Why hello there (intro)

nen
nen's picture
Posts: 25
Joined: 2008-01-13
User is offlineOffline
Why hello there (intro)

Hi.

I've been lurking on the forum for a while, and more recently, have become active on Kelly's blog (the Still Don't Think Theism is a Mental Disorder? topic), so I thought I'd post an intro here.

--------------- 

I'm an atheist, and have been as long as I can remember - I must have believed once, growing up in a Christian family, but I can't ever remember thinking it. I didn't become an instant atheist though - I searched for other ways to explain the world throughout my teenage years, and I dabbled in "spiritual" things.

Wicca was first - that didn't last very long before my Christian parents found my stuff and gave me quite the telling off. In true fundamentalist style, they said I was into devil worship and confiscated everything, even after skim-reading my book on the subject. Arguments had little impact.

Then, I explored OBEs (Out of Body Experiences), among other things. I clung to this supernatural phenomenon as proof of something for quite a while, before leaving it for two reasons: firstly because so many people told of their own personal experiences having OBEs, and secondly, because of the odd sensations I would experience after trying for one. I remember the first time I tried, I got this sinking feeling and my body felt vibrations all over - terrifying when I didn't really believe at first. It seemed that because of this that OBEs were real! It took a few years of getting no further before I realised that this feeling was just a side-effect of transferring into a meditative state. 

I spent a lot of my life back then in the "Spirituality" section of the bookstore - not out of rebellion from my family, but for an answer that was more logical and systematic than Christianity. Throughout it all I called myself an agnostic, and, like many others, misunderstood its meaning as somewhere "halfway between theism and atheism".

Now that I'm in university, and a great deal happier than I was in high school, becoming atheist has been a lot easier for me - I think I needed a higher power to believe in when things weren't going my way.

 --------------------------

Anyway, atheism is very much an active topic in my mind. My parents and sisters are all Christian, refuse to discuss it with me, and all espouse negative views of popular atheists. I'm different from those atheists only because I'm not a "fundamentalist", whatever that means. The most frustrating part is that they are all quite intelligent people - except, seemingly, on this point.

Furthermore, even some of my atheist friends refuse to be labelled as atheist simply because of the connotations it carries. 

Of course, I use StumbleUpon and visit American news sites quite a bit, so I'm constantly being bombarded by the atheist message. (Whatever your tactics, the message is certainly getting out!) So I figured I'd come and chip in with my bit.

 nen.

 

P.S. Whilst I'm posting, can anyone point me in the direction of a thread for comments on the website design/layout? I've only found a broken link from another thread so far, and a forum search function eludes me. 


Watcher
atheist
Posts: 2326
Joined: 2007-07-10
User is offlineOffline
Welcome, nen! I had an OBE

Welcome, nen!

I had an OBE once when I was a little kid.  Very odd thing.

I can describe it but don't ask me to explain it.  lol

I attempted to do Astral Projection when I was a teenager too.  I would go into sleep paralysis and feel like I was sinking.  It would scare me, send an adrenaline boost through me, and wake me up all the way.

Maybe Astral Projection is just lucid dreaming of astral projection.

"I am an atheist, thank God." -Oriana Fallaci


magilum
Posts: 2410
Joined: 2007-03-07
User is offlineOffline
Hi nen, I followed a

Hi nen, I followed a similar path through Hoodoo and Taoism; thinking back, rather result-oriented belief systems. I also explored astral projection and remote viewing, as well as telekinesis and the stranger work of Nikola Tesla. I wasn't raised with a belief, though various icons were strewn about an petitioned, mainly by my dad, on a specialized basis... no, actually, it was arbitrary, and usually involved praying for winning lottery numbers (and by "praying" I mean shouting and pleading).

Glad to have you aboard. You best bet for searching the site is to use Google like this:

site:www.rationalresponders.com andyoursearchwordhere


dead_again
Special AgentWebsite Admin
dead_again's picture
Posts: 321
Joined: 2007-05-13
User is offlineOffline
Nen: We are currently

Nen:

We are currently working on a site overhaul that will help with some of your issues. This should (hopefully) be implemented in the next few months. We have had some server issues recently and are currently focusing all our efforts on moving the existing sites to a new server. 

Your god's silence speaks loud and clear


Subdi Visions
Bronze Member
Subdi Visions's picture
Posts: 278
Joined: 2007-10-29
User is offlineOffline
Greetings Good luck with

Greetings

Good luck with the family.

You might try sending a direct email to one of the people designated as site admins.

 

R/

Lenny

www.kaosium.org

Respectfully,
Lenny

"The righteous rise, With burning eyes, Of hatred and ill-will
Madmen fed on fear and lies, To beat and burn and kill"
Witch Hunt from the album Moving Pictures. Neal Pert, Rush


nen
nen's picture
Posts: 25
Joined: 2008-01-13
User is offlineOffline
Quote: I had an OBE once

Quote:
I had an OBE once when I was a little kid.  Very odd thing.

I can describe it but don't ask me to explain it.  lol

I attempted to do Astral Projection when I was a teenager too.  I would go into sleep paralysis and feel like I was sinking.  It would scare me, send an adrenaline boost through me, and wake me up all the way.

Pretty interesting stuff, Watcher - an actual OBE. I wonder what the scientific basis for it is. I read that there are several neurological theories for NDEs (Near Death Experiences). I wonder if these can be applied to OBEs.

And your described symptoms when trying to astral project are similar to mine, except for the sleep paralysis. After I'd experienced the sinking sensation quite a few times, I managed to mostly master the adrenaline, but I could never stay concentrated. I wonder what new mental state I would have moved on to. Maybe we should start a new thread for OBEs/AP experiences and science?

 

Quote:

Hi nen, I followed a similar path through Hoodoo and Taoism; thinking back, rather result-oriented belief systems.

I suspect we think in a very similar manner, magilum - especially about the results-oriented bit.^^ I also explored Taoism briefly, but I have to admit I had difficulty understanding it! And thanks for the Google tip.

Quote:
We are currently working on a site overhaul that will help with some of your issues. This should (hopefully) be implemented in the next few months. We have had some server issues recently and are currently focusing all our efforts on moving the existing sites to a new server.

Josh - Indeed. Actually, this was why I was asking - I assumed that as a new website design is on the way, that the admins would be looking for suggestions. But then again, I don't want to bother you with criticisms you've heard before, so it'd be nice to see a thread of what's been said before, rather than just directly emailing.

Quote:
Good luck with the family.

Thanks, Lenny - I'm still not sure how to handle it, actually. I get on pretty well with my family on the whole, and I'm not sure if it's worth rocking the boat. They tend to get uncharacteristically defensive when I bring up religion (no surprise there), and I feel as though I'm talking to a brick wall. Sometimes I'm not sure whether it'd be in their best interests. (Or, more to the point, whether alienating them would be in my best interest.)