Atheists: Can You Still Accept X'n Friends?

[Patrick33]

I remember moving to Jakarta for work. Eager to make friends I was pleased to meet a nice couple and we seemed to be getting on well. Then it emerged they were Christians and everything changed for me. A whole topic of conversation was now to be avoided, there was mutual judgement of each other and I knew we'd never share an evening down the pub together drinking too much. Yes, I have Christian friends, but I'll never be as close to them as I will others...

[rado84]

Though I guess not everyone here is an atheist, I am. I'm finding it harder and harder to remain friends with believers.
This question is directed at other atheists. So, if you reply, please state first whether or not you are an atheist. If an atheist, please also state if you are a Type 1 or Type 2 atheist, as defined below. :-)
Question:
As an atheist, do you find you are still able to be friends with believers?
What I've found is that there are 2 basic types of atheists:
1) Simply don't believe in god, but don't mind if others do
2) Don't believe in god because they think it's a dangerous fairytale

I am in the second group. My hunch is that people in the first group can still be friends with believers. 
So, more specifically: If you are a 'Type 2 atheist,' are you still able to be friends with believers? If so, doesn't it cause significant 'cognitive dissonance' (mental confusion/stress)?
Thx, D

I'm a Type 3 atheist - a combination of Type 1 and Type 2. I have 3 believing friends - one is a christian and the other 2 are muslims. They don't give a shit I'm an atheist and don't feel the need to convert me and I don't feel the need to convert them, so we get along just fine with them.

[Disciple]

Let's go over the greatest hits of the past three years shall we.  

US:- 4-15-13  Remember the Boston bombing? 3 dead 103 maimed and crippled.

UK: 5-22-13   A British soldier had his head cut off in the street. 

Kenya: 9-21-13  Shopping mall attack 67 dead 175 maimed and crippled.

Nigeria 9-29-13 Gujba college massacre 44 dead.

China: 10-28-13 In Beijing a vehicle attack crushed 5 people to death and changed 38 forever

Yemen: 12-5-13  Sana'a attack 56 dead 152 injured.

China: 3-1-14 Kunming railway station, 28 dead 143 wounded.

Syria: 8-?-14 Tribal genocide  700 people killed.

Russia: 10-5-14 Grozny bombing, 6 people killed 21 injured.

Canada: 10-20-14, Two Canadian soldiers ran over by car 1 dead one was injured.

Canada 10-22-14, Canadian soldier killed at war memorial and then attacked parliament.

U.S. 10-23-14, Subway hatchet attack on police 1 dead 5 injured.

Nigeria: 11-28-14, kano bombing, 120  people dead 260 maimed and permanently disabled. 

Philippines: 12-9-2014, Bukidnon bus bombing, 11 killed 43 wounded.

Australia: 12-15-14, Sydney hostage crisis  3 people killed, 4 changed forever.

Pakistan: 12-16-14 Peshawar school massacre 140 people killed 132 of which were children.

France: 12-21-14,  Dijon vehicle attack. 11 crushed to death and 11 injured.

Iraq: 12-24-14, 150 women killed for refusing to marry their attackers. 

France January 7–9, 2015 – A series of five attacks in and around Paris kill 17 people, plus three attackers, and leave 22 other people injured.


France January 9, 2015 – The Porte de Vincennes hostage crisis kills 4 and injures 9 people.




Egypt January 29, 2015 – January 2015 Sinai attacks. 44 killed, several wounded.



United States May 3, 2015 – Two gunmen attacked the Curtis Culwell Center during a 'Draw Muhammad' cartoon art exhibit in  . 2 dead (perpetrators) 1 injured





Mali November 20, 2015 – Bamako hotel attack. Gunmen yelling "Allahu Akbar" storm a hotel in Bamako, Mali. At least 19 killed, and more than 160 were taken hostage.



United States December 2, 2015 – In the 2015 San Bernardino attack, married couple  shot and killed 14 people and injured 22 others in a killing spree that the FBI was investigating as "act of terrorism"



Afghanistan January 1, 2016 – A Taliban suicide bomber detonated himself in a French restaurant called 'Le Jardin' in Kabul. 2 dead 15 injured



United States June 12, 2016 – 49 people were killed and 53 injured in a mass shooting at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida. The shooter, , pledged allegiance to ISIL by specifically calling police and journalists several times during the incident



Germany July 18, 2016 – A 17-year-old Afghan refugee injured five people seriously, two critically, with a knife and hatchet on a train near . The attacker was shot dead when he attacked the arriving police officers.



This doesn't begin to scratch the surface. I just got tired of typing.  But.... What about those disgusting Christians am I right?  You my friend are a fucking bigot!  What if somebody made a post asking if you could be friends with a gay person? Hows about a black person? What about if the question was asked of humanists if they could be friends with somebody that denies climate change? Everybody please excuse my excitement but im so tired of this kind of horse shit where people are talking about not being able to befriend people based on what they believe.. What is making you so angry man the fucking crusades 1500 years ago? Or because some dumbass said something mean about a gay person? Come off it please.. We have a group of people on the earth that would love nothing more than to put a  bullet in your fucking head for being an atheist and me as well for being a Christian. You think Christians hate the gays... we dont.  The majority of Muslims do though. Dont believe me, go check the polls. Same goes for women's rights and all forms of science denial. I have many friends that are atheists that I love dearly. You know how we maintain our friendships? We dont talk about shit that's gonna piss one of us off. Its quite easy really. Heated debates on the internet are fun and all dont get me wrong but in real life lets not divide each other based on such petty issues huh? Ive been all over the place on this one and I apologize to everybody except the OP. The OP can go toss a salad with his uptight bigoted ass. Take a look around dumdum. It aint the Christians you need to worry about. 

[Little lunch]

Actually, I look around and find myself unworried by x-tians and muslims.
It's just that it can be hard to maintain friendships with these people when we don't have as much in common.
Some of us find it hard to respect someone who believes in such nonsense and respect is something that good friendships really should include, is it not?

[Disciple]

Actually, I look around and find myself unworried by x-tians and muslims.
It's just that it can be hard to maintain friendships with these people when we don't have as much in common.
Some of us find it hard to respect someone who believes in such nonsense and respect is something that good friendships really should include, is it not?

Hey there.  Its hard to maintain friendships with individuals if you don't have much in common for sure. I'm almost positive my atheist friends I mentioned certainly don't respect my belief in a creator.  Its just how they see things. Its perfectly ok with me. Not a big deal at all really.  I guess what I was talking about moreso was rejecting a whole group of people based on a single facet of their belief system.  Just because you don't respect something about what a person believes on a single issue to me, doesn't mean you cant respect them as a person. Or viewing a single person as if they were  a group of people rather than an individual.  Oh, and if you aren't concerned about the invading hoards, you aren't living in the right part of your country.
 And also a side note. The way you guys type out the word Christian kills me lol. Xtian? really?    You know Crips and Bloods do that too right? For example, if a member of a blood gang is talking about Compton, he pronounces it bompton haha. Or if a Crip is making is  making graffiti and should need to use a letter B in his spelling he will substitute an x for it. Its pretty childish really. I consider myself a pretty childish dude so forgive me if I may borrow your idea from time to time.  Its pretty funny.

[Pat Mustard]

Though I guess not everyone here is an atheist, I am. I'm finding it harder and harder to remain friends with believers.
This question is directed at other atheists. So, if you reply, please state first whether or not you are an atheist. If an atheist, please also state if you are a Type 1 or Type 2 atheist, as defined below. :-)
Question:
As an atheist, do you find you are still able to be friends with believers?
What I've found is that there are 2 basic types of atheists:
1) Simply don't believe in god, but don't mind if others do
2) Don't believe in god because they think it's a dangerous fairytale

I am in the second group. My hunch is that people in the first group can still be friends with believers. 
So, more specifically: If you are a 'Type 2 atheist,' are you still able to be friends with believers? If so, doesn't it cause significant 'cognitive dissonance' (mental confusion/stress)?
Thx, D

As long as somebody isn't trying to shove their religion down my throat, or say they are better people simply because they believe in god(s), then I've no problem being friends with them. I've catholic friends (including those in holy orders), I've protestant friends (mostly anglican or other UK originating sects), I've buddhist friends, I've muslim friends, and I've got lots of friends who have a vague feeling that there is something out there looking over us but not really caring either way(pretty much the default Irish belief these days).

[Jesster]

Though I guess not everyone here is an atheist, I am. I'm finding it harder and harder to remain friends with believers.
This question is directed at other atheists. So, if you reply, please state first whether or not you are an atheist. If an atheist, please also state if you are a Type 1 or Type 2 atheist, as defined below. :-)
Question:
As an atheist, do you find you are still able to be friends with believers?
What I've found is that there are 2 basic types of atheists:
1) Simply don't believe in god, but don't mind if others do
2) Don't believe in god because they think it's a dangerous fairytale

I am in the second group. My hunch is that people in the first group can still be friends with believers. 
So, more specifically: If you are a 'Type 2 atheist,' are you still able to be friends with believers? If so, doesn't it cause significant 'cognitive dissonance' (mental confusion/stress)?
Thx, D

I'm a Type 3 atheist - a combination of Type 1 and Type 2. I have 3 believing friends - one is a christian and the other 2 are muslims. They don't give a shit I'm an atheist and don't feel the need to convert me and I don't feel the need to convert them, so we get along just fine with them.

I'd have to go with this answer too. I'm dating a Christian and I'm not trying to convert him in any way. I've also fallen in love with his very Christian family. As long as others don't do anything to make me uncomfortable about how they use their beliefs, it never really bothers me. However, I am also very aware of religious people who are potentially causing me harm. There's the obvious harm I see from politicians in my own country who want to make my existence illegal as well as the more violent behaviors I see overseas. Even more closely, my own parents want nothing to do with me anymore simply because who I am is against their religious beliefs. I'm also aware that if I went near most churches I'd likely receive a fair share of harassment. I don't take belief like that lightly.