Off-Topic Forum

I was gonna come in here to tell you how dumb you are for getting your panties in a bunch about people telling you you're going to hell, but instead I'll just say that you're dumb for liking Naruto.

@animegreen: If it's any consolation, animegreen... I'll see ya there!

@systech said:

" @MB said:

" Solution: Tell these people to go fuck themselves. Seriously. They should be minding their own business. "

Better yet, how about trying to ignore that shit? "

That would be too easy, and would make too much sense.

Actually if anyone christian says that you're going to hell for being an atheist then they are idiots. According to Christianity, even a non believer can go to heaven, but that's what judgment day is for. Good Christians by pass judgment however. Anyone who lives a good life can go to heaven.

Dude, those Christians shouldn't be using "you'll go to hell" as a motivation to convert. As a Christian, I find that pretty stupid.

But seriously, you shouldn't be offended by something so minor. I see more offensive crap for Christians on a daily basis.

Man, this thread just pisses me off.

If you don't believe hell exists, how can you be offended when someone tells you that you are going to hell?
That's like throwing a fit if someone tells you that Santa is real.

Seriously, quit whining and grow up.

And people wonder why people tend to hate on Atheists? 

@Arkthemaniac said:

"Aetheism is the belief of disbelief. Aetheism is a "religion" whose purpose is to prove other religions false. What the fuck kind of goal is that? At least with Christianity you have good messages like love thy neighbor. The same is true of all religions. They all have some kind of purpose in making things better. Aetheism doesn't.

And that, my friends, is why Aetheism is . . . absolutely fucking retarded,

"

No, Atheism does not have the purpose of proving others false. That's the goal of specific individuals, not the belief itself. The belief is merely the concept that no higher power exists. It's not the belief that "No higher power exists AND you must prove all other beliefs false"

Though I sort of agree with the purpose of making things better but then the typical counter-argument is "How bout the Crusaders? How bout Jihad? How about the Dark Ages? How about the Witch Hunts? How about the Inquisitions?"

Only focusing on Christianity as you mentioned it, but you could easily replace it with any major faith. Anyhow, Christianity has some terrific core elements -- without them why would the common person believe it, after all. That said, it has been used -- for better or worse -- as a tool of control. Regardless of if the core teachings are right or wrong, the fact is that the religion has been used by individuals to keep society in check and there have been plenty of examples of this control being abused. In other words, it is merely a tool -- neither good nor evil ; there for different purposes for different people. For those in power, it can be a tool of control. For those not in power, it can be a tool of hope and morals to live by.

Atheism is special in that it's not a "true" religion. Unless you're an incredibly stubborn Atheist, you'll still celebrate Christmas with your friends and family. Sure you might point out "Oh by the way, didja know Christmas was originally a three-day Pagan holiday known as Saturnalia, blah blah blah" but you'll still exchange presents and wish people a Merry Christmas. Atheism is merely the belief that there is no higher power -- that's all. An Atheist's morals and ethics will still be affected by other systems, such as religion, commonsense, or example.

So back to the OP -- What a silly post. Here's the only arguement that's needed to counter your "There is no soul" argument -- Prove there isn't one. As Jules in Pulp Fiction says - "Absense of evidence is not evidence of absense". It just becomes a circular argument where both sides say "You can't prove I'm wrong, nyahhhh" and that's silly and pointless. "You can't prove there's a god, so there isn't one." You can't prove there isn't one, so there is one." Oy, no one wins such an argument -- both sides will continue believing what they believe.

I don't really know why you're bothered, if you don't believe in Hell, who cares if they say you're going to a fictional place? But here's a fun way to deal with that -- If they say you're going to Hell, just reply with:

"Oh you mean I'm going where all of the individual thinkers who question authority, science, religion and take advantage of their freedoms are going? At least I won't get bored!" Sure it's a snide reply, but you're dealing with people who are condemning you.. not exactly a nice thing to do. I coulda sworn there was something about "Let he without sin cast the first stone" in many different religious books... Call me crazy.

Or you could toss them a few questions like "So... what kind of music do they play in Heaven? If I don't like country music and I have to put up with country music being played by those around me, that wouldn't be very Heavenly, would it?" "What happens if my husband dies and I get remarried before I die? Will my first husband be there waiting for me and be cool with threesomes? What if he found someone new in Heaven? What if I still love him more than my second husband and want to only be with him in Heaven, would that make Heaven more of a Hell for my second husband if he continues to stay in love with me after death?" And those questions are just scratching the surface of obvious flaws!

Heaven (and Hell) have so many problems when you think about it, so if you're really bothered by people warning you that you're going to Hell, it's easy to start a conversation that should hopefully get them to start questioning their own beliefs. The points not to get them to renounce their faith -- as I said, religion can be used for good, and many people gain hope and happiness from it -- but rather, it might let them start forming their own ideas of what to believe in rather than just following what they're told word-for-word.

For the record, I'm an Agnostic Atheist (Woah, contradiction? Deal with it ^^) and I respect everyones' beliefs as long as they don't involve oppressing women (or men, I guess... though I have yet to hear of a religion that does this though ;P), other races, or other cultures. I have no tolerance for such faiths as promoting hate doesn't do anyone any good.

We're all in this together and we'll all find out what happens in the next life sooner or later, cause you know the number one cause of death is living, and unfortunately, we've all got that disease. ;P

@Arkthemaniac said:

" Man, this thread just pisses me off.

Aetheism is the belief of disbelief. Aetheism is a "religion" whose purpose is to prove other religions false. What the fuck kind of goal is that? At least with Christianity you have good messages like love thy neighbor. The same is true of all religions. They all have some kind of purpose in making things better. Aetheism doesn't.

And that, my friends, is why Aetheism is . . . absolutely fucking retarded,

"

Actually, if you want to compare "goals" you'll find most forms of religion much more offensive and counter-productive to humanity. What christianity (and many other forms of religion) do is dress up their dogma (that is, believing in what can't be proven and what isn't allowed to be questioned) with good virtues and principles to create an illusion. The illusion is that a little man hovering on a cloud somewhere is watching over us all, and without him, humans can't have good virtues or ethics. And because of this, christians simply accept things which are completely absurd and illogical in compensation for the principles found in the bible that are still socially acceptable. You'll find that God in the Old Testament and New Testatment are completely different gods, because they were written at entirely different times. Many principles found in the Old Testament completely contradict what Jesus was about, and with good reason. The reality is that the bible (or any of its fantastical characters) didn't invent human nature, or ethics, or principles etc. The danger comes in when people are so into the belief in their "god" that they will harm other people in the name of their religion, disregarding all critical thinking. At least if an atheist does something you don't agree with, he's not hiding behind a superstitious book of fantastical characters. There's nothing greater about being human than the ability to be wrong and change. In this way, all religion is inherently corrupt, because everything changes all the time as we learn better ways to do things. :)

Ask yourself this: if religion was about "making things better", and religion has existed for most of human's existence, how come it's almost always religious people committing suicide on public buses? How come some of the most unstable, barbaric countries in the world are the ones where Church and State aren't separate?

The Point: Doing good or being good is merely a perception. There is no "good" or "bad". Whatever principles you live by, religion didn't invent it. Be a good person if you want, but *you* can't prove God exists by the fact *I* can't prove he doesn't. Going by your logic, we should all worship the Easter Bunny so we have all bases covered *fingers crossed*.

@animegreen said:

" I am an atheist and I know that Christians think I am going to hell. "

I'm Christian and I don't give two fucks about what will happen to you, I'm just doing my thing. I'm sure most are like that, so stop being paranoid.

@NickM said:

"@animegreen said:

" I am an atheist and I know that Christians think I am going to hell. "

I'm Christian and I don't give two fucks about what will happen to you, I'm just doing my thing. I'm sure most are like that, so stop being paranoid. "

Most are, and i'm gratefull for it. But there are some crazies, and others who just feel the need to state their opinions at you for no reason. I mean, in my area there are a ton of christians, but it only takes the crazy black woman who preaches on the street corner telling everyone who doesnt take a leaflet that they are going to burn for all eternity, or the assholes that knock on your door during tea-time to ruin it for everyone. Like every other hobby, religion, job, etc etc, there are always a small percentage who spoil it for everyone else.

Being an athiest, there are two types of people in my world. Those I like, and those that can go to Hell (even if I don't believe in it) regardless of your religion (or lack thereof).

Heaven is a figment of people's imaginations because they can't fully accept other people's deaths and thus they form a romanticised fantasyland where they are "still alive", comforting themselves that the ones they still love are still with them (in a manner of sorts). That's what I believe in. Whether or not I can prove I'm right or wrong doesn't matter. As like any other religion, it's my belief.

Nothing starts a thread going like the topic of religion! :3

I used to be one of those more aggressive Atheists who took offense to religion and spewed all of that "we must be perfectly rational" and "logic will win in the end!" nonsense but you know what happened? I realized how stupid all of that was. I started to understand the place that spirituality has in life and realized how in a country that is predominantly Atheistic, Japan, I find just as many absolute pricks and losers as I would back in the US. Knowing that society wouldn't really be any better without religion, and also knowing all of the positive things that religion can bring to one's life, I stopped all of the anti-religion stuff and decided to just chill out.

As for the being offended at being told you'll go to hell, why does it bother you? You don't believe in hell, and since that person has shown themselves to be kind of a dick why should you care what they think of you? Take the high road and realize that while they're just spreading hate, you're living your life.

@Suicrat said:

" @NickM: Sounds like you're being a pretty bad Christian then. As a Christian, you're supposed to help save as many souls as you can in your lifetime. If you see the man in the ditch, you can't just keep walking... if you want to be a good Christian that is. If you're a Christian whose fine with going to hell himself though, then, that's a weird way of being Christian. "

Make no mistake, if I see a man in a ditch, I'll help him, but I wont prosecute him due to his beliefs, and will not verbally assault or threaten him.