A question for atheists?

Question

Re-asking a stolen question....

"I know this may sound like a truly stupid question, and for that I apologize in advance, but I'd appreciate it if you'd indulge me.

I'm an agnostic theist. I know there is no evidence for God, etc., but I do have that sense that so many theists refer to that there is something greater. Christians call it 'knowing in their heart,' or the Holy Spirit entering them of having Jesus in their hearts. I just call it a sense that there *is* something more. It may not be 'supernatural' or anything... it could just be a collective consciousness... but whatever it is, I call it God and believe in it despite the lack of evidence.

Many atheists point out that such feelings could very easily be the result of brain chemistry or such things or even mental illness.

I was just asking myself why I believe in God even though I agree with you guys on evidence requirements, etc. and the answer I came up with is this sense that God exists.....

So my question to you is this: do you just not have that feeling, or do you have it but attribute it to brain chemistry or some other cause and ignore it?

I know this sounds a bit like the 'You know there is a God and are just ignoring Him' crap, and I do apologize for that... I'm just really trying to understand... more myself than you, but you can help. Thanks"

Answer 1

Good Question.

I have a sense of universal oneness and the interconnectivity of all things, without a omnipotent force behind that.

Answer 2

Well, Eleventy... I have enough respect for you to give you the straight poop about my personal experiences and how I feel about them.

I've never experienced anything at all that I could contribute to anything "godly" but I have frequently found myself in awe of the vastness of our university and the diversity of life here on Earth. Although I understand deism and pantheism well enough, I don't think of them as being any more convincing than the three big monotheistic religions that I've had no trouble rejecting as being mere notions and fantasies.

Personally I'm convinced that there is no god or anything that could be considered God, i.e., a something that was responsible for creation of everything and a something that hangs around to answer mans whims, woes and wishes.

Whether there's a universal glue of some kind other than the force of gravity, I just can't say ... I don't know enough to rule out or rule in such a thing either way but I'm willing to be convinced of anything if there is sufficient verifiable data to draw a reasonable conclusion that "there's really something out there." Until that bridge is in sight, however, I'll stand where I am and say, "There is no God." For me it's more than just a guess; it's the best part of a lifetime spent without a shred of god-evidence at all.

So... if that helps... I'm happy for you.

But hey.... isn't it a little foolish of you to call your feeling "God"... The connotations and overtones attached to the name are so damning to ones appearance of intelligence. Frankly, I'd choose any other name but God --- just think about how you're automatically align with the stupidest religious nonsense in addition to whatever you may think is good about it.

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Answer 3

I am an atheist primarily for 2 reasons. The first is that there is no reason to believe in anything more than the world around us. There is no evidence for a spiritual realm, gods, angels or anything supernatural. Religion is the only area of a persons life where believeing in something or assuming the truth of a concept is acceptable without any evidence. If I told you the world was flat you would think I was crazy despite the fact that I may want to believe it is flat despite the evidence against that.
Secondly, there are areas in the brain stimulated by prayer and meditation that cause the euphoria or rapture felt by the fatihful. This is a feeling that is probably a beneficial trait which helps humanity cope with its extended life span, assuming that there are benefits to offspring to our living past the generation we produced biologically. Physiological responses to self induced stimuli are no reason to believe in a god or anything else. Just because you want to believe something is no reason to convicne yourself that a falsehood is reality.

Answer 4

I believe there is a lot we have yet to understand, so I don't believe that the epitome of our knowledge about humanity came 2000 years ago.

None of us knows everything with certainty. We can only trust our inner self help guide us while we learn and transverse this life. If you call that inner self God, that ok. I call it a conscience. Some call it a soul. There are many words for it.

Now, how much it can do and if it is related to an afterlife and so on.... that is a whole other area altogether. So, to answer the question, we may experience similar feelings, but it seems we understand those feelings in different ways and attribute them to different things.

Answer 5

I just can't reconcile what I see on Earth with the existence of an omniscient, omnipotent, living, loving, God.

I don't think it's a brain chemistry thing. I respectfully offer the following thoughts.

1. Perhaps some people are just psychologically able to reconcile those two factors in a way that pleases and makes sense to them.

2. Perhaps some people have a psychological need to believe, and feel that a connection of the dots is unnecessary.

3. Perhaps some people have a psychological need to be Approved Of by the highest possible authority, and fervent affiliation with that authority fills that need.

I am not able to connect those two dots.

My position in this matter is my own, and I do not belittle others for their positions.

Answer 6

Well, as far as somebody who snapped the world into being--I don't believe it. I believe the world runs on the set of rules dictated by the quantum chemical and mechanical aspects of matter and energy. Having said that, while there is no hard evidence of life after death, there is enough observational evidence in the area of the paranormal to not discard existance after death out of hand. Does that make a cosmic conciousness or what I have no idea.

Answer 7

Evidence suggests there is a field of emense energy and information (intelligence) underlying and pervading all of space and time. The evidence does not suggest this source and substance of the universe has a personality, however. So, while your feeling may be somewhat supported (though I do not know what you mean by "higher"), I don't see the logical step where you associate this feeling with a (personal) deity. You seem to go beyond what the evidence will allow.

Answer 8

I think that there is a collective consciousness. We are all part of a whole. We all are collectively GOD. Nothing in the universe every is destroyed it converts into something else. It rots and biodegrades. It changes to steam, to a liquid, to a solid. Why would we think, our consciousness would disappear??

I don't think that there is a great white father sitting in the sky who rules over us. If there is, he is a psychopath with all sorts of delusional mental problems. And I think that, God did not make man in his image, but man made God in his image. And it amazes me that people can not understand that the Christian bible has been rewritten and edited by hundreds of people and shows little connection to the original text. And they try so hard to adhere to rules that constantly contradict each other.

I know that my consciousness is going to move on to the next level and think that will be a great experience.

Answer 9

I'm not sure whether I share in whatever experiences theists necessarily have. I definitely have thought processes about right and wrong, but those don't seem remotely supernatural. I've had interesting experiences trying to meditate, and I've been awestruck by the beauty of nature. But I've never experienced anything that I would describe as even feeling supernatural.

Answer 10

I don't have that feeling at all. Just not interested. I was brought up without a religion but when I was in primary school we had to attend compulsory religious education classes. I remember feeling totally uninterested and bored and switched off to think about other things. I am not in the least spiritual.
If you have some residual feelings of belief it is because you were conditioned to have them.