I'd like an atheist to explain to me their position.?

Question

I'm not trying to be explosive, I'm honestly curious. If you believe in the Big Bang, what caused it? Most Big Bang theorists say it was from gases mixing together, but where did the gases come from? Do Atheists believe that the universe is infinite? If there is an end, what happens if you go an inch further? And why did morality evolve??? If anyone can answer these, I'd be much obliged.

Answer 1

I honestly don't know what to believe about how the universe got here, or how our solar system got here. It's kind of like asking where did God come from. It's just difficult to comprehend.

I don't think the universe is infinite. There are different theories out there about this, but none have been proven. However it seems logical to me that it must have boundaries.

Morality depends on environment. Our environment controls the type of civilization we have, and that civilization creates social structure, and social structure creates morality.

For example, consider 8000 yrs ago, a group of people who live in a warm, fertile area will have male and female roles that are more equal than one living in a cold, harsh environment. The reason for that is women can survive much easier when the ground is fertile and they don't have to hunt large game. Large game is in the cold areas where farming isn't always feasible. The people in the warm area will see men and women both doing important jobs, while the people in the cold area will see men doing the more important job. Of course the women may work harder but the bottom line is they most likely cannot survive without the men. Morality will be determined by the men in this civilization and will be biased towards male comfort.

Also consider the movie Alive. Most people believe cannibalism is immoral. However hardly anyone would condemn the people who chose to eat their fellow passengers who had died, since it was their only way to survive.

Answer 2

Honestly, as an atheist, I don't concern myself of how we got here. I'm more concerned with where we're going. But the notion that we were placed here by a spirit greater than the universe and more powerful than a locomotive just doesn't sit well with me.

Sure, I believe in the universe was formed through a singularity, whatever size that was. I can see you're eluding to a greater cause by saying what created the gases etc that created the universe that created us. Well, what created the creator?

The hypothetical questions you pose have no concrete answers. Is the universe infinite? Probably not, though I don't know for sure and what would happen if we stepped across the line? We'll never know.

Morality evolved from the basic need to survive and to control the masses. Morality is universal - other cultures that do not believe in your god have the same morals, or similar ones. There are also cultures where their morals and beliefs are way different than your own and may be wrong to you. But it's right to them.

So, if there is a god (hypothetically speaking), who's is the right god? Are there multiple gods for multiple cultures and societies?

Simple answer is, there aren't any gods. Why can't you have faith in man and the notion that we, over time, created our own morals through trial and error that eventually brought us to where we are today?

Answer 3

the big bang came from what is called "the singularity", and it was a point smaller than a single atom. Think of a really big black hole that encompassed everything in the entire universe. Science has not yet been able to explain WHY the big bang happened. But the big bang DID happen. I do not believe it happened, I KNOW it happened because I can read and understand books on the subject.
NO big bang theorists that I have heard or read about say that it happened from gasses mixing together, where did you get this? Do you have a link?

No I do not believe the universe is infinite, if it was infinite then we wouldn't KNOW as a FACT that it is expanding. If it was infinite, then how could it be expanding?

Morality evolved because people needed a simple set of rules to live by so that they could all get along instead of living in anarchy. This way they could easily live in groups, create culture, share work, etc. (make life easier)

Answer 4

At this time, cosmologists can't incontrovertibly explain the "cause" of the Big Bang (or how the question might need to be restated), just as theologians can't explain where God came from. But they continue to seek answers, unlike many theologians (Gen 1:2 God created light, the sky and land, but not water. Why not?).

Infinity is a mathematically tricky word, and not everyone agrees on what the universe is. They agree that the universe is expanding but they don't say it is expanding INTO anything. It simply redefines its extent. There is no "outside" to evaluate. Most people don't understand that, (most people also think the sun is a big ball of fire rather than a nuclear chain reaction) but mathematicians do.

"Morality" is merely rules devised by various peoples to direct individual behavior to provide the most benefit and least harm to the culture. Different cultures have different "moralities", depending on how they define their cultural values. Some moral rules survive their useful life in a changing culture and are updated only very slowly due to the restraint of tradition (often through the work of religious leaders appealing to some divine authority).

The point is, anything can be "explained", either with God or without. No explanation is perfect or universally accepted. But no one is trying to be stupid, crazy or evil. They simply adopt a world view that fits their understanding and experience. Insisting that everyone adopt the same view just hinders the search for the final truth.

Answer 5

I don't know what the matter from the Big Bang came from; however that doesn't mean I believe it was created by God. There are lots of things we don't know (yet?) about the universe, that doesn't mean they must be explained by magic or religion. Same for what's outside the still-expanding universe. I like space exploration, I like finding out new stuff about other planets existing around other stars, perhaps some day we'll find life there... that's more feasible for now. Maybe one day, either during my lifetime or later in the future of mankind, we'll also discover more answers about the Big Bang and the 'end' of the universe, but for now there are lots of other things closer that we still have to explore. I do not feel the need to be able to explain everything.

Morality came for social reasons; without morality, we'd fight and kill each other and we wouldn't survive.... humans evolved the way they have by working together, and we need morals & ethics for that to work well. Morality did not evolve from religion, I believe it's the other way around. Nowadays most people (at least in most countries) will follow laws made by the government. However, way-back-when, there wasn't such a strong government yet. So those in charge knew several rules had to be followed: do not kill, do not steal, take care of your parents (for there were no homes for the elderly), do not lie... They could simply have said "Hey, it's a good idea to not do these things, it'll make life safer and more pleasant for all of us", but then there'd always be some folks who'd say 'well, sure, but not now' and do it anyways. "Hey, it's a good idea to not do these things because if you do you'll suffer in hell for eternity" just comes across much stronger. :-) So that's what some smart folks in charge used back then to get the other people to listen to them....

Btw, I'm not an atheist, I'm Wiccan...most of what I believe in is just common sense; "an it harm none, do as ye will". If we do, we don't go to hell... but we do help make and shape the world we live in, if everyone would follow that simple rule it would be a safe and pleasant place to live... so it's not really any creed made by God, but by people who want to live in peace.

Answer 6

There are several lines of thought. The honest answer is no one knows. The whole problem is that our perception of time has a real mathematical problem around that time. Time gets warped to the point that there is no "before" when you talk about the big bang so it is impossible to talk about it and have it mean anything. I can't quickly explain that, but it is from Einstein and Hawking's work. A really good book on it is Hawkins "The Universe in A Nutshell."

It always comes down to something was there forever. It is not logical to add the god step without a reason. I just think the universe always existed somehow.

The reason that I buy this is that several predictions made by these guys have panned out, and none have been wrong. Time getting bent can be checked with atomic clocks in supersonic jets and it does change time. The echo of the big bang took decades to get instruments that were able to detect it, but it was there as predicted. Light getting bent by gravity can be observed.

Answer 7

The issue of what caused the big bang is yet to be solved by science. As a matter of fact, it is in the midst of competing, equally compelling theories.

This is the way science works. Theories are presented, tested, and either accepted, modified, or rejected. The need for an exact, final answer is a goal of science, but every scientist is skeptical of every explanation until there is sufficient compelling data to support it.

Religious people want to explain something as yet unexplained by inserting God into the equation. Scientists are willing to wait and gather data to find out the natural explanation. They are comfortable remaining curious and unfulfilled.

By the way, data from the big bang is still being gathered. One aspect that has only recently been determined is that the expansion of the universe is continuing to accelerate. If these measurements are correct, this means that the universe will not return to the a single, highly energized point, but instead will continue expanding forever. Eventually, every galaxy or star will be very far apart from all others, and the universe will cool to a vast, mostly empty void.

Answer 8

Well, I don't know about the Big Bang--it may be true, it may not be. Maybe the universe was created out of something totally different altogether---I don't know. As for where the gases came from---again, I Don't know. Nobody knows. But it makes more sense to me from a scientific standpoint that it was NOT some big man in the sky creating everything.

And you can be a moral person without having a religion. Religion in ancient times consisted of worshipping nature or the sun---morality wasn't even really an issue. I think a lot of it is simply common sense and human intuition to know what is right and what is wrong. I know what is right and wrong because I was raised with morals and values. I don't need a book to tell me how to live or how to behave.

Answer 9

Sad as it may be, you've already had some cogent atheist answers here - we're perfectly aware that we don't have the answers to some of the universe's big questions. That's why we look for theories with the most hard evidence to support them. When you get a little piece of the puzzle, and can forecast from it that something else will happen, that gives you an idea you're on the right track and knowledge increases. I can give you some of my own thoughts on your questions, but are they right? Who's to say? All that defines an atheist is a non-existence in gods. All that means is that the theory of the existence and/or power of gods is not sufficiently backed up with hard evidence to convince someone. That's about as much of a generalised position as we have - all the rest is subjective: what we think, what evidence convinces us of what theories and so on.

My own thoughts on your questions run this way:
Current thought describes a "singularity" that rapidly expanded, defining the universe as it was in that second, and it's been expanding ever since.

Infinite is a bit of a lazy word, I think, especially for something that people think had a beginning. If there's an end, I think it's like a wave-front, expanding away from us faster than we can ever get - I also think this is why people consider it to be infinite - because it's extremely difficult to conceive of.

If there is a wave-front, I have an idea of what lies beyond it, but there's no science behind it that I know of, merely the working of my brain. If the Big Bang theory is accurate, what it seems to describe is the transformation of energy into matter in motion. I think time may be a by-product of matter in motion, like an exhaust gas. So time exists everywhere there is matter and motion - cellular motion, planetary motion - anything that moves. Beyond the wave-front of the universe might be nothing - no matter, no motion, no time. The weird thing about that theory of course is that if, somehow, you managed to "go" there, your own molecules would still presumably be in motion within the system of your body, so you's essentially "colonise" the non-universe with energy, matter, motion and time. No idea what happens if and when that happens :o) Hell, maybe that's where the gods live for all I know, but without the evidence of their existence, they're not part of my theory (time, matter, motion, all that stuff, we have evidence of, by comparison)

And finally, the evolution of morality I think was a gradual thing - when we evolved beyond mating seasons into the capacity to reproduce all year round, and from multi-partner tribes to bonded pairs within those tribes, that idea of exclusive pairs and children of those pairs seemed to be productive for the prosperity of the tribe - more succesful births, more strong tribemembers, more intelligent members etc. Clothing evolved as both a way of protecting against the elements and as a way of putting mating barriers up - you will not mate with this man, this woman, for they are my partner, my child etc. As the tribes evolved into primitive "modern" human civilisations, these things were taken forward as useful and given significance - sex was judged to be "proper" or "prurient" depending on whether or not the rules of the society were followed. We're still, essentially, doing the same thing today - morality moves on, and the societies in which we live define its rules. We follow, or don't, and move the human race forward.

As I say, these are merely my own thoughts and ideas, but I hope they might give you an idea of what at least one atheist thinks.

Peace.

Answer 10

I'm not a scientist, but I believe in the Big Bang because really smart people who have spent a lifetime studying this believe it is the best explanation for how the universe came to be. It is no more difficult to believe in this than it is to believe in an all-powerful being which allegedly has no beginning and no end.
I don't think morality has anything to do with religion--the jails aren't filled with atheists, are they? I'm more honest than most church-going people I know. I believe that this is the only life we get. Why not make it as pleasant for everyone as we can? To do that, you need to treat people kindly, don't steal their stuff or kill them. I don't do this to try to gain brownie points with some mythical guy in the sky, so perhaps my motives are more pure than those who apparently would run wild if they didn't think a god was watching them and keeping score.
And, David, you're a bit confused. You make some good points, but if you are an atheist, by definition you do not believe in a god.