There’s a HUGE difference between
bridgetown on January 7, 2009 at 8:14 AM
Absolutly! Thanks for pointing that out. If one understnads that difference one sees that Atheists are becoming more religious over time.
53 comments
"There’s a HUGE difference between
No, no there's not...And besides, I thought Bird was the Word.....
Which god and its word? Idiot.
But ok, we can start taxing churches and cut out the religious holidays. Oh, didn't think so.
If us atheists are religious, I want a big church with free food and strippers and my own holidays, plz :D!
Religious:relating to or manifesting faithful devotion to an acknowledged ultimate reality or deity <a religious person> <religious attitudes>2: of, relating to, or devoted to religious beliefs or observances <joined a religious order>3 a: scrupulously and conscientiously faithful b: fervent , zealous
a disbelief in the existence of deity
Case closed.
Considering the fact that there are much more religions than fundamentalist bible believing christianity he is right.
And if I remember correctly buddhism, for example, can partly be called an atheist religion, so there are also religious atheists.
Of course MikeA fails when he tries to claim that all atheists are religious (maybe even hinting at his belief that atheism is a religion ;)) ;)
Quoth the Raven, "While forlornly slumped upon her egg, her beak upon her breast, the largely sated Dumb-Dumb bird who'd only recently fed, heard, on the wing, aloft, Archibald Collins the Magpie. 'Have you seen Irene Turner-Cartwright, that malicious Daw of ill repute', he said as he flew into her view. 'No. What day is it?', the (cont. page 94)
@IndelibleSorrow:
"Religious:reality or deity"
Even your own definition doesn't mandate belief in a deity, so doesn't exclude atheists from being religious. In fact nothing excludes atheists from being religious, hence there are Buddhist atheists and even Christian atheists.
Atheism isn't a religion in itself, but it doesn't mean you can't have one.
David B:
"hence there are Buddhist atheists and even Christian atheists"
I'm sorry but I fail to see how one can be atheist and Christian. Surely, by default, a Christian must beleive in the existence of god and that Jesus was devine? Atheists do not beleive in gods, so how can you be both?
Right, I know this, it's the argument of Christianity Is Not A Religion®©
image
David B.:
@IndelibleSorrow:
"Religious:reality or deity"
Even your own definition doesn't mandate belief in a deity, so doesn't exclude atheists from being religious. In fact nothing excludes atheists from being religious, hence there are Buddhist atheists and even Christian atheists.
Atheism isn't a religion in itself, but it doesn't mean you can't have one.
I'm sure you've seen this before, but:
image
@Katsuro: "I'm sorry but I fail to see how one can be atheist and Christian."
Treat Jesus as a wholly mortal, but transcendent, teacher, like Buddha.
See Altizer's book for more information. Or just read his credo .
Don't worry if it doesn't make sense, it is a religion after all. ;-)
"There’s a HUGE difference between
"Absolutly! Thanks for pointing that out. If one understnads that difference one sees that fish are becoming more like bicycles over time."
Fixed
@Tolpuddle Martyr: "If one understnads that difference one sees that fish are becoming more like bicycles over time."
Just in time for global sea-level rise, cool!
image
Wait, this one's actually pretty true.
A lot of atheists ARE getting religious about their beliefs. Since there's something a growing culture around atheism (take this website as an example,) I've noticed that there does seem to be more groupthink and the development of sacred cows and whatnot.
David B.:
If you do not beleive that Jesus was the son of the actual God in a completely literal sense, you are not Christian, as that is what it means to be a Christian. That's essentially what Christianity is (in it's simplist form that is, obviously many Christians would say there's more to it than that to be a "true" Christian).
Sure, you can be an atheist and beleive Jesus was regular human who had a few interesting things to say and that we may even be able to learn from him, but that does not make you a Christian. Much like how (Godwin in 1, 2, 3...) thinking Hitler's autoban's were important in the development of major roadways in the rest of the world, or that his economic policies achieved some impressive things, doesn't make you a Nazi.
Edit: I also think this is a better picture for your point than the guy in Iron Man, as his grey hair is on his head:image
@Katsuro
"If you do not beleive that Jesus was the son of the actual God in a completely literal sense, you are not Christian, as that is what it means to be a Christian."
In your opinion, apparently they have a different one.
Most Christian sects are, it seems, not based on strict biblical literalism. For example, few (apart from Catholicism) believe in the literal transubstantiation of the host during mass. Many accept an old Earth, evolution, germ-theory, Heliocentrism, etc. and consider "conflicting" verses in the bible to be allegory.
Some groups take a more metaphorical view of the bible than others; this one more than most.
... and there's no link between smoking and lung cancer either.
Seriously, this is like saying, "Sniffing glue is not the same as doing drugs."
David B.:
Yes, but all those churches still believe in God and that Jesus was the son of God or is god too or whatever the fuck it is they say to try and deny Christianity isn't monotheistic.
I have not ever heard of anyone who self identifies as a Christian and who considers that aspect of their life to be an integral part of their identity who does not beleive in god and the devinnity of Jesus. And even if they do, calling yourself soemthing doesn't automatically make you that thing.
I do understand where you're comming from and I understand your opinion (I think I do anyway, you can never truely state as fact with certainty that you understand someones opinon) but I have to disagree with it.
The argument is entirely semantic. If the definition is
"1: relating to or manifesting faithful devotion to an acknowledged ultimate reality or deity",
I am both religious and atheist. I'm pretty devoted to an acknowledged ultimate (in the sense that it ends where natrual phenomena end) reality.
If the definition is
K. Popper in Objective Knowledge: an Evolutionary Approach, “One should never quarrel about words, and never get involved in questions of terminology. One should always keep away from discussing concepts”.
"There’s a HUGE difference between
The second part is pure crap.
@Katsuro:
According to Merriam-Webster, a Christian is equally "one who professes belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ". N.b. teachings of, not divinity of. Not that everyone agrees on what those teachings are, of course.
Given the number of Christians I've met who profess belief in the divinity of Jesus, while giving little more than lip-service to his message, I can certainly understand your point. But if someone genuinely believes they are following the teachings of Jesus, even if they believe them to be that he was an alien from the planet Klong who will return in a giant spaceship to save the faithful from the sun going supernova in 2012, then they are certainly Christian by some definitions.
I've heard "Christian" statements of faith that run the gamut from a flat-Earth to near-perfect Deism. I'm not convinced it is at all possible to draw a line and argue "to go beyond this is lunacy".
Katsuro / David B:
I have to agree with David B. in this matter. The early christianities had a lot of different views on the divinity of Jesus, some saw him as divine, others as just a human prophet.
They do kind of have a point.... There is a movement among some *coughRichardDawkinscough* to make atheism into something more religious, such as with the 'brights' thing and looking for a symbol and organisation. Which is fairly ridiculous, because it's suggesting a sameness of belief for an entire group which is only defined by not believing one particular type of thing. Meh.
Bobo:
Yeah, I do like Dawkins but the whole "Brights" and "A" symbol thing I think kind of go against everything that atheism, and Dawkins, were or should be about.
"There’s a HUGE difference between being RELIGIOUS and believing in God & The Word."
There are similarities, though. For example: Both is retarded.
Believing in God & The Word is to be RELIGIOUS.
I'd say atheists are becoming less religious over time, as they gradually get more and more accustomed to life without any gods.
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
To post a comment, you'll need to Sign in or Register . Making an account also allows you to claim credit for submitting quotes, and to vote on quotes and comments. You don't even need to give us your email address.
