Quote:
ILOVEJESUS wrote
I won't go through what Michael has already done so very well. If you are unable to grasp from that the similarities of both situations then that is your issue not mine. If you decided that you believed in a God, present the evidence that made you do that, I mean you didn't just decide to right? Something very Jerry about the way you are asking us questions and dismissing the answers you don't like to again try to set up another question you want a particular answer to. All atheism is is a disbelief in a god or gods. Nothing more. If you wish to change that round here you are going to need more than some "pothead philosophy" and ignorance to science. Just warning you.
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My posts here seem to have put you on the defensive for some reason and for that I am truly sorry. Yes, I was intentionally vague in my original post but I did that for two reasons; one, I was hoping to promote a good discussion and two, as I mentioned in another post, I was half-expecting to get flamed and ridiculed and so I kept my initial post short and sweet.
Yes, I have disagreed with some of the views posted here, but I'm not trying to "set up" any particular question. I stumbled onto this forum the other day when I was researching something and after spending a few days lurking and reading some of the posts, I decided to register and to start this thread. So I want you to understand that I didn't wake up one morning and think to myself, "Hey, I think I'm going to stir up some sh*t with a bunch of atheists today!" And, I'm certainly not naive enough to think that any of my views are going to change yours or anyone else's minds here, nor is it my agenda to change anyone's mind. I just saw this as a good opportunity to generate some discussion and to hopefully come away from the experience with something positive.
I read your post in a different section of the forum where you were asking others to share odd things they used to do when they believed. And in one of Michael's posts in this thread, he mentions the fact that he's only been an atheist for a few years. So clearly the two of you, and maybe others here as well, had some sort of beliefs at one time and now you don't. I find stories like that fascinating and maybe one day you will share them here (or maybe you already have and I just haven't come across them yet).
As for me, I'm pretty much the opposite. I held atheistic beliefs for most of my life until just about a year ago or so. I grew up with parents who, although I think they held certain beliefs, never really talked to me about religion or if they did, it never made an impression on me. The few times I stepped inside a church growing up were for a couple of funerals and a wedding.
So when I went to school and I learned about Darwin and evolution and the Big Bang and that things were a happy accident, I just accepted that. Frankly, I was too busy being a kid to worry about why I was here - there were bikes to ride, balls to throw around, games to play. As I got older, there were girls to kiss, golf clubs to swing, and guitars to be played and I was still too busy living and enjoying life to worry about why I had it in the first place. I suppose I probably wondered from time to time about whether I had a purpose in life, but if I did, the thoughts were fleeting. And I did question why, if there is a God, does the world have so many different religions. So yeah, I guess I was an "atheist," but only because I didn't really have the time for any of it nor did I care much one way or the other.
I work as an IT consultant and as such, I need to travel to client sites quite a bit. Shortly after I started my consulting gig, I had to do some work for this client who had their own in-house IT guy. This guy was probably a couple of years younger than me and a total douche from the word go. He would talk incessantly and generally went out of his way to prove how much he knew about the IT world. I think he felt slighted that his company didn't trust him enough and that they hired my consulting firm to come in and assist with some special projects. Needless to say, the guy was like nails on a chalkboard and extremely difficult to get along with - not my favorite person in the world. Whenever I would need to work there, I would just go in, say as little as possible to him, get my work done, and then get the hell out of there.
So about 2 1/2-years ago (and by this time, our relationship with his company was over, thank God) (wait, can I say that here?
), I get word that this guy passed away in his sleep. *poof* Just went to went sleep one night and never woke up. And despite all of his douche-baggery, I couldn't stop thinking about what happened to him and it didn't make any sense. The guy was so incredibly annoying so why, at the end of the day, did I really give a sh*t about what happened to him? But for some reason, his death touched me on a level that I didn't even know I had.
After that, I started picking up all kinds of religious materials and for the next year I couldn't get enough. After studying a bunch of stuff and pondering things for a while, I decided to "take a leap of faith" and believe that a God did exist. I don't think anyone here on earth will ever have enough definitive evidence to prove his existence beyond any doubt and so I think to believe in him, faith must be required. And I think that's the way he wants it to be. A God that has his hand in my life somehow is the only way I could rationalize why that guy's demise touched me so deeply and caused my "spiritual awakening." Is this any sort of hard proof that God does exist? Hardly. I don't expect you or anyone else here to change his/her views based on this story and I'm not looking to change anyone's mind. I'm just relaying this to you so you can see where I'm coming from. And I suppose I'm really opening myself up to some hardcore ridicule now on this forum, but so be it. ;-)
Peace