There are two factors in particular that predispose me strongly towards atheism.
First of all, the lack of testable empirical evidence for any god is quite bizarre. It's obvious that many people value the idea of a god and want one in their lives, but if you ask "Well, where is your god?" the usual response is some apologetics about free will or the importance of faith. We can photograph an atom and we can see the JADES-GS-z13-0 galaxy over 14 billion light years away, but can't detect any physical traces from a super-powerful being that supposedly intervenes in mortals' lives on a regular basis? Does. Not. Compute. If you have to make up philosophical excuses or position your deity in some other location (a conveniently inaccessible and untestable one, of course!) maybe there really is nothing there.
And secondly, believers can't even agree on which god or gods to worship. Even in related monotheistic traditions there are baffling and irreconcilable differences that make it impossible to know which, if any, is the right path. If you can't even agree among yourselves, why should I take any of you seriously?
First of all, the lack of testable empirical evidence for any god is quite bizarre. It's obvious that many people value the idea of a god and want one in their lives, but if you ask "Well, where is your god?" the usual response is some apologetics about free will or the importance of faith. We can photograph an atom and we can see the JADES-GS-z13-0 galaxy over 14 billion light years away, but can't detect any physical traces from a super-powerful being that supposedly intervenes in mortals' lives on a regular basis? Does. Not. Compute. If you have to make up philosophical excuses or position your deity in some other location (a conveniently inaccessible and untestable one, of course!) maybe there really is nothing there.
And secondly, believers can't even agree on which god or gods to worship. Even in related monotheistic traditions there are baffling and irreconcilable differences that make it impossible to know which, if any, is the right path. If you can't even agree among yourselves, why should I take any of you seriously?
