Greetings, fellow non-believers!
Offline I was raised as a Christian and between the ages of eight and nine, my brother and I had a Bible mentor who came over on weekends to go over Scripture with us. Even way back then I thought that there was something terribly wrong because I never received satisfactory answers. I vividly remember asking my Bible mentor why he said that Solomon wouldn't make it into Heaven and he replied that it was because he didn't worship God. I pleaded, as if my mentor himself could get Solomon into Heaven: but he was a good king! He said that being a good king didn't matter, he was still not going to Heaven. I soon realized that being a good person counted for nothing and by the time I was twelve I no longer believed.
As a black atheist, I've always found it hard to find friends and family that I could discuss my anti-Christian views with. Statistics show that black Americans pray and go to church more frequently than the rest of the American population and this is truly in accordance with my experiences. Having to deal with these ever present dogmas on a regular basis also helped me to find atheism and I'm glad that things turned out the way they did. If I hadn't had these ridiculous ideas continually shoved down my throat, I may never have gotten free from the brainwashing.
I fully support the Rational Response movement and hope to befriend some like-minded people.
Every society honors its live conformists and its dead troublemakers -Mignon McLaughlin
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Welcome to the forum. Thanks for sharing that story with us. Look forward to hearing more from you on the posts.
“It is proof of a base and low mind for one to wish to think with the masses or majority, merely because the majority is the majority. Truth does not change because it is, or is not, believed by a majority of the people.”
― Giordano Bruno
Pleased to meet you. Raised a christian here, too. Did a couple of Billy Graham concerts, never bought the T-shirt. Father was evangelical preacher, mother was missionary. So you can just imagine...
Thanks for sharing and hope to see you on the boards.
"Experiments are the only means of knowledge at our disposal. The rest is poetry, imagination." Max Planck
Hey, God-Bane -- welcome. I'm a relative newcomer here myself, but like you I've been an atheist for a long time. And like you it's alienated me considerably from my family and my two sisters who continue, along with their husbands and children, to be fundamentalist believers. I first began finding like-minded folks online in the early days of the internet, and although I'm lucky to have a wife who is also an atheist, I can relate to the satisfaction and relief of knowing you're not alone.
You raise an interesting point, about the particular struggle of being a young non-believer. I recall my own difficulties at that age, knowing something was off-balance but not being mature enough to identify or confront it directly. I thought something was wrong with me, but pushed those feelings away -- then they'd creep back, maybe as a vague sense of guilt but I didn't really recognize the feelings or have any tools to cope with them. Until I was nineteen, that is, when I wrote my parents from college that I was an atheist. I'm sure it was hard for them, and I do regret that, but I had liberated myself and I've never looked back. I appreciate your unique version of that struggle as a black atheist -- it's something I'd not really considered, until now.
You're among friends here, and I'm looking forward to reading your contributions to the discussion . . .
roseweed
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Everything that happens, happens somehow.
Thank you all for the warm welcome.
I'm back at school this term - I'm 60, it has been 22 years since I got my first Bachelor's and I'm feeling a little overwhelmed. So my posts are getting really irregular.
I had a similar experience when I was about 12-13. I asked my pastor why Ghandi was not going to heaven. Someone who believed in non violence and was almost a saint in my young eyes, and he was not going to heaven? It was hard to believe that god/s/dess didn't want such an exemplary specimen of humanity.
I have a friend who is B'hai and of mixed background - black, Caribbean Indian, white - and her family is very upset she is not christian. She has a sister who is a fundamentalist preacher. I am not sure why christianity has so much appeal in the black community. It seems to me to be especially so amongst the women. And my friend is very committed to B'hai - for a person who is otherwise very intelligent, it seems very odd to me that she will not see the contradictions inherent in any faith - including hers.
Glad you can and glad to have you here.
CJ
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
"We are entitled to our own opinions. We're not entitled to our own facts"- Al Franken
"If death isn't sweet oblivion, I will be severely disappointed" - Ruth M.
Welcome! Nice to see another ex-theist who came here the hard way.
Everything makes more sense now that I've stopped believing.
Welcome to the forum.
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
Welcome from Canada, what state are you in?
"Very funny Scotty; now beam down our clothes."
VEGETARIAN: Ancient Hindu word for "lousy hunter"
If man was formed from dirt, why is there still dirt?
Welcome to the forum, nice jacket
Welcome. Always good to know there are more atheists, especially here in the US. I smile everytime I see another one join up.
I was raised catholic, so we didn't have all that bible nonsense growing up, except in church and school. Certainly not at home. My folks didn't seem to express very strong opinions, except when it comes to baseball and football (American.)
Another website you should check out, www.infidelguy.com
Reginald Finley is is real name. He and a guy named Jake started www.atheistnetwork.com in which infidelguy.com became a spin off.
Brian Sapient the owner of this site started out as a member there and started this website. i believe I met him at Infidel Guy's website, but that was long ago.
But I wouldn't call yourself "anti" anything as much as you should be "pro" reason and pro science. If most of us here are "anti" anything, we are "anti" absurdity. We don't take anything on face value, ON ANY SUBJECT.
We blast absurdities like "homopothy"(sp), Mayaan little green men, JFK conspiracies, Big foot and Loc Ness Monster, Ouija Boards, Horriscopes....ect ect ect ect. Anti-bullshit is merely "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Anti-absurdity shouldn't be limited to religion.
If you don't know the following terms, I would suggest you look them up.
"infinite regress"
"Ockham's Razor"
"Fallacy of Pascal's Wager"
Bentrand Russell's "teapot" argument
Great books to read,
The God Delusion, Richard Dawkins
God Is Not Great, Christopher Hitchens (Need a dictionary and thesaurus)
God The Failed Hypothesis, Victor Stinger
End of Faith, Sam Harris
Letter To A Christian Nation, Sam Harris
Infidel, Ayaan Hirsi Ali (About a woman escaping Islam, She is still under threat of death)
Just for starters.
It may be frustrating to deal with theism, but we cant become what we say we hate about believers. In all our blasphemy we are still human beings and have to get along with even those who make absurd claims. You are in great company here. Lots of historians here.
Lots of science freaks here, and a couple of other "hommie" atheists as well.
The "hood" is our earth and our species needs more "hommies" like you.
I am Malcolm Ten!
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
I'm from Michigan.
Every society honors its live conformists and its dead troublemakers -Mignon McLaughlin
Thanks.
The only book that I don't have that's on your list is 'End of Faith'. Thank you for the recommendations. I don't know when I'll get around to those though. I truly am swamped with work and school, and a book list that's already backed up.
Every society honors its live conformists and its dead troublemakers -Mignon McLaughlin
YOU CAN READ? Holly shit, next thing you'll tell me is that we have black president! Not that I voted for him, which I did. I wouldn't want to piss off the likes of Rush Limpdork or Pat Robertnuts.
First we have to share bathrooms. Then we have to share schools. DAMN IT JIM, I'M A RACIST NOT A PHILOSOPHER! (Admittedly you might be too young to know the parody of the famous original Star Trec line where the character "Bones" said to James T Kirk " DAMN IT JIM, I'M A DOCTOR".........
Anywho, once again, great to have you here. And I wish I was as good looking as you.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
To quote an old 1970s spoof movie Kentucky Fried Movie, "TAKE HIM TO DETROIT!......"NO NO NO NOT DETROIT"
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog
Need to get that off your chest, did you Brian?
You'll get used to it God-Bane. He hacks on everyone from time to time, even us black folk.
Welcome to the boards, I hope you enjoy your stay!!
If there is anything you should NEVER take me seriously about is my humor. I eat lead paint chips and like shiny objects for God's sake. WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
Check out my poetry here on Rational Responders Like my poetry thread on Facebook under Brian James Rational Poet, @Brianrrs37 on Twitter and my blog at www.brianjamesrationalpoet.blog