The reason humans have value is because we think, and have emotions. We feel. We have a CONSCIENCE, which is a scientific mistery right now.

Just because we are bodies does not mean we have no value as a being. We are actually amazing. We can understand the universe and imagine things such as mathematic and literature.

I believe our view of the universe and life would change immensely if we could meet other beings who could reason like us, and are hopefully more advanced as a society than us.

Also, didnt know there were some "former atheists" in this forum. What is a former atheist? What do you believe in now?

Atheism is a temporal concept. Without religion, atheism would not exist. Calling yourself an atheist, in my opinion, is because you are willing to fight religion.

A world without religion is a world without atheists, too. People will simply be. As it should have been from the start.

Quote: So, the question is: How do you face the unavoidable reality of life, with no God by your side?

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(August 25, 2016 at 8:34 pm)Minimalist Wrote:

Quote: So, the question is: How do you face the unavoidable reality of life, with no God by your side?

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Classic.

(August 25, 2016 at 7:55 pm)ChadWooters Wrote:

(August 25, 2016 at 4:44 pm)Rhythm Wrote: Just tossing this out there....but maybe electro chemical reactions advanced by chance and necessity can love Bach?

Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Or don't you believe that when it comes to your beliefs?

Do you think that my loving Bach is an extraordinary claim.....................or a belief?

You see, this is where the fraudulent nature of your "philosophical" position becomes obvious.. I love Bach - regardless of what I am. If I'm made of magic...I love Bach. If I'm an electro chemical reaction.........I love Bach. Your contention that all of this is illusory without god....firstly, just assumes it's own conclusion, and secondly.....ignores the only inarguable truth in the matter. That I love Bach. This experience, whatever meaning I've imparted to that work..is uninformative with regards to the matter of god. It's true either way.

Better luck next time (and we both know you'll just say it again, and again, and again, and again.....like an electro chemical loop).

(August 25, 2016 at 5:39 pm)Gemini Wrote:

(August 25, 2016 at 7:14 am)LadyForCamus Wrote: I have a very difficult time with this still.  I wish I had some advice for you.  In all honesty, the thought frequently keeps me awake at night.  I think maybe it just takes time to emotionally process the realization, and perhaps it takes longer for some than for others.

You and me both. I know some atheists don't seem to be troubled by it, but I can't seem to help it. The thought that gives me the most comfort is that other people will live after I'm gone. And possibly other universes will be born. 

Or...and I hate to admit it...the thought that maybe we're wrong. Maybe there is some kind of afterlife.

I know there's no evidence for it at all. It's just a thought. Like thinking that finding a time-forgotten valley full of dinosaurs in the Amazon would be cool. Ain't gonna happen, but...would be cool.

I admire the self esteem necessary to require as compensation for death not just other lives continuing after you go but also other universes.  I'd like to think that the end of my existence too could only be adequately balanced by the birth of a universe or two .. but I'm not quite there.  As a life long narcissist I tip my hat to you.

(August 25, 2016 at 8:32 pm)Macoleco Wrote: The reason humans have value is because we think, and have emotions. We feel. We have a CONSCIENCE, which is a scientific mistery right now.

Just because we are bodies does not mean we have no value as a being. We are actually amazing. We can understand the universe and imagine things such as mathematic and literature.

I believe our view of the universe and life would change immensely if we could meet other beings who could reason like us, and are hopefully more advanced as a society than us.

Also, didnt know there were some "former atheists" in this forum. What is a former atheist? What do you believe in now?

Atheism is a temporal concept. Without religion, atheism would not exist. Calling yourself an atheist, in my opinion, is because you are willing to fight religion.

A world without religion is a world without atheists, too. People will simply be. As it should have been from the start.

I apologize for suspecting you were an apologist.  However I call myself an atheist owing only to my lack of belief in any gods.  Those of you looking to join the crusades against religion I call anti-theists.  I'm more than content if the theists will just settle to live in a secular society which treats any or no religious beliefs the same.  I'll leave the smashing of infant heads to the zealots on either side.

(August 25, 2016 at 4:00 pm)RozKek Wrote:

(August 25, 2016 at 3:49 pm)Arkilogue Wrote: So it takes a world wide appeal to consensus for you to consider anything new? Quite the handicap you have there.

You were fucking traumatized when you drowned, the end.

Far from traumatizing, oh triggered one and regardless, I will smile at death....will you?

(August 25, 2016 at 7:07 am)Nymphadora Wrote: I got along fine before I became an atheist. I mean, look, when I was a christian, I prayed all the time and god didn't do anything. Now I don't pray and I feel better because I'm no longer wasting my time on a mythical sky figure that, even if he was real, wouldn't have helped me anyway.

(August 25, 2016 at 11:10 pm)Whateverist Wrote: I admire the self esteem necessary to require as compensation for death not just other lives continuing after you go but also other universes.  I'd like to think that the end of my existence too could only be adequately balanced by the birth of a universe or two .. but I'm not quite there.  As a life long narcissist I tip my hat to you.

(August 25, 2016 at 12:12 am)Macoleco Wrote: Hi,

I am a 21 year old male who was christian up until I was 19 years old. I used to believe in God, and I believed he helped me multiple times through my life. I also used to pray, and cried multiple times (this became harder to happen as I grew up). So as you can see, I have a religious background. Fortunately, my parents were never too religious. This means I never read the bible except for some verses, and never went to church (though I did quite a few times when I was really young, like 4 or years old).

I always had doubts, and unanswered questions about my religion. But, as many believers do, I used to ignore them, and tell to myself "Those questions must have an answer, but I just do not know them". Fortunately, I have always been a man of science, and I always put science before religion. This was because I used to believe that science was a creation of God, and therefore believing in science does not contradict religion, and if it seems like it does, because of my lack of knowledge. Now that I am an atheist, I have realized that it is impossible to believe in a religion without ignoring its contradictions.

Then, after I graduated from highschool (a highschool oriented to the study of science, extremely time consuming), I decided that I wanted to get a scholarship to another country. And ofcourse, when you want to achieve something, you pray to God. And so I did. And that was the moment when I realized my faith was at zero, and I started to question everything. I tried to pray, but I felt like I was doing nothing. I started asking "Who am I praying to? Does he care? Does he even listen? Is he real? What if christianity is incorrect, and I am praying to a fake god?, etc." So I reached a point in which I NEEDED to answer those questions. Ignoring them was not an option anymore. And I lie you not, this task took me several days, weeks. I started watching debates of Richard Dawkins and other atheists such as Christopher Hitchens. And those debates started me to convince me a lot more. Until, finally, I decided to become an atheist.

It was not easy, as you may know, if you used to have a religion. And this is where the point of the thread comes in.

When I used to be a christian, many existential problems of life were filled by religion. Such as "What happens after you die?". I used to believe in heaven, and I thought that I could meet my parents in the after life, which always gave me comfort. Now that I am atheist, I know this will never happen. Once you die, you are done. And now a hole that was filled with religious beliefs, is now empty, and now I have to start filling it from zero with my own strength. Both my parents are around 50, and my mother has had multiple fractures, and she once had a stroke. She gets sick many times. And this hurts me. It hurts me to know I cant do anything to completely cure her. It hurts me to know she will eventually die, and I will never see her again. Same happens with my dad, but fortunately he has better health. 

Another hole that I have to fill now is the vulnerability we have as human beings. When I was younger, I used to believe I was invincible (I believe every young boy thinks this way). But there was another reason for this, I used to believe God was always by my side, protecting me. Now that I am an atheist, I know that nobody is watching my back, except for those who are alive, like my parents. I now know I am not special for the eyes of the universe, and that I may get sick, or I may be murdered, etc. And I always knew this, but then again, I believed God was protecting me.

Now we have death. How do you cope with it now that you are atheist? I particularly never feared death. Maybe until now. I have realized I will die, and there is nothing I can do about it. Maybe in the past, since I believed in God, and in the after life, death was not so bad. But now I know it is an unavoidable faith. That this is our only chance to live. That the pain we feel while we live will remain there forever, and we should try to be happy as much as we can, even though we are just animals and have mental and physical limitations.

So, the question is: How do you face the unavoidable reality of life, with no God by your side?

Hello,

Thats is interesting story of yours, so first of all i want to say that you are not alone in this journey.I was to afraid at first when i began question my beliefs, and with that a lot of fears come in, the fear that nobody is watching over you, no guardian angels and god, you have to watch after yourself.The fear that you are not special snowflake in this world, that there is no supreme being who made in his image, and of course the fear of death, this is big one.Because i thought to myself ,,man this only life i got, that's it when you die is the end"At first it was depressing but now its liberated me in many many ways, now i don't fear of doing certain things which i later regret.For example to quit my job, and find new one, to talk to that girl at grocery store, to travel, to do what i enjoy.And more you don't fear of doing these things because you know that death is final and life is full of opportunities.

The conclusion i don't need god by my side, because i got myself and this beautiful thing called LIFE