Fellow Atheists: Why are you a free-thinker?

Throughout my life I was never a devout believer. Yet I used to "feel" that there was a supreme being in some spiritual realm to whom people could pray. Then in the early 1990's, I gradually realized that such a belief was utter nonsense.

The main source of my philosophical shift was the late humanistic psychologist and author Erich Fromm, I found his writings to be profoundly moving and beautifully expressed, especially Man For Himself . Actually, I discovered this writer in the early 1980's, but it took several years for his perspective to to sink in.

Another influence was the late Rabbi Sherwin Wine, who created the Society for Humanistic Judaism.

I would like to know how fellow DPF members who are atheists became non-believers. Was it a sudden insight or a gradual evolution like mine? What's your story?

 

I consider myself an agnostic (not an atheist) but hopefully that's free thinker enough for your little discussion group here.

I first began to question organized religion when I was watching a TV show about nuns when I was about 10 years old. I remember thinking it was absolutely insane to think that whoever God was ... that he created these women's lives just so they could pay tribute to him. I just thought... what kind of egotistical God would want that? Why would a God need that? I just thought it was so profoundly insane that I never trusted anything about organized religion from then on.

 

I'm not an all out atheist(agnostic), but I believe it's a question of which do you put first, faith or reasoning? I was just wondering the other day, has an atheist ever regained their faith?

 

What does an atheist thinks about life after dead? I mean you know that all of us is gonna die one day? At that point of death what actually will you think? Will your life just finish there? Or your recycle and become something else? Or you will all be resurrected again for a a final verdict at Judgment Day where all your deeds will be counted?
I am interested to know. Thanks a bunch

 

I was lucky to be born with a very high IQ, excelling in math and sciences and am very analytical making it extremely difficult to believe in god. I also learnt that one attracts the energy they put out, be it positive or negative and if you truly believe in something you will get it. Call it karma, call it god or call it the law of attraction, I don't know which it is, but for me, it works and I'd really like to believe there is a higher power behind it and there's more after this life but it is hard as analytically I cannot justify it.

One thing I will never accept is organized religion as I will never bow to the sacrifices these religions demand and should one of the many religions actually prove the existence of god I will never follow it as IMHO that god would be merciless and not worthy of any sacrifice.

I have a great life, I lead an honest life, I'm happy with whom I am, where I am, what I am and that will never change.

And if for that a god decides to punish me for eternity then so be it.

 

I personally believe that there might be an afterlife since there's nothing contradicting it. I try my best to live a sincere life, if the afterlife consists of a hell and heaven, I don't think I'd be sent to hell because I didn't bow down to the right God. Truth of the matter is that no one really knows about the after-life, different religions have their different views, and different individuals have their different opinions.

 

Personally, I believe death is the end of the road. Immortality is the reputation that you leave behind for your life's deeds.

 

One the existence of A god i disbelieve it on the grounds that one is very unlikely and not required. we have perfectly reasonable explanations for many of the areas of understanding that this magic man used to fill such as the origin of us, our planet and the movement of our sun, and we are working on the rest.

As for religion. Frankly only an imbecile could look at a story in which a magic man creates some people, they get to meet a talking snake and eat an apple which causes all of their progeny to be born into sin, tells a wretched old drunk to build a boat because he is going to kill everyone and then orchestrates a human sacrifice (of himself) in a remote part of the ancient middle east in order to free us from the dept incurred from eating an apple and say "well that makes sense"... i mean really, how can these people expect to be taken seriously?

Atheism is the default setting. it is what naturally happens when one has a functioning brain, an understanding of the world around them and parents unwilling to poison their childs mind.

 

Try to look at other religions and use your mind to analyze their saying.
Don't lose your mind because of one wrong religion and think you reached the truth by that action.

Best wishes.

 

Emm.. But why would the real God give you heaven if you bow to other Gods rather than him who created you?

 

I have looked at other religions. Admittedly not all because it's difficult to keep up with the thousands of cults which have been invented by people, but i find them all equally ludicrous, and I'm some cases repulsive.

Because one would assume that if a god does exist he wouldn't posses our jealously and would value other things over blind obedience.

 

I grew up in a rural area and due to a very hateful and physically/mentally abusive step parent. I needed something to give me hope yet had nobody to look up to. When I finally stood up for myself and fought back throwing a punch back at the punches coming at me, I was immediately kicked out of the house at 14 (this was 1989-1990). A neighbor who took me in and was a very strong believer (later I realized a bit whacko) and a kind person. What he said kind of made sense, or so I wanted it to, in that the reason I was going through such hell was god had a purpose for me to do great things and they were just tests to prepare me. I had never believed in anything before. So for a few years I read the bible, attended many church functions, and all that.

The more I read and learned though, the less sense it made. Faith was difficult enough with no proof, but so many stories in the bible and talk of god just didn't add up.

At first I felt awful for bringing in my logic and doubting fearing my faith wasn't strong and I would go to hell. When I started questioning things people would say it's the devil putting doubt in my mind which only made me think more it was just BS.

I finally had to just admit it, I was faking the funk and while my beliefs were important to me previously, I couldn't accept it anymore as logical truth. I just backed off all church functions and reading without making it a big deal and telling people "your god is fake".

So, the way I stand now is I don't make it a point to confront believers because it was something that I think helped me in rough times and maybe something they need at that point in their life as well... kinda like a kid who believes in Santa tries extra hard to be good in December lol. I do feel a lot of them are completely whacko, though a whacko helped me so who am I to try and bash him?

Now do I believe in an afterlife? I wish I could say yes, even if I was wrong. It's hard to deny the thought of an afterlife provides more hope of there being a real point to life outside just living and reproducing. However, I am unable to see anything convincing. I've talked to some of the most expensive, well known, and famous psychics who say they can talk to the dead to see if they can prove anything to me. I'm very skeptical and give them NOTHING to go on and some have really hit some points that blew me away with things they couldn't possibly know... I can't say I believe they talk to the dead, but one specific experience made me wonder about other levels of conciseness of one's "spirit". I could go on with these examples but that's probably another topic and I've gotten personal enough lol.

So basically I live my life with morals, try to have fun, be successful for my family and pass values on to my kids while always on the lookout for something to grab hold of and make sense of my experiences.

 

Maybe you weren't looking enough? Have you ever thought your happiness on this life is so short?
Are you really content with your life. Are you sure that no one is really behind the creation of universe. Sometimes you need to remove that blindness. Go to some religion debate between religion and maybe you can see a better comparison. Try to eliminate any suspicion and doubt and really understand what each religion is saying and maybe you will find the truth.
But hey, this is your life. Mans are gifted with something really great which is the freedom to choose.
Maybe you can live the best way life can go and just pray when your life ends that it ends there but what if there is something after that. One of the posters above said that he is ready and damn if he goes either to hell or heaven as he don't care. You will actually care when you see it. When you see something worse than the worst thing you can ever imagine in this earth.
Start looking and ask about. Hopefully there will be a light for everyone of us. Or just maybe you can sit and do nothing and believe all this is just fate and the universe is created by accident. The precise distance the earth have whereas if it is just a bit further from the sun it will freeze, or if the earth just a little nearer it will burn is a fact proven by science. If that is what you think as coincidence then maybe we should think harder...

 

I DON'T bow down to any gods, base on your statement it looks like those people wasting their time praying to the wrong god will be in hell with me, sucks for them, at least I used that time wisely.

 

Agnostic not Atheist. Free thinker? Because I can recognize ideology based bullying and hatred, even when it comes out of people pushing Atheism.

 

Lets see... for me, It was partially gradual, and partially a decision. I had never liked going to temple, (I was Jewish, emphasis on the was) and I'd never really thought on the reality of the god that I believed in. Of course I eventually had some doubts, and one day, someone asked me if I believed in god or not, I said no, partially to play devil's advocate p). It seems I played devil's advocate rather well, because I convinced myself.

Of course, of all of the stupid, ignorant, illogical, and primitive things that religious people do, the one that I find the most annoying is when they say that I'm not atheist because I'm still a minor.

It doesn't make sense to me either.

 

How can you be a free thinker and believe that order arises from chaos??????????? I think the problem with many atheists as well as religious people is in the limited way in which they see god. I went through some times with this as a college goer earlier in my life until I really started to think about it critically. The incredible symmetry and order in this universe could only have come from a supreme being or force laying the groundwork (or dabbling in advanced chemistry). Atheists can never answer these questions. This is what really makes them set in their ways. They can never change even if common sense was right in front of them, and the way alot of them here attack religion seems to come from a deep routed fear or hate of people that believe in god.

Its kind of like a bully that keeps picking on a weaker kid, and doesnt even care about the kids feelings.
I really dont see the love in this. Maybe this is why people of religion far out number people of no beliefs. With love from the heart, anything is possible.

 

some ridicules atheists on this forum one holds god responsible for everything bad that goes on in the world and another argues for sanctity of life and human fetus. funny atheists. not free thinkers but free of thinking

 

Perhaps it is the language barrier that is causing me to miss your point. Are you saying Atheists are not be for the sanctity of life? Isn't that the argument of the Creationists, that the Atheists have no regard for life? I always thought sanctity of life was supposed to be a philosophical value that people shared regardless of belief about god. Regarding when a fetus becomes a human, although many "pro-lifers" are religious, many are not. Frankly, if one dismisses the bible, Quran, or any other "ancient holy text" as complete fiction, who is to say that one would come up with the conclusion that you have drawn regarding when life begins? It seems most of the Atheists and Agnostics on this forum seem to agree life begins long before a fetus draws its first breath.

 

I try to claim to be Agnostic, but whenever I do I have this feeling at the back of my mind that I simply cannot persuade myself I'm not Atheist.

My parents gave me the choice of choosing a spiritual path. They never discussed religion or spirituality in order to ensure I wasn't affected by their bias, however I have (as has my sibling) ended up like them. Heh

I spent a brief period of my life following Buddhism, which was very interesting and possibly the most pleasant part of my life, but for me it was very difficult to keep to.

I just try not to have an opinion on the matter nowadays, since no-one knows for certain, so it's pointless debating. I'm a moral person, probably more so than the average believer. I keep in mind that there is subjectivity and objectivity. My day to day actions reflect subjective morals, while at the same time I remember that objectively, it all means nothing. Hypocritical? Maybe. But at least it keeps me sane.