regular atheists please?

Question

I have just had an email from one of my very dear Christian friends
she is very upset at the moment with all the bashing that goes on here ( I am not going to name names )
can I ask you guys to take a moment and think about the amazing Christians who frequent these boards and how you think they feel when you ( their friends , which I know some of you are ) say these hurtful things about their religion

I say this because I know this person is also very dear to some of you guys
we often bash something as a whole , forgetting that there are people we love on the recieving end
and to make this fair , I was very one sided in my last question asking Christians to be more tolerant towards you guys

you know me , I am just sitting here trying to bring peace everywhere
because all this stuff breaks my heart
(((((HUGS))))))
thoughts please ?

Zilla sweetie .. it does go both ways and that is what I am trying to achieve here
and this friend loves a good laugh I promise that

Answer 1

I know I am one of the worst offenders. My christian remarks are aimed at fundies who are bigots and I forget that MOST Christians are wonderful loving people.

I apologize for my own inconsideration of others feelings. It is hard to keep the good people out of the crossfire when we are attacked here by ignorance.

Answer 2

Hi, sorry for Christian bashing, i know i've done some!
The problem is the zealots out there that insist the rest of humanity are gonna fry in some hell for eternity!
There are some lovely Christian types out there that don't ram their beliefs down everyones throats! There are some brilliant clergy who perform excellent services in their communities!
Religion should be a private matter between you and your god/gods, whoever that may be!
As i've said before on-site; We are just another animal on this wonderful world, we're born, we live,[ hopefully beautiful lives], then we die! There is nothing scary or wrong to think as i do! There is no right or wrong when it comes to religious issues. If you need/want to put your faith into something then feel free but don't tell everyone else that you have to be right at the expense of all our souls!! We will all know the truth when we die, and only then!!! The motto is 'live and let live'! Something that a lot of 'Christians' seem to ignore!

Answer 3

Pangel I would hope your woulds would make a difference but I feel they fall on deaf ears. Like one of the other posters I have noticed that is has become worse with the bashing and hatefullness lately. And it does go both ways. then you see someone saying they respect the other side when they are respected but then the same person answering a question that is not spiteful with spite themselves.

I used to get caught up in some of the bashing but then got to know some of the people behind the avatars. Now I try to just answer with my opinion and respect the others involved even if I don't have the same opinion they do.

Answer 4

Pangel, you know I am a Christian-based Fusionist and your friend. But I am doing this only because I am your friend and because you asked. Even I, as a Christian, am being attacked by other Christians. But I will put my differences aside for you and give hugs out to your friend.

This stuff breaks my heart, too. But there is nothing we can ever do to change it. It is about arrogance of belief, and unwillingness to bend to see the other side, to see another's belief. And frankly, I am secure enough in my beliefs to not be offended when Christians are lumped into the hurtful statements and queries. We only take offense when judgments hit home. I am not like those Christians, and hope I never will be.

But again, for you, because you are you, and your heart is big enough to reach out across the ocean . . .

(((Pangel's friend)))

Answer 5

Pangel, you are such a kind spirited soul. Always trying to bring peace. ((((hugs)))) to you.

But, I must say, visiting this board it has to be expected, the bashing to some extent. I am Wiccan and Oh my! I have been condemned to hell so many times that I think my house is about to set on fire from all the intent sent my way. Sometimes I think the Burning Times are here and at my door step,well, on my pc. but that is what this forum is about. Making everybody think. This place answers questions, helps others, offers many laughs, but most importantly-makes you think! Thinking...challenge your belief system. For me, it has made mine stronger. If it is a problem for her, maybe this isnt the place for her. Maybe it is too harsh and she isnt up to re-thinking her beliefs, which we all should do-to know who we are and what we stand for.

Extend to her my best. I wish her well and no ill intent on my part. My wish is for all just to educate themselves.

BB

Answer 6

Hi,

I know how you feel. However, had you considered how atheists feel when we get bugged almost every other day on the streets cursed by christians? It goes both ways.

Take a look at how some christians questions and answers on atheist and even other religions. If you keep christians keep their end of the bargain and promise not to bug anyone else again, I am quite sure atheists would not even bother who you would be praying to.

Answer 7

But they started it, mommy!

Pangel. I am not trying to hurt anybody's feelings. At the same time I have no intention of sugar coating things that are true.
Questions that are honest and fair get honest and fair answers. It does not matter who they come from.
When I get questions that are just ignorance and repeated and ones that are not questions but actual insults then I do get a bit testy.
If your friend wants to ask and answer honestly then she stands a good chance of getting the same back.
We are all trying to deal with the trolls here just like everybody else is.
-------------------
My Q&A is on privacy and even though I would like to I have them, I dumped the fans and contacts. This is because as soon as I opened them I had two reporting runs on my account by our tolerant and loving Christians. I was pissed off for about three days and finally had to change my avatar and name to dodge them.
I hate needing to hide my Q&A or network from trolls or even worse not be able to have a network because of Christian stalkers.
And Sybell is simply wrong about the effectiveness of the privacy feature. They circumvent that by using one account to block you the tracking with the red block flag. Once they have you located they can star you from another account for their network to report you .

Answer 8

Sorry Pangel; I'm a bit like Hayden - I'll bash Fundies anytime I can cos their beliefs are basically security blankets against their FEAR that their InvisibleSkyCritter will send them to hell unless they love and suck up to him 24/7.
But, they continue to try to fool Atheists that this fear is love.
Love under threat/duress is never love - it always remains fear no matter how you dish it up or sweeten it with a 'glorious heaven'.
If the Fundies who appear here are any indication of the type of people in Heaven I can only thank god *snigger* it doesn't exist.

And if 'moderate' Xians get some blood on them tell 'em not to believe such silly BronzeAge myths and fables written by illiterate sand-dwelling camel-jockeys who needed explanations for things that modern science has more than adequately answered on numerous occasions.

Like Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins, I agree that while we give people tacit acknowledgement of the existence of ImaginarySkyGuys we open the door to Fundies using his 'existence' as a excuse to commit violent acts on all non-believers (in their particular breed of Theism) in their God's name.


Oh, and (((((hugs))))) back. :)

Answer 9

Nice speech but if I were to count the number of hateful epithets here, Christians would outnumber atheists by far. I would hardly have anything here to say but for feeling like I want to defend my beliefs against some extremely caustic sounding faithful here. You might want to think about who to preach to. If your friend is upset she needs to look within the group that believes as she does. If she can get that toned down a little the entire world might be more peaceful.

Answer 10

I'm sad when anyone's feelings are hurt. I try not to do that, but I have to be honest when someone asks me a question. If I have hurt this person, then I apologize. Since I don't know who it is, I can't guarantee that it won't happen again. I thought this was a place for adults to discuss their beliefs...pro or con. Being an atheist and an ex-Christian, I have strong con beliefs. I'm sorry.

atheist