Atheists? What is the top 5 things Religion does to upset you ?

Question

I was just thinking because I saw a question asking "why Are Atheists so obsessed with religion? So I was thinking what are the main reasons we care so much. I know the answer. Here are my top 5 what are yours?

1. Violence in the name of god
2. Indoctrinating Children
3.Intelligent Design
4. Abstinence only Sex Education programs
5. Stem Cell Research

Answer 1

Updated, upon consideration:

1. War
2. Stem cell research
3. Opposition to sexual equality
4. Intelligent design
5. Guilt trips on innocent people

In each instance, what religion does is misdirect people from the actual debate.

Answer 2

I guess, even as a secularist, religion does not upset me much. Like several cultural institutions in society, we cannot allow it to have full sway and at the same time preserve a free society.

There has been violence in the name of secularist ideals as well.

I hope that secularists support the notion that parents have the right to raise their children as they see fit.

I think that 3, 4, 5 are precisely those areas that we need to make sure that religion does not hold sway. I think, that at least in the US and other western democracies, there are cultural institutions that can uphold Evolution, accurate and full sex education, and ethical stem cell research.

But we cannot approach these and other issues simply in opposition to religion as religion. We need to articulate the values (and these indeed may be religious values) that make clear the value of ideals that some religious might oppose.

But the religious are our fellow citizens--in the US and in the World. We secularists must find a mode of life by which we can live in harmony with them.

Answer 3

Atheists are obsessed with religion i dont ******** think so! its the other way round, theres SO many 'christians' on here asking questions to atheists, theyre the ones obsessed with atheism!! The things that REALLY ***** ME OFF about religion are:

1) its blind faith, whatever ANYONE says. theists just cant seem to accept it.
2) it holds you back, theres too many rules an regulations you HAVE to conform to or else you're evil.
3) I disagree with religion's view on social issues: homosexuality, abortion, stem cell research, sex out of wedlock.
4) SEX is another big one. i disagree big time that a BOOK, that no one knows who wrote, can tell us to only have sex in a marriage. All these Christians go ON AND ON condemning teenagers having sex - who the ***** are they to tell people what to do? and youre damn right about abstinance only sex programs, i dont see why everyone has to do the same thing, theyre COMMUNISTS!!! Sex education should be EDUCATION ABOUT SEX, not a command to abstain. less people listen if you tell them to do something.
5) It causes conflict. Look at me right now. If no one had believed in anything from the start of time we wouldnt have so much hatred and conflict.
6) i had to put a sixth in. It contradicts things. ive found so many websites with bible contradictions, theyre so funny.

Thank you for this question, it let me vent my anger and im glad to see theres someone else that gets upset by religion!

Answer 4

I am an atheist, and a few of my friends are too, we are not obsessed with religion, merely indifferent as we do not believe in a higher power or supreme being. The things that do disturb me most is :
1. People sometimes do not even believe in their own religion, they just take what has been shoved down their throats and take it, instead of thinking for themselves what could be true. I do respect religious people, but this is what I myself believe.
2. Some ( not ALL!) religious people continually act towards me as if I am inferior and yell things at me, such as "SHUN THE NONBELIEVER!" This makes me sick. What right do these people have of saying that they are right and I will "go to h***"? True, I do criticize them, but I have never said that their religion was "wrong".
3. The demeaning and patronzing people that tell me - "God loves all of his children", but then say "In God's eyes, atheists and nonbelievers are all below homosexuals (If God loves all his children, why not accept EVERYONE, because "he made all of us this way", because EVERYONE is "God's child? They are being hypocrites!

You know what? i'm NOT sorry for all the stuff i said. These are all of my beliefs and i am sick of people continually telling me my ideas are wrong and i should just be a good religious person and sit there and say nothing!

Answer 5

This is why I'm glad that it's only a true relationship with God that counts! I am not and Atheist but there are some things that upset me with mere religion.

1. False representation to the world
2. Teaching false doctrine
3. Giving false, even fraudulent testimony
4. Leading millions to a false belief and hell
5. Placing a stain on faith by doing all of the above

Answer 6

im not quite an atheist...getting there however...but here are my 5

1. God as an excuse for - violence, hate, biggotry
2. Belief that all who dont believe as they do are evil ie condemnation
3. cherry picking the bible. How some sins are law, some arent, some no longer are valid, while some still are, saying the old testament is no longer valid while still pressing some old testament ideals but not others.
4. using religion as a basis/argument to pass or not pass laws
5. the inability to think for themselves, blind faith, argue without god as the only/absolute answer, absence of logic and heart, the "sheep syndrome" as i call it.

and i have to add
6- supression/elimination of other cultures through missionary efforts

Answer 7

I'm not an Atheist but a Christian but here are my 6 top things that make me angry with my own religion and makes me not want to go to church. I thought It might amuse you,

1. Violence in the name of God (totally agree with you)
2. Thinking they are always right because they have God on there side, or useing God to fight there causes.
3. Being against Gays, Lesbians, Trangended, &Transexuals, who cares who they love, who they feel like on the inside, so they are diffrent...back off
4. Being pro-life, the whole controling another persons body kinda bugs me.
5. Stem Cell (Agree with you there)
6. Bashing other religions- that really kills me, I love other religions I think they are wonderful.

Answer 8

1. Attempting to drill their religion into the heads of others
2. Passing on their religion to their children. My opinion is that religion is a very private thing, and you should let the next generation make their own decisions, without prodding them into a certain direction. That's what's happened to christianity.
3. Being close minded. I think that choosing a religion and having complete faith in only one religion will drive you into not listening to anything else.
4. Violence in the name of God
5. Ignoring the facts. When people have faith in something, they tend to dismiss evidence, which I find kind of annoying.

Answer 9

My List:

1. The Christian attitude of always being right, because they have God-Man Jesus
2. When Christians say, "That may be true, but Biblically speaking..." "Well, the Bible says", "The WORD of GOD is supreme" ect...
3. Brainwashing people
4. Spreading Fear and Hatred, then complaining about it
5. Blaming everything possible on Satan, esp. very insultive and patronizing statements like "you resist Jesus because of Satan" (no, not because of reason, science and logic. Oh, those are from Satan, by the way)

Answer 10

Technically relgion itself does not do anything to upset me. (I am not of any religion.) It is the people in the religions that upset me. Not simply because they are religious but because of the way that they behave towards me. The top 5 things that they do that I hate:
1)Hypocrisy
2)Slander
3)Demonizing other people
4)Bullying
5)Selective enforcement of their own laws
whenever it is convenient to them.

I didn't list imposing their views as one because I am secure enough with myself that I can withstand as much imposition as they can muster. It's the fact that they will then try to demonize me and ostracize me when I don't give in to them. Then they lie about what they are doing.

Answer 11

I don't have top five things but I can tell you the main reason why it upsets me, why is there so much suffering in the world?

I know some people claim its all in God's plan and that it helps the person grow/become stronger. I'm sorry but I cant see the truth in that if children all over the world are getting beaten/raped on a daily basis.

Children are the most innocent/pure beings, if there was a God why would he/she put them through that? If he/she could put a stop to it-surely they would.

After all we are all his/hers "children"