Not religious doesn't necessarily mean atheist

[Brian37]

TO ATTF47

Here is an example of a theist, I LIKE. I am not a fan of country music, but I love the message in this song. I dont like, I do not like the line in it, where she says we are all God's children. No more than I would like the claim we are all Allah's Children. WHAT I do like is her message of empathy and compassion for the working class and poor. THAT part I do like. That does not mean I am obligated to remain silent when religion is used by politicians to sell fear, or bigotry. It does not preclude me from finding value in my species CAPABILITY to have empathy. I see lots of good in my fellow humans, I just dont agree that is coming from a magic place. I LOVE THIS LADY's message. I don't think she needs a God either, but I do think she is a great lady. 

Okay Brian, message received. I respect you but you do come across as a bit of a nutter sometimes. I just felt the need to offer that feedback.

I agree about the singer. I have a thing about strong women. I don't have any use for weak-willed pretty things who want to fan me with a palm frond. The chicks who'll kick me in the balls if I piss them off are the ones who turn me on.

Blunt, yes, crazy, no.

But you still miss the message, there is no right way to be a man or a women, I am no fan of gender roles. I also don't think all men have to be beefy giant boulders nor do I think a man is weak if a women defends them. I am a fan of her attitude because what matters to me is caring for the weakest links in our society regardless of gender or race. Point being, economic equality for all does not mean no pay difference at all, just that we are a rich enough country, there should be no urban, suburban or rural poverty. Her message is lets not leave anyone behind.

[Abaddon_ire]

Sigh.

Technically, "atheism" is a privative. i.e. the lack of a quality, in this case, belief in a god. Or gods/deities/spirits/ceilingcat/whatever.

Being an atheist does not preclude belief in astrology/tarot/ghosts/ESP/insert your crankery du jour here.

When I ditched religion decades ago, I actually did the magic tour of all manner of wingnuttery. I was not content to simply read others opinions of any of it, good or bad. I made it my business to actually learn in detail how to practice such things.

So as a result I can...

Determine your natal birth astrological chart and interpret it.
Read your Tarot cards.
Read your palm.
Dowse.
Operate a ouija board correctly.
Balance you chakras.
Read your aura.
Prescribe Bach flower remedies correctly.
Prescribe your homeopathic medicine.
Scry using ink in water or crystal ball.
Practice numerology.
Analyse bible codes.
And many more.

And on that journey I discovered something. They all have something in common.

All of them are great steaming piles of bovine fecal matter with no basis in reality whatsoever.

Now the obvious question would be, "Do I regret the time and money invested in those obvious crank delusions?"
My answer is "No. Not at all". Because I do not merely dismiss them all as superstitious nonsense, I know they are superstitious nonsense. And secondly, I can step up to the woo-peddlers on the basis of direct knowledge. They don't much like that.

So. I cannot say that atheists believe in nothing. Atheists believe in all manner of things. God just happens to not be in that mix. Sure, I put atheist in my profile, It was the easiest option. Hard materialist would simply invite too many queries even though it would be more accurate for me.

[Harry Nevis]

Most of that is due to ignorance, which give way to confusion.  They don't know what to believe, and they blindly grope for those things that are edgy, trendy, new, etc...  But they don't really know why they believe what they believe.  It's quite sad.

Sounds like the definition of most American christians.  Most don't believe all the crap they are taught is true, but they believe in believing.  And, sad to say, few can see the difference.

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Everyone has a religion. You would have to redefine religion from their primary meaning in the past to escape this fact.

This century is trying to redefine every word from their original definitions. And what do atheists do, they just look up current dictionaries, and think they understood a long tradition and understanding of a word.

Really?  What is my religion?  You're so full of shit.

[Whateverist]

[quote pid='1648218' dateline='1509555778']
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-mi...2017-10-20






Most of that is due to ignorance, which give way to confusion.  They don't know what to believe, and they blindly grope for those things that are edgy, trendy, new, etc...  But they don't really know why they believe what they believe.  It's quite sad.

I think many of us here would think that you too do not know what to believe.  But everyone in your sphere is going with God so you get the impression that you're on the right path, forgetting just how truly ignorant and confused you are too.

Tried to fix your quotes but what a mess!

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Everyone has a religion. You would have to redefine religion from their primary meaning in the past to escape this fact.

This century is trying to redefine every word from their original definitions. And what do atheists do, they just look up current dictionaries, and think they understood a long tradition and understanding of a word.

Everyone has that which is necessary to make meaning and find purpose in life.  Not everyone draws on what is commonly known as "religion".  If you mean to redefine religion as "whatever one uses to make meaning and find purpose in life", then of course you would be correct even though you would have said nothing at all.

[curiosne]

Atheists don;t reject magic or the supernatural....Alpha...they just don;t believe in gods.  If those folks believe in astrology, but not gods..they're atheists.

That's how that works.

Agreed. An example is Buddhism.

Buddhism is defined as a religion but they don't believe in gods. They believe in many supernatural dogmas, have many religious practices and customs.

But one can be a Buddhist and also be an atheist.

[Astreja]

Everyone has a religion. You would have to redefine religion from their primary meaning in the past to escape this fact.

MK, if someone doesn't believe in gods and doesn't believe in supernatural things and doesn't worship anything, why call their worldview a religion?  If you broaden the meaning of a term too much you strip it of meaning.

As for the "primary meaning" of a word, language is in a constant state of flux.  Words do change, and it's pointless to insist on preserving an old definition that no one uses anymore.

One example:  The word "nice" is thought of as a positive word, but it wasn't always that way.  It originally derives from the Latin word "nescius," meaning "ignorant."  It's also had other negative connotations over the years.  400 years or so ago, if you had called a woman nice she might have taken it as an accusation that she had loose morals, and your compliment would have elicited a slap in the face.

As far as I'm concerned, if there are no supernatural beings or ideas involved, and no worship rituals, calling something a religion is just plain silly.

[KevinM1]

I have no religion. No rites to perform, no edicts to obey, nothing to worship.

[vorlon13]

I'm atheist, but freely admit to a 12 Stepper past.



Not troubled with seeming contradiction, I've ascertained 'spiritual' aspects of 12 Stepper-ism are a necessary fiction for a quirk in how addiction works in primate brain chemistry.

Hasn't been a problem for me for a helluva long time, and I don't feel it should be a problem for others either.


BTW, that Glucerna snack bar I had earlier tonite was tasty (but oh so tiny) and yet it is really coming back on me now, and it's kinda unpleasant.

Blech . . .

[Anomalocaris]

Atheists don;t reject magic or the supernatural....Alpha...they just don;t believe in gods.  If those folks believe in astrology, but not gods..they're atheists.

That's how that works.

Agreed. An example is Buddhism.

Buddhism is defined as a religion but they don't believe in gods. They believe in many supernatural dogmas, have many religious practices and customs.

But one can be a Buddhist and also be an atheist.

Even if one defines Theism in the narrow sense it is still easy to strip away the camouflage and discern that virtually every subcreed within Buddhism places The Buddha outside of the continuum of human capabilities and thus effectively makes Buddha a theistic deity.

[Amarok]

Everyone has a religion

Bullshit