Atheists, tell me, a Roman Catholic: why should I become an atheist?

[Edwardo Piet]

Why should the OP, A Roman Catholic, become an atheist?

Because God isn't real.

[Whateverist]

Why should the OP, A Roman Catholic, become an atheist?

Because God isn't real.

No, that's why he should quit believing literally in catholicism.  Oh wait, same thing.

[Cato]

The bread and wine served at atheist functions are far superior.

[Mystical]

We need some theists up in here to argue for him, so we can refute. The question is too broad, its like hitting a flea with a dart in a hurricane.

[Cato]

I'll give it my best shot:

Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve is still pretty cool, particularly the pigs in blankets that await after as part of the tradition. As an atheist I also have no qualms about tailgaiting Midnight Mass.

Sorry, I tried my best but feel I'm still giving reasons to be an atheist.

[Balaco]

I was told I can't link this thread there.

Oops my bad! *smacks forehead

I'm a former mod on here and even I know we can't let you post that link either, not until you've been here
for 30 days! But then.. we aren't much into censoring. Did they give you a time limit or is it indefinite?

I tried desperately to ask a Catholic forum for help once, for a missionary who would be willing to call and speak with my dad--who was threatening to take a walk in the desert and felt god was "okay with it" (he and my brother suffer a severe genetic mental illness). I hoped against all hope they could help him, but.. They didn't even let my post go through to the board! It.. broke my heart at the time. I guess Catholic an Christian forums are picky what does and does not show up on their pages.

The mod basically said they're against asking members to post comments on other sites.

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Balaco.  Do two things for me and yourself.

1.  Watch this video.






and 2, honestly evaluate it in terms of your religion.

I can't deny that it puts a lot of things into perspective...how the religious mold their lives according to what they believe God commands, trusting in faith a lot of the time rather than human logic. Aside from being raised/conditioned into the faith, I guess another reason why it's hard for me to drop it is due to the fact there's billions of other followers of a developed religion. I should probably look into some more theist accounts on why they believe in God, and continue to look into the main arguments (logical/teleological/cosmological/moral) and likely bring them up here.

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On a somewhat related note, I brought up the point of one of my earlier posts...

I'm gathering atheists generally view "supernatural" events or miracles as events that, aside from potentially being lies/distortions of reality thanks to our minds, may simply be out of the windows/models of logic that the religious create.

Looking at this objectively, it seems like belief in these events is another concept that the religious are inclined to believe and defend. Something out of the ordinary may happen, and the minds of the religious are conditioned to feel like it's due to God's intervention.

...to the Catholic Forum and got this response. 

Ok. Here is the "brass tax": do you trust people based on how they witness to what they say, or do you not?

The issue of the existence of God is separate. You can prove that with paper and pencil, no need look for miracles - just look for there existing ANYTHING, and realize that causes and effects, contingency, corruptible composition, and intrinsic purposes are all clear and infallibly point to the need for some First Cause which is uncreated, simple, infinite, etc., which we call "God." That God entering into creation by act (and by flesh) is something else... You are conflating the two. The first is answered by philosophy, the second by theology.

My suggestion is to stop playing cat and mouse with miracles (and other opinions, especially the most unfriendly ones, as puerile as their critiques tend to be) and read the New Testament instead, recognizing at what horrible personal cost those texts were written and transmitted over the Earth by those who claimed to have been there and saw it all for themselves or to have spoken at length with those who were there.

This guy seems to feel like God's existence is undeniable due to the fact that cause and effect is a concept. Doesn't really seem definitive enough for me.

[Mystical]

The mod basically said they're against asking members to post comments on other sites.

Well, that's understandable, I mean, questioning your faith is discouraged is it not? Don't make waves, just do your good Christian duty and not question anything and make everything that happens be some big god conspiracy of blessing and silver-lined suffering. When one "sheep" strays, best let it go on its way otherwise you'd lose the entire flock, eh?

12. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and search for the one that went astray? 13. And if he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. 14. Likewise, it is not the will of your Father Who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish (Matthew 18:12 - 14, HBFV)

How biblical of them to leave us lost sheep alone in the wilderness.

Sorry, I'm not going to prescribe myself any longer to thinking that my own earthly suffering is the will of another being that not only destined me to such a fate but could also easily fix it yet chooses not to. Heaven or not, hell or not. That's just not healthy thinking or the actions of a loving being.

[Balaco]

I was taught that God doesn't give us undeniable proof of his existence as a test of faith...those with righteous minds would find him. Joker and any other Catholics, what are your thoughts on this?

This is one of those things where the authors of the bible (people wrote it BTW) seemed to forget that not everyone has a short attention span and that some of us actually remember what we read. Case in point, the omniscience of god:

  tells us that even the hairs on our head are numbered. No matter how carefully we keep secrets from others, we have no secrets from God.

God makes it so there can never be undeniable proof of his existence and he does this as a test of our faith in him. But god knows everything there is to know about us.

Picture for a minute what your life would be like if you could know everything there is to know about everything. You'd sit down at a restaurant and when the server brought out a menu you could just wave your hand and say I already know what's on the menu, I'll have the meatloaf but I'll have it with some broccoli instead of the carrots that come with it. You could also then tell the server hey, you should really have the brakes checked on that old Corolla of yours and get your son into a dermatologist before that skin tag on his back turns nasty. 

Now ask yourself why anyone with that kind of reality would need to give people any kind of a test of faith. You wouldn't because you'd already know who had faith and who didn't.

From what I understand, the tests of our faith are moreso for our benefit so that we can determine our strengths/weaknesses, and grow closer to God by asking for his support.

[Balaco]

(Sorry if this comes up as a double post)

In response to the posts about tests of our faith, from my understanding their moreso for our benefit so that we can determine our strengths/weaknesses, growing closer to God as we ask for His help.

[Cato]

Balaco,

Your last post is just preaching. There is no evidence. The arguments you listed above (logical/teleological/cosmological/moral) aren't evidence, they're rationalizations to give credence to an unjustified belief. If there was evidence, you would be brow beating us into submission with it. The fact that you can't is telling.

Believe what you will, but don't pretend that it's justified. Religious beliefs can't be discovered without indoctrination; this should at least give you pause.