(June 28, 2011 at 4:20 pm)fr0d0 Wrote: As has been said, freethinking has no ties, especially with theological positions. We (several people on this thread) are actually talking about a default position being what you're born with... what babies are --> atheists. It depends on the definition.
I interpreted what you said as all atheists take the default position because they haven't put any thought into it. My apologies and I redact my last post.
fr0d0 Wrote:Yes I like to provoke. I'm not alone.
I have noticed that and no you're not alone.
fr0d0 Wrote:"Your religion (has done plenty to turn people away)" <--- I think you're talking about anti Christians dressed as Christians. Even me sometimes.
If your definition of an anti Christian is someone who misuses Christianity than yes, that is what I meant.
fr0d0 Wrote:How can a believer 'automatically' believe what they're told? How is that even possible? The fools are everywhere. It does you no favours comparing yourself to them. Explain the validity of your position rather than belittle the unfortunate... it'll make you lot a whole lot more convincing
Whenever a person in a position of authority is peddling anything as truth, there will always be someone who believes it without questioning, which is the very antithesis of a free thinker. To automatically believe is to not search for what you see as the truth yourself, but to just take someone else's interpretation as valid. Many people of all ideologies, not just religion, rely on this fact.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
