Why I am atheist....

[MrNiceGuy]

You've explained cellular composition over time from particles. But that doesn't explain 'who' we are and where we go.

 

[Gordy327]

Everyone believes something.

Speak for yourself.

 

[watsup]

Quit being so sensitive about it if you truly think there is no hell!

The way you carry on - you're like being stung by a giant wasp every time someone mentions hell.




It's almost kinda fun mentioning it............................just so, to see you react!

This is just more of your typical FALSE rant-type accusations. Please quit embarrassing yourself with such juvenile posts.

 

[Dragonfly]

Everyone believes something. You might say you only believe in yourself; however, that is a belief and a belief system regarding anything is your religion...

In general, this might be the most honest and true thing you’ve posted in a long time.

I would caution you however to not equate the word “religion” with other words like philosophy, ideology, spirituality, and such.

Religion has a rather specific definition. People can have no religion.
Believing that there is intelligent life on other planets in our Universe is not a “religion”.

But bravo for a statement that has some merit to it. The first sentence is in fact true.

 

[MrNiceGuy]

You've explained cellular composition over time from particles. But that doesn't explain 'who' we are and where we go.

Nor did I suggest an answer to "who" we are or where we go. Neither does belief in a deity explain who we are and where we go. Was it a Deist deity? One that was a prime mover that started it all, and then took no interest in us? If so, then the deity's existence explains nothing about who we are or where we go, and we are left right where we are now. And, even if you believe in theistic deity or set of deities, the universe of possible reasons or purposes for the existence of the universe is still infinite -- was it built for us or are we a byproduct? The mere existence of a deity doesn't answer that. To answer that, you have to imbue the deity with a certain intent, all of which is really just what we choose to believe. Was the world create for the purpose of entertaining a sadistic deity? So much pain and heartache and death and violence occur every day on earth that maybe that's who we are -- the dominant predator in a world of predator and prey? Or, maybe it was created to provide humans with a way to achieve salvation and union with god, and to do good, while allowing the free will to do evil, somehow to be for the betterment of humanity and for God's hidden purposes? We don't know, do we?

 

[Dragonfly]

Most of the atheists on this website come here to downplay what the Bible has to offer.

There’s a Theology section you can use to avoid such discussion.

I can’t figure out why you never use it.

This is a debate site.
Do you understand the definition of “debate”?

 

[LittleNipper]

Here's a fact you failed to mention @LittleNipper. You have proven yourself to be a horrible ambassador for the teachings of Christ here at DP, even going so far as to attack other DP members' family repeatedly, which is off limits, and considered to be 'bottom feeder posting'. And, of course, non-believers are going to "downplay what the Bible has to offer" because they don't believe what the Bible "has to offer" is factual or proven. And your claim about "promoting discussion" is B.S. Time and time again, when actual "discussion" is attempted with you, rather than address what is actually being "discussed", you repeatedly ignore that, and go off tangents which have nothing to do with the "discussion", which you've been called out for doing by numerous DP posters. If you want respect and credibility, you have to earn that respect and credibility. Dodging/ignoring fair questions is not the path to gaining respect and credibility. Your game is 'bad faith debating', as is reflected in your reactionary score. Think about it.

How am I attacking them? Are you not now actually attacking me? What does "B.S." really mean? Do you accept anything that I have said to you? And yet I'm I expected to accept everything you say? Think of what you've said regarding Creationism and Intelligent Design in the past. Has it been polite or rather nasty? Have you honestly and scientifically explained to me exactly how life originated without GOD? Yet, you ridicule finding GOD, as plausible as, I don't know... Can you say that you presently have no clue what the Bible says regardless as to whether you believe it or not?

"Honesty" can appear as "hate" to those that do not wish to hear anything contrary to what they are willing to accept, but that doesn't make it so. Think about it.

 

[MrNiceGuy]

Quit being so sensitive about it if you truly think there is no hell!

If there truly is a hell, we still can't be sure that anyone goes there, of if some people go there, we don't know why they go there. We only have various religions' and denominations' views on why that is. In some denominations, eventually everyone goes to heaven. In some, hardly anyone goes to heaven. Some say only 144,000 will be saved. Some say you have to believe in "God" to go to heaven. Others say you have to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Others say you have to do one or the other AND do good works. Others say it doesn't matter what you believe or do, it's totally up to "God's Grace" as to whether you get into heaven.

 

[Logician Man]

How am I attacking them? Are you not now actually attacking me? What does "B.S." really mean? Do you accept anything that I have said to you? And yet I'm I expected to accept everything you say? Think of what you've said regarding Creationism and Intelligent Design in the past. Has it been polite or rather nasty? Have you honestly and scientifically explained to me exactly how life originated without GOD? Yet, you ridicule finding GOD, as plausible as, I don't know... Can you say that you presently have no clue what the Bible says regardless as to whether you believe it or not?

"Honesty" can appear as "hate" to those that do not wish to hear anything contrary to what they are willing to accept, but that doesn't make it so. Think about it.

Trying to have a 'Good faith' debate with you is an effort in futility, as has been repeatedly pointed out by numerous posters. Think long and hard about this 'fact' going forward if you have any desire whatsoever to be taken seriously here at DP. ( friendly advice )

 

[Dragonfly]

If there truly is a hell, we still can't be sure that anyone goes there, of if some people go there, we don't know why they go there. We only have various religions' and denominations' views on why that is. In some denominations, eventually everyone goes to heaven. In some, hardly anyone goes to heaven. Some say only 144,000 will be saved. Some say you have to believe in "God" to go to heaven. Others say you have to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Others say you have to do one or the other AND do good works. Others say it doesn't matter what you believe or do, it's totally up to "God's Grace" as to whether you get into heaven.

If there actually is a “Biblical Hell”, it’s surely filled with sanctimonious and obnoxious Christians.

 

[devildavid]

Everyone believes something. You might say you only believe in yourself; however, that is a belief and a belief system regarding anything is your religion...

No, all beliefs are not religions.

 

[LittleNipper]

There’s a Theology section you can use to avoid such discussion.

I can’t figure out why you never use it.

This is a debate site.
Do you understand the definition of “debate”?

Debate isn't "hate". It is a contrasting of opinion. I mean you claim to be "scientific," and yet here you are on a Beliefs and Skepticism forum. In my own case, I have a belief and I'm skeptical of what is being presented as exclusive to scientific thinking to the exclusion of my beliefs...

 

[LittleNipper]

If there actually is a “Biblical Hell”, it’s surely filled with sanctimonious and obnoxious Christians.

You don't see this as "hateful" applying your very own judgement. What makes any Christian sanctimonious and obnoxious, and you not so much?

 

[Logician Man]

What makes any Christian sanctimonious and obnoxious, and you not so much?

Attacking/discussing other DP posters' family members. ( repeatedly )

 

[LittleNipper]

No, all beliefs are not religions.

If you say, "I believe...", "I think...", I feel that...", and "In my opinion..." you are asserting what you do not know as an absolute that you have placed your faith in, and yet desire others to agree with.

 

[LittleNipper]

Attacking/discussing other DP posters' family members. ( repeatedly )

It seems you do that (attacking) and not me. Discussing isn't something I need to be ashamed of on a debate forum. Simply because YOU may not appreciate my views, doesn't mean that I should remain quiet while YOU say whatever you wish (repeatedly).

 

[devildavid]

If you say, "I believe...", "I think...", I feel that...", and "In my opinion..." you are asserting what you do not know as an absolute that you have placed your faith in, and yet desire others to agree with.

All beliefs are not religions.

 

[devildavid]

It seems you do that (attacking) and not me. Discussing isn't something I need to be ashamed of on a debate forum. Simply because YOU may not appreciate my views, doesn't mean that I should remain quiet while YOU say whatever you wish (repeatedly).

Preaching to us is not discussing.

 

[Logician Man]

It seems you do that (attacking) and not me.

Feel free to pull up any of my 34,741 posts in which I have ever 'attacked" another DP member's family/family member. Good luck with that. I'll wait.

 

[MrNiceGuy]

If you say, "I believe...", "I think...", I feel that...", and "In my opinion..." you are asserting what you do not know as an absolute that you have placed your faith in, and yet desire others to agree with.

That depends - if you believe, think or opine something based on evidence and reason, then it's not a faith based belief, thought or opinion.

Almost nothing is "known as an absolute." I think it's 5 miles to the local Burger King, but really it may be 5 miles and 200 feet, 8.359 inches, and of course, there is give or take in that depending on how sensitive my measuring device is - if I use my kid's school ruler, it will have more variability than a laser based device, for example. And, then it depends where I'm measuring from. My front door or the center of mass of my house, or the Burker King's front door or its center of mass? And then there is the curvature of space time, which we cannot feasibly measure, making everything sort of bent in some way compared to everything else, so what really is a measurement of distance, etc.?

Is the Big Bang Theory known as an absolute? No. Do I know absolutely there are no deities? No. Does that mean I am religious? No.

 

[Dragonfly]

You don't see this as "hateful" applying your very own judgement. What makes any Christian sanctimonious and obnoxious, and you not so much?

I don’t threaten folks with eternal damnation, and eternal torture if they don’t believe what I believe.

Can you say the same thing?

 

[Dragonfly]

Debate isn't "hate". It is a contrasting of opinion. I mean you claim to be "scientific," and yet here you are on a Beliefs and Skepticism forum. In my own case, I have a belief and I'm skeptical of what is being presented as exclusive to scientific thinking to the exclusion of my beliefs...

If you see “hate” perhaps that’s more a reflection on you, than on those who respond to you.

Take some time to reflect on that.

 

[MrNiceGuy]

If there actually is a “Biblical Hell”, it’s surely filled with sanctimonious and obnoxious Christians.

If there actually is a "biblical Hell" we still do not know what it is because the descriptions of hell in the Bible vary. Is hell the "Lake of Fire" referred to in the Book of Revelation to John? Is hell the Gehenna of the Old Testament, which was more like just a world of the dead where everyone went. Some interpretations of Peter's writings in the New Testament are that Jesus actually descended into hell and preached to the souls there such that those who existed before Jesus could accept him and repent. Was that a place of torture and torment, like Dante envisioned? the Bible doesn't say so. Some interpretations of Biblical verses are that hell is "absence from God," not a torture chamber or a fire pit.

There is no consistent definition in the Bible that let's us know what Hell looks like. What people tend to call the Biblical Hell is a version of an interpretation.

 

[Daisy]

HELL
A word used in the King James Version (as well as in the Catholic Douay Version and most older translations) to translate the Hebrew sheʼohlʹ and the Greek haiʹdes. In the King James Version the word “hell” is rendered from sheʼohlʹ 31 times and from haiʹdes 10 times. This version is not consistent, however, since sheʼohlʹ is also translated 31 times “grave” and 3 times “pit.” In the Douay Version sheʼohlʹ is rendered “hell” 64 times, “pit” once, and “death” once.

“Hellfire” has been a basic teaching in Christendom for many centuries. It is understandable why The Encyclopedia Americana (1956, Vol. XIV, p. 81) said: “Much confusion and misunderstanding has been caused through the early translators of the Bible persistently rendering the Hebrew Sheol and the Greek Hades and Gehenna by the word hell. The simple transliteration of these words by the translators of the revised editions of the Bible has not sufficed to appreciably clear up this confusion and misconception.” Nevertheless, such transliteration and consistent rendering does enable the Bible student to make an accurate comparison of the texts in which these original words appear and, with open mind, thereby to arrive at a correct understanding of their true significance.
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200001978

 

[MrNiceGuy]

HELL
A word used in the King James Version (as well as in the Catholic Douay Version and most older translations) to translate the Hebrew sheʼohlʹ and the Greek haiʹdes. In the King James Version the word “hell” is rendered from sheʼohlʹ 31 times and from haiʹdes 10 times. This version is not consistent, however, since sheʼohlʹ is also translated 31 times “grave” and 3 times “pit.” In the Douay Version sheʼohlʹ is rendered “hell” 64 times, “pit” once, and “death” once.

“Hellfire” has been a basic teaching in Christendom for many centuries. It is understandable why The Encyclopedia Americana (1956, Vol. XIV, p. 81) said: “Much confusion and misunderstanding has been caused through the early translators of the Bible persistently rendering the Hebrew Sheol and the Greek Hades and Gehenna by the word hell. The simple transliteration of these words by the translators of the revised editions of the Bible has not sufficed to appreciably clear up this confusion and misconception.” Nevertheless, such transliteration and consistent rendering does enable the Bible student to make an accurate comparison of the texts in which these original words appear and, with open mind, thereby to arrive at a correct understanding of their true significance.
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200001978

Exactly. Is it death? Is it a pit? What pit? What's the pit like? So, what is the correct understanding?