Atheism/Agnosticism on the rise

[Liquidnails]

"We cannot know with certainty if God or Christ exists. They could. Then again there could be a giant reptilian bird in charge of everything. Can we be certain there isnt? No, so it's pointless to talk about it."

[Sneaksuit]

"We cannot know with certainty if God or Christ exists. They could. Then again there could be a giant reptilian bird in charge of everything. Can we be certain there isnt? No, so it's pointless to talk about it."

It's not pointless to talk about it, it is what we should do more of. Questions like these are the most important because our conclusions as individuals hand us our beliefs, drive our ambitions, affect our behaviors, and give us purpose in one way or another. Our personal experiences of the world depend on them. It the reason they can't be contemplated in some religious cultures, without fear of execution. What are your thoughts about that?

[I Think]

there could be a giant reptilian bird in charge of everything

Maybe god is a giant repti..............

IMO it is rather pointless to go on and on about the existence of a mythical creature who is aware of everything everyone does, and thinks 24/7 (wow what a data storage problem).

Is there anyone here who has changed from athiest, or from Christian to the opposite?
I thought not, so what is the point of rattling our keyboards on the topic?

[cliffy1]

Is there anyone here who has changed from athiest, or from Christian to the opposite?
I thought not, so what is the point of rattling our keyboards on the topic?

Mental masturbation is good exercise. I used to have discussions with a lot of religious folk. It helped me organize my random thoughts and insights and form my opinions about life. Learning is a continuous process until we stop breathing.

[Poindexter]

Faith is faith, whether you worship a rock or a jewish fairy tale. If it works for you, go for it, just as long as you know there is no difference between the two.

I was raised Catholic and now can honestly say I have no idea. The only thing I know for sure is I didn't exist at one time and now I do. If I could recall what it was like before I existed I could shed some light on the subject but none of us do. But I do take some solice in knowing that we've all been there before, at least once. So hopefully I'll make it back again, or not.

[OREZ]

IMO it is rather pointless to go on and on about the existence of a mythical creature who is aware of everything everyone does, and thinks 24/7 (wow what a data storage problem).

Is there anyone here who has changed from athiest, or from Christian to the opposite?
I thought not, so what is the point of rattling our keyboards on the topic?

LOL You thought not? Wow. I guess you haven't had the opportunity to talk to many people about this subject, eh? (I mean, away from the safe, alter-reality of your computer) I've certainly met people who've ditched one belief for the other, in either direction.

[JLives]

I was religious until early adulthood. My Dad's family is German Mennonite so it was always a part of our life. I went from Christianity to Buddhism to Wicca/Paganism and studied several others and then came to the realization I didn't believe in anything supernatural. I discovered I had been practicing out of tradition and not faith or belief.

[kgcayenne]

Is there anyone here who has changed from athiest, or from Christian to the opposite?...

Yes.

I was raised agnostic, and grew up asking some very poignant questions of the religious. In addition to that, I have very vivid memories as a very small child of thinking that there was something major ‘out there’ a really strong force in the world that I couldn’t understand, yet felt it so very much. In my teen years, upon exposure to political sciences and anthropology courses being taken by family in university, I felt more and more like an un-reconciled atheist. I learned later about the many prophecies and other contents of the Bible that sent shivers up my spine and I wound up feeling like I had a responsibility to continue growing in that knowledge and sharing it. All thoughts of atheism faded away.

After twenty years of that, I now understand so much more how people fail each other in a spiritual sense. The Bible says “man will dominate man to his injury”, and that mankind can not be trusted to keep an even keel let alone be in control of the spiritual well-being of OTHERS. Control: This is what religions are after today; it’s toxic and the love of God and his purposes are being overlooked.

[Sneaksuit]

When I was in Israel this past Summer I had intense conversations with people of various faiths - an Orthodox Jew who lives in the Old City of Jerusalem, a minister from South Africa who had admirable communication skills, chair of the Theology dept. of Heidelberg University, and many others in Theology and Archaeology. For some people, deep contemplation of reality can be ecstatic.

[OREZ]

Mental masturbation is good exercise. I used to have discussions with a lot of religious folk. It helped me organize my random thoughts and insights and form my opinions about life. Learning is a continuous process until we stop breathing.

I believe that learning is only a continuous process if one can first accept the fact that he or she doesn't already know everythying. You wouldn't think that would be such a rare state of mind and yet...

[cliffy1]

I believe that learning is only a continuous process if one can first accept the fact that he or she doesn't already know everythying. You wouldn't thing that would be such a rare state of mind and yet...

You got that right. Beware of those who think the know it all already. A closed mind is a very dangerous thing.

[fluffy]

I can't get comfortable with the idea of some cosmic consciousness with his/her thumb on the buttons, it just doesn't feel right. But for me, a more Obiwan-Kenobi-ish concept of a deeper level of inter-connectedness is a convenient focal point for philosophical beliefs and helps me keep my life "on the path" so to speak.