Poll: To atheists:What kind are you?

[Craig FTW]

By now I have learned that many Escapists are atheists. This is coming from a Christian, but what 'kind' of atheist are you? Do you have friends with beliefs, or do you stand on a soap box and yell 'Religion is dumb'? Sorry if I didn't get the 'soap box' term right, I heard my dad say it once and I think I heard him wrong. I just want to know what type of people I may deal with in religious threads in the future.

Just btw I'm not really uptight. My best girl friend is an atheist. I was raised Catholic, I still am, but I don't agree with some ideas, probably more to come. I also sometimes (try to) think about the universe without a God, sometimes it doesn't fase me.

 

[Motti]

Seeing as I go to a catholic school, most of my friends are catholic. It doesn't really bother me though. It does get kinda awkward when they mention religion, but that's about it.

 

[QuirkyTambourine]

I really don't like all the atheists on the internet, actually I don't like the classification at all. It seems like a lot of the time it's all about bashing religion, but they fail to remember that religion is still something people base their lives around. They really give people with a lack of faith a bad name.

And anyways, Atheism is a very very strict belief, or lack of any belief at all. I know that for me at least, religion is much more complicated than that. I don't believe in pretty much any of the bible but that doesn't mean I don't believe in some form of higher being.

Edit: Fixed it up a bit, too many commas I was starting to sound like Walken.

 

[thiosk]

Im the jewish christian kind of athiest

 

[Craig FTW]

yeah. Really.

wait, what? you like the thread? or is that sarcasm?

 

[Craig FTW]

oh okay haha I getcha.

 

[curlycrouton]

I am an atheist who will challenge anything that appears irrational, unfounded, or illogical within religion whenever presented with it. I will not go out of my way to do so.

Unfortunately, and I am merely stating facts, that does tend to be a rather large amount of many religions.

One more thing. I doubt this thread will end well. Just a warning.

 

[Cakes]

This thread shouldn't be a poll. "Quiet Atheist"? Eh? At least have the options things that make sense. It's generally divided between "Strong Atheism" and "Weak Atheism", not the vague terms you've given.

 

[Cliff_m85]

I'm an anti-theist. I'm not going to stand up and say religion is dumb unless it's being forced on me or if it's being outspokenly stupid, which happens to be most of the time. I have friends with religious beliefs, but they respect me enough to leave me alone about it. If they ask me questions about my lack of belief then I feel it fair to question theirs, which I have at certain times. I've deconverted most of them though a few still hang on for personal reasons.

How can you not speak out when someone is calling for the death of a cartoonist for drawing? How can you not speak out when your professor is blathering nonscience and you're paying to learn actual science?
How can you not speak out when someone uses archiac texts to put down homosexuals?


*shrugs*

 

[scotth266]

It's respect. Not respest.

But yeah, most people tend to be the quiet atheists: they may have firm opinions, but only a extremely vocal few are bashers, and they get kept in check by the moderators. There are no acceptable targets on the Escapist Forums.

I'm a Reformationist Roman Catholic.

EDIT: Also, the "bashers" are actually anti-theists. They just like to call themselves atheists out of either ignorance of what the term actually means, or because they like hiding behind it's name.

 

[AlexTheBucket2112]

oh okay haha I getcha.

\

yeah...sorry to seem like an ass but 9 times out of 10 this is what happens.

 

[Cakes]

How can you not speak out when someone is calling for the death of a cartoonist for drawing? How can you not speak out when your professor is blathering nonscience and you're paying to learn actual science?
How can you not speak out when someone uses archiac texts to put down homosexuals?


*shrugs*

Be fair now, that's only the extremists. Every group has the dumbasses that make the rest of them look bad.

 

[Craig FTW]

I agree with you Cliff on the homosexual speaking out. Homosexuals for the win.

 

[bodyklok]

I'm what you might call a 'weak' Atheist, i.e. I lack a belief in God, though I accept the possibility of the existence of any Gods. I also accept the possibility of flying pink unicorns and such but that's kinda non-sequitur.

 

[Cakes]

I'm a Reformationist Roman Catholic.

You're a what? I've seriously never heard of this. I'm just assuming it's some sort of more liberal form of Catholicism, kind of the same deal as Reform Judaism?

 

[klakkat]

I'm an agnostic. Since I believe in freedom of thought so I don't tend to push ideas on others (unless they can be proven, which no religious standpoint can be, including agnosticism), but I do diligently rip to shreds arguments other people have about what religion another person should be (if I'm physically there; I can't be bothered to reason with people on the internet). Specifically, I hate the arguments that can be summed up as "we're right because..." Since I tend to view religion as a philosophy rather than, well, a religion, I have no problem with a person finding religion if it makes them better in some way.

 

[Taerdin]

I really don't like all the atheists on the internet, actually I don't like the classification at all. It seems like a lot of the time it's all about bashing religion, but they fail to remember that religion is still something people base their lives around. They really give people with a lack of faith a bad name.

And anyways, Atheism is a very very strict belief, or lack of any belief at all. I know that for me at least, religion is much more complicated than that. I don't believe in pretty much any of the bible but that doesn't mean I don't believe in some form of higher being.

Edit: Fixed it up a bit, too many commas I was starting to sound like Walken.

If you believe there is some form of higher being then I don't think you're an actual Atheist. Atheists believe that there is no higher being. Agnostics believe there could be a higher being. Theists believe there is a higher being. I might be slightly off, but I think that's pretty much it.

 

[I_LIKE_CAKE]

My belief system begins and ends with the idea that I don't no anything for sure. So no, I have no desire to attack people for their beliefs. Arguing about religion never gets anywhere. Discussion is fine and healthy, but when you start arguing about faith, its just going to make everyone angry.

 

[Cliff_m85]

I really don't like all the atheists on the internet, actually I don't like the classification at all. It seems like a lot of the time it's all about bashing religion, but they fail to remember that religion is still something people base their lives around. They really give people with a lack of faith a bad name.

And anyways, Atheism is a very very strict belief, or lack of any belief at all. I know that for me at least, religion is much more complicated than that. I don't believe in pretty much any of the bible but that doesn't mean I don't believe in some form of higher being.

Edit: Fixed it up a bit, too many commas I was starting to sound like Walken.

If someone bases their life on a lie, would you not have the moral obligation to inform them of such? I ask this as well: What if people base their life on a religion that deliberately harms others or themselves? Breathairianism, for instance. The belief that one does not need food to survive (I'm not making that up, by the way). How about cargo cultism? What of apostacy?