An Afterlife? (gotta love me^^)Follow

Do people who believe this Choose to believe it or do they see it as the only option as far as their perception of reality goes?


Only option. Who would choose Atheism were there any evidence at all for another option? Nhilsts?


In other words do atheists ever wonder about stuff somtimes?


Of course.


Do some of you actually 'wish' that there was somthing more, but your own logic strictly forbids the possibility?


Not my own logic, just logic. Complete lack of evidence of the devine precludes the possibility. What I 'wish' is that most people could reach a level of self esteem to accept the fact that there isn't some sort of devine influence.


DO you ever see strange occurences and just instantly pawn it off as "somthing else".. not unlike a Christian would pawn it off on "God"?


Yes, it's called statistical anomaly. Sometimes I call it "coincidence".


DO you ever think about the unseen worlds of cells and molecules and the patterns of organisms that make up your body and the laws of nature and mathematics and the intricacy of the human mind in all it's many synapses and billions of highways of electrons and quarks vibrating in an everlasting tune that keeps it in existance in this entire universe?


Is that supposed to be a question? Of course atheists are amazed at the complexity and wonder of life. They just don't feel compelled to seek out simple explinations for it.


Do you ever wonder if their could be anything else we've missed?(as Humankind)


Atheists are the only ones who really wonder this. Religious, spiritual, enlightened, whatever you want to term non-atheists they've all bought into a belief system that offers answers to fill in the holes that we've missed (humankind)

My question for the athiests is: Why do you follow laws and act morally? If there is no retribution after death?

So for religious people, is the only reason you follow laws and act morally because of being punished in the afterlife?

I guess thats kind of a hard one for me to answer as I've never seriously entertained the idea that there is not a God. I imagine if that was the case I wouldn't have much regard for the state I left the world in. I would be most interested in pleasing myself during the short time I was here.


That's diffrent from how you behave now?

I could be in a lot better position in life if I disregarded my religion, but this life is short and eternity lasts a long time.


What have you ever not done that you could have that would have benefited you that wasn't illegal, but was against your religion?

then how did you ever decide that there is?


editted to add:

Kelvyquayo, what truly matters is that you know yourself, and in the end everything will be just fine.

no it wont, you might drown in your own filth or bleed to death in a store because you wouldnt hand over your wallet to a guy with a stocking on his head, it does not necisarilly turn out all right

Edited, Wed Jun 30 19:50:19 2004 by Dracoid

Very right, i tolerate everyones beleifs, but when people try to impose theirs on me, or tell me i am wrong for beleiving something, or try to change my life to suit them, there is no call for tollerance. When some neighborhood old christian comes knocking on my door looking for new recruits to christianity, i respect his choice to beleive it, but when he feels that i have to, i wanna slap him.

What reason is there to respect law without religion, What reason to respect any other persons rules at all? Why even recognize a ruler or a position of power? Really what does it matter after you cease to exist? Why even exist anyway if we are just blips in existance like fireworks? I guess its pretty difficult for me to fathom.


So I guess the answer to my question is "nothing" then?

You respect the law for the same reason you'd respect the "afterlife" fear of punishment.

im too tired to say what i want to say:

Everything tastes like chicken, why does it? i cant think of ANY expliantion, apart from that the robots wrote the code wrong for it in the matrix, so i should beleive that one day i will wake up in a tub of pink goo and pull the plug out of my neck? no, there is no feasable explination apart from this, so i conclude that it is true? no, i conclude that it is either true, or there is something else i havent thought about. I'm not disrespecting your choice to be a christian, im trying to understand it.



Because everyone should acheive something, and everyone should make a difference for the people after them, so that their lives can be better, marx wasnt a religious person, but he wrote so that he could change the world for the people who's world needed to be changed, and for countless generations after them, a sense of worth, a sense that once our existence ends, we have made a difference, and for people that still exist, the world is a better place. I'm not saying thats right and religion is wrong, im saying its a point of view.

(trying real hard not to offend people here)

editted to add, because i missed posts while i was typing this one:

I always wondered when people reffer to good christians as "god fearing" people, dosent it make it seem like we have a supreme being bullying us into praying and stuff?

Edited, Wed Jun 30 20:06:00 2004 by Dracoid

Who said I was a Christian? There sure is allot of assumptions being made in this thread.

ahh sorry



see this is the crap that gets me angry, you don't know me, how can you love me? if you love me, it tells me that you love everyone regardless of what they are ike, this dosent make me feel any batter about myself, i hate you (maybe this iss OTT for the OOT forum but i dont care)

have a nice day, thats another one that gets me going, you dont care how my day is gonna be, and i dont care how you want my day to go, and i still hate you

I'm sorry if my beliefs offend you Smash, I assure you they are not bullsh*t.

I'm pretty sure anyone here with an above average I.Q. can rattle off a dozen ways they could skirt the law and not be caught. Athiests do not follow the letter of the law simply because they believe they will most certainly be caught by the fuzz do they?


Your beliefs don't offend me at all.

Your lack of integrity does.

You implication that the only reason to be a moral person is because of the fear of other wordly retribution is not only offensive and naive, but insults the intelligence of everyone who reads it.

Your inability to answer a simple question offends me because you become a terrible example for people who actualy live their lives based upon their beliefs and could answer the question instantly.