(January 30, 2016 at 3:40 pm)Excited Penguin Wrote:(January 30, 2016 at 3:15 pm)Mr.wizard Wrote: Ya, that's not what he said, he said he thought there was no afterlife because that's how really smart people thought. This raises a big flag and its not true there have been plenty of really smart people who believed in an afterlife. His story is full of stereotypes that you see quite often from a theist who tries and speak from an atheists point of view. I don't know whether he was truly an atheist or not and honestly it doesn't matter, the "I used to be an atheist" card does not lend any more credibility, than "I used to be a bus driver", it is merely used to re-enforce the beliefs of the believers.
Yeah, you're wasting your time. When you're sure you already know the truth beforehand, everything the other person says will fall on deaf ears, pretty much.
Admit it CL, you have no ground to stand on and this whole charade of trying to be reasonable about it is just that. Why don't you detach yourself from your faith and think about this stuff from a neutral perspective for a change? Just give it a few minutes of contemplation. I'm sure it's not a sin.
No, it's not a charade at all. Some of the stuff he said contradicts my own beliefs, and I have no dog in this fight.
I just think it's silly to conclude he wasn't an atheist based on that little phrase.
"Of course, everyone will claim they respect someone who tries to speak the truth, but in reality, this is a rare quality. Most respect those who speak truths they agree with, and their respect for the speaking only extends as far as their realm of personal agreement. It is less common, almost to the point of becoming a saintly virtue, that someone truly respects and loves the truth seeker, even when their conclusions differ wildly."
-walsh
-walsh
