Why do atheists believe???

Question

Why do atheists believe the way they do?Is it because of something very traumatic happened to you?Like a death of a parent,or has your parents point of view caused you to follow the way they believe?

Answer 1

I used to be an atheist...then I grew up and opened my eyes to the fact that there is a God and a Satan...that's why my life was miserable and nothing good ever happened to me..then I became a Christian.I wasn't young and dumb anymore and I can understand things now that I'm a little older and I realize just how immature it is to be atheist,all being an atheist is about is being able to say you have this belief so you can continue living life the way you want without having to answer for what you are doing wrong,kind of like rebelling against your parents,seeing how most atheists are 20 and younger.I have had an amazing expierence going from atheist to Christian,now I see all the times Jesus was there for me when I needed him,being atheist only blinds you from doing and seeing what's right,I decided to become an atheist when I was about 15,because every time I tried to pray,Jesus never did anything for me,at least that's what I thought.Now I know I was blinded by what I wanted,I was blinded by atheism,and I just wanted to live my life with my own set of rules not having to be responsible for anything I did.Being a teen is about figuring out how to live life as an adult,and sadly atheists are a large part of that,no one to tell you that partying is bad or sleeping with your best friends man is wrong,Christian teens don't act this way because they live by the bible and they want to be good people when they become an adult,being atheist makes it harder to become a good person because they will always have to defend their religion because of what it's about.Those of you who are adult atheists,you should know better by now...you're not a child anymore be responsible for your actions!!Being atheist is just an excuse!!!!The only way to live a happy life is to except jesus as your savior and repent for your sins!!!!It's your life, live it right!!

Answer 2

Honestly, I believe that for two reasons. One is the simple fact that as we get further and further into the scientific age, the notion that there is an all powerful "God" becomes more and more obsolete. The Bible implies that the world is somewhere around 4,800 years old. Now unless the scientists were off by about a hundred million years on fossil dating, I don't believe that to be true. Also, I can remember being in church and hearing stories of Moses splitting the Red Sea, and men living to be nine hundred years old, and thinking to myself, "Wow, this is like a fairy tale." And that's just Christianity, where most of the atheist-haters worship.

Answer 3

Atheists do not like the idea of taking anything on "word alone." It is especially understandable in a day & age such as in the one in which we live... full of charlitans, conmen, confidence artists, and those would deceive to "line their pockets," even at the cost of the truth... Aetheists are VERY slow to take accept anything that cannot be verified empirically. Faith is NOT a "strong suit," and they would say that they are better off for it... I however go with the ol' adage that "where knowledge ends, faith [must] begins..." Much of today's technologies are based on theories that cannot be directly verified through "observations," and the only way that atheists will accept scientific theory is their belief in the general personal integrity of scientists and the "scientific method."
It seems to me a rather sad state of self-imposed denial of the even the possbility of there being a God... but atheists believe this is preferable to any possble "tarnishing" of their revered "intellectual integrity:" whatever THAT means.

Answer 4

I beleive the way I do from asking questions and searching.

I was born into a catholic/methodist family. One side of my family strictly church attending catholics and the otherside of my family rarely attending methodists. My parents attended catholic church until I was about 8 years old. I guess if I never felt the urge to seek I would call myself a christian because that is what my parents are. However I had an intense curiosity for history and other religions.

Through my studies I have formed my own beleif system.

I find it very odd that you assume it must come from something traumatic or being forced upon someone by their parents.

Answer 5

First I must distinguish between weak and strong atheism. A weak atheist lacks the belief in god, a strong atheist believes that no god exists. There is a fundamental difference between the two. I am justifying my position as a weak atheist.

The default position is always lack of belief, and this position is only changed when the person trying to prove something can present substantial evidence to the contrary. In terms of religion, the burden of proof lies with the theist. We can use leprechauns to explain this. A person naturally assumes that no leprechauns exist. He is not born believing that leprechauns exist, nor is he born with the belief that leprechauns do not exist, he is simply neutral. The person's beliefs stay in this neutral, weak aleprechaunic (lacking belief in leprechauns) position until someone can present proof either way. If a person comes along and says "Look at the end of this rainbow, here's a leprechaun." and shows person one a leprechaun dancing around a pot of gold, then person one would be justified in believing in leprechauns. If a person showed evidence that leprechauns do not exist, person one would be justified in believing that leprechauns do not exist. Until such evidence, or evidence just as convincing, can be produced, the person is perfectly justified in being a weak aleprechaun.

Different people require different amounts of evidence to become convinced one way or the other. A theist my look at a religious work (such as the Bible) and say, "You know what, this is enough proof for me. I believe in this." There's nothing wrong with that and I am not meaning to attack anyone's beliefs, this is just my justification for my beliefs. For me the Bible, and other religious works, is not enough to convince me to believe in a religion. For me these works are no different from a Harry Potter book, there isn't enough outside evidence for me to conclude that the information in these books is accurate. On the contrary, the Bible has many inaccuracies which caused me to reject it as truth. It's hard for me to accept that a book which was inspired by God could list pi as 3 or say that the earth is flat and on a foundation. If a satisfactory amount of evidence were to come along, I would become a theist or a strong atheist (meaning I believe no gods exist). But I have not found enough evidence to lead me to either conclusion. Stephen Roberts has a great quote regarding his atheism; he states that "I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours."

Answer 6

No! U don't believe in god just because something tragic in your life happened, do u? I wish u wouldn't belittle my beliefs. I am an atheist through study of religion and science. There is no logic in god and no proof. There is proof in science, at least enough to convince me it is a more plausible theory than a man in the sky who genuinely cares for u, even if god was real, we would be nothing more than a science project to such an Omnipotent being.

Answer 7

Why do people of actual religions believe the way they do? Why do people convert? It's just a belief. In the same way that people have various reasons and callings for why they decide to believe in the religion they do, people that are atheist have varying reasons for believing in no god. You'd have to ask that specific person. It has nothing to do with trauma. Just a belief.

Answer 8

I'm not atheist but I'm not christian either.

I believe that as long as you live a fair and decent life that you have nothing to worry about. No one should care about what religion everyone else is. You can believe in what you want to.

The best way to live is to just LIVE. Do what you think is right. People believe that there is a black and white to right and wrong, but there isn't. It's up to us to decide what's right and wrong, not God or anyone else. There is no good and evil. There is no (i believe) God and devil, just people living together.

I'm semi-drunk so I'm sure when I read this tomorrow I'll be like wtf...

Answer 9

Frankly I think it's wierd that Theists always seem to associate belief with emotion. They think "the Holy Spirit" proves a damn thing, they think we disbelieve because of trauma or something, etc. I mean is it really so unimaginable that people can believe what they believe PURELY because of logic and reason? And to be REALLY frank. I have little respect for those who don't question thinks.

Answer 10

Well, I'm not an atheist, I am agnostic. I was raised by a man that claimed to be a Christian, but as it turned out he was really just self righteous. As for traumatic events, I had plenty of them. My father, once on Christmas eve, handed me a loaded rifle and told me to shoot his brother in law. (my step uncle) Did this traumatic event make me choose to not be a Christian? No, Christians did that for me. As far as what Christ taught, I see great value in his message of love and tolerance, I just wonder why more who claim to follow him don't practice his teachings.
I hope that helps.