, He decided to spare us because He loves us that much. so why shouldn't we do good things just to please Him?

Because a lot of it comes down to 'do this or go to Hell'. If I give someone directions and threaten to kill them if they don't do them, they will probably do it out of fear of being killed. Morals probably wouldn't even factor in, honestly.

If you're doing good deeds because you honestly feel that it's the right thing to do, that's an entirely different matter.

AThousandLullabies

Bonafide Warning

Plus, and I'm sorry if I am offending anyone, the Bible has a lot of false... statements.

such as..?

Less a false statement and more a contradiction, but...

[url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis 1&version=NIV]Genesis 1:11-13, 26[/url]

Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.

...

Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

[url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis+2&version=NIV]Genesis 2:4-7[/url]

This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created.
When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens- and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground- the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

Humans come after plants in Genesis 1, but before plants in Genesis 2?



All that said, I don't really follow any religion, but I'm not atheist either. I believe there's some sort of higher power, but I don't know what it is. I don't feel that there's anything wrong with religion in and of itself - it does have a lot of good effects, after all - but people have twisted it to the point that I'm not sure I could even follow most religions.

The whole 'being lesbian' thing is also a dealbreaker for some religions, which is especially annoying when you consider that there's actually nothing against homosexuality in general in the Bible.