Has anyone discovered a successful way to make religious people atheist?

[ApeNotKillApe]

[Goosebump]

[Reforged]

Give their lives meaning. Give them something to strive toward. Give them hope.
Thats the real enemy. That emptiness. Religion is just a symptom, an infection that occupies that gaping wound.

Whens the last time you saw humanity united under one cause and said to yourself "Yes, this is why we're here. This is what we're doing. Theres is value in this." The last time I can think of is the space race. Such high hopes emerged from that. We thought it was the beginning of a bright future that would stretch beyond the stars. The world had been explored and now the wonders of the cosmos awaited... but nothing happened.
Now what do we strive for? Better social networking? More reality TV? Better special effects? Perhaps a faster CPU so we can run more distracting games? Fame? Riches? Sex? These are all meaningless distractions to keep us from the realization that we are trapped. Earth bound. Lives lived from cradle to grave without the sweet taste of discovery, of adventure, of true freedom.

Give them something real and their hearts shall follow. An objective to pursue that will engage their passions as well as their minds. Until then humans will just continue following the same old fairy tales because thats what they need to keep going. They need that distraction until something real comes. Fact of the matter is you can't give them what they need because you can't give yourself what you need, its just not available. We're all distracting ourselves in one way or another. Watching. Waiting. Hoping that the next chapter in human history will be within our lifetime.
Hoping its not too early. Hoping its not too late. Hoping that tomorrow will finally bring something new.

[Rhondazvous]

I don't think I have any negative feelings over trying to convert people to atheism. I find religiosity annoying, the thought of converting someone to atheism gives me joy.

It sort of makes me wonder how the first people to ever start religions like christianity or islam did it. Whether it was some charles manson esq figure, who actually had so much charisma that he was able to get people to follow him. Or if it was imposed by people who believed they could control others through threatening people with the punishment of god. Either way, someone was insane and manipulative enough to start cult religions like Christianity. I'm sure there's many people who just developed religion because it's the human mind's natural defense mechanism for explaining things they can't understand, to insert a supernatural meaning.

There’s a difference between a convert and someone who comes to the conclusion that religion isn’t based on reason.

I was a Christian for 25 years. Nobody converted me. Many people planted seeds. But I had to have enough honesty and integrity to examine those seeds.

A convert is a turncoat. Someone who makes an instant decision based on some charismatic speaker or successful conversion method.

Watching a theist become an atheist is a joy, but if it’s real, it has to be the end of a long journey, a slowly increasing sense of cognitive dissonance.

[Minimalist]

People generally just come to the realization themselves. Weird way to phrase the topic title though. I don't know why I'd want to make anyone think anything.

It's called "advertising."  It's a major industry!

[abaris]

It's called "advertising."  It's a major industry!

Of bullshittery, yes.

If someone's out for a discussion or comes with questions, fine by me. But I don't see the distinction between JWs going door to door, pestering everyone and some atheist thinking they have to do the good work. Both is uncalled for. If I take issue with them doing it, I can't and won't endorse the other side doing it. Everyone should be allowed to make their own mind up, and, most of all, to be left alone.

The matter looks differently though, if they try to enforce their believes on the public at large.

[Won2blv]

For someone like me that is transitioning as we speak, it really is an individual process. One of my biggest struggles personally is stepping back and looking at things from an outsiders perspective. Not just how I have viewed things the first 28 years of my life. But its extremely difficult to continually be honest with myself. But I also believe in micromanaging almost everything I take in. Every quote, every study, every fact I read I like to vet. For example, I remember when someone used this quote by Socrates to express how people have always been saying the same things about how the world is getting worse, “The children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.” At first I thought it was a good point. But then I did some research into and found that it can't really be verified. So it was not that big of a deal, but its just one of those things that I personally believe shows how important it is for us to actually dig into things to a level that we can truly understand what we're digesting.

My biggest gripe with atheist is that they don't have empathy when trying to debate things with theists. They don't have any obligation to, but if you have the goal to make someone think then you have to remember that its a human trait to dismiss something sensical just merely because you don't like the messenger. And atheist are prone to the exact same human qualities.

Also, I think every theist probably has their own specific pressure point. For me, it was learning that the exodus and Joshua stories were greatly fabricated.

[Goosebump]

For someone like me that is transitioning as we speak, it really is an individual process. One of my biggest struggles personally is stepping back and looking at things from an outsiders perspective. Not just how I have viewed things the first 28 years of my life. But its extremely difficult to continually be honest with myself. But I also believe in micromanaging almost everything I take in. Every quote, every study, every fact I read I like to vet. For example, I remember when someone used this quote by Socrates to express how people have always been saying the same things about how the world is getting worse, “The children now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.” At first I thought it was a good point. But then I did some research into and found that it can't really be verified. So it was not that big of a deal, but its just one of those things that I personally believe shows how important it is for us to actually dig into things to a level that we can truly understand what we're digesting.

My biggest gripe with atheist is that they don't have empathy when trying to debate things with theists. They don't have any obligation to, but if you have the goal to make someone think then you have to remember that its a human trait to dismiss something sensical just merely because you don't like the messenger. And atheist are prone to the exact same human qualities.

Also, I think every theist probably has their own specific pressure point. For me, it was learning that the exodus and Joshua stories were greatly fabricated.

*** In quote emphasis mine for below ***

Couple things but before I say them, you be you. Your doing what is right for you and that's great. No qualms there.

That said:

I don't think Atheist can be said to "have a goal". That's a characterization. Some do, like the militant ones. Then that's fair. But by and large I wouldn't paint with such a wide brush. I would say that other groups, religious or secular have much more of a goal then atheists by and large. If we have any at all, I haven't been given the hand shake yet to know for sure. /s

I don't think Atheist "don't have empathy when trying to debate things". Reason is largely outside personal emotional experience. I can have a very profound experience when my niece is born, walks for the first time, says my name as her first word, (she denys it but there is video evidence) that all transcends reason. But I would never use that experience to try to reason an argument. I would never claim I know love more then you because of those experiences. That's subjective and probably a fallacy of appeal to emotion or a composition/division. 

To claim that atheist "don't have empathy" when reasoning is not realistic. They likely have a great deal. And they don't suspend it to reason. They choose to remove it from their reasoning yet feel it all the same. A great burden none-the-less. To reason, with empathy is a rotten tomato. Sweet and rancid at the same time.

[Foxaèr]

I prefer to reason without empathy.

Feelings are too hard.

[Goosebump]

I prefer to reason without empathy.

Feelings are too hard.

*respect*