Why do you not believe in the concept of a God?

[johndoe122931]

I made an earlier post called “Why do you hate God”, and needless to say I was quickly and rightfully corrected as to how I structured the question and the incoherent post that followed. For all that responded I thank you for your positive criticism of it and how I can better word my comments.

Now my intent in all this is that I really want to hear from you all as individuals as to why you do not believe in a God or more accurately the concept of a God. I would like to hear what we as Christians call your “testimony” or story as to why you came to the conclusion that you have.

I know there is a list a mile long as to reasons why people do not believe and that’s great, but I am more interested in hearing from the individual as to why they personally do not. What lead you to become an atheist? Were you a believer before you became an atheist? What happened to cause you to turn away from your faith? What religion or God did you follow before you became an atheist if any at all? When you turned away from God what did your friends and family say or do?

I am interested to hear the impact it had on your life. Was it a positive one or a negative one? Are you still struggling with the outcome of your choice? How does it feel to be free from such ideologies and beliefs?

I know there are multiple questions involved with this, but they all together form the story of your personal choice and I think it to be better framed in this way instead of making multiple threads to get the same answer.

I thank you all for your patience and understanding and please feel free to correct me when necessary, on how I can better understand and communicate more efficiently. Thank you for your time!

[Jackie]

I made an earlier post called “Why do you hate God”, and needless to say I was quickly and rightfully corrected as to how I structured the question and the incoherent post that followed. For all that responded I thank you for your positive criticism of it and how I can better word my comments.

Now my intent in all this is that I really want to hear from you all as individuals as to why you do not believe in a God or more accurately the concept of a God. I would like to hear what we as Christians call your “testimony” or story as to why you came to the conclusion that you have.

I know there is a list a mile long as to reasons why people do not believe and that’s great, but I am more interested in hearing from the individual as to why they personally do not. What lead you to become an atheist? Were you a believer before you became an atheist? What happened to cause you to turn away from your faith? What religion or God did you follow before you became an atheist if any at all? When you turned away from God what did your friends and family say or do?

I am interested to hear the impact it had on your life. Was it a positive one or a negative one? Are you still struggling with the outcome of your choice? How does it feel to be free from such ideologies and beliefs?

I know there are multiple questions involved with this, but they all together form the story of your personal choice and I think it to be better framed in this way instead of making multiple threads to get the same answer.

I thank you all for your patience and understanding and please feel free to correct me when necessary, on how I can better understand and communicate more efficiently. Thank you for your time!

Because God/god/gods concepts explain nothing but the wishful thinking of the claimant. And I do mean all god claims made in human history.

The universe is 13.8 billion years old, our planet is 4 billion years old. Our species in it's current form has only been around about 200,000 years, as to which human writing and organized religion has only been around 10,000 years. It seems to me a ton of waste all that time to get to humans if humans are supposed to be the center of everything in the universe.

It makes much more logical sense to me that humans make up religions and god claims as a sense of false comfort.

[Kitan Etos]

[no one]

Because I can think.

[brewer]

Because I've never been provided any concrete evidence of a god(s) existing in reality. Until that time they will remain a product of the human mind.

[johndoe122931]

[Abaddon_ire]

Johndoe

You said you are IFB.

I would ask you then to explain why you hate Zeus, if you would be so kind.

[awty]

I was raised Catholic by a Catholic father and Methodist mother. Neither one put much stock in religion though I was put through the paces of a Catholic upbringing to include Catechism classes on Saturday mornings till I ended up in Catholic schools in the 6th grade and on through high school.

There was never a time that I really believed any of it. I just went along with the rituals because that's what we did. I saw the Bible as not really different from any other fairy tale and was actually surprised to find out that some people believe it's an historical account.

Various things happened along the way and I prayed fervently for god to help. He didn't. I keep trying to believe but it just didn't take with me. In my early 20s I finally realized that I really didn't believe I had just been told that I believe. Some time spent searching for a new faith practice led me to figure out that I didn't have to pretend to believe. Not really any anger or hatred, just nothing. Whatever it is that others claim to feel didn't happen to me. And that's okay.

[johndoe122931]

I was raised Catholic by a Catholic father and Methodist mother.  Neither one put much stock in religion though I was put through the paces of a Catholic upbringing to include Catechism classes on Saturday mornings till I ended up in Catholic schools in the 6th grade and on through high school.

There was never a time that I really believed any of it.  I just went along with the rituals because that's what we did.  I saw the Bible as not really different from any other fairy tale and was actually surprised to find out that some people believe it's an historical account.

Various things happened along the way and I prayed fervently for god to help.  He didn't.  I keep trying to believe but it just didn't take with me.  In my early 20s I finally realized that I really didn't believe I had just been told that I believe.  Some time spent searching for a new faith practice led me to figure out that I didn't have to pretend to believe.  Not really any anger or hatred, just nothing.  Whatever it is that others claim to feel didn't happen to me.  And that's okay.

Thank you for sharing your story with us. If I may ask, how does your family feel about you being an atheist? Interesting to see a Catholic believer be with a Methodist believer. Was there much contention between the two of them? I see how you went through Catechism, did that help you or hurt you more with your relationship or understanding of God?

---

Johndoe

You said you are IFB.

I would ask you then to explain why you hate Zeus, if you would be so kind.

Good morning Abaddon,

I'm sorry, but I don't think this is the appropriate thread to answer such a question.

Although I would love to hear why you do not believe in the concept of a God. If you would be so kind as to share your story it would be greatly appreciated!

[Jackie]

I was raised Catholic by a Catholic father and Methodist mother.  Neither one put much stock in religion though I was put through the paces of a Catholic upbringing to include Catechism classes on Saturday mornings till I ended up in Catholic schools in the 6th grade and on through high school.

There was never a time that I really believed any of it.  I just went along with the rituals because that's what we did.  I saw the Bible as not really different from any other fairy tale and was actually surprised to find out that some people believe it's an historical account.

Various things happened along the way and I prayed fervently for god to help.  He didn't.  I keep trying to believe but it just didn't take with me.  In my early 20s I finally realized that I really didn't believe I had just been told that I believe.  Some time spent searching for a new faith practice led me to figure out that I didn't have to pretend to believe.  Not really any anger or hatred, just nothing.  Whatever it is that others claim to feel didn't happen to me.  And that's okay.

Thank you for sharing your story with us. If I may ask, how does your family feel about you being an atheist? Interesting to see a Catholic believer be with a Methodist believer. Was there much contention between the two of them? I see how you went through Catechism, did that help you or hurt you more with your relationship or understanding of God?

---

Johndoe

You said you are IFB.

I would ask you then to explain why you hate Zeus, if you would be so kind.

Good morning Abaddon,

I'm sorry, but I don't think this is the appropriate thread to answer such a question.

Although I would love to hear why you do not believe in the concept of a God. If you would be so kind as to share your story it would be greatly appreciated!

Why isn't it an appropriate question?

Abaddon is merely trying to demonstrate why your logic is bad. What you are doing is selection bias. There are a myriad of god claims you rightfully reject. Try thinking about why you reject Zeus and not the one you believe to be true. 

Abaddon is merely saying you reject Zeus for the same reason Abaddon rejects the one you believe in. The only difference between a theist and an atheist is that we reject one more god claim than you do.