Atheist, a question:
You all do not believe in God. Accordingly, our existence is completely meaningless. If our existence is pointless and that we're all doomed to just die and waste away, what's the point of coming to Y! Answers to discourage believers? Wouldn't your efforts to discourage believers, according to your logic, be completely pointless if we're all going to die one day and cease to exist?
2007-11-02 04:56:48 · 33 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
"Just because God may not exist doesn't negate meaning in life."
But after you die, you lose the knowlege of "meaning in life." If you're going to lose meaning in life after you die, all your friendships, accomplishments, etc. will be negated. Not only that, but so too would your efforts to discourage believers be negated. Which brings me back to my original question (and I still haven't had a direct answer - I've only heard criticism and comments, not answers): Why, if you believe that everything becomes meaningless after death, and it accordingly does, what would be the point of discouraging believers on Y! Answers, since your efforts to discourage us will eventually become meaningless?
2007-11-02 05:06:42 · update #1
Gorgeoustxtemptress3,
If you were anything intellectual, you would've been able to answer the question with competence and constructive criticism; but seeing as you resorted to a childish ad hominem, it's very clear that you're not intellectually superior to me. Actually, it proves that you're intellectually imature and not capable of a rational debate. You're not as smart as you think you are. Grow up.
2007-11-02 05:13:14 · update #2
Good point. They have no meaning in life and the hereafter and misery loves company. They are trying to drag us down with them.
2007-11-02 05:03:05 · answer #1 · answered by Kaliko 6 · 1⤊ 11⤋
It is human nature to argue, it seems. I personally am not an athiest but most of the true athiests that I know do not bother to try and discourage people because they don't really care about what everyone thinks of it. They don't care about much, in fat, but that does not mean they are bad people. These people can sometimes be the people that think they should make the most of now because there is no later. I do not understand this line of thinking but that is how it is. If they are troubling people to stop believing, they are just jerks. No offense to anyone. Trying to force someone to believe the way you believe is wrong as far as I'm concerned.
2007-11-02 05:06:47 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 0⤋
Yeah, the only true sentence in your entire entry was the first one.
You're telling me that the only reason you and other christians are alive is because of God? That's crazy. People in your life, the places you go, good things you do, amazing experiences, and other things should add purpose as well even if you're the most devout Christian in the world.
And I'm not here to discourage anyone. I'm here to share my opinion. If someone is discouraged by someone's words they read on an internet site they may need to do some further reflection.
2007-11-02 05:04:23 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 1⤋
1. "You all do not believe in God." - You got one right.
2. "Accordingly, our existence is completely meaningless." - We never said that. Just because we realize the fact that no true god exists doesn't mean that our lives have no meaning.
3. "If our existence is pointless" - See above.
4. "and that we're all doomed to just die and waste away," - Another one right!
5. "what's the point of coming to Y! Answers to discourage believers?" - It's fun and hopefully, someone who is beginning to doubt the truth of his or her superstition will see something that will free him or her from it.
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2007-11-02 05:08:53 · answer #4 · answered by Weird Darryl 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
I only agreed with the first sentence. I suspect that if theists here actually asked about theology the number of atheists here would drop significantly.
Existence is only meaningless if you make your life meaningless.
I wouldn't say 'doomed' to die or 'waste' away but without the melodrama that covers what we know. We all die and until recently with embalming we do decay.
I don't try to discourage anyone here. People can believe whatever they like and it doesn't bother me a bit. If someone says "I believe" and leaves it at that what can anyone say "no you don't"? That would be as pointless as arguing that someone is wrong about their favorite color.
Actually I've only recently berated someone here for the first time. And you may not believe it but that person was an atheist. Or at least claimed to be.
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Lastly I would ask why do so many askers only respond to those posting answers as a joke? It truly makes me think many of the askers don't want a serious answer either. So why ask if you don't want a serious answer?
2007-11-02 05:00:32 · answer #5 · answered by Demetri w 4 · 12⤊ 2⤋
Why would you assume that life is meaningless without god or that life needed to have a meaning? Not only that but you're stating it as if it were a really bad thing not to have meaning.
I suppose that you could say that the meaning of life is to live and to further the species. But regardless of the "meaning of life", I'm living and I have children attending schools and they are affected by believers trying to get misinformation taught as science. I have friends that are affected by believers making their morals into civil law. These things affect my life.
2007-11-02 05:21:03 · answer #6 · answered by Pirate AM™ 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Why would existence be meaningless just because it will end some day? Indeed nothing lasts for ever, but it can still be very nice, fun, beautiful while it does last.
Edit: who cares about eventually? Would you not build a house because you know it will fall apart some day? Would you not pick flowers because you know they will dry up and you will have to throw them out? Will you not enjoy a sunset because it just lasts a few minutes?
2007-11-02 05:07:28 · answer #7 · answered by Ray Patterson - The dude abides 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Just because life does not have a preplanned purpose does not mean we cannot give it a purpose of our own? Perhaps many of us have decided that human existence is wonderful thing and that the advancement of mankind is a good cause. Therefore the abandonment of mythologial beliefs that hold back mankind is promoting the purpose of life.
2007-11-02 05:04:13 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋
How does being atheist mean existence is meaningless? It's quite the opposite. I enjoy love and life. It's religion that constantly preaches this life as meaningless and should be sacrificed for the 'afterlife'.
Look at all of the religious martyrs that are homicide bombers and fly airplanes into buildings in the name of religion.
2007-11-02 05:04:08 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 1⤋
I am not trying to discourage anyone from their beliefs.
What I am doing is trying to stop people forcing their beliefs on everyone else through infiltration of government, schools and direct door to door evangelism.
I for one am fed up with your unwelcome intrusion into my life.
This has nothing to do with whether or not life has a particular meaning. That is a personal assessment.
2007-11-02 05:18:17 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
i call myself an anti-theist, not just an atheist. I believe as does Richard Dawkins, that religion is a bad thing as should be discouraged.
Existence isn't meaningless, it just has no end purpose.
The question remains. Why is there a god, why is there just nothing at all, including god.
2007-11-02 05:07:04 · answer #11 · answered by robert2020 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋