I think it can help. We like to make our problems seem bigger than they truly are. We should look at the problems other people face and get some perspective.
It does feel good to talk about this, because I never have. I guess I have to stand up more for what I believe, even if it is difficult.
If an atheist is a good person Never hurts anyone Treats other with respect .....and help others without any hope of "heaven" I think they are much better than hypocrite believers.... And I believe God will not sent "good" atheists to hell
Earth was once heavenly as well right? For Adam and Eve. Humans corrupt. Put a society of humans anywhere and they will corrupt. We're imperfect. We do bad things and hurt people sometimes. We're selfish and greedy. We're lustful and weak. Yes, we're also capable of good things and have good qualities. What I'm getting at is.... millions... ?billions? of christians going to heaven..... wouldn't heaven be corrupted? Unless god is the ultimate dictator and sends people to hell at any given moment or you are completely no longer you... I don't see how heaven wouldn't be corrupted by humans. If you are no longer you, then you're not really the one that's experiencing heaven. Sure, God can always forgive you for your mistakes.... but people on earth already ask him for forgiveness all the time while fucking things up on earth don't they? So what will be different in heaven?
It strikes me that one has to be quite brave to be an unbeliever, with the threat of eternal hell hanging over one's head. I admire that bravery
Based on Catholic Theology, no. Earth was never heavenly nor was it heaven. Adam and Eve had what some would consider a paradise but they did not posses the beatific vision which is what Heaven is. Even the angels before they were tested did not posses the beatific vision of God. Sin corrupts, not humans. Human’s who follow God’s will do the opposite of corrupt. That’s the point of Adam and Eve. Had they continued to do God’s will then there would have been zero corruption for them. What does this mean? The belief means we’re only truly human when we’re doing God’s will. No since Heaven is filled with those who are doing God’s will. Sin is not who you are. You’re human and made in the image of God. This means you find your true self in God and doing God’s will and NOT when you’re sining. The difference is that at the time of death the ability for the unification of the human will to the divine will is done. If you die in unrepentant sin then you’re solitifying your break with the divine will for eternity. If you die repentant and with God’s grace then you have solidified your will to the will of God. Your life is one big act of love. If you love God then the two of you become One. If you don’t love God then the two of you remain two for eternity. Anyway, that’s just a very simple explanation of it.
This is a very odd thing to say as an atheist. It’s almost like an ass backwards way of patting yourself on the back for facing an imaginary punishment. That wouldn’t be bravery, that would be lunacy, lol.
It’s not brave to me. I’m so certain that hell doesn’t exist that it’s not even a slight concern to me.
It's psychological. Overcoming Christian ideology is psychological. That's how it keeps one in it's grip, through psychology, so I don't think it's shocking that's how I would cast it off. The fear of Hell is strong for many people. In fact, I would argue that avoiding Hell is a stronger motivator for most people being a Christian, than is obtaining Heaven. The fear of Hell is a real thing, even if Hell may not be real. So I don't think it's strange to have to first confront that fear, if that fear has been real in you. Then through confronting it, you may come to realize it was just nothing anyways I get what you're saying. I'd like to eventually get to the same point as you
@SuperFurryThing, what helped me was to study one of the smartest people on this earth, Albert Einstein. He was Jewish, but he did not believe in god the same way a religious person does. He believed in "the god of Spinoza". Baruch Spinoza was an excommunicated Jew from a long time ago and I believe he came up with what is essentially Pantheism, or everything that exists in the universe is god. So they believed there was something greater than us that would be extremely hard to understand or incapable of us understanding (god), but that through science we should figure out all the rules to get a better understanding of "god" and the universe we live in. Instead of the word god, think of it as a power that is beyond us. Nobody can say what this "god" wants, it probably doesn't even care about us, or maybe it does? Doesn't matter...organized religion is just man-made to control the masses and put the fear of hell into people in order to control their behavior and avoid chaos since many people would not want to be "good" just for the sake of being "good". Religion is also there to take tax-free donations. I'm not saying religion doesn't do good things, it sure does, but it's not for me. I believe in finding meaning in life by helping society through doing good work and and being kind to my fellow man. To have a family and raise them with good values.
Yes, I studied Spinoza back in college, and was blown away at that way of looking at things. For many years, I've pretty much been agnostic and/or just didn't care about religion. But more recently I see it as important to officially renounce my Christian upbringing and the beliefs of my parents
I never understood why something being “man-made” is a negative. The scientific method was also man-made.
The scientific method is a nearly flawless system to find answers to our questions. Religion is a rigid dogma that can’t change or adapt to new knowledge.
In all fairness the scientific method and religion deal with two completely different spheres of knowledge. Why should they respond in the same way? The reason for why dogma is rigid is because it’s considered a product of revelation. Would you trust a flip-flopping God? I mean, flip-flopping makes us distrust human beings; politicians come to mind.
Wasn’t much of a revelation then. The more knowledge we gain from science the more irrelevant and laughable religion becomes.
