I just don't get it

[ScepticOrganism]

This might have been discussed before, but I'm really unable to understand it.

Today I've been discussing atheism with my friends (Muslims) and believe me, they're quite intelligent. At any rate, after I gave them plenty of strong arguments and cornered them, all they could say was " I believe deep down that there is a god".

Now this got me thinking (which is strange now that I think about it, since I've listened to this argument countless of times before and this has been discussed very often on these forums)

What kind of process that led me to become an atheist, that for some reason did not occur to them? I'm not a special snowflake for pit sakes.

I think intelligence is not the issue here, I know I can't convince you guys, but these friends of mine are really scientifically versed. Richard Dawkins, and many others, often said that these people are stuck in some kind of "child stage". 

I think it has to do with their "character", but I am very hesitant to say that, since I wouldn't consider myself to be a courageous person. In fact, I've had atheist friends who were particularly shy and introvert.

So what gives?

[robvalue]

I put about 90% of it down to indoctrination and/or being soaked in mythology. I agree that it very much resembles a child-like form of thinking, which part of their brain has become trapped in. "Arguments" they put forward are just rationalizations for their emotionally based belief.

I recently posted a video from Darkmatter2525 which covers this exact topic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y201QzDdzbg

[ScepticOrganism]

I put about 90% of it down to indoctrination and/or being soaked in mythology. I agree that it very much resembles a child-like form of thinking, which part of their brain has become trapped in. "Arguments" they put forward are just rationalizations for their emotionally based belief.

I recently posted a video from Darkmatter2525 which covers this exact topic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y201QzDdzbg

Fascinating video indeed! I guess my question is, how am I different? We both went through the same indoctrination, and I honestly consider them way smarter than myself. Heck, At a certain point I was even a Salafist....

[robvalue]

Yeah, I'm not entirely sure.

My best guess at the moment is that some people are naturally more sceptical and better at critical thinking. For such people, the indoctrination just "doesn't take" so easily, or at all.

I wasn't religiously indoctrinated, so I often wonder what would have become of me. I like to think it wouldn't have stuck. But it's impossible to tell.

It might also have something to do with how comfortable you are being different to other people.

[ScepticOrganism]

Interesting, I've never considered it before. I wonder if there is some kind of research being done on this matter. I hope one of the more prominent atheists shed light on it.

[robvalue]

I think it would make a very interesting study.

It is probably way more complicated than I imagine, being subject to a myriad of factors.

[AFTT47]

It's emotional bias. ALL people suffer from it; it's the way our brains are wired. We are biased against theism. We have an advantage in that our bias is in agreement with logic and science. That can easily lead us to think we're smarter but we're not. The only reason we embrace science and reason is that that's our emotional bias.

[robvalue]

That makes sense. It's what we are comfortable with, and how we cope with reality. We all have to cope one way or another.

[Gawdzilla]

I was raised in a household where God wasn't a factor. Never went to church until I was seven, when Mom decided it would be "good for you". We got up on Sunday morning, my brother and I, and went to the church down the block for Sunday School. Mom stayed in bed. Hey, it was Sunday morning, after all. I went three weeks before they sent a note home asking that I not come back. The Noah story had made me ask questions they didn't like. Since then, fifty-eght years have passed without religion intruding in any important fashion into my private life. I would say, if asked, "I'm not religious enough to call myself an atheist."

But you're here! Yeah, and "Expelled, No Intelligence Allowed" caused me to realize that the opposition, the fanatically religious, were not living like I was.

[Joods]

For me, given all the shit I've dealt with IRL, I just could no longer believe that such a loving god would allow the continual suffering of certain situations. I asked so many questions and the answers I received were never really answers at all. Maybe people are driven to have faith or believe through some internal fear. Maybe they have questioned it like myself, but are afraid to take that leap into just accepting that there is no god, simply because that fear is stuck in their head and they are focused on the "what if" instead of focusing on the reality.

As for myself, there is nothing in any supposed after life that could be so horrible as the hell I have been put through here on earth. A prime example is the fact that my ex has unjustly used parental alienation for the last 17 months to keep my oldest daughter who is now 20, and deemed incapacitated by the courts, away from me. I cannot get closure from this. Knowing that she is less than five miles away and I have zero access to her, is literally killing me inside. I have suffered the death of my twins, 25 years ago. I have closure from that. But not seeing a child that is still living and not being given any reason for it, you can't get closure from that. There is no relief. This is my hell. Why an "all loving, all powerful" god would let this go on, I have no words for.

I cannot believe in an imaginary creature and I am amazed at the number of people who, despite their own personal struggles with life things, still believe that such a creature is kind and loving. I cannot wrap my head around that at all. So I blame that internal fear they have. Perhaps they think that if they stop believing, their life will somehow get worse? Maybe they can't get it into their heads that because there is no god, they are 100% accountable for everything they do and that there really isn't a "god plan". Maybe it's some sort of comfort issue with them. I don't know. I honestly don't think anyone has all the answers because we are all individuals and for those that do believe, their answers will vary.