Atheists, when someone tells you they are Christian, what opinions do you immediately form?

Question

I have gotten a decent amount of negative and downright rude responses from atheists on here. While I realize this does not include all of you, and probably not even the majority, it still has peaked my curiosity enough to ask this question. When a new person you meet tells you they are a Christian, but you know nothing else about them, what opinion do you form? It has been my experience from asking questions that some (I said SOME, not ALL, don't get your panties in a wad) atheists tend to automatically assume Christians are weak and need some belief to cling to, or that Christians aren't as intelligent as those who don't believe. Furthermore, let's explore the possibility of Christians, rather than being inferior or less intelligent, actually having a particularly keen ability to tune in to all things spiritual, and that it actually requires superior strength to admit that there is an incomprehensibly huge mass of things out there that science has not been able to explain.

galapagos6, your point is WELL taken. I should not have used the word "superior" because I certainly did not mean superior to atheists. I really just meant "excellent" or "a high level of".

To Athee, and all others who had similar responses.. I'd like to say this... I do not necessarily mean that a person you first meet would walk up to you and tell you they are Christian immediately. I just meant, if it was a person who you had not previously formed an opinion about somehow inadvertently makes you aware they are Christian, then how does that influence your judgment or opinion of them?

Answer 1

To me its usually not so much that I know they are Christian or I even ask them, they usually ask me what I am, I tell them I am Atheist and they usually begin to ask me why. If I am at a persons house and they begin praying at dinner I respect their religious traditions. I only debate when i feel a need too.

Answer 2

I generally don't form an opinion of them right away, because the religion really doesn't have much to do with the person and can be very misleading. The only opinion that I immediately form is that they must be assuming that I am also a chrisitan. Either that, or they are trying to convert me.

As for your arguments, well, let's be honest about it. If you know that there is an entire world out there that had their own gods and had never even heard of the Judaic version of god, then there is no way you can argue that the biblical god is the only god. Doing so is blatantly denying the experiences of other people to make the world fit within the confines of your particular religion. It isn't that you're intellectually inferior, it's that you choose to make the world fit your religious ideas, instead of questioning why your religious ideas don't match the world around it. This is intellectual dishonesty at it's worst. You can fool others as well as yourself, but not everyone. Some of us see it for the bullsh*t that it is.

Yes, there is plenty that man doesn't know. Science is not a belief system, it's a tool for discovering truth. Science doesn't claim to have all the answers, it is used to find the answers.

Answer 3

I find it fascinating how you're all sweetness and light, then you throw out the zinger . . .

"...let's explore the possibility of Christians, rather than being inferior or less intelligent, actually having a particularly keen ability to tune in to all things spiritual, and that it actually requires superior strength to admit that there is an incomprehensibly huge mass of things out there that science has not been able to explain."

So, we go from you feeling like "some" atheists are attacking you, to you attacking reality? By the way, you have an incredible ego if you actually believe that you have some special "ability" that makes your beliefs (i.e. faith) more reliable than scientific research.

If you want to know why "some" atheists think that "some" christians aren't as intelligent, just read what you wrote. You've just given them plenty of ammunition.

Answer 4

I tend to form an opinion LOOSELY based on the attitudes of Christians I have previously met.

My brother is a Christian and devout churchgoer. My sister is an atheist. Everyone else is in the middle. Every one of my siblings has WAY above average intelligence. Although my brother and sister are at polar ends of the theological spectrum, they do share common ground in their 'attitutdes'. Both are narrowminded about their beliefs and believe that their way is the only way and the right way. Obviously they both can't be right. Because of this, when I meet both Christians and Athiests I immediately form the opinion that they are narrowminded and inflexible. No doubt this is wrong, but based on precedent, that is what I do.

Answer 5

I'm not religious. I don't form an opinion when someone tells me they're a Christian.
It goes both ways though, I have had people look down on me because I mentioned not being religious.
I saw a flyer for kids the other day that made me sad. It actually said that non religious people are mean and angry and they take their anger out on kids. And it also said kids should tell their parents right away if they see a non religious person, and then should stay far away for safety reasons.

Answer 6

I've been an atheist for 51 of my 60 years. My fundamentalist Christian parents beat me regularly to teach me proper respect for God's authority. I was beaten up four times in high school by gangs of Christian boys who believed it was their sacred duty to use violence to bring the unwilling to their imaginary Lord. I have twice been fired from high paying corporate jobs because people gossiped about my atheism and powerful Christians demanded my termination.

Personally, I find most fundamentalist Christians to be willfully ignorant fools who imagine knowledge, reason, and logic are the tools of Satan. Such people seem to imagine that truth can be found in the superstitions and bigotry of our ancient bronze age ancestors. The fundamentalists I've known speak of love, but practice hatred. They speak of compassion, but practice intolerance. They speak of forgiveness, but practice bigotry.

Truth be told, when I learn a new acquaintance is a Christian, I make a point of immediately evaluating their religiosity. If they are a fundamentalist, I do my best to tactfully exclude that person from my life. No good can come from associating with people like that. If a new acquaintance happens to be a moderate Christian who accepts that the world is filled with diverse people who each have a right to their own opinions, there is no problem at all and we get along just fine by simply avoiding religious topics.

Answer 7

edit: in regard to your additional details, I was simply answering your question as I understood it. After all it was you who wrote: "When a NEW person you MEET tells you they are a Christian, but you know NOTHING else about them..." I must have misunderstood you....

If I know "nothing else about" this person, meaning we just met, and yet he felt the need to tell me that he is Christian.. I cringe. If that is the first and only thing he thinks I need to know about him, then I expect him to be completely obsessed and talk about nothing else.

I mean, I don't meet people for the first time and say, "hi, I'm an atheist. Are you?" I have however met people who, within minutes of meeting them, ask me "Are you a Christian?" Ugh.

I will give you that there are many intelligent Christians. But superior? No. I know there is much that science has yet to explain. I don't need to fill in the gaps with nonsense.

Answer 8

it makes no difference to me. i barely know them so how can i judge?
but i have a question, you could have easily made your point without the following:
-let's explore the possibility of Christians, rather than being inferior or less intelligent, actually having a particularly keen ability to tune in to all things spiritual, and that it actually requires superior strength-
why did you add that?
no offense, its just kind of like you have to add in that christians are "better".

Answer 9

I was in a fast food restaurant last night and a lady sat close by and said something and I answered back and we both laughed. Then she started talking about her son and how he hated when she talked about what she did in church all day (it was a Wednesday) and the red flag went up for me.

A friend of hers past by and she started ragging on her about stupid "scriptures" and said she was obligated to spread the word because it was a sin, if she knew the glory of Christ, not to share it.

"Whatever," I thought, and I got out of there before her friend could.

I thought, "nutcase!"

I also think they're old-fashioned, stuck in the middle ages, uncool, probably judgmental and feel superior.
.

Answer 10

Well first off if someone goes out of their way to say they are Christian, that says a whole lot more than the fact that they are Christian. The only reason they would do that is because they are trying to proselytize and that speaks volumes by itself.

And any adult who needs an invisible friend to get through life does have a weakness. It varies greatly how big that weakness is, but there is a weakness there.