what is the best way to convert religious peeps into atheism?

Question

it seems to me that religious believes are harder to cure than AIDS.

not to mention deadlier

Answer 1

Religious people should be left with their own faith without any one trying to rationalize with them. To rationalize someones faith amounts to disrespect to that faith. Faith is as personal as tooth-brush that one does not share with any one else. Religious tolerance is an important ingredient for social harmony.

Answer 2

"Convert" isn't exactly the right word, but for LACK of a better term, atheists "convert" people even without grandstanding and parading around "proclaiming" our atheism. Logic and rationality has a way of quietly influencing people. The majority of atheists used to be theists. That's a simple fact. How did they become atheists? All we have to do is quietly plant the seed of reason into people's minds...to encourage people to really *think* about the things that they claim to believe, and inevitably, some of them will come to the conclusion all on their own that theism doesn't make sense. At the very least, they realize that the majority of organized religions out there don't make sense. All it took for me was to have a few people let me know that it was OK to question the things I had been told, and that I didn't need to be afraid to question. Once I got over that hurdle, once I was no longer afraid to address the questions and doubts that naturally come into everyone's mind, I became an atheist all on my own.

Answer 3

Put them in a society in which there is no compulsion in matters of religion and about a third of those raised in a religion will leave it with most of them just completely leaving religion.

Those that leave religion tend not to relapse (though the exceptions that do end up going from atheism to religion tend to be very outspoken, far out of proportion to the real number) so most of them will be forever out of religion and will raise their children without a religion. Now we bring up the fact that children raised without religion tend not to end up with one later on in life and we've got that every generation religion loses a third of its membership.

A lot of countries are probably majority atheist already without anyone actually realising it (of course most atheists on the planet wouldn't call themselves that and a lot of people who put down a religion when asked actually just named the religion their grandfather went to as a boy and don't really believe any of it).

There's also deism which seems to be becoming very common lately (the world seems to be transitioning towards being dominated by atheism and deism) but isn't really all that much of a problem (since deists don't tend to want to kill people for what they do or don't believe and also don't go about suppressing science) and is probably a good stepping stone to atheism.

If you want to encourage people to leave religion, point out examples of hypocrisy in religion because that seems to be biggest reason people leave it.

Answer 4

Why does it bother you so much? I am a religious peep and looking at it from an Atheist point of view, you you be the nasty piece of work that told kids there was no such thing as Santa?

This is an argument best left alone

Answer 5

You can't convert people into thinking rationally. The best you can hope for is to prevent them from forcing their religious beliefs upon everyone else.

Answer 6

I thought trying to convert people was what Christian's were always criticized for. I don't choose to be an atheist and a person of faith will never be able to turn away from God. You cannot understand what faith means to a person because you have none.

Answer 7

If you are a true atheist and do not believe in God what do you care.

The Idea of God and people converting is outside of your belief system and should not concern you. Unless you do believe in more than you are saying and are just being self serving.

Answer 8

Try giving them money. If you see someone parting with their own hard earned dollar you might start listening to them. I guess the quote "put your money where your mouth is," ends up proving that Christians believe more in what they are part of than Atheists. If Atheists believed in their cause they would support their cause.

Answer 9

You can't. It's like trying to put the heads side of a coin onto the tails side. Opposite sides of the coin, but still the same coin. Atheism requires just as much faith in an unproven negative as does religion in an unproven positive.

Trust in no absolutes.

Answer 10

They have to find their own way out.

No door to door stuff from me.

It's not like religions are illegal in my country.

Yeah, be less abrasive and annoying- say everything is the fault of "Atheist liberals" and you're on safe ground.