Hi everyone! I'm from Greece, new to this forum, been studying "atheism" for one month now. Sorry for my English.
Iwant your opinion on one subject that has come up while I was thinking about the whole concept of atheism. My question is not if God exists, nor anything like that. It is a question about living without the need for a God, which you guys have been doing I guess.
Let's say all this is true, let's say when the lights are out it's over, but... really over. You guys seem to be quite functional, intellectual and creative human beings. My question is this: What is your motive in life?
What I mean is this: Some of MY motives for getting out of bed in the morning is that next generations might find what I have created usefull, or maybe some God has a checklist with all the good I've done, or maybe it somehow matters if I am able to create something that people will read or use long after I'm gone.
I mean, if there is no God, if there is no afterlife, if there is no spirit that occupies my body, if I am a coolection of neuron synapsis (or whatever those things between my ears are) what meaning do you use for all this?
Don't get me wrong, this is not an argument for the existence of God (I need a God to function as a human being so there has to be one...), nothing like that. It's just a question about how you go through life with no need for a God.
P.S. what a great forum! Lots of really smart people hanging around here...

(May 1, 2014 at 3:53 am)Jason_ab Wrote: Hi everyone! I'm from Greece, new to this forum, been studying "atheism" for one month now. Sorry for my English.
Iwant your opinion on one subject that has come up while I was thinking about the whole concept of atheism. My question is not if God exists, nor anything like that. It is a question about living without the need for a God, which you guys have been doing I guess.
Let's say all this is true, let's say when the lights are out it's over, but... really over. You guys seem to be quite functional, intellectual and creative human beings. My question is this: What is your motive in life?
What I mean is this: Some of MY motives for getting out of bed in the morning is that next generations might find what I have created usefull, or maybe some God has a checklist with all the good I've done, or maybe it somehow matters if I am able to create something that people will read or use long after I'm gone.
I mean, if there is no God, if there is no afterlife, if there is no spirit that occupies my body, if I am a coolection of neuron synapsis (or whatever those things between my ears are) what meaning do you use for all this?
Don't get me wrong, this is not an argument for the existence of God (I need a God to function as a human being so there has to be one...), nothing like that. It's just a question about how you go through life with no need for a God.
P.S. what a great forum! Lots of really smart people hanging around here...

Why does there need to be a meaning? Why is the tree there? Doesn't have to be part of a master plan, it could just to be.

I understand your point, meaning drives us but why not live the best life you can and to provide the biggest influence to others.

What if, your "meaning" for being here, was to make an impact on others in a positive way.

If there's no god what's the point in living?

---

I usually hate quoting myself but as it is 4 am and I have answered this question so many times. I'm just going to reiterate something I said once to someone else.

My life only has meaning for me and I am okay with that. To assume that your life needs to have some sort of meaning or that you're so important that you need some big purpose that affects your whole world seems stupid and arrogant. What do we give? What do we have to offer? Nothing. We aren't like the sun or the plants we don't have some special purpose that helps keep the world spinning. We're just here. We can give ourselves and each other purpose and that's about it. Learn to be okay with that. Life can be so beautiful, don't waste it living only for what's to come in the next life because this is all you get.

BlackSwordsman: Yes, I believe that having a positive impact on others is cool. But... really man... I don't love people THAT much... haha... What I'm trying to say is that to my knowledge, human beings need SOMETHING to start building their philosophy in life. Some motive that makes us believe that things beyond ourselves matter. My question is what works for you, what drives you.
Losty... don't be sarcastic man. Try to understand my point.
When one decides one day to kill his God and live bullshit-free, one has to recreate his whole philosophy and values from scratch. It was really a big shock to me to what extent Orthodox Christian religion had influenced my personality... It's quite scary.

You wouldn't accept anyone else choosing your college major for you, why let anyone else determine the purpose of your life?

My life's meaning comes from my writing, my music, my fiance, and my ability to experience the things that I enjoy. I'm a movie buff, a gamer, a fan of fantasy and sci fi, a composer, a writer of erotica... life is big and complex and fun, trying to boil down the point of it to just one thing is majorly missing the point.

Take your meaning from the things that are meaningful to you, not the promise of some other life where all those things become meaningless because there's no need to strive for them anymore. Do your good in the life you have, and stop fantasizing about a special extra life where none of that has any meaning.

Thank you for your answers.
This whole thing started for me about a month ago with the "God dellusion" book.
By now I have only one thing to say.
Being FREE is a really fucking scary thing.

I may have started sarcastic but I believe I had some good advice tucked away in there. It starts scary but it gets better. I guess when I de converted I was so busy being afraid of other things that when I finally had time to think about the meaning of my life I was already over being scared or worried.
I have become a cynic, I guess. I read your question and I expected some theist to tell me I have no reason to go on living if I don't believe in god. So, sorry for making assumptions.
Try to stay calm. Think of all things you enjoy about life and the ways others can make them even more enjoyable. Think of the people you love and what they enjoy, and think of how you can help them find even more joy in their lives. You can give your own life meaning. Be patient the scariness will fade.

All the beauty of the earth is what is keeping me motivated. There are so many places to go to, so many things to discover.
The earth is so big, and then there is everything beyond the earth. The moon, the sun, the vast universe with all its galaxies and stars and planets.
There is so much we don't know, and there is so much cool stuff out there. I want to see it all, and I want to know it all.
I want to die satisfied, knowing I have done everything I wanted.

Simply stated: I live for here and now, I do not live for what will be after my death. I think religious people worry too much about death, and everything that is pretty and wonderful has become undone.
We don't need a god, because everything that is great is here, and eventually all humans will understand this, and then we will rise and travel beyond places we could ever imagine.

Losty you edited your post after I posted my answer. Indeed your point was really helpful, smart and on target (as were all the posts from the other guys).
What I find interesting about this spiritual "rebirth" that I am experiencing, is that supressed and "censored" feelings and thoughts in my mind have risen from the dead. I used to think that I have "Grown Out" of some feelings because of my personal ethical values, but since I have killed my God, I realized that they were Religion inflicted values. There was nothing wrong with somethings I was feeling. It was just Christianity that made me supress myself.
It is a really scary, interesting and rejouvenating process.
The thing is that right now I have no interest in my previous life's work. Things that used to be important now fade into nothing.
I think it was Socrates who said that human beings are at our best and more happy when we are at the process of completing a worthy goal. Not after we have completed it, but when we are at the process of going towards a worthy goal. A goal bigger than ourselves.
The problem is that for the first time in my life I have some trouble defining a "worthy" goal.
At the end who gives a shit?
I mean, if I go to the same place as any pedophiliac bastard, if the end is the same, is the satisfaction of helping others and being good enough to get me out of bed in the morning? Why should I contribute to this society and not simply have fun?
I know that funtamentalist morons usually mumble about something similar to what I say, I hope that you understand me though.
That whole "when I die my brain rots and that is the end" thing, doesn't provide much incentive to go to work everyday...

P.S. Again sorry for my English, though I bet it is better than your Greek ... haha...

(May 1, 2014 at 3:53 am)Jason_ab Wrote: What is your motive in life?

The next breath, the next moment, the next minute, the next hour, the next day, the next month, the next year, the next experience, the next disappointment.

No god required.