Do you really care that I am going to hell?

[Cmass]

I don't think you really believe I will fry in Hell for being an Atheist. I don't think you really truly believe any of your non-believing family will either. I think deep down, you know it just isn't true.

If you do believe they will all fry and are not doing absolutely everything in your power to stop it, I would suggest that you are a very cold, dispassionate person. If you really believed your dearly beloved mother was going to burn in hell right next to Cmass and Charles Manson then you would stop at nothing to convince her to accept Jesus. You would not just gently encourage, you would be emotionally and perhaps even physically engaged on a daily and hourly basis. You most certainly would not be reading this silly OP right now. Not if you REALLY cared.

Think about it. If you saw your mother being beaten by someone on the street, would you stop to help save her? Would you put your own life at risk to keep her from drowning? Is there anything you would not do to help her? OK, what about eternal torture in hell? Doesn't this concern you? What about all the other people in your life who are going to hell? Doesn't this leave you feeling devastated? If I believed there was a hell and that so many people would be going - especially any of my friends or family - I would be in constant agony myself and would devote my life to stopping it. Or, I would be numb.

Does your knowledge that so many people will be in eternal torture bother you very much on a daily basis?

This OP came about after reading commentary by some of our more conservative Christian friends in here. Some seem to have no real problem with all us atheists burning in hell forever. Granted, there are probably some personal anger issues involved but still, I have always been uneasy with how casual many Christians are when it comes to discussing eternal damnation. Some get more upset over running over a kitty than the eternal torture of their best friend.

Nonetheless, I give most the benefit of the doubt: I don't think they are really that cold. I just don't think they really believe as much in the hell concept as they report.

[Biker]

A 'believer's' Religion is less a product of intelligent thought and choice than of circumstance. If 'Pakistani Pete' were born in Indiana to Christian parents and 'Baptist Bob' in Pakistan to Islamics, they would most likely be reversed and become just as dedicated to Islam or Christianity as the other. So the dogma is just that....ridiculous that people are killing each other over such silly concepts as Religion.

Recently, I read where Christian leaders are calling for more religion and blaming the decline of morals in society around the world on too little religion. Religion has been at the forefront of moral and ethical standards for centuries and our morals and ethics do not improve....so I say we need zero Religion...Religion is evil....just another form of witchcraft for the mindless.

Hello flail,
Welcome to DCR. You seem to be flailing in speculation in your post!
You positively assert various things as true, and then use this language to make your point with the unsupported assertions:

they would most likely be bla, bla, bla!

Would you mind backing this speculation with a little evidence?

So the dogma is just that....ridiculous that people are killing each other over silly concepts as religion.

Please clarify this statement for me? What does this statement have to do with (a) The Christian Scriptures (b) The ekklesia ?
These "people" who are they?

Christian leaders

Who?

Religion has been at the forefront of moral and ethical standards for centuries and our morals and ethics do not improve.... so I say bla, bla, bla!

I guess I would simply ask as the result of this incredible statement, define "OUR"?
Just what we need, another unbeliever, mad at God and those "nasty" Christians!


Biker

[Biker]

See above. Also, the greatest mass murderers in the 20th century were atheists. Doesn't speak well for the anti-religion crowd!

I do not know if you do this on purpose or ignorance, either way: What atheist do have nothing to do with Atheism.

Atheism do not have a Doctrine that tells the mwhat to do. IF a Christian do something bad, they have a DOCTRINE that tells them so, that is the difference.

Saying that an Atheist did this and that, hence atheism is bad, is like saying A guy eating chocolate did someting bad therefore Chocolate is bad. Christianity on the other hand has a SET DEFINED OF RULES, and Christianity is a violent aggresive hateful religion, so, therefore you cna depict the bad in it.


How many times do you need to be educated. Cheezes.

I've ranted about that more than once. They are not going to get the picture. (although i must disagree with one of your sentences.

IF a Christian do something bad, they have a DOCTRINE that tells them so

They don't neccesarily have such a doctrine. it depends on what they are doing that is bad.

You do have a point, of course. attacking atheism based on one atheists actions is about as realistic as attacking christianity for the atheists actions. After all, the christians are humans too.

There is no such thing as a radical atheististic terrorist. It is impossible to be a radical atheist because atheism doesn't exist, in the same sense that cold doesnt exist. Cold is the lack of movement of particles in a given area. It isn't actually something; it is just a label for a lack of something.

I disagree....... atheism exists as an idea in the NON BELIEF of God in any sense.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source
a·the·ism /ˈeɪθiˌɪzəm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[ey-thee-iz-uhm] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun 1. the doctrine or belief that there is no God.
2. disbelief in the existence of a supreme being or beings.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Origin: 1580–90; < Gk áthe(os) godless + -ism]


NON belief exists as strongly as BELIEF to me. Each is extremely significant to the one involved. Now, if one were radical in either, it would be socially offensive and bad for the cause. But I would say for sure that "atheism" is as much a concept as any "theism". Indifference may be a different subject, however.

Which leads us to the question: (atheists) How do they know that they don't know that they know?

Biker

[Biker]

There is no such thing as a radical atheististic terrorist. It is impossible to be a radical atheist because atheism doesn't exist, in the same sense that cold doesnt exist. Cold is the lack of movement of particles in a given area. It isn't actually something; it is just a label for a lack of something.

You have no argument from me: atheism = lack of something (or plenty of nothing). I think some theists have been trying to tell you all that for awhile now.

...


Please don't deliberately misinterpret me when I say something. I have enough trouble communicating effectively as it is.



What I was trying to say was that using 'atheist' as a group label to determine/place blame is not valid. For an atheist, morals are based upon their philosophy rather than their religion. Atheism is not the end-all classification just as theism is not. Linking me to stalin's actions because we are both atheists is about as valid as linking you to the actions of muslim extremists because you are both theists. I do not share philosophies with Stalin. For an atheist, philosophy takes the place of religion.(by that I mean that what you get from your religion, I get from my philosophy(morals, value, etc)) Therefore, linking two atheists of different philosiphies is about as sensible as linking two theists of different religions.

I don't use Osama Bin-Laden's actions againt christianity. don't try to use stalin's actions against me.

What I was trying to say was that using 'atheist' as a group label to determine/place blame is not valid.

I assume then that if your opinion applies to 'atheist' it should apply to 'Christian' as well?

For an atheist, philosophy takes the place of religion

Isn't atheism ultimately a faith statement?
Christianity is not a religion, but a living individual named Jesus!

Biker

[SimonH]

Which leads us to the question: (atheists) How do they know that they don't know that they know?

Biker

???

Have you turned into Donald Rumsfeld?

[SimonH]

Isn't atheism ultimately a faith statement?
Christianity is not a religion, but a living individual named Jesus!

Biker

The point is there is no group to which all atheists belong, in the same way there is no group to which all people who don't believe in Unicorns belong.

[Biker]

See above. Also, the greatest mass murderers in the 20th century were atheists. Doesn't speak well for the anti-religion crowd!

I do not know if you do this on purpose or ignorance, either way: What atheist do have nothing to do with Atheism.

Atheism do not have a Doctrine that tells the mwhat to do. IF a Christian do something bad, they have a DOCTRINE that tells them so, that is the difference.

Saying that an Atheist did this and that, hence atheism is bad, is like saying A guy eating chocolate did someting bad therefore Chocolate is bad. Christianity on the other hand has a SET DEFINED OF RULES, and Christianity is a violent aggresive hateful religion, so, therefore you cna depict the bad in it.


How many times do you need to be educated. Cheezes.

I've ranted about that more than once. They are not going to get the picture. (although i must disagree with one of your sentences.

IF a Christian do something bad, they have a DOCTRINE that tells them so

They don't neccesarily have such a doctrine. it depends on what they are doing that is bad.

You do have a point, of course. attacking atheism based on one atheists actions is about as realistic as attacking christianity for the atheists actions. After all, the christians are humans too.

There is no such thing as a radical atheististic terrorist. It is impossible to be a radical atheist because atheism doesn't exist, in the same sense that cold doesnt exist. Cold is the lack of movement of particles in a given area. It isn't actually something; it is just a label for a lack of something.

atheism doesn't exist

I think you'll get an argument from a couple guys on this forum, but, what is atheism then, a myth?

Biker

[Biker]

There is no such thing as a radical atheististic terrorist. It is impossible to be a radical atheist because atheism doesn't exist, in the same sense that cold doesnt exist. Cold is the lack of movement of particles in a given area. It isn't actually something; it is just a label for a lack of something.

You have no argument from me: atheism = lack of something (or plenty of nothing). I think some theists have been trying to tell you all that for awhile now.

Biker

[Biker]

Isn't atheism ultimately a faith statement?
Christianity is not a religion, but a living individual named Jesus!

Biker

The point is there is no group to which all atheists belong, in the same way there is no group to which all people who don't believe in Unicorns belong.

So it (atheism) really is a non thing? A nothing, according to you, in the same way that there are no unicorns, no atheism?

Biker

[twobitsmedia]

Isn't atheism ultimately a faith statement?
Christianity is not a religion, but a living individual named Jesus!

Biker

The point is there is no group to which all atheists belong, in the same way there is no group to which all people who don't believe in Unicorns belong.

People who don't believe in unicorns belong to the group of people who do not believe in unicorns.

[SimonH]

Isn't atheism ultimately a faith statement?
Christianity is not a religion, but a living individual named Jesus!

Biker

The point is there is no group to which all atheists belong, in the same way there is no group to which all people who don't believe in Unicorns belong.

So it (atheism) really is a non thing? A nothing, according to you, in the same way that there are no unicorns, no atheism?

Biker

In fact, ithe word "atheism" has a rather hazy, I'd say confused, definition.

"Atheism, as a philosophical view, is the position that either affirms the nonexistence of gods or rejects theism. When defined more broadly, atheism is the absence of belief in deities, alternatively called nontheism. Although atheists are commonly assumed to be irreligious, some religions, such as Buddhism, have been characterized as atheistic because of their lack of belief in a personal god.

Many self-described atheists are skeptical of all supernatural beings and cite a lack of empirical evidence for the existence of deities. Others argue for atheism on philosophical, social or historical grounds. Although many self-described atheists tend toward secular philosophies such as humanism and naturalism, there is no one ideology or set of behaviors to which all atheists adhere.

The term atheism originated as a pejorative epithet applied to any person or belief in conflict with established religion. With the spread of freethought, scientific skepticism, and criticism of religion, the term began to gather a more specific meaning and was sometimes used as a self-description by atheists."