Polls show atheists on the rise in America

rawstory.com...

DAVIE, Florida — When South Florida atheists held their first meeting, they were just five friends, having a beer at a bar.

Four years later, they’ve moved to a bigger place — still a bar — to hold their weekly meet-and-greets. Membership is up to almost 500, Darwin Day is in the planning stages and bumper stickers are on sale.

“There is no God, but ice-cream is great,” reads one. “What schools need is a moment of science,” reads another.

Atheist groups are growing all over the United States, challenging stereotypes and confronting what they consider a big backslide in the separation of church and state.

They are chatting online, picking up trash along “adopted” highways, and advertising on buses and billboards. In South Florida, they recently picketed a prayer meeting in a public safety building paid for with tax dollars.

“We’re growing by leaps and bounds,” said Bob Senatore, a retired teacher and one of the early members of the Florida Atheists and Secular Humanists, or FLASH. “The attitude is, ‘If we don’t do something about it now, we’ll be living under a theocracy.’”


Is it any wonder with these types of stories constantly in the news?
www.abovetopsecret.com...

I am not an atheist. I do believe in a higher power but I certainly don't appreciate anyone knocking on my door at 8am with a copy of the "Watchtower" in their hands.

For Christians to stem the tide of creeping atheism, perhaps they should practice what they preach.

Why do atheists have meetings?

I mean, if they've all come to the conclusion that there is no god what is there to discuss? Do atheists have struggles with their 'faith' that call for group support to bring them back to the fold? Do they embark on evangelical recruiting missions and need to plan attacks and strategy?

I dont get it. What do they do?

As a Christian, to me this is just another sign for the end times.

There was a poll somewhere here on the internet about religious affiliations and such and it mentions that there are 2 Billion Christians in the world today. 1.5 Billion Muslims, then 1 Billion atheists. Of course, all other religious statistics are present there as well. I think it they did the survey between 2004-2007. Not too sure though.

[edit on 27-8-2009 by Water-tastes-good]

i'm not religious at all but atheists are as ignorant and blind as fundamentalists. They are just like religion, never finding a balance to their reasoning and thus chasing their tail into the abyss!

Originally posted by thisguyrighthere
Why do atheists have meetings?

I mean, if they've all come to the conclusion that there is no god what is there to discuss? Do atheists have struggles with their 'faith' that call for group support to bring them back to the fold? Do they embark on evangelical recruiting missions and need to plan attacks and strategy?

I dont get it. What do they do?

Didn't you read the the article? They meet in a bar. Perhaps they party.
Drink, Dance, have fun. With meetings like that; I'll bet they don't have to put much effort into recruiting.

I'm not athiest but i do no think the numbers are on the rise. I think that people are just becoming more open about it, which is a good thing. You can't thrive as anything if you hide what you are.

reply to post by whaaa




So it's just like any other group with a similarity. A lot of choir preaching and an excuse to feel that hanging out with your buddies is somehow productive and special.

reply to post by zaiger


I was raised in a very strict fundamentalist Southern Baptist family.
Still I never made a solid spiritual connection to organized religion.

Perhaps, because where I grew up in Texas, Blacks were encouraged to start their own churches and not attend white churches.

And My Grandfather a deacon in the church, used a case of whiskey for a door stop.

I think a lot of Christians feel the same as I but they pay lip service because that is what is expected from them by their family, friends etc.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


lol i guess so. When a christian quotes bible passages he is brainwashed, when an athiest quotes dawkins they are educated. When christians get together and talk about god it is a church when athiests do it it is a social meeting.

Originally posted by zaiger
reply to post by thisguyrighthere

 

lol i guess so. When a Christian quotes bible passages he is brainwashed, when an atheist quotes dawkins they are educated. When christians get together and talk about god it is a church when athiests do it it is a social meeting.

Apparently when some Christians get together it is an excuse to spread hate and fear.

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Perhaps this type of meetings might contribute to the rise in athiesism.

In South Florida, they recently picketed a prayer meeting in a public safety building paid for with tax dollars.

This part jumped out at me. This should have been picketed. However, I also feel an Atheist group meeting at the same location should also be picketed.

Atheism is just as much a religion as Christianity is. They aren't just people who don't believe in God, but people who actively try to educate people that there is no God.

They should have the same rights (and restrictions) as any other religious group. The problem is, in the above cited example, the whole seperation of Church and State has gone to the wayside.

reply to post by whaaa


Yes we all know.... blah blah blah religion is the cause of ALL problems and without it the world would be like the it's a small world afterall ride at disneyland.

reply to post by whaaa


Isnt that more like when a group of homophobes get together? There are plenty of christians who arent homophobes and there are plenty of homophobes who arent christian.

Some pervert could grab up a bible and say god commands up to drug and rape our daughters and cite a passage. Doesnt mean that 'christians' are in favor of such a thing.

The term is used way to widely by all sort of people to cover all sorts of things.

oh, Darwin.. should be called the joke of evolution.

How does it feel to be wrong Charles Darwin?! You dead monkey.

Atheists are just as bad with hate. They are very closed minded when it comes to experiences.

note: You will NEVER have a profound experience in any religion, including atheism. Toss western science and religion out the door, it wont help you with anything.

The reason why people are so closed minded is because of the lack of experience they have because of the social impact others, who are corrupted already, influence them with.

Take some [SNIP] and watch what you thought was real dissolve to see what is real.

[edit on 27-8-2009 by jvm222]

Mod Edit: Removed drug reference.

[edit on 28-8-2009 by Gemwolf]

Originally posted by jvm222
Take some [SNIP] and watch what you thought was real dissolve to see what is real.

precisely, In my case it was a cactus. And also why I DO believe in a higher power.

Mod Edit: Removed quoted drug reference.

[edit on 28-8-2009 by Gemwolf]

Originally posted by TLomon

In South Florida, they recently picketed a prayer meeting in a public safety building paid for with tax dollars.

This part jumped out at me. This should have been picketed. However, I also feel an Atheist group meeting at the same location should also be picketed.

Atheism is just as much a religion as Christianity is. They aren't just people who don't believe in God, but people who actively try to educate people that there is no God.

They should have the same rights (and restrictions) as any other religious group. The problem is, in the above cited example, the whole seperation of Church and State has gone to the wayside.

Religion - Noun - Definition number 2: a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects:

woohoo, clearly defines atheism as a religion

Posting your drugs of choice is no way of backing up your credibility guys.

Hmm, sounds like Atheism is becoming a Religion unto itself.

Why else would they need to have meetings and congregate?

Hey, I'm all for Atheists being protected under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, just like everyone else, but sometimes you have to call a spade a spade. If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it is a duck (and I can't believe I just quoted G. Bush!).

I do agree that Alternative Religions, as well as Agnostics and Atheists are growing in leaps and bounds due to the failure of Mainstream Religions to adapt to the changing of times to the point where they have become not only irrelevant to many but an anachronistic nuisance to some.

However, it just seems to me that Atheism is going too far in promoting itself in such a way that it becomes a Religious Surrogate that will inevitably fall into the same sanctimonious trap that Mainstream Religions have.

America doesn't need a Gymnasiarchy or a Pedantocracy, just as we don't need a Theocracy. There was a very good reason why Thomas Jefferson wrote about the wall of separation between church and state and the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the US Constitution...and as far as Government is concerned, the lack of a belief in a religion or God is a religious belief in and of itself, protected by the Constitution, and behind the wall of separation between church (or in this case, lack thereof) and state.

(Don't get me wrong though, I do like the quote "What schools need is a moment of science". That couldn't be more true!)

People having meetings in church or at a bar to validate each other's belief systems and all agree how the other side of their coin is the wrong side.

As always, agnostics - we're a non-prophet organization.

reply to post by fraterormus


I agree, however the seperation of church and state is where most people get confused. It means the state can't force religion on it's people. So that does not mean that kids can't pray in schools it means that the schools can't make the kids pray and can't stop them from praying if they choose to. Many people think that the word God when spoken by any government is infringing on their rights.
People can't get along as long as one group is trying to stomp the other out of existance. You can't have diversity if you do not let one side speak.