What ADJECTIVES regularly applied to your faith/non-faith (e.g., "judgmental" Christian) do NOT apply to you?

Question

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Please explain why these words are not applicable, in your case.

Do you believe these words are often accurate in describing OTHERS of your faith/non-faith tradition?

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Answer 1

"immoral"--- atheist. Some people think atheists are atheists because that means they can "do whatever they want." In some cases, I believe this is true. And while it is easier for some atheists to be jerks without having to fear a god's wrath, I'd say there are just as many religious jerks out there. I assume this is because being a jerk is inlaid in your personality, that even if you believe you will be punished for it, you're going to be that way anyway, or be really watered down. If I really was a Catholic like everyone believes I am, not to brag, but I'd be in good shape. I've never gotten drunk, touched drugs, had sex, or anything of that sort before. Not because I fear retribution, just because I don't feel the need to do those things for my own personal reasons. Just as many "Christians" have premaritial sex, maybe even more because of the stigma. I know, I went to Catholic school.

"Lazy" is another one. Some people say atheists just don't want to bother going to church or being devoted to anything. While this is true for some, I actually attend mass every Sunday. Really. If I told my ultra-conservative parents that I didn't believe in God, they would absolutely freak out and probably be driven to madness praying for my soul. And let me tell you, that act is A LOT of work. Sometimes it gets really tiring, but you know what? I'm doing it for them. Christians say you shouldn't lie, but I love them, and nothing good can come of me telling the truth.

"Hardhearted." This one gives me the most grief. I am ALWAYS willing to listen to others' opinions if they have some information I haven't heard or found out about, or if they have a point to discuss in a way I hadn't thought about it before. I am very openminded and in no way stubborn. Of course atheists *seem* hardhearted to you-- it's because we've heard the same argument over and over that doesn't make any sense to us. We evaluated the situation with the information that's available, and decided what we believed. Unless there's some new "evidence" that pops up, I don't think there's anything wrong with us knowing where we stand on this issue. In other cases I am not hardhearted-- I have changed my mind on many an issue because someone brought some bit of info to light, or I simply changed as a person. I used to be very against gay marriage, now I couldn't be more for it. It's about looking at something in a different light, without the colored glasses handed to us by society. I think one could make the statement that most Christians are far more "hardhearted" than atheists, as far as moral issues go.

Answer 2

Hmm, my mother in laws words ring in my ears:

I am pagan:

#1. No, I'm not a Satan worshiper. That would imply belief in Satan, which I lack. Also, though Satanism is one of the many beliefs under the sub-heading: Pagan, it by no means reflects anywhere near the majority.

#2. I was not "deceived." In fact, no one even suggested paganism to me. No one guided me, taught me, nadda. I was Christian, and via personal reading/research/experience, found it flawed, and personally chose to leave it. Upon establishing my beliefs through introspection, then being lonely since everyone I knew was Christian, I then found paganism. Since it's a belief system that can come by logic, reasoning, and honest yearning for truth, I find the generalization for the whole of paganism flawed as well.

#3. I'm not a sl-ut (yahoo hides it). Though my husband and I have an open relationship, and I wasn't a virgin beforehand (I enjoy the joy of union, tantra, etc), I always choose my parters with extreme care. As for the whole of paganism, I think it's partially correct. Usually, they're cautious, but it is a group of generally wild sexual abandon. At least the ones I know.

#4. I am not "unintelligent" or "uneducated." I am in the process (school takes forever *cries*) of getting my doctorate in psychiatry, and have always been very adept at maths and sciences. I've also learned a fair bit about religion as well. Most pagans, this is also false, because it's easy to "do as you're told" but not easy to forge your own path. A very spiritual pagan is on a hard road. Christians have it easy: they have a book that tells em what to do, what to think, how to live, what is right and wrong, etc. Spoon fed spirit babies. Pagans, by definition, don't have a handy dandy guide. More will stray than Christians, because of this, but ultimately, I think they are more spiritually advanced than those of many other faiths. That requires intelligence and an honest seeking of truth. Many also do a great deal of research (especially wiccan!!), so cannot be called uneducated.

Answer 3

This is a very broad question. Atheism literally means 'without god' and since most human acts of devastation have been in the name of one god or another, this would suggest that they are less harmful than people with a religion. If you think about it in a more abstract way, atheism promotes free thinking and the choice to believe what you want without the hindrance of someone telling you what is correct without any evidence. In this way, many religions actually promote ignorance over knowledge. (The reasoning behind this lays with early society humans trying to form a manageable society that functions well together. Religion is a very effective way to do this, hence why there are so many similarities between them). So depending on what you mean by harm, in early human society atheism could have been more detrimental to the progression of the human race but in recent times (the last 150 years or so) religion is losing its place in modern society.

Answer 4

Atheists are often assumed to be without morals, presumably because Christians learn their morals in church, so if atheists don't go to church . . . But it is faulty logic.

Even if it is true, which I doubt, that many or even most atheists have decided not to believe in god in order to avoid the wrath of same for their immoral conduct, that would not apply to me. I was a believer of various sorts during most of the time when "sin" might have been considered a relevant term about me. In fact, I fought with the conflict between my sexuality and my spirituality over and over. It has only been since I long since gave up on . . . well, since menopause made it less significant to me, anyway . . . that I have concluded I am an atheist.

But I do not believe that most atheists are immoral or even amoral. They tend to base their morality on humanism and various other reasonable, rational, I would even say civilized standards.

Answer 5

materialistic

hedonistic

epicurean

arrogant

immoral

hell bound

nihilist

sinful

To be honest, I do enjoy experiencing life (and pleasures like food, sleeping, reading, sex) as much as any other person, I simply don't believe in deities. Some people believe that atheists stand out for being immoral or especially materialistic, when that is not the case (and almost everyone in America, regardless of religious belief, shares some of this "materialistic" aspect because we thrive in a capitalist society). I am hardly alone for enjoying a good piece of chocolate cake.

Answer 6

1) Immoral. Quite a call for someone who doesn't even know me.
2) Closet-believer. No, I'm not. I came from Christianity, and rejected their idea of God on all levels.
3) Gay. Just because I support basic human rights regardless of sexual preference does not automatically make me homosexual.
4) Unethical. See point number one.
5) Evil. What have I ever done to deserve this distinction?

There are probably more... but that's all that come to mind right now.

Answer 7

1. Devil worshiper. That implies a belief in the Christian Devil.
2. Satanist. Wiccans are not Satanists.
3. Deceived. Wiccans taking their faith seriously do a great deal of study. We are not deceived.
4. Playing at religion. Simply not true.

And on and on.

Answer 8

If I had a dime for every time I heard someone say that Atheists are unintelligent and uneducated I would be so rich. Keep in mind too, that most times, the person accusing me of being unintelligent is spelling Atheist wrong.

No, these words are not accurate, not for everyone anyway.

Answer 9

agnostics are 'atheists without balls'.
thats what I hear a lot.
and it's not true.
it's entirely different.
ugh.
Agnosticism is not really sure what you believe, but if someone proves god exixts with proof that cant be argues with, you'll believe it.

Also:
Agnostic-Jew = Contradiction.
Thats not true either. I'm just not a die hard Jew.
I celebrate Christmas, Hannukah, and New Years (What us Russians have instead of christmas)

Answer 10

Christian-reason for wars, pushy, believes in fables, are the 'right-wing neo-cons'.

These do not represent the message that Christ gave to His followers to adhere to.

Also, they never mention the good things we do.