To think that God doesn't exist and is a manmade concept

[Perimama]

As it is taboo to talk religion politics with people socially, I often wonder whether many people think like me. As a species we have dismissed all the other "Gods" ie Greek gods etc. What makes the Christian God any different? I wasn't born into a religious household although I was baptized Christian. The whole concept seems so unbelievable to me.

I agree with the Thomas Aquinas quote posted by Oldsu.

Different ideas and concepts of deities are man made, obviously. That doesn’t mean that God isn’t ‘real’, just that humans have created stories and rituals, recorded their experiences of the ‘divine’, and made rules or guidelines for living, for thousands of years (as well as sometimes privileging certain people in misguided ways), in different times and cultural settings.

I actually tend to assume that most people I know are atheist or agnostic (like me) and am somewhat caught off guard when I find that people I know are religious. I'm at a wellness/mental health retreat thing at the moment and in a group session we got onto the subject of religion somehow - it blew my mind that nearly everyone believed in some form of higher being (whether they were Christian, Hindu, Muslim, Pagan etc). Many of the people here have had massively disordered lives with addiction, criminal and I guess 'risky' sexual behaviours yet nearly all still had faith and belief that their God would ultimately look out for them and forgive their 'sins'. I felt kind of jealous of that conviction tbh!

Yep! Completely agree.

Personally I think some people have to think there's something higher thaa as t created us and looks after
Us. I also believe that other people use a god figure to control others by suggesting god wouldn't approve, and they can themselves control others by using a deity as the reasoning. Sometimes I also think it helps people, a bit like a herd of sheep needing a leader

'Faith' to me is just another angle of controlling people. So I guess that's the counter argument to Thomas's words

m.youtube.com/watch?v=aDdOnl0bHO4

@MassageForLife ... the point is though that scientific hypotheses are investigated, tested and concluded... the concept of God has never had evidence. If I said that 100 miles under ground there are 12 giant tortoises that created the earth it can't be proven ... we'll have faith .... oh ok then .... it can neither be proven or disproven .. off to write a book about that now and crown a few friends saints to spread my new religion💡

That which can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence

I think a lot of people who call themselves believers wish it were true and are holding onto their ‘belief’ because they are in fear of it not being true. The idea that we are alone and that there is no afterlife is simply too terrifying for some people to come to terms with. The few times I have attended church I have always noticed that the vast majority of people there were old and I think that’s why.

Logically it doesn't make much sense.

Belief has nosedived with the onset of the internet as people become more worldly/knowledgeable, thus question things alot more than previous generations..ie. critical thinking. The more ignorant a people, the less inclined they question things and so are much more susceptible/gullible to believing anything. The US would have by far the highest proportion of such people of any western nation (a large chunk of whom live in that space in the middle between the coasts, the same group who are manipulated by an atheist in Trump), hence the volume of young earth creationists there (over 40% who think we lived alongside dinosaurs). We have our own backward fundamentalists in the north of Ireland who impact decisions: Edwin Poots (and the rest of the DUP loons) a prime example.

Edwin Poots, Northern Ireland's health minister, is almost comically unsuited for his position. He's a "young earth creationist" who believes the Earth began just 4,000 years ago. In a 2007 radio debate with Times columnist Matthew Parris, he rejected the big bang theory, saying: "You're telling me that cosmic balls of dust gathered and there was an explosion. We've had lots of explosions in Northern Ireland and I've never seen anything come out of that that was good." Needless to say, he also doesn't believe in evolution. Though he is willing to admit that dinosaurs may have existed before they were all drowned in the flood. Not exactly a promising start for someone in a ministerial position which, perhaps more than most, should depend on rationally assessing evidence.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/11/northern-ireland-edwin-poots-creationist-anti-gay

I like to think there is a God in that there is something after this, but dont let it affect anything I do now. I think those who do let it affect decisions is where the problem lies, George W Bush before invading Iraq, or the Jews believing that they are God's chosen people and that God gave them Israel...Netanyahu and the other right wing nutters in his cabinet clearly believe it.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2005/oct/07/iraq.usa

Religion is very convenient for the rich because it is what stops the poor from killing them.

You know, the old "we will have our reward in heaven if we're good in this life" thing.

Yes of course religion is a man made concept. Some people need to believe in something external to guide them and give them a purpose. Others don’t need that.

Very sadly, religion is used the world over to start wars. It’s also used to subjugate women.

Religious people are no more moralistic than the average person, yet some will take the high moral ground. I personally find this irritating, especially if someone tries to push religion at me.

Generally it’s my belief that religion causes more harm than good.

To an extent I agree. But also, if I told you there are green ogres living at the north pole yet couldn't provide any evidence whatsoever other than old folk tails, do you think it would be worth believing in despite not being able to disprove it either?

🤣 I never knew, either.
I thought EVERYONE believed in God.

It's a tricky one for sure as technically you can't disprove it. I think we should write a caveat like the NHS does for alternative medicine. Something like "there is no evidence to support that God exists but if you're feeling desperate give it a go".

I find I have to suppress my atheist views a lot in real life as we have family who are religious but I honestly think that the world would be a better place without religion.

Did you know, the original bible contained flying dragons until someone edited it out? It's been proven to be factually inaccurate all over the place with not one damn shred of evidence to support any of the stories.

I've also come to the conclusion that if that god does exist he is, quite frankly, an utter twat and I want nothing to do with his religion. It does a lot of damage and often sets people up for putting up with domestic violence.

• Do what I say and never question me
• You're nothing without me
• If you don't do what I say I'll punish you with terrifying punishments
• I'm only doing this because I love you
• It's your fault I'm punishing you. You made me do this.

If you're teaching children that is ok and normal what do you think will happen if they get mistreated when older?

We're teaching people to praise and worship someone who slaughtered thousands because they weren't doing things the way he wanted.

Do I want to be a part of that? Hell no. The embedded abuse in the church system also is something I want my children nowhere near.

I'm sorry if my post is worded heavily but I feel really strongly about this topic. It's a sensitive topic over here as MIL is a church minister and trying to get my three year old into Christianity and I'm not best pleased.

I don't know what goes on inside the heads of "believers". They must at least strongly suspect it's utter bullshit designed to keep people down, but they are reticent about admitting this openly, or perhaps even to themselves. It might be that atheism is still a semi-taboo subject, or more likely that a kind of residual superstitiousness makes them afraid to confront the likely non-existence of the deity. On some subconscious level they fear God's wrath the way I'm afraid of ghosts, in spite of not actually believing in ghosts.

I used to be more of an atheist but I'm more agnostic now really - can't definitely prove either way, on the balance of probability then no

I hate most mainstream religion though, it's judgemental at best and toxic to women, lgbtq at worst

Absolutely this
I believe in God and tbh I don’t bother explaining my beliefs to anyone.

After having religion dinned into me throughout my childhood and being a churchgoer as a young adult, I see religion as a means of control, suppression and oppression in many cultures.
i don’t believe in god, I don’t think there’s an afterlife and I’m perfectly comfortable with that.
Some of the biggest hypocrites I have ever met were religious and quite frankly they confirmed my beliefs.

You don't owe anyone an explanation, of course - but I think it would be interesting on a psychological level. The only people who tend to talk about their "beliefs" are clergy/RE teacher/ DUP types who tend to be thick and full of humbug, or predatory cults like the Jehovah's Witnesses who berate the vulnerable into compliance. It would be good to hear an intelligent person with no agenda simply talk frankly about their religious belief.

Your first sentence was your most accurate and insightful.

Your post is very typical of believers. "I know better than you, and I'm not going to explain why".

@SABM10 it's funny I'm exactly the same. I'm always taken aback when someone tells me they're religious. I always think but how in this day and age does anyone believe. I always remember talking to someone about their religion. I knew more about it than them. We did laugh about it. But I find it perplexing to say you're part of something but not know what you're involved with.

(Of course, the indisputable fact that organised religion is bullshit designed to keep people down is not in itself evidence for the non-existence of the deity. But it does tend to cast doubt on the motives of those who assert the existence of God based on the claims of organised religion.)

Look at the wars caused by religion
I'm 100% a non believer
My very catholic in-laws hate that!

Yes I honestly believe religion was invented to control the masses. I believe we are only here for our lifetimes and I'm totally at peace with that, it means we make it count now rather than relying on an 'afterlife'.

I also think it's better to try to lead your life as a good person because you want to be a good person, not because a god commands it or uses it as a test to get into 'heaven'. Doing good things just to get into 'heaven' is disingenuous I think.