Atheists -what makes you so sure?

[OMG12]

I often wonder what makes atheists so sure that there isn’t a god. I’m not talking a particular iteration of the Divine, eg it’s easy to say I can’t believe there is a God because of childhood cancer, but that is predicated on the concept of a God who is only good and considers childhood cancer as bad and further is capable and willing to stop all bad things. I’m talking gods not religions here which a very different things.

Most cultures throughout time have have gods so it’s somewhat of an anomaly to not believe. I just wonder why people don’t believe. (And can we try and keep this a decent debate rather than any of the sky fairy shit those with an inability to debate a point beyond regurgitated social media soundbites seem limited to)

There have always been gods because humans have developed through evolution intelligence which leads to metacognition. In trying to explain our rather unfathomable existence, which in reality is too infinite and complex for us to comprehend we made up a word to simplify matters (god). As our language developed before the written word we were story tellers and so it seems logical there are creation stories from around the world.

No evidence and don’t want to support a cult worshipping an imaginary god.

It makes much more sense to me to not believe in something until it's proven. There are many many things I don't believe, because there is no evidence for them.

Really, for me the question would be - why would I believe in god?

There’s no evidence and to be honest I think God would be thinking oh shit, what have I done…

No one can really say if there is a God or not because neither can be proven.

As an atheist, I believe in what makes the most logical sense.

There had to be one didn’t there 😂😂😂😂

Drawing from all the research from the Big Bang, science, evolution, history, humanity, humankind, critical thought...I just know deep down to my bones that religion is something human beings have come up with to allay the fear of their own mortality - and to control people/society.

What makes you so sure there is a god, there is absolutely no evidenced other than people's beliefs. Op, if I happen to not share those beliefs, why am I the one who has to justify that to you. I'm on the side of Stephen Fry who said, when asked what he'd say to Peter at the pearly gates - Stephen said he'd ask god what is it with children getting cancers, childhood illnesses, parents getting sick, poverty, war, etc. If god was so good and kind, surely he'd do something to stop all these.

‘God made mankind in his own image’, except we as a species have been on this earth for a tiny fraction of its history. Also, evolution

I don't believe in 'God' as such - plus too many religions. but I do talk to myself a lot like as if there is a a God if that makes sense., like in my head? However the one thing is - where did we start? Can anyone offer an opinion on that? It's just too big for us to comprehend. Like who started it?? Even if we are computer generated - what happened before that? Mind boggling

Because I understand (and respect) why people DO have faith (separate from religion, which can largely get in the sea); and they can exist in my faithless world in a way I can't exist in theirs.

Religions were most founded a very long time ago when it made sense to draw the conclusion that there was a/more than one god in order to understand the world, create a sense of certainty and purpose, and organise society.

Of course people today still use religion for those reasons. But now we understand so much more about the world (eg phenomenon such as lightning, etc) that there is less need for it (aware there are many things "unexplained" but my point still stands). And we have other ways of organising society without the need for religion.

A long time ago there was also very little way of verifying claims make by religious leaders, stories etc. People simply had to just believe it.

We now understand so much more about the world yet there is still absolutely zero evidence of a higher power, other than believing there is one.

It just seems logical to me to believe in what I can see rather than making up fantastical stories.

However I am not saying there isn't a god. I'm a scientist, when shown new information I change my hypothesis. So I'm waiting to be shown a reason to change my view!

See, that's just not right. An atheist sees living and non-living things as being part of a complex web of natural laws, societal values, individual decisions, chemical reactions, and on and on. From the universe at it most enormous to subatomic particles, forces act on us that are discovered or discoverable.

I do not say 'there is no god'. Any more than I insist that are no fairies and no crazed deities on Mount Olympus. There is no reason to do so - these things are inventions. I do not need to unbelieve them. I know that Zeus was a religious belief held long ago; no one holds that belief any longer - to state that as a fact is not an affirmation or a belief.

There is no Bogeyman under my bed; I don't need to deny his existence. If I am scared, the cause is discoverable (though I may not discover it, or I may mistake the cause). And there is no hell, no devil, though some people perform terrible acts. And terrible things happen at random (an earthquake, a traffic accident). There are natural causes for everything that has ever or will ever happen.

What is wrong with @Holihobbies ' points? They are a lot more articulate than a row of crying-with-laughter emojis.

This thread is asking why people are atheists?
There's no proof of God that's why I'm an atheist.

It’s what I believe. I can’t be any more sure than people who believe in God

There's absolutely no evidence of any kind of god. Most cultures before us needed gods to explain the natural world, life and death, but we have science.

To misquote,
"Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from god"

How do you define a god OP? What is the minimum threshold for godhood?

No evidence. There is however plenty of evidence that if there is a supreme being out there controlling our destiny they are a bit of an arse a lot of the time.
I’m also pretty sure a lot of believers are a bit on the fence and just hedging their bets. Better to toe the line just incase you’re met by the pearly gates than risk heading down stairs.
I don’t believe in any of it but I also think if it turns out I’m wrong then I’ve lived a good life and been pretty decent. That’s got to be better than being an arsehole but ‘confessing’ once a week to wipe the slate clean? If the only way to get passed the pearly gates is to spend the few short years we get praising and worshipping the bloke with the keys then I reckon he’s probably a bit of an ego maniac and I’d rather spend eternity with the other lot. Fingers crossed if I am wrong then whoever calls the shots is looking for people who just tried to always do what’s right for people, animals and the planet.

For many centuries cultural 'gods' were believed in because people couldn't explain why the world worked the way it did. Why the wind blew, what the sun is. Thinking it must be a human form type person to thank us because humans were the only force we knew.
But now we know the hows and why's and there's no reason to believe in a 'god'. We know it isn't. Science and technology shows us this.

Outside if all the organised religion aspects, I thought it was just either you felt there was a god and you had that faith or you didn't.
My friend is a non denominational christian and she described her beliefs as this feeling like there was something more there. She said she would see a perfect rainbow or a full sky sunset and see god in that.
Whereas I just don't have that feeling of anything else being there. I see a sunset and just see the beauty in it.
I feel it as how cool nature is and how nice it is to be human here to appreciate it.
For me it's not about 'being sure' that there is no god, it just doesn't feel real to me. As the whole thing seems to be belief in a thing that can't be proven, if I can't believe it- then it doesn't feel real to me.

It is hard to describe but is a bit like when people have different tolerances for heat so experience it differently.
If it is 25° and I don't feel too hot but you do, that doesn't mean that the temperature is too hot or either of us are wrong. Just for me its fine and for you it is too hot. Like for me there is no god, i dont believe it so it isnt true for me. But for you, if you believe it, then god is real for you. Neither are wrong unless either of us tells the other that the way we feel is not true. I am not hot and I have no god. You are too hot and there is a god.

Check out 'Thank you god' by Tim Minchin. Says it all for me.

I can't believe you think not believing in a god is an anomaly? It's the norm in most countries now, including the UK.

My reasons: my 7 year old best friend when I was a kid who died when he fell into a drain while roller skating so couldn't climb out, my friend who lost her baby at 38 weeks, every other foetus, baby and young child death, my lovely friend who was genuinely much nicer than most people who died of cancer at 41, the senseless death of the people in Nottingham and every other random, senseless, pointless death. Plus, no evidence whatsoever to the contrary.

Because, in exactly the same way that people with a faith know there is a god, I know that there isn't.