128 replies to this topic

[wisp]

Please, no conversion attempts. Seriously.

[SOAP]

Guys, I'm not letting anyone define what I believe. I actually retained my Christian beliefs long after I stopped calling myself a Christian. It wasn't really about sharing a faith with people like that so much as a label. I still went to my home church periodically and followed the general 'rules' of the faith as well. It wasn't until later that I was re-exposed to other alternatives and started to REALLY consider them that I began to think religion might not be for me.

Ah then nevermind. It's your beliefs that's important not what you call yourself. There's actually a growing number of Christians, especially in other countries who prefer to call themselves Believers or simply "Lovers of Christ" because the word Christian has gained such a negative connotation due to how so many American Christians and Americans at large act. If it's only the label then I totally understand I don't fault you for it.

[Hero of Slime]

I am sorry wisp. I don't know what came over me. You should be whoever you want to be.

Edited by The Zol, 04 May 2007 - 04:09 AM.

[Keen]

Please, no conversion attempts. Seriously.

It might appear to some people that you are suffering through some sort of turmoil. Actually, I think I do understand what you're going through with this, as it seems to be the same process I began five years ago. If one carries out this journey the right way, I wonder if it ever ends. As long as your mind stays open, it shouldn't. Anyway, I find the process immensely fulfilling. But then, I am infatuated with rootlessness.

The reason I particularly choose to deny Christianity is precisely because of the existence of Hell. I cannot follow a God who would ever condemn me to eternal suffering, regardless of my choice to follow or it or not. So it does not matter to me whether or not this God exists.

Am I an atheist? I believe this term is meaningless, as there seem to be no restrictions on how God can be defined. I choose to define God as the sum of all existence. Since I know that I exist, God must exist, including myself and the entire extension of my perceptions.

Am I moral? I lucked out and got a huge guilty conscience that forces me to be a good person.

Am I peaceful and happy? Of course. I believe in desiring no more than I have while seeking what I think I might desire if I had it. I believe this suggests that I've successfully fused some Buddhist principles with Western drive.

Anyway, I hope we can all get along.

[Reflectionist]

I don't agree with SOAP there. You should be christian. Did you not have any fun while being a christian? Did Jesus bring you no peace?

I guess I missed the verse in the Bible that says 'follow me. i'll make life fun and easy for you.'

[Khallos]

Let me ask you something: Have you ever been alone? Have you ever wanted a girlfriend really bad but no girl ever gave you the time of day? Maybe not but you could at least emphasize here. If you were a lonely guy who had no luck with girls would you just give up or keep trying to put yourself out there, hoping that the next one will be the girl for you? A lot of people want to give up on finding someone to love them but regardless they keep on wishing and hoping and getting their hearts trampled on time after time. Why? Why put yourself through something that probably doesn't even exist. There's no guarantee that there's the perfect match for everyone and even if you do find the one perfect for you, there's a bigger chance you'll screw it up anyways. There's also no guarantee God exists but people will continue to follow him regardless. You don't think believer's get their hearts broken? You don't think they question God's rules or his very existence. I can tell you honestly I deal with my own doubt every day of my life. I think if more believers were truly honest they'd say the same thing. I want to give up sometimes too. It'd be soooo much easier to be atheist and have all the gay sex I want. But either out of stupidity or devotion or maybe a little of both, I deny my own desires and keep turning to something I'm not even sure exists. It is no different than a lonely guy or girl who keeps believing they have a soulmate somewhere out there.

Do I want a reason for exist (I'm guessing the girlfriend thing is an analogy for finding God)? Well, no. The reason I exist is because my parents slept with each other 18 years ago, perhaps forgot to use a condom, and tada here I am. No diety wasting time in His/Her hectic schedule to make me. Of course maybe I do have a purpose, maybe I'll unite all the people of the world into one nation, maybe I'll solve world hunger, maybe I'll become King of England. Of course I know people question God's existance, I don't, but I used to before I abandoned all faith in him. Like I said, I believe in him, I just don't worship him. I believe gravity, an invisible, omnipotent force (well basically omnipotent) though I gotta admit, it's far from all knowing; still I don't worship it. Also empathy is a very weak feeling, if humans felt it to any large extent they'd be no more wars, no more insults nothing of the sort, as every jibe, insult, stick and stone would feel as painful to another person as it would to us. I'd lives would become misery itself, feeling the unstoppable hurt and loss for every ill, injured or dead human on the planet, it is a blessing we cannot really feel everyone's pain.

I can imagine how you feel though, you repress your desires for gay sex, I repress my desire to be someones eternal subordinate. It'd be so easy to give up my life of vegetarianism, but I don't. The sole reason for it is not the animals (I do believe however the killing of sentinent organisms without need to be wrong), it's because it makes me an individual, differant from those who follow society's laws without doubt or question, someone differant. I just don't like being forcibly under the noose of someone, I agree with many of God's ideas, but I do not condone His past, often violent outbursts of mass murder. Therefore I deny Him as my creator. If I go to Hell, I'm sure you know I will unless I start worshiping Him; still it can't be too bad, I mean my soul still survives and I'm sure there's billions of souls who a rather pissed off with the living conditions down there. See if I can use their dissent for the greater good; after all why have a purpose in life, when you can have a far better purpose in death?

[vodkamaru]

I didn't know where to put this. I'm not sure if it's real, but I'm sure its happened somehwere. A son tells his mom he is an atheist. Hilarity ensues.

[wisp]

OH NO DONT TAKE THE CHRISTMAS PRESENTS AWAY ONOES!!

She is being ridiculous. Confirmation doesn't always mean anything; lots of kids get confirmed because of pressures from family and church members... yeah, this woman is acting VERY Christian, yelling at her son for telling her calmly what his religious beliefs are. She has no place being angry at someone else for something that's a matter of personal belief... wow, that was both hilarious and incredibly anger-provoking at the same time. XD

[Keen]

It would have gone better if he had said he didn't believe in Satan either.