Why are so many people atheist?

Question

Why can't people just face the fact that there is a higher power and that the power is our lord and savior Jesus Christ
PS: DO NOT put things contradicting Christianity in this post

There is more proof that Jesus existed then you actually exist.....look the bible is a perfect piece of proof and it took hundreds of years to write from several different authors. THAT should be more than enough proof that he exists but besides that there is historical and physical evidence of his living such as the spear that pierced his side on the day of his crucifiction. AND from all that evidence there is still more that I don't know about and just look at the population that is Christian over 60% of the population is Christian and its still growing so I suggest you take a closer look at what you call a false god.

Is there historical and scientific proof of Jesus?

It is interesting that when people seek historic and scientific proof of Jesus, they immediately discount the Bible as a reliable source.

If we look at the Bible simply as a historic document, it should be among the most reliable on record compared with others.

Historians routinely cite Herodotus as a key source of information. He wrote from 488 B.C. to 428 B.C. and the earliest copy of his work comes from 900 A.D. (1,300 years later). There are only eight known copies of his work.

By contrast, the New Testament of the Bible (with all its information about Jesus) was written between 40 A.D. and 100 A.D. The earliest known copy is from 130 A.D. and there are 5,000 known copies in Greek, 10,000 in Latin and 9,300 in other languages.

Still, to put to rest the notion that there is no historic and scientific proof of Jesus outside the Bible, we may look to Jewish historian Flavius Josephus and to Roman historian Carius Cornelius Tacitus - both well known and accepted.

Josephus, in the book Jewish Antiquities" wrote:

"At that time lived Jesus, a wise man, if he may be called a man; for he performed many wonderful works. He was a teacher of such men as received the truth with pleasure. . . .And when Pilate, at the instigation of the chief men among us, had condemned him to the cross, they who before had conceived an affection for him did not cease to adhere to him. For on the third day he appeared to them alive again, the divine prophets having foretold these and many other wonderful things concerning him. And the sect of the Christians, so called from him, subsists at this time" (Antiquities, Book 18, Chapter 3, Section 1).

Tacitus, in writing about accusations that Nero burned the city of Rome and blamed it on Christians, said the following:

". . .Nero procured others to be accused, and inflicted exquisite punishment upon those people, who were in abhorrence for their crimes, and were commonly known by the name of Christians. They had their denomination from Christus (Christ, dm.), who in the reign of Tibertius was put to death as a criminal by the procurator Pontius Pilate. . . .At first they were only apprehended who confessed themselves of that sect; afterwards a vast multitude discovered by them, all of which were condemned, not so much for the crime of burning the city, as for their enmity to mankind. . . ." (Tacitus, Annals, 15, 44).

Answer 1

By definition, a fact requires some sort of evidence. Do you have any?

EDIT: So the Bible is proof? What is the Bible - the word of God? So God exists because the Bible says God exists... and God wrote the bible? Have you heard of tautology - a circular argument? That is not evidence. If I quoted from Darwin's Origin of Species, would that be evidence for evolution?

EDIT: I totally accept that Jesus existed. But where is the evidence that he was anything other than human? None of your cited references state otherwise.

Answer 2

I simply don't see that is a fact backed up by any evidence. Why don't you face the fact that there is a higher power Allah, Zeus, Ganesh, or the Flying Spaghetti Monster for that matter? I suspect you don't believe in them because there is no evidence or reason for you to? Same with Christianity? People believe in religion based on faith, because they were raise to, and/or the way it makes them feel or some personal experience. Not all people share these beliefs and there is no supporting evidence to prove them as true. Its your choice to believe, my choice not to.

If you think the existence of Jesus is a proven fact then you have done some really lopsided research. Even if it were proven that a person such as Jesus ever existed it wouldn't be proof that he was the son of a God, rose from the dead, or performed miracles described in the Bible. The Bible itself leaves room for consideration when you study its compilation and authorship from sources other than ones just confirming what you want to hear.
There is plenty of scholarship questioning those sources you cite. Josephus wrote from second hand account of being told about these events, not from verified personal knowledge. It seems strange that secular historians from the time wouldn't have written more about the amazing astronomical events recorded in the Bible or the dead prophets Jesus ressurected returning to Jerusalem.

http://www.nobeliefs.com/exist.htm

Answer 3

We live on a crisis-filled planet; a momentary glance at newspaper headlines confirms that fact each day. The desperate state of our world has caused many to question the existence of God. Some, claiming to be atheist, even deny his existence.
During the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church had a stranglehold on its subjects. “The hierarchy seemed ill equipped to deal with the spiritual needs of the people,” notes The Encyclopedia Americana. “The higher clergy, notably the bishops, were recruited from the nobility and saw their office mainly as a source of prestige and power.”

Some, such as John Calvin and Martin Luther, tried to reform the church. Their methods, however, were not always Christlike; intolerance and bloodshed marked the Reformation. (Compare Matthew 26:52.) So vicious were some attacks that three centuries later Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, wrote: “It would be more pardonable to believe in no god at all, than to blaspheme him by the atrocious attributes of Calvin.”

Clearly, the Reformation did not restore pure worship. Yet, it reduced the power of the Catholic Church. No longer did the Vatican hold a monopoly on religious faith. Many joined newly formed Protestant sects. Others, disillusioned by religion, made the human mind their object of worship. A liberal attitude ensued, allowing for diverse opinions about God.
The most shocking denial of God’s authority comes from Christendom’s clergy, who have substituted man-made traditions for pure Bible truths. (Compare Matthew 15:9.) Additionally, they have backed the bloodiest wars of the 20th century, thus rejecting the Biblical command to display genuine love.—John 13:35.

The clergy have also denied God by turning their backs on his moral standards—as evidenced, for example, by a steady stream of lawsuits against pedophile priests. The situation of Christendom resembles that of ancient Israel and Judah. “The land is filled with bloodshed and the city is full of crookedness,” the prophet Ezekiel was told, “for they have said, ‘Jehovah has left the land, and Jehovah is not seeing.’” (Ezekiel 9:9; compare Isaiah 29:15.) Little wonder that many have abandoned Christendom’s churches altogether!

Answer 4

You asked "why are so many people atheist?"; I think the answer is fairly obvious, atheists do not accept your "proof" as valid.

Putting this as simply as I can express it -- I cannot believe something to be true without physical evidence. That is something that doesn't seem to be part of your religion so to me it seems specious.

Even your own bible advises you to "test all things, and hold onto that which is true"...

In fact that is very near to my approach to such things. Personally I accept as truth only something which is based upon my own direct experience - I do not accept hearsay evidence, which is a standard for acceptable proof even is a mundane court of law. In general I follow this same rule regardless of who says it. If you want me to believe something simply because some people wrote it in a book (your bible), then you need to give me some evidence some kind of litmus test to validate that what you say is real and concrete.

To me; just saying "it's in the bible so that makes it automatically true" is never a valid argument. For me your religion just isn't grounded in anything real enough to consider it truth.

To me you appear to be no better than someone who superstitiously believes that if you step on a crack in the sidewalk you will break your mother's back... Why should I believe something that seems to me complete nonsense?

Answer 5

Actually, most of them were once theists. I think they were made to believe in a Santa Claus or babysitter type of God and were disappointed to learn that God is not like that. A look at their questions and answers will make you come to that conclusion.

I once tasked them if they had a belief system before they became atheists and I was surprised to learn that most of them were once theists.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AlvLZqq.Cn_WgmWuv2c9XxDty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071101064342AAqQbG0

There are at least four common reasons why people become atheists.

1. Some people argue that since the world is such a mess, there could not be a God who cares, which (to them) is no different than no God at all.

If this world were our whole existence, this would be a valid argument. So to an atheist, it makes good sense. But if we are eternal children of God, and are trying to live our lives in such a way as to gain infinite and eternal happiness, the travails of this world are essentially meaningless. All that matters is that we love and take good care of people less fortunate. Nothing ever prevents us from doing this.

2. Others say that it would be too much of a coincidence if the religion they were born into were the one correct one, and since they can't know which is the one correct one, they will just ignore the whole thing.

If you think about it, there cannot be more than one Supreme Being, just by definition. So why are there so many different religions? It is because mankind has been spread out over an enormous world with virtually no contact with different groups, for so large a percentage of our history. But He gave each of us precisely the same conscience, so that we would be able to recognize the Truth when we heard it.

Religion is not exclusionary, nor is it a set of rigid rules. It is the realization that God loves us with a passion that is infinite, and the response that we make as loving children.

Is there one true religion? Of course, how could there not be? God by definition is perfect; he would not give us conflicting messages on how to lead our lives. But the vast majority of the world's religions are not wrong, they are merely incomplete. There is one God and one only, and He oversees them all and hears the prayers and the pleas of all. Your conscience is the voice of the One God within you. It directs you to be a good person, kind and caring. When you do that, no matter what religion you were raised in, you open yourself to the acceptance of God's loving grace. That grace is all you need for your faith and your salvation.

God is infinitely loving, and merciful, and kind, and fair, and compassionate. He will offer each and every one of His children sufficient grace for salvation. To the extent any church preaches that, it is right.

The only really wrong choice of churches is none at all.

3. Some have so much arrogance and hubris that they have a difficult time acknowledging any authority higher than themselves.

These are the same people who have trouble with all authority, including parents, teachers and drill sergeants. They fight their way through life quite unhappily, and nothing will ever change them or convince them that they are not the center of the universe.

4. Still others are comfortable not having to bother to go to church every week and don't want to stay away from the temptations of the world.

They know that admitting there is a God who expects certain behavior from them would be inconvenient and not nearly as instantly gratifying, so they look the other way by demanding "proof" of His existence which they know fully well they are not going to get to their satisfaction.

For more information please go to this link.
http://www.meaning-of-life.info/IsThereaGod.html

Answer 6

dumb move to ask them not to put things that contratdict christianity on here but i do have a question for aethiests too where did the universe start if you believe the big bang what made the little thing that exploded. alot of science is theory more specifically the part about how the universe works so basically aethiests have no proof that there is no god and we don't have any on that there is one. guess we'll just have to wait and see. i for one am waiting on the christian side.

Edit: woah if you need to brush up on history looke below this.

Answer 7

If you don't want me to "contradict Christianity", then you aren't ready to accept reality. I can't answer fully and honestly until you're willing to listen.

I WOULD tell you that claiming the existence of a higher power to be a "fact" is presumptuous and irrational, and that your feelings and convictions when it comes to your belief and your "holy book" render you no more correct than anyone else who feels very deeply and is steadfast in their conviction... but like you said, you won't listen.

Let me know when you CAN listen and I'll come back.

Answer 8

why the hell wood u write DO NOT put contradicting Christianity in this post! do u just want people 2 agree with u? ill face the fact that theres a higher power and jesus christ is our saviour when u show me some proof!!!

Answer 9

Atheists maybe have reasons for themselves, while some people say science is strong, science can't also answer how the world was created and how beautifully the galaxy, the sun, the moon, the stars have been arranged. science cant get any proof too, so there must be a creator up above there responsible for all of this...Meanwhile, we can't force to change on what they believe in, we have to respect and just wonder ..after all, who says my religion is wrong, everyone defends it, so the atheist will do so...................believe in the power of the Lord and believe that without Him we are nothing, that's it.................

Answer 10

Why can't people just face the fact that there is no higher power! Where is the proof? It is all made up!

BTW
The main reason is atheists are smarter than christians and we have worked it out already. You are still trying to work it out. One day everyone will see the truth and be atheist. That is why atheism is on the rise!