New and Exciting

[ThePinsir]

Only a few months ago I started to question my beliefs. Only a few weeks ago did I "officially" renounce my faith and admit to myself I was an atheist.

It was really watching George Carlin who started my "descent". From then I started watching Richard Dawkins debates and interviews, documentaries on evolution, panel discussions with physicists, youtube atheists like DarkMatter2525. Right now I'm almost done with The Ancestor's Tale by Richard Dawkins. Next I wanna read Krauss' A Universe From Nothing. Hell, I've already got a pretty long list of books to read that my Mom probably wouldn't approve of lol. It's all like previously forbidden knowledge lol. Not to mention I've been spending a lot of time on this forum and atheist-related FB pages.

The point of the thread: for me atheism is still new and exciting. But does it ever die down and just become a background thing? After the "novelty" wears off...then what?

[Tonus]

The point of the thread: for me atheism is still new and exciting. But does it ever die down and just become a background thing? After the "novelty" wears off...then what?

You settle in and continue living your life. We're adaptable creatures, and we can become used to just about anything, given enough time.

[Minimalist]

But does it ever die down and just become a background thing? After the "novelty" wears off...then what?

Then some idiot jesus freak shows up and reminds you what a bunch of silly shits they are.

[Darkstar]

The point of the thread: for me atheism is still new and exciting. But does it ever die down and just become a background thing?

Maybe. I became an atheist about three years ago. I didn't make a big deal about it, but once I started researching religion, etc. and came here, it was "new and exciting". Now? Not quite as much, but I still find it interesting.

I am less enthusiastic about giving my full intellectual attention to refuting the bad arguments for religion that everyone has heard a thousand times than I was when I first joined (and I know which arguments those are). Does that mean that I care less about atheism? I don't know. I guess it depends on how much you think your being an atheist defines something about you. Probably more so in a country where they are a disdained minority than one where irreligiosity is the norm. But like Minimalist said, you'll remember why atheism matters pretty quickly when someone tries to shove their religious dogma down your throat, or tries to interfere with science.

[ElleBelle]

But does it ever die down and just become a background thing? After the "novelty" wears off...then what?

Then some idiot jesus freak shows up and reminds you what a bunch of silly shits they are.

I was in the atheist lull once, then someone tried to witness to me at the vending machine on my break at work.

[Simon Moon]

Atheism will most likely just become part of your background.

I have several atheist friends, and out of all of us, I am the only one that debates it online. They just go about their lives, careers, loving their families, etc.

When I am away from a computer, I barely think about it, unless something triggers it.

[Shaggy]

It's been about a year for me, and to me it's still interesting. Like everything else the luster wears off, but it hasn't gotten old for me yet. This site has already increased the level of interest and knowledge I have of it. Like Simon Moon said, I don't think about it regularly away from the computer unless someone brings up religion or I see something that triggers it.

[Cyberman]

I basically concur with all the above, though for me atheism has always been the factory setting since I've never found anything even remotely compelling in the god-squad camp. Yet the world still turns, the seasons wax and wane, the days come and go. I can't say I've kept the same fire that I had when I first encountered the online community, such as it is - years of seeing the same rubberduck dogma over and over again like repeats of The Simpsons will do that for you - but I do still manage to keep up. Like others before me, I too tend not to have much to do with this stuff afk. Even those who know of my atheist leanings often either forget, since it's not generally a component of life in these parts, or don't speak of it for the same reason.

There was a time a year or so ago when Shell mentioned my atheism in unfamiliar company, to which one guy with a personal revelation to grind started challenging me to explain or refute his 'divine' experience. Even he clammed up after I told him I don't play those games.

So yeah, basically it's a background thing, though it does tend to colour one's perception in terms of critical thinking and researching actual facts. I find reality, in that sense, far more interesting than any god tale.

Oh, and welcome to the dark side, new recruit.