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RE: What to offer to theists
April 11, 2014 at 3:51 pm
(April 11, 2014 at 12:41 pm)mrandredparis Wrote: I have wanted to learn the lessons from The Manual for Creating Atheists for awhile, or at least since I read it. But one of the stumbling blocks I have is offering something to theists that would replace things like the personal relationship, through prayer and heaven. Any thoughts?
Personal relationships with other people?
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 11, 2014 at 4:26 pm
(April 11, 2014 at 3:51 pm)Chad32 Wrote: (April 11, 2014 at 12:41 pm)mrandredparis Wrote: I have wanted to learn the lessons from The Manual for Creating Atheists for awhile, or at least since I read it. But one of the stumbling blocks I have is offering something to theists that would replace things like the personal relationship, through prayer and heaven. Any thoughts?
Personal relationships with other people?
with their former god, which is what most abrahamic faiths suggest
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 11, 2014 at 9:56 pm
(This post was last modified: April 11, 2014 at 9:57 pm by My imaginary friend is GOD.)
Umm, here's what you offer, SEEEEEEEEEEEEX
As my mom always says, "Sex, drugs, and rock n' roll!"
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 12, 2014 at 3:04 am
(April 11, 2014 at 9:56 pm)My imaginary friend is GOD Wrote: Umm, here's what you offer, SEEEEEEEEEEEEX
Can I have some?
ALL PRAISE THE ONE TRUE GOD ZALGO
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 12, 2014 at 3:16 am
Good question. If you find something let me know! Atheism bites!
It does offer a few perks, just none I enjoy. Some people seem to enjoy a sense of smug "yeah, Christians r dum!" sense of superiority from being atheist. Sort of a vicarious intellectualism from being part of a rebellious social set. And can imagine in somewhere like 'murica there might be an independent, counter culture vibe going on. Sort of punk for the new millennium. Of course one can offer relief from the cognitive dissonance most christians suffer from, although most have become so good at managing that they hardly notice it.
Yeah, I'm thinking doughnuts might be it.
"Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken."
Sith code
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 12, 2014 at 6:44 am
(April 12, 2014 at 3:16 am)Jacob(smooth) Wrote: Good question. If you find something let me know! Atheism bites!
Quote:Yeah, I'm thinking doughnuts might be it.
See? You're making progress.
"Well, evolution is a theory. It is also a fact. And facts and theories are different things, not rungs in a hierarchy of increasing certainty. Facts are the world's data. Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts. Facts don't go away when scientists debate rival theories to explain them. Einstein's theory of gravitation replaced Newton's in this century, but apples didn't suspend themselves in midair, pending the outcome. And humans evolved from ape- like ancestors whether they did so by Darwin's proposed mechanism or by some other yet to be discovered."
-Stephen Jay Gould
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 12, 2014 at 7:01 am
(This post was last modified: April 12, 2014 at 7:04 am by Whateverist.)
(April 12, 2014 at 3:16 am)Jacob(smooth) Wrote: Good question. If you find something let me know! Atheism bites!
Nothing is as satisfying as believing there is an all knowing, all loving and timeless other who will always be attentive to you and your reflections. Frankly my wife sometimes lets me down in terms of her attentiveness to my needs in comparison to my mother .. but then at least my wife will actually have sex with me.
However, I find it helpful to approach my self with the same sense of awe and expectation that I formerly reserved for God. The truth is I don't know what I am capable of knowing or understanding until I try. Sometimes mysteries are revealed simply by phrasing the question as well as you can. Learning to wait in quiet expectation for answers you don't already have can pay dividends. The real mystery is how any one of us ever knows anything at all.
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 13, 2014 at 1:09 am
Come on guys, are you going to make me bounce this sucker back up all by myself? Fine.
What .. surely we've got something .. are we as atheists going to offer theists who are thinking of ditching God? (I was thinking along the lines of a nice fruit basket.)
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RE: What to offer to theists
April 13, 2014 at 2:51 am
(April 13, 2014 at 1:09 am)whateverist Wrote: Come on guys, are you going to make me bounce this sucker back up all by myself? Fine.
What .. surely we've got something .. are we as atheists going to offer theists who are thinking of ditching God? (I was thinking along the lines of a nice fruit basket.)
A fruit basket wouldn't hurt.
You know what? Change is hard. What does one do to get through an existential crisis when one loses faith? Myself, I had to come to terms with being OK with having questions, and few answers.
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