atheist????

Question

If one day you found yourself starting to believe there could possibly be a God.

would you begin also to question your sanity?
also do you feel that all people who believe in God are mentally unstable ?


asking this because of a conversation I had with a friend who happens to be an atheist...............thanks for your opinions.
love ya

Answer 1

honestly, that day will never come for me. i went through that in the past. i used to be agnostic and then veered over. never did i question my sanity.

and no, of course i don't think people who believe in god are mentally unstable. i just think that they have different beliefs than i do.

Answer 2

Been there, done that.

I gave serious thought to the possibility of God once. twice, several times.
Sometimes I still find myself considering the philosophy of the early Stoics.

I think truthfully that God existing or not isn't the problem.
The big problem is pinning down a definition of what people mean by the term "God" and the refusal of most religions to offer a definition is no help.
If you confront them on the Sky Fairy God they try to claim the Universal Spirit God of the Deists, and on and on.

It is so ridiculous that the Catholics try to make God have three conflicting attributes at the same time.

In the end any attempt to argue divine existence is irrational and useless.
Irrational because of the total lack of evidence, and also the total lack of any definition of the thing you are arguing about.
The agnostics put the question aside until some evidence might show up.
The ignostics are still waiting until somebody offers a proper definition.


It is useless because it does not really matter if God exists or not. Logically you should be living decently anyhow. So God is moot.

The only reason there is any discussion about this at all is because religion is used as a weapon. The religious justify all manners of evil acts as for the greater good. Political systems do the same thing.
When your religion becomes youir political system, or your political system becomes your religion you have surrendered to totalitarianism. Your State/Religion has become your supreme authority.

Yes I have thought about God(s) a lot.

Sanity is an entirely different question.

Answer 3

I am an ardent Hindu and an atheist. Hinduism is a way of life and a Hindu can be an atheist and remain a Hindu.

An atheist by definition is somebody who does not seek divine intervention. I don’t even care whether God(s) exist or whether I believe in them. In my life so far, there were many times when I had the necessity of help (help which is not humanly possible now – cure for cancer etc).

I even had the urge to seek help and pray to some divine power that is beyond the realm of human intelligence. I abstained from doing so because of my faith and belief that I should not engage in such “blasphemous” activities being an ardent believer of human intelligence and the species quest for knowledge.

This is similar to the condition of a recent muslim converted to Christianity. He may seek intervention of Allah involuntarily at times. Its a human error due to his past life. Being "Christian" he has an urge to correct his error of calling Allah.

Answer 4

I wouldn't believe them to be mentally unstable, they just happen to mostly be well-endoctrinated in an unfortunate way.... As for questioning my own sanity, I would only move towards this belief with some sort of objective evidence, so I doubt I'd start questioning my sanity...

Answer 5

the problem with insanity is that you don't usually know you're insane

I don't think that people that believe in the existance of gods are generally mentally unstable. However for me to become a believer I think I would have to be

Answer 6

According to Joseph Campbell's assessment of mythology, by which society governs its public behaviour by means of the values of efficacy and entertainment, there's traditional and creative mythology working in tandem. The traditional mythology side of town has historically liked triad gods. According to Wikipedia, the legal fronts of organised crime are building construction, trash hauling and gambling. I don't think that this is a coincidence. This corresponds with the ancient Egyptian triad of Creator/ Destroyer/ and Administrator or Game-player, and possibly other triads as well. Therefore, what the creative mythology side of town (or pagans or anarchists) thinks God is like is possibly being manipulated by the godless and criminal doings of the theological and historically well-versed upper class.

In fact, God is a hard worker, as are his servants. John 5:17 says: "In his defense Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working."" James 5:11 says: "As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy."

In order to appreciate what God's about, you need to be prepared to assist anybody, especially the hungry, thirsty, naked, strangers, sick and imprisoned. (Matthew 25:35, 36) 1 John 4:18 - "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."

Answer 7

I feel that a belief or disbelief in God has nothing to do with mental stability. It is a personal opinion that applies to different people. To say that either way is a mental instability is hurtful and wrong. To each their own people!

Answer 8

I have nothing against people who believe in god. After all, I don't hate or shun people who just happen to be mentally challenged. It is organized religion that is the evil culprit.

Answer 9

A god could exist albeit not the christian god(the god i have in mind would be probably labeled a demigod)

I don't believe theists are insane i believe it is all just wishful thinking.

Answer 10

Atheists can believe the existence of a god is possible, but avoid believing in such a god because they don't have sufficient evidence. Just as it is possible for there to be two eyes floating behind your head watching you, until you look in a mirror and see them, you're not going to really think they're there just because I said this.