Why do so many Christians think they know what atheists are thinking/feeling better than said atheists?

Question

I see lots of Christians here saying how atheists really do believe in god but won't admit it or they hate god etc. Why do they think they know us better than we know ourselves? They've never even met us! Do you really think we'd be calling ourselves atheists and setting ourselves up for all this ridicule if we didn't mean what we said about not believing in god?
(And notice I didn't say ALL Christians. I know not everyone falls into this category.)

Answer 1

I don't want to generalize about this but it seems to me that it's all a part of the self-righteous attitude of Christianity and that it's somewhat habitual of them to make wild assumptions and then believe them to be absolutely true as if they were supported by fact and had merit. I base my guess on observation.

The habit in question can be seem quite easily through observing the ease by which they, God-believing individuals, practice putting words in God's mouth and knowing his every mood with great precision. You'll commonly hear the phrase structures, "God doesn't want..." "God thinks..." "God wants..." followed by nearly any old "this or that." The derivations are often very creative and seldom are they supported except by the Bible; and even then, one can observe that the believing-Christian will assume his fullest license for interpretation to make his case; and here too, those interpretations may include the wildest creativity -- none of this is unusual or uncommon.

The habit of personifying God and freely giving him animation of thought and word and motive has apparently spilled over into a similar Christian habit when considering the thoughts and motives of other individuals, living people who are in general not simple and not necessarily predictable.

It isn't always a damaging insult for those of us who have to put up with it, but it is annoying; and, on the part of the god-believing person who practices this habit regularly and quite often unknowingly it is a foolish choice since the activity is all but bound to lead him into misunderstand those around him and perhaps into idiocratic isolation from him from those he has misinterpreted.

For the sake of convenience, I personally call this habit
'willful lying' and I surmise that the sooner this it becomes a habit broken the sooner there will be an end to unfounded beliefs of non-Christian groups and the idea of existing gods.

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Answer 2

Well this is not ever going to end--it will be a problem every Sunday--every holiday---everytime you and she come close to any subject involving religion. It is NOT worth the fights and the badgering. If she wants something you are not going to do, then the obvious choice is to find other people and move on. She probably wants a total committment --like any other woman---and religion is another thing to share with each other---YOU don't see it that way. So show her some respect and courtesy--tell her that you have decided to stay with YOUR beliefs and cannot honor her request. Sorry but I don't see it being a successful relationship as you have described it.

Answer 3

A few months ago, someone asked atheists why people become Christians. Know how many atheists got it right? NONE. And some of them named several reasons, yet none of them fit in with the reasons ANY of the Christians on this site chose Christianity.

It proved that they don't know a Christian's mind as well as they think they do, even if they claim they were once a Christian.

When a person makes a judgement about a person of another religion (or nonreligion, as in the case of atheists), their opinion is clouded by what they are. Very few people have actually walked a mile in someone else's shoes, figuratively speaking of course, so more than likely their judgements are going to be inaccurate. Even if one HAS been an atheist or another religion before becoming what they are now, they may or may not remember accurately what they were thinking at the time.

I hope this answers your question.

Answer 4

I know what you mean. I've noticed that the Bible is the only thing Christians have, and that's fine, but that is all they know. I don't understand how they can even try to understand an atheist if they can't even muster up enough strength to even give thought to the non-existence of God.

Answer 5

I think there is something in human nature that you expect on some level all or most people to think and feel as you do. They seriously can't understand how someone can be happy, moral, loving, etc... without belief since they themsleves can't imagine being so without it. To them its hard to get their head around and they think atheists would be happier or better if they would just admit they believed since they can't themselves imagine not believing, or don't want to. Its sort of like this thing my husband has about weird food he grew up eating that he likes and I can't stand. He finds this dish with sheep lungs and another with blood sausage extremely delicious. Just thinking about them makes me feel like hurling but in the spirit of open mindedness I tried them and found them not to my taste. Yet everytime he has it he goes to elaborate lengths trying to make me join him because he is just sure that I would really love these dishes too. Because he finds them tasty its hard for him to understand that beyond the gross factor I just really don't.

Answer 6

Why ? Well lets just say it is a God given knack . But seriously I have witnessed SOME atheists that seem to know scripture at some very deep levels. They understand some very deep level precepts. And that being the case (and it sure is) there is no way in hell you're going to convince me that they don't know that God is real. And you can take that to da bank. Again seriously now , this is just my opinion. and i know that SOME Christians agree. Just how many is unknown but I think it is more than a few.

Answer 7

Perhaps because their thinking is so rigid that they really can't see the possibility that not everyone believes the things they do.

The only alternative I see is that they think they have access to the thoughts of another person (telepathy), which is a delusion.

Answer 8

Good question......LOL I have hard enough time trying to figure out my own thoughts, let alone any one elses. Just ignore it some of us have alot of zeal they feel they are doing the right thing. cant down them for trying good intentions wrong delivery

Answer 9

Probably the same reason they felt they could take the tanak, switch it around change the language then tell the jews what it actually said and used it to justify their mythology.

Answer 10

One reason possibly being that all Christians were atheists/nonbelievers before they were Christians.