At what point would you super-relgious types admit that you're wrong?

[Spider]

Isn't that 1/2 of the point of religion anyway?

1/2 of it is because no one knows what happens when you die, so we need something to cling onto

1/2 of it is to create a moral code which binds people who might not otherwise live by a certain code. This is to ensure society can function smoothly.

This pretty well sums up my personal feelings about religion. I am a staunch atheist. While I freely admit that we (at this time, and likely for all time) cannot fully explain our existence I firmly believe there is no God and no true religion.

First, if there really was one specific God or collection of Gods, I see no reason why people on one part of the planet would believe in the Christian God, while people in another part of the planet would just as strongly believe in another God. Second, human existence far predates todays relatively modern religions. Christianity was born about 2,000 years ago, Judaism a little before that. Christianity, Judaism, and the Muslim faith, are, humorously enough, basically the same religion. People were wandering around chasing down animals to eat long before that. God created us then came back 100,000 years later? Imagine this exchange between God and one of his subjects.

Oh, I forgot to mention, I am your God. Nice to meet you! This is my son. He is a hell of a guy. He does this trick where he can cure leprosy, that disease I made. Oh, sorry about that by the way. Woke up on the wrong side of the bed. It can happen to anyone.

I believe that religion makes perfect evolutionary sense for exactly the reasons Epinephrine was hinting at. It provided order in society, something we all know is very beneficial. Having an enemy does the same thing, by the way.

Today, religion no longer fulfills this objective and as a result no longer provides humanity with any reason to keep it around. In fact, in todays modern states which provide socialization and order through other means religion is redundant. Societies are becoming less and less homogeneous with new means of transportation like planes, trains, and automobiles. Immigration in the first world accounts for a large percentage of the total increase in population. As a result varying religions within a single nation simply feed fear and mistrust among citizens of a country. It has a negative effect now, while it used to have a positive one.

As a result religion is dying out. It did it's job, just like hunting and gathering did. Then farming provided us with everything we needed. Now our economy, while we obviously have to still eat, is now more based on silicon than anything else. Religion has also been replaced, and will continue to die off.

In fact, even if the basic assumptions of religion (Christianity I assume we're talking about) are correct my reasons for its demise would still stand. So, even if there is a God, he wont have any worshipers 100 years from now. Any humanity will be less violent for it.

In the spirit of the original point of the thread, if I died, and since I am an atheist for me I would met this Heaven's gate guard dude with the check list, I would shocked, and probably shit my pants. As far as I understand, one of the rules is if you don't believe you go straight to hell. Which, of course, makes total sense. If religion needs to serve the purpose of providing rules for a society it can't be optional. Hey, wanna join this religion, we make great cookies? No thanks, I'd rather be a heathen. No. That wouldn't work at all.

Also, I don't think religion is very important for morality. I am easily one of the most moral people I know and I've met less tolerant atheists but I've never met one who is much more confident than I am that there is no after life, God, or true religion. I almost never drink, don't smoke, don't steal, there have been times when I returned a $5 because the person incorrectly gave me $5 too much change. I quit doing that when I realized I was robbing the poor (myself) to give to the rich (the business) and according to my beliefs that's more unethical than keeping the money. Not because I felt I needed the five bucks. WOW THIS IS FUCKING LONG. My reason is we have a blizzard in my city and I am stranded in my house alone and not allowed to use the roads according to the police. Therefor I am bored and had nothing to do but write this crap. I apologize.

[Squeezer]

i'll just turn gay for satan with boobies on the side. That way hell will be the good life, with 1 negative.

But cmon, how many days in your life can you say that you take a 20 inch red evil cock up your ass.

...waiting for the Xog joke.

[gran guerrero]

i'll just turn gay for satan with boobies on the side. That way hell will be the good life, with 1 negative.

But cmon, how many days in your life can you say that you take a 20 inch red evil cock up your ass.

[Bioture]

Suppose you get hit by a bus tomorrow, and find yourself in some afterlife that is completely not what you expected?

let me know when you get hit by a bus.

This thread is a failure.

I agree.

[Pandagirl!]

It would take a lot for me to completely renounce my religion, although I am a lot less religious now than I used to be.

I might not be the perfect model Christian, but I do try to uphold the main teachings of the Bible. I try to be a good person and love everybody. I'm still going to wait for marriage. Sure, I might be going out and getting drunk every now and then, but I'm not letting that get in way of the big picture the Bible is teaching.

I've changed a lot since I was the "Blueblaze" of the forums a few years ago

[Rhino_haha]

"I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours." -Stephen Roberts

quoting myself only because I believe it is vey relevant to the conversation at hand.

[Liquid Blue]

Isn't that 1/2 of the point of religion anyway?

1/2 of it is because no one knows what happens when you die, so we need something to cling onto

1/2 of it is to create a moral code which binds people who might not otherwise live by a certain code. This is to ensure society can function smoothly.

It's not the point of religion to me, although I'm sure that's the case with other people. I honestly think you should help someone or do a good deed simply because it's the right thing to do, not because doing so will get you into heaven.

[Saturn V]

Prove to me the Big Bang exists.

As well, your avatar is probably one of the biggest proofs for Creation, since Noah's Ark really existed.

Funny how you kids are always turning the burden of proof back on us and AWAY from you.

He shouldn't have to prove the Big Bang to you. Why don't you look into Hubble's law, cosmic microwave background radiation, and anisotropies and make your own fucking decision (read: think for yourself) instead of regurgitating shit you were introduced to when you were younger.

Doesn't continually posting this shit count as spam? Can we get a ban?

[Squeezer]

you don't get pussy or weed in hell.

Both of which are sins against our lord who's here to protect us.....Well, the rich, white, Christian ones anyways.

[Epinephrine]

Yes far too often it seems like people only do good things in order to get chummy with god; in order to get into heaven. Is it really a good deed if a person did it to further their own ends? How selfless is an act when it's a precedent to a selfish desire to get into heaven anyway?

Isn't that 1/2 of the point of religion anyway?

1/2 of it is because no one knows what happens when you die, so we need something to cling onto

1/2 of it is to create a moral code which binds people who might not otherwise live by a certain code. This is to ensure society can function smoothly.

[Liquid Blue]

I wish others were like you, I kinda hate to think how many act "christian" in an effort to be rewarded with a spot in heaven

LB, whenever there's a death in the church it is often welcomed with a celebration. I can see their logic but it always makes me second question my faith or rather, the Christian faith as a whole.

Yes far too often it seems like people only do good things in order to get chummy with god; in order to get into heaven. Is it really a good deed if a person did it to further their own ends? How selfless is an act when it's a precedent to a selfish desire to get into heaven anyway?

[Dack Falu]

Edit: as for the big bang theory, it is true. Evolution isnt, but the big bang theory is entirely true. But the point is something was created out of nothing, a spark of gasses which mathamatically seems so unnatural and nearly impossible somehow expanded and created the entire galaxy. Scientists realize how unimaginably small the probability of what happened was, and all it does it point to a fact that something was willing it to happen, ie God.

I lol'd.

And, Improbability hardly is proof or a "fact" that god exists. Your religion has as much credibility as the flying spaghetti monster. Even less, actually:



You can clearly see the relation to global temperature and the number of pirates, proof that the flying spaghetti monster exists.

[thesearcher]

you said reality to much.

[Galleleo]

Facetious, Well sorry if I derail your thread, but there is no ifs in reality. I don't live in the fantasy, nor should you. Reality is, there is a Heaven and a Hell, and all those who don't make a sincere change to Christ in Salvation will go to Hell.

This is such bs.. you might believe it, but that doesn't make it reality. The church used to believe the earth was flat.. it never was reality. I am perfectly fine with you believing in that. But don't go around saying it is a reality, it's more like this is your fantasy and not our reality.

I know it is reality to you, but to most of us you are the one living in a fantasy and not reality. So to tell us you are not living in a fantasy is just complete bs.

[thesearcher]

what made the shit that made the big bang?