Athiests

[Scott R]

oh wow, if I had to say I guess I am christian, as I do go to church some and loosely use the bible and try to apply it to my daily life. Meaning I am not the wise but I do realize religion keeps the masses human, and shit lets face it in todays world we need help. DO I believe in heaven and all the good stuff? no. DO i pray everynight? no but there is applicable life lessons to be learned atleast for me. Conversely if you have to believe everything 100% to be christian then mark my initial statement.

As far as tattooing and christianity I think it give awesome imagery and although I dont have any religious tattooes I find them awesome. way awesome

[JAllen]

i've spent a great deal of time and energy studying various religions, cults, psychology, occult studies, sciences, etc. and find it all to be interesting and continue to seek a practice that works more effectively with my personal experience. i think everyone has to seek their path and i believe that none of them are wrong if it's working for that person. the most interesting stuff is the esoteric studies and how it relates to psychology. probably why i find jung to be more interesting than freud. so my current practice is a combination of nihilism and zen buddhism. it changes from time to time, the dominant influence of practice is usually rooted in buddhism. there was this book, twelve steps to spiritual enlightenment that was basically a practice that you would do for one month, for each month of the year. i started it and the meditation experience there was probably a bit more intense than i was prepared for at that point in time, mainly because i'd gotten to where "seeing" or sensing things before they happened was becoming the standard and it was starting to freak me out. haha. sometimes its easier and necessary to believe in "nothing". it's like a reset button.

[Hunter Morrow]

With all do respect, do you also believe in the following:

Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth-fairy and Unicorns? In their original versions not interpreted.... ????

No (Krampus is real though), No, No, Hell Yeah.

[Tight-Lines]

I think he was refering to the double post jokingly

I take fake banning wicked serious.

[Tight-Lines]

I take fake banning wicked serious.

I meant fake tanning.

[Hunter Morrow]

What about the gym and laundry?

It seems like the world is becoming less religious but do you think any religion could take the place of the current ones?

[Tight-Lines]

What about the gym and laundry?

It seems like the world is becoming less religious but do you think any religion could take the place of the current ones?

How drunk are you right now Hunter?

[Hunter Morrow]

Haven't had anything to drink yesterday or today. Thank God.

I'm thinking about reconciliation with the Lutheran church so I have to talk to a pastor and do some Bible study classes. I'm kinda nervous. I need to pick a side and stick with it.

Still, it seems like the Lutheran religion is going away. There are more Muslims in America than Lutherans, for instance.

[tak30204]

Episcopalian, when I make it to church.

I had more of a comment to make but I just suffered massive brain fart.

[TrixieFaux]

but I do realize religion keeps the masses human,

I would disagree w/that. Seems to have caused a lot of wars and other inhumane injustices throughout history. I have no problem with any individual seeking anything that helps them to become a better person or whatever it does for you. But, I remain human without religion. Compassionate, even.

[JAllen]

to quote ulysses everett mcgill "Well, I guess hard times flush the chumps. Everybody's lookin' for answers... Where the hell's he goin''?

[Scott R]

I would disagree w/that. Seems to have caused a lot of wars and other inhumane injustices throughout history. I have no problem with any individual seeking anything that helps them to become a better person or whatever it does for you. But, I remain human without religion. Compassionate, even.

i was waiting for this comment @TrixieFaux I realize many wars and atrocities are/have been carried on in the name of religion but what I meant to convey was that individually religion saves alot from a world without perceived hope /

[slayer9019]

i was waiting for this comment @TrixieFaux I realize many wars and atrocities are/have been carried on in the name of religion but what I meant to convey was that individually religion saves alot from a world without perceived hope /

Sadly religion has been the vessel in which violence has been justified for millennia. When you say you got god on your side, suddenly people join in, no matter how ridiculous.

Crusades

Witch trials

WWII

Terrorism

Other various skirmishes, battles, wars, killings, wrongful trials.

This being said, I have yet to find a religion that outright condones violence (save passages like stone person for X reason). Hell even 99% of the shunned left-hand religions don't condone violence for violences sake.

[Hunter Morrow]

World War II wasn't really about religion.

[slayer9019]

World War II wasn't really about religion.

Not 100% but it was relevant

[Hunter Morrow]

Well, for Japan I suppose.

I did not know this...

David Silverman, president of American Atheists, said, “Atheists are the fastest-growing religious subgroup in all fifty states. There are more atheists in this country than there are Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists combined and doubled.”

“So many Americans claim no religion at all (15%, up from 8% in 1990), that this category now outranks every other major U.S. religious group except Catholics and Baptists. In a nation that has long been mostly Christian, “the challenge to Christianity … does not come from other religions but from a rejection of all forms of organized religion,” the report concludes. “

Read more: http://blog.beliefnet.com/stevenwaldman/2009/03/fastest-growing-religion-no-re.html#ixzz1xjeVllOM

[slayer9019]

David Silverman, president of American Atheists, said, “Atheists are the fastest-growing religious subgroup in all fifty states. There are more atheists in this country than there are Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists combined and doubled.”

While I would be happy if this was true, I simply do not believe this. I can see maybe fastest growing "religion" but not the largest.

[Hunter Morrow]

I can see that. There are a bit less than 3 million believers in Judaism according to that article. Muslims are far less than that, same with Hindus and Buddhists. I can only imagine that being something like 7 or 8 million people.

Atheism, if it were at 5 percent would be a bit over 15 million if you go out of a population of 310 million people and consider everybody, not just adults.

[slayer9019]

I can see that. There are a bit less than 3 million believers in Judaism according to that article. Muslims are far less than that, same with Hindus and Buddhists. I can only imagine that being something like 7 or 8 million people.

Atheism, if it were at 5 percent would be a bit over 15 million if you go out of a population of 310 million people and consider everybody, not just adults.

I just took a little peak into the data used to formulate these numbers. I see they group atheists and agnostics together. If you do that then hell yea most people are not devoutly religious but the difference between agnostic and atheist is huge. An atheist believes for certain that there is no higher being/deity at all. Most people are whishy-washy religious. (Ex only go to church on christmas, etc etc)

http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf ; page 8

There is no such thing 2.3%

There is no way to know 4.3%

I’m not sure 5.7%

There is a higher power but no personal God 12.1%

There is definitely a personal God 69.5%

Refused 6.1%

http://www.thearda.com/mapsReports/reports/US_2000_Congregations.asp

Unclaimed Population

Explanation

The unclaimed population are those that are not adherents of any of the 188 groups included in the Church & Church Membership Data. This number should not be used as an indicator of irreligion or atheism, as it also includes adherents of many groups not included in the data.

[hgiles]

Could you elaborate?

Yes. It's not God that created man in his own image, its the other way around.

[Petri Aspvik]

About the masses and religion that cu_bu talked. In Finland there has been alot if people who leave the curch (you can do it online, I did too) and what ever people may think about the religious guidelines or lack of them, they are still quidelines. Meaning (and Im cutting corners)

A) People are part of the curch just because it is the thing to do

B) People leave the curch just because it us the thing to do

In A they had some sort of structure, even if they were going trough the motions. In B they most likely dont because seriously, how many people try to better themselfs mentally? In werstern culture, not too many.

100% atheists have the same morals, if they havent "become atheists" by just following the pack.

[Petri Aspvik]

I miss spelled church. Forgive me...

[irezumi]

I believe in magic.

[hogg]

I believe in magic.

You misspelled "magick."

Also, one of my favorite quotes on the subject comes from Penn Jillette, who admits that he can't remember who said it originally:

"Atheism is a religion in the same way that not collecting stamps is a hobby."

[Kev]

I believe in magic.

Godlike