Another question to my fellow atheists about atheism being a choice?

Question

Please read before answering...

Yesterday I asked why some of you thought atheism isn't a choice and here's the jist of what of got from people who said it wasn't a choice. If you're brought up to believe in god, and then you start to analyze different things, and then suddenly you realize the concept of god is illogical, like (2+2=5), and so now you can't force yourself to believe in god, it's just something in you...therefor it's not a choice because you have no control over how you feel.

But you must realize that the reason you think the concept of god is illogical is becuase you made that choice. It's not built inside you to automaically see god as illogical. You analyzed all the information you had, and you came to the conclusion (which is a choice) that either (the concept of god is logical OR not logical) and so now that's why feel it's not logical in your head and heart, so you're atheist.

That makes it a choice right? If I'm wrong, tell me why based on my reasoning.

Answer 1

I think that the only condition under which a belief or lack of belief about religion is NOT a choice is when one is aggressively programmed from a very early age with a particular mindset. And that ceases to be an excuse once one reaches adulthood and is exposed to different ideas.

Answer 2

I would like to show you that being an atheist is no different then being devoted to a religious belief or in a god(i.e. theist). Each is equally "illogical" and each is a choice.

Belief in a god(s) is "illogical" because absolute proof cannot be obtained and often many religions contain contradicting beliefs about god, according to atheism. Despite these problems with logic, people still believe in god.

Atheism is the belief that god does not exist. That belief, in itself, is illogical. Many atheists resort to math and science to come to the conclusion that there is no god, however the conclusion itself does not have a basis in science or math.

One of the core ideas of science and math is that you cannot prove (nor disprove) a nothing. Mind you, it is belief in nothing (not proof) that atheists hold to be true.

For example, if i were to ask you to prove to me that there is no such thing as a green goat, how would you do it? If you gather all the goats in existence, that only proves that all the goats you brought me are not green, not that no green goat exists.

So yes, in order to be an atheist, you have to go against fundamental beliefs in science and math, much in the same way a theist does. Knowing those logical fallacies, (a)theists still choose to believe what they will.

Answer 3

They didn't choose to make it illogical, did they? So, the only way to not FIND OUT that it is illogical is to not go looking for the truth. The only choice being made is the choice to make sure that what they are believing is correct. The problem is that Christianity does not stand up to the test, that's why so many intelligent and analytically minded people end up rejecting it. I guess God only wants stupid sheep, who won't question authority in Heaven, right?

Answer 4

Once you know something, you can't unknow it. This is why I think atheism "chose" me. I researched, I read, and I used logic, and realized that there is no proof that any god exists. Once I knew this, I couldn't decide to be a Christian, or any other religion, because in order to be true to that sect, I would have to really actually believe. So, because of my "lack of ignorance" I HAD to "choose" atheism.

you could say the choice I made was to look into it in the first place... but that's where the choosing ended.

Answer 5

The short answer is: no.

The concept of god is illogical, not because of any choice we make, but because the evidence is non-existent and the god Christians describe is self-contradictory (he's infinitely loving, but will torture people forever. He's all powerful and infinitely good, but does nothing to stop the needless suffering here on earth.) It IS built inside us to automatically see god as illogical. It's built that way inside you, too -- you've just been conditioned and cowed into denying what you know in your heart to be true.

Answer 6

This is too much parsing and dithering over the word "choice." By a certain standard of reasoning, we all choose to believe what we believe, but making the opposite choice is not directly possible.

The classical example is someone who is conditioned, as in the novel 1984, to choose to believe something that just isn't so. I won't dive into the psychology of choosing to believe what you know isn't true, because I'm simply not qualified to.

If there is a choice in this, the choice is not what conclusion one comes to, it's whether to make the evaluation or not. I actively decided to evaluate religion -- that was the choice, but the conclusion I came to was not.

Answer 7

If I told you that spotted unicorns run around in my yard, would you doubt my claim? If so, was it a choice for you to not believe me or was it just a realization? Coming to a realization isn't a choice. Critically examining a claim is. I made the choice to ask questions and doubt. Then my mind concluded Christianity was false. For me, believing Christianity isn't a choice. I can't believe it against my will.

Answer 8

I never came to any sort of scientific conclusion...I'm just completely incapable of imagining a god. I can't wrap my head around the thought of a magical being who has the power to do everything, does nothing, and expects you to follow Him with completely blind faith.

Which is the key word: faith. God requires faith, the belief that He's there despite lack of proof. I've tried, and failed, to put all my heart into believing in God, but I couldn't do it. I went to church, I read the Bible, I prayed...I tried everything I could to convince myself that He was there, but I still couldn't control my feelings over the matter. I can't believe there's a god. It's not that "I WON'T believe that there's a god", because who wouldn't want to die and go to paradise where everything and everyone is in complete bliss?

Answer 9

Put it this way: You can't honestly choose to believe in something you don't think is true. Because I have seen no evidence for the existence of a creator, I can NOT CHOOSE to believe. I have no CHOICE, but to remain an atheist.

Answer 10

Critical thinking is a choice. On the flip side, blind obedience is a choice, too.

I received an answer to a recent question: "There's no need to ask that question, it makes sense to God." How sad.