atheism is stupid

Originally posted by @apathist
Kelly, our culture indoctrinated us into the local religion. Mormons come from utah; muslims come from the middle east, hindus come from india. etc

Does this not factor into your thinking?

If you are asking if I was raised a Christian so I'm a Christian, no. I was not raised as an
anything, so I suppose agnostic is as close to a label I could wear with respect to my
upbringing. I didn't become a Christian till I was 25, I didn't start talking to God until I got
into so much trouble I had to say one of those, "God if you get me out of this..." prayers.

The world is filled with people who fit your description I suppose, but that doesn't say
much when it comes to my faith. I believe in a God who is real, this removes humans from
the equations of local religions. Reason being you can be raised in a church and miss
God, even if you sing all the songs, say amen at the right place, do two services a week,
and so on. We don't become Christian by osmosis, its encounter with God through Christ.

Originally posted by @apathist
I don't hold any faith belief. I appreciate science very much, but I'm aware of the limits. Science is a useful [b]tool.

But you are asking about my paganism, I think. I believe minds exist, and this is something science has a hard time with. Anyway, it does not seem unreasonable to me to suppose that perhaps the biosphere of our planet is sufficie ...[text shortened]...
A more direct answer: introspection. I am a part of nature on earth, so I just need to listen.[/b]

What do you use to separate truth from lies? How do you know?

Originally posted by @apathist
It was just typical, far as I know. Here is one advertised as the christian wins. Let me know what you think, all right? From here it looks like an attrition battle so far. I've got it playing in the background.

https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?fr=yhs-iba-1&hsimp=yhs-1&hspart=iba&p=theist+wins+debate#id=51&vid=11395797751e18649f94c5a5bdaf49bd&action=click

Why on earth would I follow another of your crappy links?

Post something about your pagan nature goddess or Brussels sprout worship or dancing through the tress clothed in nothing more than the cool mist which has shrivelled your penis.

Something like that, something interesting.

Originally posted by @apathist
I don't hold any faith belief. I appreciate science very much, but I'm aware of the limits. Science is a useful [b]tool.

But you are asking about my paganism, I think. I believe minds exist, and this is something science has a hard time with. Anyway, it does not seem unreasonable to me to suppose that perhaps the biosphere of our planet is sufficie ...[text shortened]...
A more direct answer: introspection. I am a part of nature on earth, so I just need to listen.[/b]

Then in your POV Earth is alive and self directs evolution? No deity required?

Originally posted by @kellyjay
What do you use to separate truth from lies? How do you know?

I'm a pragmatist. Truth is an ideal we attempt to approach using evidence and reason. But small 't' truth is offered as current knowledge. Truth is knowledge. Knowledge is malleable.

'Evidence' and 'reason' are two huge subjects.And the subject of knowledge is an entire branch of modern philosophy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth#Coherence_theory

Originally posted by @sonhouse
Then in your POV Earth is alive and self directs evolution? No deity required?

Earth is alive, a super-organism. I hadn't thought that it self-directs evolution, but now that you mention it - why not? Humans do it routinely.

Originally posted by @kellyjay
What do you use to separate truth from lies? How do you know?

I assume you care about truth - you want to know what is real and what is not.

How is that served by faith belief and stories of myth?

Originally posted by @divegeester
Why on earth would I follow another of your crappy links?

Post something about your pagan nature goddess or Brussels sprout worship or dancing through the tress clothed in nothing more than the cool mist which has shrivelled your penis.

Something like that, something interesting.

Oh divegeester. I'm sure someone will send you dick pics again. Keep checking your inbox.

We are all born as atheists. Even Jesus Christ himself was born an atheist. It's just natural to be an atheist.

Originally posted by @fabianfnas
We are all born as atheists. Even Jesus Christ himself was born an atheist. It's just natural to be an atheist.

That is not a good approach. Atheism involves a decision about particular claims. Babies haven't made that decision. Babies are without theism, and are also without atheism.

Rocks don't believe in god, but that doesn't make them atheistic. We don't win by default.

Originally posted by @apathist
I assume you care about truth - you want to know what is real and what is not.

How is that served by faith belief and stories of myth?

We are all creatures of faith and beliefs. Walking across a yard you believe it is the safe
thing to do. I was walking in Alaska once with a friend we were hiking. I fell into a hole that
I didn't see, the tundra we were walking on had covered the hole in the ground and I
stepped on it. We all want truth, at least I think we do, some just may want to hear what it
is they want to hear.

I believe most of the Bible is literal, I think God created everything and holds it all together
by the power of His Word. I often wonder why would a God who is all powerful, all
knowing, eternal in time and space, want to do with humans. It has be like herding cats
for Him, and the way this is all setup too. Every one of us can attach ourselves to some
belief system and walk it out, be true or not.

I do think love is the central theme with God, in a world as ugly as ours where people care
more about themselves than the next guy, He finds a few He can call His own. I think the
vast majority of us are wandering in the dark, missing out on the Light of the world.

Originally posted by @apathist
I assume you care about truth - you want to know what is real and what is not.

How is that served by faith belief and stories of myth?

You seem to be about the earth, do you ever wonder you might be worshiping the creation,
and missing out on the creator?

Originally posted by @apathist
That is not a good approach. Atheism involves a decision about particular claims. Babies haven't made that decision. Babies are without theism, and are also without atheism.

Rocks don't believe in god, but that doesn't make them atheistic. We don't win by default.

Exactly, babies hasn't done the decision, therefore it is an atheist. When the baby and grown up, he can (1) make his own decision, or he can (2) just follow his parents decision. (1) means that the decision has been taken consciously and seriously. However I think (2) is much more common.

Or do you really think that every new born baby is christian from day one? Like 360 thousand babies are coming to this world fully christians? In India, China, Iran, Mongolia...? And then, magically turn muslim, hinduist, taoist, buddhist or whatever, and only some are keeping his new born religion, christianity? Does this sound logical to you?

I say every new born baby is atheist, meaning that it doesn't believe in a god, in any god at all, and only later make a decision according to (1) or (2) above.

Never heard a new born baby utter his first word as 'halleluja', never...

What do rocks has anything to do with anything here? Show me a christian rock, and perhaps I will change my opinion. But not until then...

Originally posted by @fabianfnas
We are all born as atheists. Even Jesus Christ himself was born an atheist. It's just natural to be an atheist.

Like you know!

Originally posted by @kellyjay
You seem to be about the earth, do you ever wonder you might be worshiping the creation, and missing out on the creator?

Not much. If reality requires a creator then so does the creator - if it is real! There is no getting around that logical fact. Your approach doesn't resolve the issue at all. Turtles all the way down, as they say.

But maybe our reality WAS created by a sentient entity. Evidence? None that cannot be refuted with 101 logic and reasoning skills. That's why they call it faith belief. Leprechauns and santa claus; zeus and shiva. God, yahwey, allah. Faith belief is an unreliable method for determining truth.