I am not attacking atheists, nor am I trying to convert. I just wan't to ask out of curiosity...how come you don't believe in a god? I mean, what do you have to look forward to when you die? Who or what do you turn to in a time of need? I just want to see your side of the coin, and I don't mean to offend.
2007-10-20 08:11:34 · 36 answers · asked by arbiter343 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
No evidence for any god or gods.
When you die, you're dead. Dead is dead.
I've got a great family and friends.
2007-10-20 08:14:57 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 10⤊ 3⤋
hi nice question whats insulting about it??
anyway i would say I'm an atheists because I've never seen or felt anything that makes me believe in the supernatural (if that's the wrong word I'm sorry)
also which god do you mean? Allah, Buddha, the catholic?
many religions worship more than one god
which is correct surely its just how you have been brought up? people of all faiths feel very deeply they are doing the right thing
what about all the gods that have been forgotten and no longer worshipped? the Aztec the Norse etc what if one of these where the correct and true creator?
personally i think man created gods as a tool to make sense of the world.
2007-10-20 08:28:03 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Your question is interesting in that it suggests that the reasons for believing in a god are that you want something to look forward to on death and something to support you when the going gets tough. Forgive me, but this seems a bit like wish-fulfilment and doesn't seem to bear much relationship to reality. You seem to be suggesting that life is unbearable and can only be got through by a belief that there will eventually be something better.
This is a very Christian way of seeing things. Judaism is about living in the here and now to the best of one's ability, and acting in ways that support other people. The afterlife really doesn't figure much. As for the turning to some deity in times of need, even avidly religious people will acknowledge that they see their god acting through humans. Well, an atheist just has more faith in humans - a belief that they will be there for us in times of need without the promptings of a god.
There ARE people who are very socially isolated or find it impossible to trust another human. For them, belief in a god can be a lifeline - but a psychotherapist might help them more in the long-run.
Thank you for asking your question in a respectful way, rather than assuming atheists are just fools.
2007-10-20 08:33:42 · answer #3 · answered by Ambi valent 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Why is this question asked so often? It's realy simple no creditable evidence that any god eists, no creditable or verifiable that any holy book is a trustworthy source of information about its god(s). There appears to be no indication in anything that we know of a divine being. The places that we historically thought that god worked has been shown to be natural and understandable events.
In times of need, I gather my courage and do my best to solve the problem, if I need to I talk to family and friends. I don;t look forward to death, just to living life. I don't need, or really want, an eternity of anything.
Edit:
Just for a mind opener, in an eternaty you could name each atom, memorize all their names and repeat them and do this an infinite amout of times and still have time to be extremely bored before starting the whole process over again including the infinite part.
2007-10-20 08:19:06 · answer #4 · answered by Pirate AM™ 7 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Why must there be ANYTHING to look forward to upon death?
If you don't exist after death, you won't be conscious of it. So you won't know you're missing anything anyway, will you?
And that puts an even greater emphasis on living your life to the fullest while you ARE conscious, doesn't it?
Why do you feel the need to think that there must be something after death? That only serves to heighten your fear of it, and limit you while you actually ARE alive.
And just because atheists don't believe in God doesn't mean that they have nothing upon which to rely in times of need. Hope and faith that things will get better are not the exclusive province of those who believe in a God.
2007-10-20 08:28:08 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
You needn't be so coy - I doubt you'll find atheists so easy to 'offend'.
I'm intrigued that you seem to put so much stock in the comforts provided by your belief system. Why should reality be comfortable? Why should the universe give special breaks to some bipeds in a backwater solar system?
We have this one life, out of which one may squeeze some joy, help a fellow in need, and learn a little about this remarkable reality. If you're lucky (or talented, or both) you may be able to make a small contribution to the world before you're gone.
If that's so bleak that you can't face it and must retreat back to a comforting fantasy, fair enough. Just don't try to restrict others who are trying to live the only life they get.
CD
2007-10-20 08:22:15 · answer #6 · answered by Super Atheist 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I have the same thing to look forward to when you die. IF there is a heaven then we will all be judged as we lived not as YOU think we should be judged. IF there is no heaven, I probably had a lot more fun in life than you did. I turn to my self in time of need, and I have never let myself down, although when I was an unsuspecting christian, my prayers were all unanswered so I decided to depend upon myself. And I was at one time a good little alterboy. I asked questions no one wanted to answer and discovered the answers on my own and have never looked back.
2007-10-20 08:35:50 · answer #7 · answered by bocasbeachbum 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I don’t believe in god because I see no evidence that one exists. Also, if there is a god, then this god would have to be inherently evil and the thought of an evil god seems irrational to me. I’m not looking forward to death, but I’m not afraid of it either. If I believed in the god of Abraham, I might be afraid of going to hell for some minor infraction. In times of need, I turn to friends and family. No offence, but I find the need for a god to be silly, childish, superstitious, and in most cases just a crutch for dealing with the harshness of reality.
2007-10-20 08:29:47 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
sweetie, it doesn't matter if you believe in god or not, in time of need, only humans and yourself can help you. So i will consider that a non question
How come i do not believe in god? He doesn't exist. There is no evidence or proof for his existence, the bible is neither legitiate nor reasonable (it's really a book of hocus pocus that only people of blind faith can believe). My question and challenge to you is that you go on a mission to discover where this faith of yours, this believe, this religion, this bible came about. What is the non-biblical history of your faith? How did it come about, way before the bible. Look into belief systems like zorastrian, greek mythologies, egyptian god mithra, horus etc. See how these religions that came into existence way before the judeochristian religion have shaped and greatly been combined to form what you ow know today as your judeochristian faith
What do i look forward to after i die? What is the meaning of death? The end. So in other words what do i look forward to after its over? Nothing, it's over already. Religions have been fascinated about the uncertainties in life and death and mythologies like the egyptian afterlife, the muslims, the jews and the christians are all myths. If you doubt it, then see how easily you discount the afterlife stories of other religions, see how much discrepancy there is in the afterlife stories in your religion, and think how ridiculous it is. What happens to the ants and pets and other living things when they die? The decay! That's what happens to me and you. Making up afterlife stories and believeing in them doesn't make them true.
In other words the main theme in your questions to me is "how can i face the reality of life without the fairy tale of religion and a sky god?"
It takes personal responsibility, courage and honesty to face reality as it is. And hiding behind seemingly comforting myths does not change my outcome or yours in areas of afterlife, in times of need and everything else. In fact the best outcome in any situation is facing the reality of it and dealing wiht it as you see it. Adding a third unnecessary element is not only confusing but it disrupts problem solving.
2007-10-20 08:27:24 · answer #9 · answered by uz 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I've explained this before, but I'll do it again, for nostalgia. Just leave it as personal experiences. Also, no real evidence. I find being dead and blanked out of existence a much more favorable outcome than what Christians believe (worshiping and basically be at church for all eternity, or burn.) And I don't believe I'll blank out after death because of that, I'm just comparing, show you the difference in the two. I hope this helps.
2007-10-20 08:21:40 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
There are many different religions other then the Abrahamic religions, there are religions that are much older.Before the time came where men could travel from one region to another each region had its own concept of god, even cities just miles apart worshiped different gods. This evidence alone indicates man creates gods not the other way around.There are many other reasons but this is agood start.
2007-10-20 08:24:00 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋