Why do some atheists say that "life has no meaning"

What you're saying is merely the brainwashing dogma fed to you in your youth (again!). And your dogma is made a liar every minute of every day in every corner of the planet.

What you're saying is that only superstition and a belief in the supernatural lend life meaning. Clearly you haven't thought that through - AT ALL, because the implications are no where near what you probably think they are.

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I guess you did. It sucks when someone points out the grand flaw in something you've held dear for years. Especially if that something was 'gifted' to you by an authority figure.

 

I believe that Yahweh is a man-made construct created by the ancient Jewish people as a War God. I believe in the existence of a God, but not the one that is being discussed within this thread. Not all theists are Christians.

 

with respect, it's possible your feeling that something must be believed in is residual to early indoctrination. one of the key demonisations dished out is the hackneyed old nonsense "if you don't believe in something, you'll fall for anything" - with the residual implication that that anything would be satan. it's so outlandishly simplistic that when someone puts it out there as a serious thing, I can't help but think they're either intellectually disabled, or so deep in the woo that the brain shut down decades ago.

but if you really feel you must engage some mode of thought which meets this indoctrinated criteria, why not 'LOVE WELL, BE KIND, LAUGH ALOT, AND CONSIDER EVERY DAY A GIFT' or some other such motto. or how about committing to the preservation of the planet? or the betterment of the disenfranchised? or some political organisation? there are 50 squizillion things to believe in - most of which will enhance your life in some way. considerably, in fact, since they'd be real. pink fluffy unicorns (or gods) are at best, a mental hug provided by your own self. and what a grandiose waste of all that good human energy, to give it to an unknowable - and therefore meaningless - supernatural unitity!

 

With respect, but if you say (whyever) that “committing to the preservation of the planet? or the betterment of the disenfranchised? or some political organization” are something worth believing in while belief in God is not, you overlook that these beliefs aren’t mutually exclusive. Often it was their belief in God that spurred people on to stand up for the very causes you too seemingly stand up for. At least you would stand up for them if you didn’t waste your energy here not posting about social justice but about your disbelief in God (with a fervor that would make the most proselytizing evangelists look lame in comparison).

Here are but a few examples of Christians “committing to the preservation of the planet? or the betterment of the disenfranchised? or some political organization”:

http://catholicclimatecovenant.org/catholic-teachings/pope-francis/

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/23/desmond-tutu-condemns-uganda-proposed-anti-gay-law

http://www.haverford.edu/relg/faculty/amcguire/romero.html

[video=youtube;smEqnnklfYs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs[/video]

 

what am I proselytizing for?

meantime, if you're suggesting that belief in invisible cloud beings is equivalent to 'believing' in a earthly cause, then there's probably not much point communicating - other than to say that every ounce of your good human energy is of value to the world. wasting an ounce of that energy on an unknowable, very slight possibility - and a ghastly one at that - is close to an obscenity. when you factor in the motive for such a waste of good human energy (I'm too special to die and/or I'm scared of hell), it qualifies.

 

Your atheism

If you had ever cared to listen, you could know by now that nobody who believes in God actually believes in invisible cloud beings. So there is probably indeed not much point trying to communicate with you.

If you think that having faith in eternal justice (Mt 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”) is a waste of energy, even though this faith inspired millions of people, such as Rev Martin Luther King, to stand up for justice on this earth, it once more shows that you haven’t got the slightest clue about the religion you despise and the motives of its followers. And what has atheism ever motivated that could be considered as “of value”? And please don’t say “science”. Otherwise I’ll break down laughing.

 

Lol! You really get offended easily, don't you? Why are you so threatened by the things that I say? Look at all the blind assumptions you make. Never would it occur to you that I was an atheist at six years old and did not believe in God until much later in life.

 

It founded communism. Which has killed more people throughout history than all of the world religions combined .......but that probably doesn't help his case any.

 

Let's stay fair. Atheism was hardly the motivating factor for communism. And there are very many Christian communists. It is true though that the track-record of political systems with atheism as declared state-religion isn't the brightest when it comes to human rights.

 

snorffles

don't touch Norway, whatever you do. just cling to a few historical despots - it'll make everything your Pasta says seem true!

 

how does one proselytise for atheism? will I need to knock on peoples' doors and tell them they're doomed if they don't believe in the same .......... ah .............. real stuff? that's a good idea - I might start next week. will keep you posted on how it goes. I plan to start in a well known hive of Christians, so it should be interesting

since atheism is simply rejecting the claims made by religions, how would this inspire, exactly? does your not collecting stamps inspire anyone? I suppose it could inspire in the same way that not taking drugs does, so there's that. perhaps there are those out there who might be inspired to a more ethical and honest existence, in which case the abandonment of corrupt dogmas would be a step in the right direction.

regarding your science amusement - how do you feel about the fact that something like 90% of scientists are atheists?

 

So Norway has a political system with atheism as declared state-religion? Nope
Or is Norway your answer to my as of yet unanswered question in the other thread? No, it's not a country with a majority of atheists either:

" According to the most recent Eurobarometer Poll 2010,[5]

22% of Norwegian citizens responded that "they believe there is a God".
44% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force".
29% answered that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force".
5% answered that they "do not know"."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Norway

 

You remind me of that doombug critter. His method of 'dealing' with challenges was to announce that those challenging him were offended and/or hysterical. The poor love had absolutely nothing, so scraped the very bottom of the barrel to retain a semblance of face. I actually felt bad for him sometimes, as whoever had brainwashed him hadn't seen fit to arm him with the necessary weapons for survival in the post-faith era.

 

Not true. The two are very much interlinked. Aside from the fact that Karl Marx was an atheist, communist regimes typically view religion (and Christianity in particular) as an obstacle to creating an obedient society. Stalin destroyed churches in an effort to subvert his people's religious faith and coerce them into never looking anywhere for anything other than the state.

The belief that there is no god ultimately creates an unquenchable need to create Heaven on Earth. Which is what inevitably leads to all the totalitarianism, violence, and destruction. Because there is no belief that there will be any greater justice after this life.

 

You don't need to knock on doors. You've got access to the internet.

I rest my case: it doesn't inspire anything worthwhile and thus is useless.

The abandonment of corrupt dogmas is always a step in the right direction but it doesn't necessitate to throw the baby out with the bath.
My own dissatisfaction with some Church dogmata and politics never made me doubt God. It made me doubt that the people who hold to these dogmata and politics really understood Him.

A) I would doubt this number
B) even if it was true, it would no more make atheism the motivating factor for science than the fact that most communists were atheists makes atheism the motivating factor for communism.

 

what utter nonsense! how is that you're unable to see the fact that totalitarian regimes are effectively indistinguishable from theocracies? take a society accustomed to the subservient veneration of authority, add a good dash of superstition, and hey presto, you have a dictatorship of one sort or another - whether a god is allegedly at the helm, or a fat little despot.

you guys are laughably allergic to considering atheist SOCIETIES (because they instantly negate your preposterous claims that morality comes from sky fairies), and cling to the worst possible examples for demonstrating the evils of atheism. you'll never convince anyone but fellow theists that a society where authority worship is deeply ingrained is a good example of atheism. in fact, what it tells you is that people disposed towards veneration are far more likely to become the victims of despots - real or imagined.

 

I should hope very much that belief in God creates an unquenchable need to create Heaven on Earth as well. We're supposed to work in His wineyard. Which doesn't mean we always agree on how to best do God's will on earth. And while I personally lean more toward Christian anarchy quite a lot of us didn't see Marx's negative remarks about religion as a hindering factor to become Communist. After all Marx also said: "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions."https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1843/critique-hpr/intro.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_communism

 

indeed .... and I do my best to fight the good fight via the electronicals

I'm sure you'll agree that a desire to live honestly and ethically is NEVER useless. if one desires, above all else, to live thusly, religious dogmas are probably the worst possible option. one is compelled to compromise one's native morality to support a monster, and forced into dishonesty to support patently false claims. I'm frankly surprised that you think honesty and ethical living isn't worthwhile.

that number of scientists is conservative, incidentally. but I didn't mention it to try to claim something, I just wanted to hear how this information impacts a theist. especially an intelligent and scientifically knowledgeable one.

 

Believe whatever you want, bro. I'm not in the mood to try to reason with the unreasonable this morning.

 

Are you kidding?

I doubt that they would want to put the NY Times reputation on the line with publishing that the earth is 6000 years old? That that a small portion of the people will meet their ghost pal floating on a cloud then fly off to the promised land on gossamer wings and enter pearly gates and live behind walls in a restricted compound for all eternity floating around singing hymns of praise while those who disagree burn in a lake of fire and brimstone That they believe a flood covered the earth to a depth of five miles and evaporated within a year, that big fish puked up live men, that seas separated for the good guys and drowned the bad guys who were chasing them, and walls fell at the sound of a trumpet, that a human was turned into a pillar of salt in her tracks, that men lived through a 1200 degree furnace, that the earth stood still, that the ten commandments were presented to one man by god in the form of a burning bush, etc. I suppose walking on water, feeding five thousand plus women and children who also ate with two fish and five loaves then gathering 12 baskets of leftovers, turning water into fine wine, healing by touching, raising from the dead, etc......virgin birth and resurrection count too.

I suppose after reading a story based on that bullschit firing is a mild handling of people who should have been candidates for an insane asylum.

 

Quote??

It's the opening remarks in our declaration of independence:

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html

 

To survive. Now, why obufuscate the meaning of life with survival?

 

Please explain how it led to the Crusades, the Inquisition just for starters.

 

There is no logical explanation. Exactly like what's going on in the middle east right now involving Sunnis, Shiites and other regional beliefs.

Most wars, the Crusades, the Inquisitions, 9/11, blowing up girl's schools, the suppression of women and homosexuals, arranged marriages to minors, ethnic cleansing, the systematic raping of children, human sacrifice, burning witches, suicide bombings, condoning slavery.....if one can just overlook a few things religion has never done any harm. I find it very difficult to overlook any part of it.

 

Wow! You sure seem to be angry or hate filled.