Should I consider myself an Atheist?

Over time I have come to the conclusion In a belief in some form of a God. A universal concept of God. That necessary what we have in the various religious text of today. I might not have all the clues. Now being an Atheist and still admitting I believe in a concept of a Supreme Deity. I just don't know where to place myself on the believer and skeptic radar. I was accepted in my local Masonic lodge so that must mean something to them that my idea of God is a belief.

If you believe in a supreme deity, then you are not an atheist. That's exactly what an atheist is NOT. It doesn't matter if it's the biblical God or an unconventional belief of an entity or entities that you believe in. If you hold a belief in a supreme being, then you are not an atheist, because atheists hold no such belief.

That's my take.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


True! I still hold a lot of the same beliefs Atheist do. As Evolution, skeptical and so forth. My mind frame is still as an Atheist. I just can't stop with my form of an Supreme Deity had help a little.

You're in agnostic territory, my friend. Don't fret too much you'll either formulate an answer or be ok with being on the fence.

I just don't understand the atheist thing and still believing in the concept of a supreme being.

Spirituality comes from knowing there is more than just this flesh and blood existence, I suppose.

I believe my spirit resides in my earthly body, therefore, my existince truly resides in my spirit/soul.

I would not consider myself an atheist if I believed in a creator/supreme being.

Atheism:
en.wikipedia.org...

you believe in the oneness? this is a million miles away from atheism. Science might be your only god if you were an atheist, but you wouldnt consider it so. To believe in as much as you do shows that your psychology will never be atheist. peace out.

Originally posted by Romantic_Rebel
reply to post by Benevolent Heretic

 

True! I still hold a lot of the same beliefs Atheist do. As Evolution, skeptical and so forth. My mind frame is still as an Atheist. I just can't stop with my form of an Supreme Deity had help a little.

Why do you think evolution is an atheistic belief? I'm a pretty darn Orthodox Christian, and I have no objections to evolution. Neither does the Catholic church, nor do most non-fundamentatlist Protestant churches.

The only "belief" that an atheist holds that makes them an atheist is the non-belief in deities. Any of them. If you don't hold, firmly, to that perspective, you're not an atheist. If you don't know that there's a God or not, or you're not sure who or what God is, you're over in the Agnostic camp or, arguably, with the "spiritual but not religious" crowd.

Again:

Atheist -- there is no God
Theist -- there is a God (the nature of which breaks down into religion)
Agnostic -- there might be a God, might not be a God, we have no way of knowing

You might want to sit down and define exactly what your beliefs truly are (today... you have to admit that you've been all over the map lately :-) and start exploring what they mean.

Originally posted by Romantic_Rebel
Over time I have come to the conclusion In a belief in some form of a God. A universal concept of God. That necessary what we have in the various religious text of today. I might not have all the clues. Now being an Atheist and still admitting I believe in a concept of a Supreme Deity. I just don't know where to place myself on the believer and skeptic radar. I was accepted in my local Masonic lodge so that must mean something to them that my idea of God is a belief.

The term you are searching for is "Agnostic" - you believe in a creator, but don't buy the popular religions of today or yesterday.

Originally posted by Romantic_Rebel
reply to post by Benevolent Heretic

 

True! I still hold a lot of the same beliefs Atheist do. As Evolution, skeptical and so forth. My mind frame is still as an Atheist. I just can't stop with my form of an Supreme Deity had help a little.

There is only one thing atheists have in common: They don't believe in a supreme deity. Beliefs in afterlife, evolution, spirituality, etc are all over the map in atheists. The Supreme Deity belief is the ONLY test for atheism. So, if you believe in one, you aren't an atheist.

Originally posted by mydarkpassenger
The term you are searching for is "Agnostic" -

That's not true either. Agnostic is lack of knowledge. Check this out:

reply to post by Romantic_Rebel


If you say:

Over time I have come to the conclusion In a belief in some form of a God. A universal concept of God.

That makes you a theist, and I'd still argue about the meaning of agnostic here. I think it's properly defined as the stance in which you are not sure about the existence of god, or that his existence cannot be proven. While atheism is simply the lack of a belief in god(s) (Note: Not a definitive belief for or against, just a lack of one at the moment), for myself, this was on the basis of insufficient evidence to prove anything on behalf of the believer.

I suppose you could play the middle ground and say you're an agnostic theist and say you do believe, but are not sure definitively of the existence of god(s).

Agnosticism is NOT a middle ground between Atheism and Theism. It doesn't reflect a BELIEF. Agnostic means "without knowledge".

What is Agnosticism?

Agnosticism is compatible with both theism and atheism. A person can believe in a god (theism) without claiming to know for sure if that god exists; that is agnostic theism. A person can disbelieve in gods (atheism) without claiming to know for sure that no gods can or do exist; the result is agnostic atheism.

Put very simply:

Originally posted by adjensen
Atheist -- there is no God
Theist -- there is a God (the nature of which breaks down into religion)
Agnostic -- there might be a God, might not be a God, we have no way of knowing

Sounds kinda like what I believe, i call my "belief system" (religions are for people scared to die) Holographic.

reply to post by adjensen

Why do you think evolution is an atheistic belief? I'm a pretty darn Orthodox Christian, and I have no objections to evolution. Neither does the Catholic church, nor do most non-fundamentatlist Protestant churches.

Let me ask you a question...


If sin, (and death), came at the time of Adam's fall (roughly 6,000 years ago) how can there be millions of years of evolution? How can there be death without sin?

Originally posted by NOTurTypical
If sin, (and death), came at the time of Adam's fall (roughly 6,000 years ago) how can there be millions of years of evolution? How can there be death without sin?

As you should recall, but apparently don't, I am not a fundamentalist. I don't believe that the Old Testament accurately depicts how we got where we are. Original sin? Yeah, it's back there some place, in some fashion, we're clearly selfish jerks at heart. But its OT source seems to be grounded in a myth that makes sense from a Jewish perspective 3500 years ago, but doesn't bear up under scrutiny.

How we truly got to this point, I have no idea, and it could be exactly as the Bible says, but the non-fundamentalist in me says that it doesn't have to be, and most likely isn't. But that's me -- I've been a fundamentalist in the past, so I recognize the value of that perspective for those who have it, it just didn't work for me.

reply to post by adjensen


I hold that every letter of the Bible was dictated by the Holy Spirit. Why?

Dr. Ivin Panin's lifelong study and documentation of the Heptadic Structure of the Old and New testaments. It's undeniable proof of the fingerprint of God.

Originally posted by NOTurTypical
reply to post by adjensen

 

I hold that every letter of the Bible was dictated by the Holy Spirit.

That's cool, and there's nothing in my beliefs that says you've got to be wrong, it just doesn't work for me. But, different strokes, and all that -- to a Christian, Christ is what counts, those pesky details are what make Christianity such a diverse community (and, I might add, makes it a bit more inclusive, provided that we remain tolerant of each other's perspectives.)

reply to post by adjensen


Research before you condemn:

Missler - Heptadic Structures 1 of 2

Missler - Heptadic Structures 2 of 2

Dr. Panin's work on Genesis 1:1

Originally posted by adjensen


That's cool, and there's nothing in my beliefs that says you've got to be wrong, it just doesn't work for me. But, different strokes, and all that -- to a Christian, Christ is what counts,

So if you don't believe what Yeshua (The Word) said in Genesis, how can you believe what He said in John 3:16?

Was Jesus lying when he said 'at the beginning" God made them male and female?:

'Haven't you read,' he replied, 'that at the beginning the Creator "made them male and female," and said, "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh"? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.'


Which of Jesus's words to you hold to be true and which ones do you hold to be lies?

I hold that ALL of God's Word is true, every jot and tittle.

Originally posted by NOTurTypical
So if you don't believe what Yeshua (The Word) said in Genesis, how can you believe what He said in John 3:16?

My approach is that I start with my faith statement -- there is a Creator God, he loves me, and through following Christ's teachings and by accepting his gift of salvation, I am reconciled to God. My religion and my theology backs that up, but the faith statement takes precedence, and my faith is built on my life's experience of God's presence in my life.

That's it, and whether the Earth was created with everything in place 6,000 years ago or is billions of years old makes no difference. Jewish dietary law or rules about what kinds of clothes to wear don't make any difference.

Christ teaches me to love God and love everyone else as myself. When anything, Biblical or not, comes into conflict with that, I'm going to go with Christ's commandments. Christ worked pretty hard to demonstrate that we are not saved by clinging to the words in a book, or to the contradictory teachings of religious authority, but by the very real presence of God in our lives.

If your faith requires you to believe every word of the Bible as the absolute, inerrant truth, that is fine, as I said. But it shows a grievous intolerance, and a virtual dismissal of Christ's teachings, for you to demand that everyone else see things exactly the same way that you do.

Research before you condemn

I don't condemn, I just don't care. Not in a mean sense, I just don't need "proof" of anything to have a relationship with God.

reply to post by Romantic_Rebel


Pantheism eh?

Sounds to be like you are what's known as an Agnostic-Theist, you believe in a God but don't believe that we can know specifics of said God. I used to be the same way until I realized how utterly useless such a belief was. Seriously it does nothing other than get people to look at you like you're a crazy stoner when you explain to them "God is in everything, man."