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Original poster

Atheists - is there anything about faith that appeals to you, would you like to believe?

410 replies

Italiangreyhound · 27/03/2013 10:51

Hi, I've been reading a few threads and I've heard atheists say stuff in the past about belief in God. Stuff like they don't believe in God but they would like to or they can see why it would maybe give peace or would be nice etc. I am just curious how atheists feel a bout this and if they want to talk about it?

I am a Christian, I hope I am an open and tolerant person and I would not want to cause offence. I am just curious, as we come into Easter if anyone wants to chat about this.

If not, may I wish you a peaceful and happy Easter, even if all it means to you is some chocolate eggs.

OP posts:
seeker · 27/03/2013 20:51

John 14 13-14
Matthew 7 7
Matthew 21 22.

All clear promises that prayers will be answered. I am aware that the get out clause is "Ah, but they are answered- just not in the way you think they will be" Funny that. You would have thought that just once in 2000 years there might have been a straight "yes" to "please save my child"

seeker · 27/03/2013 20:51

Oh, and green- are you saying that you will only discuss things if you control the language being used?

pianomama · 27/03/2013 20:52

Italianreygound - do you mind telling us which church do you belong?
And if it isn't one of any mentioned in your "gender equal list" - does it really matter to you ?

greencolorpack · 27/03/2013 20:54

seeker I'm saying if this thread becomes argumentative, hostile etc I will wander off bored. I'm not hostile, I don't come here with evil intent, I am posting politely and not trying to tell people how to live their lives etc, I am not anyones punchbag.

MrsHiddleston · 27/03/2013 20:55

SGB is expressing my views better than I can.

Original poster
Italiangreyhound · 27/03/2013 21:02

Seeker I am so very sorry to hear that you have lost a child. I am sure you do not really want me to pontificate on those verses, I will if you want. But for now I guess I would just say that in general I don't belive God answers all our prayers exactly as we ask them. I am really very sorry you lost a child and I can understand why this would make it so hard to believe in God.

OP posts:
monsterchild · 27/03/2013 21:07

Green how does the presence of one God mathematically negate the presences of others? Can God not lie? Isn't he omnipotent?

PedroPonyLikesCrisps · 27/03/2013 21:08

What's hostile about the phrase 'imaginary friend'? It's factually accurate when discussing gods. Imaginary because believers can only think of the god, not see or touch, and friend......well.....unless you don't like your god........

Original poster
Italiangreyhound · 27/03/2013 21:09

pianomama it's not my gender list, it's wickipedia's and I can't verify it. I became a Christian in the C of E at a time when women could not be ordained. I was a feminist before I was a Christian and it really bothered me that women could not be ordained, even though I did not feel a call to be ordained, well I did briefly but that was mostly becase people think I look like the vicar of Dibley! (Joke). I was very happy when women were ordinaed and I think it has been a magnificent thing for the church. I am very sorry the chruch did not 'allow' women bishops in the C of E but my understanding is most clergy did want it and I feel pretty much 100% sure it will come in in the very near future.

Anyway, we left our far away C of E a few years go to go to one closer to us and we picked a free church. We got to love the people and felt very happy. We saw women leading the worship up the front and speaking in home group and I felt positive. Then we had our meeting where we talked about church membership. All quite new to me as we don't do that in the C of E. Anyway, I asked the question about women leaders and was very suprised to hear that they odn;t have women elders or ministers. I then had a choice, do I stay with these poeple I have grown to love where I feel I am being drawn into a fellowship, or do I go because there are things I don't agree with. I stayed. I felt it was the right thing to do. Who knows what my presence will bring. I also feel very much if I felt called to leadership or I felt that my faith was being squashed or stifled than I would leave but for now I am in a church where women cannot be the minister or elder. Does it bother me, yes, are there other things that upset me more, yes. Can I do something about all of this, yes.

Thank you for asking.

OP posts:
greencolorpack · 27/03/2013 21:10

Monsterchild it's just the claims in the Bible. If God is true then if you read the ten commandments it says you shall have no other gods. Worshipping other gods means idolatry, it's forbidden.

seeker · 27/03/2013 21:11

Italiangreyhound- I'm sorry- I haven't lost a child and I didn't mean to give the impression I had. I just used that as an example of one of the prayers made most fervently and desperately and which is never answered.

greencolorpack · 27/03/2013 21:11

Pedro whether it's accurate or not the tone is hostile. I just choose not to engage with such posters, don't see why this is hard to understand.

seeker · 27/03/2013 21:12

And those verses are by clear and specific. No possibility of misunderstanding. And as I said, never once in 2000 years a straight answer.

tuffie · 27/03/2013 21:14

It is such a shame that a perfectly good and interesting debate by both atheists and Christians was yet again derailed by the same people.

PedroPonyLikesCrisps · 27/03/2013 21:16

It's hard to understand because it's just not a hostile expression and slightly irrational to think so, especially because it's an accurate statement. Just seems a bit odd to me.

Rowlers · 27/03/2013 21:16

I do not believe in God, have no "faith" and don't really get what "faith" is. I have no desire for "faith", to "believe" at all.

I think life is hard, and was almost certainly a lot harder thousands of years ago. When people in the dark ages tried to understand the world, life and death etc around them, I can see how well the idea of a "god" would help to explain basically everything, and how it helped to control people and their behaviour.
My experience of friends with strong religious beliefs is a total lack of ability / desire to discuss faith / belief in any way, without them feeling under attack. There seems to be a "don't question me" mentality.

And what I really hate with a passion is this "I'm a christian and am going to heaven, you can too if you will only believe what I (blindly) believe". That really does make me cross.
I don't "believe", don't yearn for the feeling that "believers" have, and have absolutely no desire to "belong" to a church community.

seeker · 27/03/2013 21:18

My children both had imaginary friends who were very real to them, and were a great source of comfort. The term does not have negative connotations to me.
However, what term would you like me to use?

PedroPonyLikesCrisps · 27/03/2013 21:20

Rowlers I think you've hit the nail on the head there. So often the religious engage the atheists with probing questions or assertions of their religion and then take offence when the atheists put their views forward. It's interesting how it's ALWAYS the religious side of the debate that takes offence or claims of the derailment of the thread.

headinhands · 27/03/2013 21:21

Green - how are Christians up against it from the anti-religious? Do you mean in the UK? If so how are you up against it?

seeker · 27/03/2013 21:24

" I have lots of respect for Muslims who are observant because in a lot of ways they are up against the same intolerance from the anti-religious as Christians"

Green- could you say something more about this?

MrsHiddleston · 27/03/2013 21:24

Yep Pedro... Exactly.

headinhands · 27/03/2013 21:24

Re: 10 Commandments, first 4 about protecting god's ego. You'd think he'd have nothing to ever feel inferior about no?

greencolorpack · 27/03/2013 21:25

Pedro I am a human being and I like debating, I do not like hostility. I do not like being talked down to. You can all disbelieve in God all you like but I don't see the point in arguing/being defensive/combative/hostile.

It's not about "the religious" vs "the atheists" I would prefer to draw the lines along "those who can debate politely" vs "those who can't".

greencolorpack · 27/03/2013 21:30

Headin hands, well one example might be... Posters in newspapers showing the twin towers before they got exploded and the caption something about "Imagine a world without religion" as an advert for a Richard Dawkins series. The implication being, if there were no religion we would live in a beautiful utopia of perfect happiness and terrorism would not happen.

Other examples ...people losing their jobs for wearing crosses or having convictions that go against political correctness. People pushing for euthanasia to become an acceptable part of working within the NHS which if it happened would lead to thousands of religious doctors and nurses having to consider quitting their jobs because their work would go against their religious beliefs... That sort of thing.

PedroPonyLikesCrisps · 27/03/2013 21:30

Ok, fine.....bizarre, but fine. But as seeker asked, what language would you like to be used?