why don't athiests think about those less fortunate than themselves who actually NEED religion?

Question

Parents of premature babies whose newborns are hooked up to a respirator and may die at any time--Single mothers trying to raise their children while working two jobs and haven't gotten more than three hours of sleep at a time in the past three years--The father of three kids who has been laid off for six months and has to take a fast-food job, even though he knows it won't begin to pay the bills--You don't have to believe in god to believe in PEOPLE. These people haven't had it as good as you have, and if you're so callous that you would take away the one thing they have to give them hope and strength to endure in times of need, then you are worse than any Christian hypocrite--because you are supposed to believe in what is real. Do you NOT consider these people to be real? Is being right so important to you that you have to hurt them? Help me to understand--Why can't you see that religion can do good things too and some people need it?

there seems to be at least one question on this board at all times saying that we need to eradicate religion entirely--tonight I've come across two so far and I haven't been online for more than 15 minutes

can't believe some ofr the cold hearted responses I'm getting--this is sickening

did I not make it clear that these people were clinging to their faith for inner strength? nobody was preaching at them or asking for money--I'm starting to get really disappointed in people

Answer 1

We may be thankful to Atheists. But for them, we would not have had the bliss and blessings of 'living' in all circumstances. 70 years of AntiReligion communism was faced bravely by Central Asians with the esoteric, the inner strength of Religion. That is a great example from recent past. In the current scenario, the Iraqis and Afghans are facing the miseries of war bravely only on the strength of a religious hope.

Answer 2

Oh you have some nerve! Are you assuming that atheists have wonderful grief-free lives? That we have it better than everyone else? Please spare me. You need to back up and get a dose of reality. Does the fact that we chose to overcome without a crutch bother you that much? I am a recovering drug addict. I have buried a baby. I have battled cancer. I lost my grand-parents and my mother. I do not rely on or blame this thing you call god. I DO believe in people. If I can do what I have done and get through what I've gotten through, then anyone can. I'm not special. I'm just tough, honest and responsible for myself.

I do not care what people want to hang onto or believe, but when they try to make their religion the "law of the land", when they want to take away free will, when they constantly barrage everyone I know to convert...then I have a problem. Do you not think it hurts me to have them tell me that all the things I have overcome and the person I struggled to grow into is worthless because I don't believe like they do? Do you think it didn't hurt when I was told that my baby died as a punishment for my sins? I wish you could hear me screaming through this internet connection. Do you think that everyday at work when I go into surgery that I care what my patient's beliefs are? Do you think that even one christian has ever thanked me for what I've done for them? I volunteer to work x-mas so others who believe can be with their families....do I get thanked? NO, they assume it doesn't matter since I have no beliefs. Who's heartless now?

Answer 3

No, even if people are sick and dying, I'm not gonna go and tell them, I was making a mistake; God is real, just to give them hope and strength. That is false hope and false strength. You're tricking your mind to give you strength. Don't you see? This is exactly way so many people decided to become christians, or muslims, buddhists, or whatever. Life is too hard for them, and they think that there is God who could save them. They don't want to live, they want to die, so they can be "with the lord". The earth is the only place were life exists; you're blessed just to be alive, and you're against life. You can't pay your bills; do you think God will pay them for you? Do you think he'll solve all your problems? That's why the world's not changing. Cause we keep thinking that somebody will do everything for us. If somebody's dying, I'm not gonna waste my time praying for them, praying to God to save them. That's not gonna do them any good. Let me ask you something. I've already had a bad day, why are you giving me a hard time with your personal problems?

Answer 4

Google "humanist charity". you would be taken aback. Atheists are actually not a collection. I even have many atheist acquaintances nevertheless, yet that would not make us a collection. I even have many atheist acquaintances who mixed themselves in a humanist group. that still would not cause them to an atheist group. I help. plenty. as a guy or woman. not because of the fact i'm an atheist. besides that: atheism, for some unusual reason, has an extremely undesirable call, especially interior the u . s . a .. could it help the reason to call a collection an "atheist group". fifty one% of the human beings say they gained't even vote for an atheist presidential candidate. Ever. you think of they could donate funds to an atheist charity group? Atheists are realists. We help plenty. We do a exceptional form of charity artwork. yet never as an atheist group. because of the fact we are actually not a collection. it quite is like asking: why is there no charity organization based by utilising people who never consume sushi?

Answer 5

While one can feel sorry for these people, how does superstition help them? They then believe that some pie-in-the-sky superpower will come to help them. when he/she/it doesn't, they're left even worse off.
What you're suggesting is roughly the same as taking drugs to dull psychological pain - it does nothing for the cause - because it can't.
There's no intention to deliberately hurt anyone, just an attempt to get them to live their lives rationally. Again, would you give a person in "Cold Turkey" another dose of heroin - just because it will cure the symptoms? All it would achieve is to perpetuate the addiction. The cure is to withhold the drug until tile mind and body recover. The same with superstition, or as some people call it, religion.

Answer 6

As an atheist, I've encountered many people less fortunate than me and if I can help them in any way, I will. However, none of these people NEEDS religion, as you put it. They need to know that people will be there for them in their time of need. That means people who won't judge them, force them to believe a mythical figure and read a book full of fairy tales.
They need something they know will help them, not a corrupt religion that bloody preaches and does nothing physically to help these people. If religion was that wonderful then people in the world wouldn't be suffering this day in age, yet they are. The vatican is so corrupt that its stolen off the poor to make the rich richer, it covers up it own paedophile priests, it promotes absolute crap in its teachings! Muslims bombing the place, taking offence at everything. Christians who have amassed fortunes after years of corruption, mass murders, etc. I don't need to go on!

So, don't go preaching to us atheists about why we don't think about others because we do. You're statement is a sweeping one and is very stereotypical, which is very dangerous in todays society. I think you'll find atheists will be more than helpful to these people, rather than religious types, because they want to. Not because you are following a fictional book and an ancient set of outdated morals.

Answer 7

Hmmm.. not sure about the branding you've intimated (that an atheist automatically is a bad person).
I know quite a few people who go to church every sunday and some times in between, who are the most evil, arrogant people you would care to meet, and Ive also met plenty of people who are not only 'non-belivers' but are also the most sincere people on this earth.

I agree that there are many insecure and downtrodden people in this world that do require an immense amount of support and are grateful for it... I dont knock the church's and social support groups for that.
But the downtrodden dont 'need' religion............ all they need is 'support' . Its just the church groups (especially the smaller non profiteering ones) usually get to the needy first.

Answer 8

Look, I will not go into detail on this crazy-@ss forum, but I have been through more loss and grief than most people experience in a lifetime, and NOT ONCE did I find any help, solace or peace in religion or 'god'. One of these tragedies (a particularly horrible one, I might add) was known to the church I was (unfortunately) baptized in, and you wanna know what they did? They preached and spouted off cliches. And, no, the tragedy was not in any way, shape or form of my own doing.

And I'm supposed to believe that the Christian nutcases even care about someone struggling to pay their bills, let alone that they offer any real help? Not today, thank you.

Answer 9

You aren't dealing wisely with the subject. I mean, yes. Of course some people NEED religion. And I wouldn't ban it for them. However it would be good if people in distress could cling to something else. I mean for their own sake. If your baby is going to die, however terrible and sad that is, religion is not going to change it. I am not a psychologist to know how to deal with that. Plus, I haven't lost a child myself. But I think there has to be a better way to deal with a loss like this, than to surrender yourself to the callous manipulation of religions. I know I'm wishing for the only support these people have to disappear. But some of those who wish it stayed, are those who are manipulating grieving parents in ways I wouldn't even dream of treating my worst enemy. So, it's hard, but it's for the better.

Anyway, I don't believe in banning religions altogether. I dream of people gradually and voluntarily walking away, as they realise what religions are like. That's entirely different.

Answer 10

Those people would all be better off without someone preaching at them that their wretched lives are their own faults for not obeying god well enough, for not raising their children right, not going to church regularly, working on sunday, being divorced/having children without a husband, and my favorite, not giving 10 % of the income they need to pay their bills and feed their families to the church so it can buy a new hot tub or send the pastor on vacation to the holy lands.
All of those people would be better off learning to stand on their own feet. How can believing in a god who supposedly loves you but won't help you feed your children be helpful and encouraging? How can telling someone they are going to suffer for not tithing when they can't pay their bills give them hope? How could a loving god kill a baby?
All of these people would suffer less if they didn't have to ask these questions. Think of how much less betrayed they would feel if the god they loved wasn't doing these things to them, wasn't allowing these things to happen to them.

BTW, if they are going to church, they are getting preached at and asked for money. That's just the way it is.