Atheists....what is so good about not believing?

Question

Pascal's theory was a pretty good theory but he was discredited because he was a drinker (which was a lame reason). But besides that whats so good about it?

I know some answer s Im going to get back are going to be a question which will be , "whats so good about believing?" And my answer is that I have something to look forward to when my time comes. Strong faith makes fear of death obsolete. My life feels like I have a higher selfless purpose. If Im wrong at the end then so what?

Some would say "because you dont get to live your life"...
What are you doing in life that I cant do? Get high? Harm others? Harm myself ? What?

Please give me mature answers people.

Answer 1

Atheism actaully makes no sense. Every one has some form of god in their life. Atheists may not see it or believe in some religious icon, but the true fact of any religion is the concept of faith. All religions have faith in a higher power. In this sense, everyone on earth has faith in something that they feel will make their lives better, or something that is greater then themselves.
If faith is the element necessary to prove someone believes in a higher power, then athiest have it as well.

Faith may be in money, government, or whatever, but everyone has faith that if they find something, they will achieve happiness or greater joy, this then is the role of their god.

In the end Atheist even believe in some form of god, whether it be clean living, money, sex, drugs or government.

Answer 2

Personally, it's about embracing what I know I have.

I have this life, right here, right now. I do the very best at everything I do to make this life as good as it can possibly be. I give as much as I can, I try as hard as I can, I love as much as I am able.

I do not do these things to be rewarded in the afterlife, or out of fear of being judged in some video review of my own life...I do them because I want to...in the here and now.

I feel the fear religion puts into people about how "you'd better be good...and follow these rules...or ELSE" is a huge crock.

In the past, before there was law enforcement or a judicial system, religious law may have been necessary to help the growth of human society. But, once democracy had made fair and just laws for everyone to follow, and put law enforcement and the judicial system in place to make sure those laws were maintained, the "eternal threat" was no longer necessary.

If you feel the need to have something to look forward to after you die, maybe you just aren't making the most of the life you already know you have....and there's nothing 'selfless' about that.

Whose eternal afterlife are you concerned about again?

Answer 3

"What are you doing in life that I can't do? Get high? Harm others? Harm myself? What? Then you ask for mature answers. So your assumptions are that we do the things you mentioned. Sorry, I don't get high and I don't harm others or myself. No reason to. I am a very happy and contented Atheist for many reasons. Not simply because I am not bound by supertitious beliefs in Imaginary Gods, but because I try to live a good and decent life. I have relatives and many good friends of different faiths that I enjoy being with and sharing my life with. I am educated, I have several hobbies and regular activities, I have a nice place to live and enjoy my life. I have studied and learned things about life in my country and other parts of the world that have probably never crossed your mind.

Answer 4

I don't believe in god and I don't fear death.

There's no point in pretending to believe in something so you can have something to look forward to when you die.

I live my life to the fullest now, and I fully accept that when I die that's the end.

The difference between a christian and me (other than the god thing) is that I am a highly moral, very decent human being and I am that way because I choose to do so.... not because an old guidebook tells me to.

I used to be a christian, by the way, and it wasn't until I was released from that nightmare that I felt like a free person who could do anything I wanted with my life. It's liberating and wonderful.

Answer 5

Not believe in God is like finding out that Santa Claus isn't real and that time you saw him it was really your Dad. At first your disappointed because you want to believe in the magic of the Claus. However later you begin to realize that your parents where the ones who got you all those presents. That your parents cared enough about you to work overtime to get you that new game system you wanted. Not because they were some supernatural madman rewarding you for being "nice". No your parents got you those gifts because they care about you and want you to be happy. So basically in short the good thing about not believe is that instead of the world being filled with random miracles from God. The world is filled with people who care about each other and try to help one another.

Answer 6

i am an Atheist so obviously i disagree with you. but don't get me wrong!! i'm not one of those anti-religion atheist. i think religion is a good thing even if i don't believe in it. i think believing helps keep some people in line and makes others feel happy and content.

and that's fine with me. it's none of my business what others believe unless they want to make it my business. i don't believe in pressing my beliefs onto other people.

anyway, getting to the point... people who believe in God are always saying stuff about how if you do good, then you will go to heaven and if you do wrong, you will go to hell. i am an atheist because i believe that it is easier to live without being in constant fear of doing something that would land me in hell. i don't have to be afraid of something, or rather someone, that no one can prove actually exists. (though i am aware of the fact that i can't prove that He doesn't exist either. there's always the possibility that i may be wrong.) i hope this helps to answer your question...

i guess no one will ever really know until it's their time to "go"...

Answer 7

Not believing in what? The African Ju Ju on the mountain? The pink unicorn? Buddha? Allah? One of the other thousand Gods conceived by man? How is Pascal's wager a good theory? Basing all your life decisions on the off chance that your God is the true god is no safe bet. I see that as no way to live a life.

Answer 8

Liberty of the mind is the best part. Being able to let your thoughts roam freely without constantly evaluating if they're "approved of" or "not approved of". I know that sounds like the easy way out, but in fact it's rather hard, because I constantly have to answer to myself, and I am very hard on myself. Nobody can forgive me but I myself, so that isn't exactly easy.

It isn't so much what you can't do what we can do, but it is a completely different look on life: if that ape mummy "some" years ago hadn't survived her fever than I wouldn't be alive. Isn't that incredible? It is so awesome, and I can only experience that feeling because I don't think I was meant to be here - I just accidentally, wonderfully AM.

And Pascal was discredited because he missed a vital part: there could be MORE than a single god, so it's not about believing in his god might be better than not believing at all. His wager only works if I decide to believe in every singly deity just "to be on the safe side". Which, as you know, is impossible.

Answer 9

Your right people are going to ask "Whats so good about believing"

and yeah sure you may have something to look forward to, but you have to realise that practically all Atheist are scientific people, they live life on facts and proven theories or ideas which make sense, believe in a god doesn't make sense because where is the proof. and yeah about looking forward to death i just don't fear death.
There is nothing good about not believing, they just don't want to believe something which was created more that 2 thousand years ago by people who didn't understand the world.

I am an Agnostic, basically I'm stuck in limbo

Answer 10

We don't believe in god becasue we don't believe in god. It really is as simple as that.

I don't understand how anybody could ask this question unless they don't see any difference between believing and pretending to believe.

By the way, I see no evidence that Christians are less likely than atheists to "get high" or "harm others." All the evidence I see points to the opposite conclusion.

But to answer your question: we get the satisfaction of thinking for ourselves, rather than taking refuge infantile fantasies about an omnipotent daddy who will make everything right in the end.

Answer 11

You speak of "not believing" as if atheists just got up one day and arbitrarily decided, "You know, I think I'm going to stop believing in deities." It's a rational conclusion based on an understanding of available evidence. Religion, on the other hand, tends to be an irrational *premise*, around which the adherent attempts to bend his world-view.

Pascal's wager was discredited because it is a logical black hole, and you would know this if you had ever genuinely studied it.