Atheist/theist behaviour

[robvalue]

This is something that has intrigued me for a while, ever since I heard it. "Most of the time, theists live like atheists." I think it's true. When it comes to general mundane decision making and survival, that is what they do. And when they stray significantly from what atheists do, it works out badly for them. This is what I wanted to examine further.

Some easy examples:

An atheist looks both ways before crossing the street.
A theist thinks, "God is looking after me. But best be on the safe side...", looks both ways before crossing the street. Thinks, "God got me across the street."
A theist thinks, "God is looking after me. I don't need to look." Theist walks out into the road without looking. Theist gets hit by a car. 

An atheist goes to the doctor when they are ill. Gets better.
A theist thinks, "God is looking after me. But best be on the safe side...", and goes to the doctor when they are ill, and prays. Gets better. Thinks, "God made me better."
A theist thinks, "God is looking after me. I don't need to go to the doctor." Theist prays. Theist gets very ill.

And so on. What the theist is doing, minus irrelevancies like praying and attributing things to god, is exactly the same. When it isn't, they come off worse.

This is open to anyone to discuss, and to think of any more interesting examples of when theists behave like atheists, or times they differ and how that works out for them. My point is that basically theists are acting like they don't believe god is looking after them, betraying their professed beliefs.

[thesummerqueen]

The caveat to this is that "god helps those who help themselves."

[robvalue]

Yeah, someone pulled that on me recently.

My counter is to correct it to this:

"God only helps those who helps themselves, and no more than they help themselves."

[Spooky]

Somebody is invariably going to mention vaccinations...

[Homeless Nutter]

I'm an a-theist-ist. I don't believe anyone actually believes any of that god sh*t. It's either an elaborate prank, or the so-called theists think pretending to be brain-dead morons is cute.

[watchamadoodle]

It seems that most theists consult God when atheism does not provide an answer.
I see Christianity as metaphysical naturalism with God applied in the knowledge gaps.

[robvalue]

Sure, they consult God. But where does that get them? What actual difference does it make?

It seems like they act like atheists, sit down and pray and talk to God and whatever else for a bit, then go back to acting like atheists.

I guess just randomly attributing things to God is enough evidence for them that it's "working". If I manage to get across the road without being run over, I'll praise myself for being really good at stuff.

[watchamadoodle]

Sure, they consult God. But where does that get them? What actual difference does it make?

It seems like they act like atheists, sit down and pray and talk to God and whatever else for a bit, then go back to acting like atheists.

I guess just randomly attributing things to God is enough evidence for them that it's "working". If I manage to get across the road without being run over, I'll praise myself for being really good at stuff.

When an atheist can't decide, he/she flips a coin.
When a theist can't decide, he/she prays and looks for a sign.

It's interesting, because geomancy is a very ancient religious belief that people can discern the will of God by throwing dirt into the air, looking at tea leaves, etc. The Jews had the urim and thummim.

I remember how stressful it used to be to make important decisions as a Christian: "I feel a little twinge in my chest? Does that mean the Holy Spirit wants me to choose chocolate instead of vanilla?"

[Aoi Magi]

theistic rule of thumb:
Anything good happens, praise god.
If nothing happens, praise god (or he might get angry).
If something bad happens, find excuse or blame the devil (but praise the lord anyway, just to be safe).


atheistic rule of thumb:
Anything good happens, appreciate and enjoy it.
Nothing happens, keep trying.
If something bad happens, learn from it and move on.

[robvalue]

Watch: wow, I really can't imagine how that must feel. It must be so weird! I do understand how stressful that must be though, trying to interpret random stuff as having meaning. So did you really believe you were getting messages?

Aoi: sounds about right. The old "heads God wins, tails God doesn't lose" trick.

In my opinion pretty much all that is needed to keep a theist in a feedback loop of delusion is the placebo effect and confirmation bias. In a nutshell, that is what religion relies on.