Why are you an atheist?

[infidel666]

I was raised in the southern baptist church, but stopped attending as a teen. It seemed that my parents were so self righteous that no church was good enough for them. Either too lax or too strict. My mother thought she was liberal because she let me watch "Bewitched" on television. But we lived far away from civilization to escape corrupting influences. So I did not realize what a bunch of delusional crap religion is until my college days, when I finally got away from from that hell hole.

I actually don't conclude that there is absolutely no chance there is a God. But I find the strong agnostic and weak atheist positions to be practically identical. I choose the "atheist" label to express my extreme doubt that there is a God, and my extreme scorn for any negligent, spiteful, and/or mentally incompetent God that could possibly exist, given the observables.

[chatpilot]

I consider atheism common sense and reason.You will not find anything like that in religion whatsoever.I don't think that atheism is a position of weakness and instead consider it to be one of strength.To defy society and it's norms by going against thousands of years of superstitious traditional beliefs takes guts.When I am asked by a theist; "how do I think that we came to be?"I don't get into all the technical things regarding evolution etc.I simply tell them that I am more secure with evolution as a more plausible explanation and a work in progress than with the belief that some invisible guy in the sky created us ex nihilo (out of nothing).

I have convinced myself beyond a shadow of a doubt that god or gods do not have not and cannot exist.I have a very down to earth outlook on llife and it's origins.And don't need to look to the heavens and oral traditions to try to explain things I as of yet understand fully.

[infidel666]

To clarify, strong atheism is the belief that there is no God and that it can be proven that there is no God. Weak Atheists don't believe there is a God but don't think it can be proven that there is no God. Strong Agnostics don't know whether or not there is a God. Weak agnostics think that there is a God but don't know which religion is the right one. The strong and weak modifiers were not a comment on the strengths of the positions, but rather the positions themselves.

[josef rosenkranz]

To clarify, strong atheism is the belief that there is no God and that it can be proven that there is no God. Weak Atheists don't believe there is a God but don't think it can be proven that there is no God. Strong Agnostics don't know whether or not there is a God. Weak agnostics think that there is a God but don't know which religion is the right one. The strong and weak modifiers were not a comment on the strengths of the positions, but rather the positions themselves.

Interesting in which category do you put RD in the strong or in the weak class?
He himself writes in TGD "Why there almost certainly is no God"
I have posted a thread on this "almost" notion asking directly RD on it but the answers I got from his fans were vague und unsatisfactory from my point of view.
I have repeatedly expressed my view that the most effective disproval of the existence of God is his creation by man based on undeniable motivations.
Here is a slogan I propose to "strong" atheists: "There are no Gods other then the God created by man,there is no place where he dwells in the Universe but in the minds of people who believe in him."

[chatpilot]

josef I agree with that slogan and consider myself a strong atheist.

[Psalm 23]

To clarify, strong atheism is the belief that there is no God and that it can be proven that there is no God.

I would love for these particular atheists that have "disproven God" to join this forum and speak to me personally.

Because no matter what they show me on how the universe was created. I can honestly look at them and say, "Prove God didn't make it happen." And quite seriously, the answer is bare and simple. They can't.

In my honest opinion, I believe "Strong atheism" is nothing more than a mental disorder.

The well known Biologist Richard Dawkins (atheist) wrote the book entitled, "The God Delusion," and this man even admits that God cannot be disproved.

I think the Christian religion was set up so it's believers are in a win-win situation.

[Edwardo Piet]

I would love for these particular atheists that have "disproven God" to join this forum and speak to me personally.

I'm not one of them. I think God has certainly not been disproved. And I don't think he can or ever will be disproved (absolutely 100%) but I think he's about as close to being disproved as possible. Not 0% chance of existence but basically 0 anyway. There almost certainly is no God.

Because no matter what they show me on how the universe was created. I can honestly look at them and say, "Prove God didn't make it happen." And quite seriously, the answer is bare and simple. They can't.

Indeed. God cannot be proved OR disproved 100% as far as we know. But speaking about probability the chance that God exists is basically 0. About as close to zero as you can get. God almost certainly doesn't exist.
There is no reason TO believe in God. That's the reason NOT to believe in God. Belief is not a matter of policy. If you just want to believe whatever you like despite the fact you are almost certainly deluding yourself then be my guest. You go ahead actively believing in belief in your God.

In my honest opinion, I believe "Strong atheism" is nothing more than a mental disorder.

If you think that then you should think that theism is DEFINITELY a mental disorder. In the fact its actually believing in myths that there are zero evidence of rather than just believing stuff is disproved 100% instead of believing it is disproved 99.99999999999% recurring on and on. God is almost certainly disproved. Not zero but scientifically speaking, basically zero.
And strong atheists often know and believe this anyway and they just classify themselves as "Strong", because the probability is so close to zero they say its zero anyway. And others really do believe God is disproved.

The well known Biologist Richard Dawkins (atheist) wrote the book entitled, "The God Delusion," and this man even admits that God cannot be disproved.

I think the Christian religion was set up so it's believers are in a win-win situation.

Dawkins called it he God delusion because God is a delusion. In the sense that God is a delusion in the same sense ANY mental disorder is a delusion. When a psychotic person has hallucinations and hears 'voices' thats said to be a delusion. But its POSSIBLE that what the person sees is really there and really exists. But its still classified as a delusion. The same with God. Its POSSIBLE that God exists. But it should still be classified as a delusion because he almost certainly does NOT.
Believers merely think they are in a win-win situation. If its set up like that so what anyway? You admit its just set up and man made anyway. Its a delusion.
Its not really win-win because it might be win-lose or even lose-lose.
Almost certainly theists are wasting there life believing in myths. Atheists almost certainly are not because they don't believe in mythological delusional bullshit that also wastes their time and energy.

[AtheistPhil]

I think he's about as close to being disproved as possible. Not 0% chance of existence but basically 0 anyway. There almost certainly is no God.

I agree ( I assume we're talking here about any God related in a holy book, who answers prayers etc...).
You can't say that about a God who would have created the universe and then let it evolve without interfering.

I think the Christian religion was set up so it's believers are in a win-win situation.

I can't understand that. There is as many different Gods as your imagination can create, as many possible Heaven and Hell (with specific conditions to have access to it after you die) as you want. So how can a christian say he's in a win-win situation ? His chances to be right and to go to Heaven are 1 out of the number of gods which means 1 out of the infinite = 0 exactly like the atheists.
But at least atheists don't piss off the 'real' god by worshipping a false one .

[Edwardo Piet]

I think he's about as close to being disproved as possible. Not 0% chance of existence but basically 0 anyway. There almost certainly is no God.

I agree ( I assume we're talking here about any God related in a holy book, who answers prayers etc...).
You can't say that about a God who would have created the universe and then let it evolve without interfering.[/quote]
Well yes because a theistic God would be much more complex than a deist God. Because he has to create so much.
But for a deist God to get the universe going, by design, he'd still have to be an amazing mathematician. He'd still almost certainly not exist. He'd not be quite as close to 0. Not as close to 0 as basically possible. But still basically 0. Still extremely close to zero.
It would be much simpler for a very very simple singularity of some kind (whether its big-bang or whatever) to exist in the first place without a designer. Because the designer himself offers a much much, far far bigger explanation than the singularity. IF God is indeed himself that singularity, so he is in comparison to everything else, ultimately simple and he has zero mind and intelligence - why call him God? That's just the big-bang singularity or something similar, not God! Why call it God? You might as well call a rock God. Or a bush. Or a parrot. Or a dinosaur fossil.

I think the Christian religion was set up so it's believers are in a win-win situation.

You replied with:

I can't understand that. There is as many different Gods as your imagination can create, as many possible Heaven and Hell (with specific conditions to have access to it after you die) as you want. So how can a christian say he's in a win-win situation ? His chances to be right and to go to Heaven are 1 out of the number of gods which means 1 out of the infinite = 0 exactly like the atheists.
But at least atheists don't piss off the 'real' god by worshipping a false one .

Ha ha! Very good point.

[Spashie]

Why did I become an atheist?

Because I very highly doubt the existence of magical invisible beard man who lives in the sky.