Convertion

[dagda]

I have an occult friend. He used to be an atheist. You might be wondering where I am going with this, well I'm here to ask what are peoples opinions on the occult?

[leo-rcc]

I think it is just as silly as any cult and superstition.

[Kyuuketsuki]

I have an occult friend. He used to be an atheist. You might be wondering where I am going with this, well I'm here to ask what are peoples opinions on the occult?

As unprovable as any other superstitious claim.

Kyu

[allan175]

I agree, it is no different than any other belief/religion.

As I said to Daystar when he was here, the word "atheist" may be saying "non-belief in a god" but just as equally, to me at least, it says "non-belief in *any* supernatural thing".
Whether that is god or witchcraft or psychics it doesn't matter.

[leo-rcc]

At JREF thats referred to as Woo. Woo-woo (or just plain woo) refers to ideas considered irrational or based on extremely flimsy evidence or that appeal to mysterious occult forces or powers.

I know that some atheists do believe in stuff like spirits and reincarnation, just not in a god or gods. The Raëlian movement for example.

[dagda]

At JREF thats referred to as Woo. Woo-woo (or just plain woo) refers to ideas considered irrational or based on extremely flimsy evidence or that appeal to mysterious occult forces or powers.

I know that some atheists do believe in stuff like spirits and reincarnation, just not in a god or gods. The Raëlian movement for example.

Why do you use irrational and based on flimsy evidence in the same context? They are not the same. Life is irrational.
Also, occult forces are hardly any more irrarional than any other belief that humankind has ever possesed. Communism for instance; compleatly irrational and based on humankinds better nature. Was never going to work.

[LukeMC]

Life is irrational.

Could you expand on that a little?

Also, occult forces are hardly any more irrarional than any other belief that humankind has ever possesed. Communism for instance; compleatly irrational and based on humankinds better nature. Was never going to work.

Okay, so communism was irrational. This doesn't make the occult any more rational or any less ridiculous.

[leo-rcc]

Why do you use irrational and based on flimsy evidence in the same context?

Because basing your beliefs on flimsy evidence is irrational. You may use it as a hunch and investigate but basing your belief system on it is just as silly as basing your belief in old scripture.

They are not the same. Life is irrational.

No it isn't, it's a beautiful biological process.

Also, occult forces are hardly any more irrarional than any other belief that humankind has ever possesed. Communism for instance; compleatly irrational and based on humankinds better nature. Was never going to work.

Communism is based on the possibilities of humans. No supernatural deity or spirituality is required there, but the willingness to participate in the commune. Now of course it doesn't work, because human nature is not equipped to work in a social structure like that.

Th occult has absolutely nothing to do with any social structure, it is just as much believing stuff you have no solid basis for as any other superstition.

[Eilonnwy]

When I first became a non-christian I thought maybe I should explore other stuff. I tried reading witchcraft books and basically seeing if other religions were appealing. I never got far because I realized that when I came to the conclusion that Catholicism was BS I couldn't bring myself to think any other religion was plausible. I also tried to get into the whole idea of spiritualism (whatever that is) and found myself jsut dismissing. I shed my catholicism not because I investigated it but because when I started thinking cognitively, I became a natural skeptic. And after I became that skeptical person, then I started to be call myself an atheist.

The point being that an atheist is not the same as being a rational/skeptical person. A lack of believe in god does not mean a lack of belief in other superstitious BS. So you can be an atheist for irrational reasons and therefore be prone to harbor other irrational beliefs. Bill Maher is an example. He's an atheist (who refuses to say he's an atheist) and believes in homeopathy and antivaccination BS. So while many atheists are rational/sleptical people it's not really the case. So what I think is your friend is into just another religion, godless or not.