An honest question for atheists....

By definition I am a Christian, or maybe a Deist. Maybe I'm agnostic. I believe in God and that he is the creator of everything. I believe in heaven and hell. I am not, however, a Christian Fundamentalist or a religious zealot. I despise "organized religion" in any form, because I believe that religion was designed by the ruling class of the past in order to intimidate and control the masses. I am also currently involved in some inner "soul searching" (for lack of a better term) in regards to the bible. I respect the bible and consider it God's word in it's original form. I believe the bible was written by God inspired men in it's original form. My problem with the bible is that I have no idea how many times it has been manipulated by man in order to carry out an agenda, or to scare and control people.

There is one thing about religion that I do love and that is the faith that people have in God. I also love the hope that people find in God. When a loved one is sick, I have faith that God will help them or comfort them. I guess what I'm saying is that God is the primary source of hope for billions of people. My question to atheists is... where do you find hope? What gives you strength in the face of adversity? Do you ever feel alone and empty inside without a belief in a higher power? I have always wondered these things.

My intent with this post is not to challenge your belief as an atheist, we can have that debate at another time and in another thread. I welcome it. I respect your belief, and would never try to cram mine down your throat, and I expect the same courtesy. I know that there may be some who reply to this with contempt or insults, but I am looking for the atheists who are willing to honestly answer the question of " without a belief in God, where do you find hope?

reply to post by OptimusSubprime


My hope comes from the idea of positive thinking. The studies done by Masaru Emoto and the effect that thoughts have on water molecules are enough proof for me. SInce our bodies are 60-70% water, it makes sense to me that thinking positively would be much better for you than thinking negatively. There are other ways that I belief our thoughts affect our lives, but in terms of health and quality of life, this is the primary one.

why do you need hope???
I dont hope for anything....i just live my life and try and enjoy it as much as possible

reply to post by OptimusSubprime


I like to think we find "hope" in each other, some may believe in something different. I believe, as a Human being that I have an obligation to Humanity and the next generation... as any other "should" feel. But it doesn't mean we have to have said "hope" to live. Some may have accepted a life without it, some may have not. Either way, we are alive, we are moving on.

Jamie

reply to post by OptimusSubprime


Well i agree with you on most of your points. But lately I have been really looking into the ancient astronaut theory as opposed to religion. To me that makes the most sense. I grew up in a christian home and went to church and i dont feel any less or full of faith now then i did back then. I suppose i just try to live my life in an honest way and try to do the right thing and that gets me by. Hope that answers your question.

reply to post by OptimusSubprime


Great post OP.

I do not fit under any definition, I am self defined, I believe they call that Ideology in the Christian bible. I was raised Catholic and baptised as one. I wish I could take it back, I despise everything Catholicism stands for, and most other organized religions too.

I do admire the faith in some people's religions, sometimes I see it as the only good left on this earth, regrettably I pity these people because chances are their faith is a falsehood. But at least it keeps them on a righteous path and most of them are out to do good and wish well upon humanity, which is a good thing.

I do believe in a higher power, I have no idea what it is yet, but I can feel it. No way in hell will I ever worship the Gods depicted in any of the organized religions. I do respect others decision to do so though. One thing I will not tolerate are extremists on either side of any religion who cram their beliefs down people's throats. I respect that you are not that type of person and I admire that. I like your approach to how you posted your thoughts. You made it as unbiased as can be.

People like you and I are proof that no matter what our overall beliefs are, we can live in harmony and wish well upon each other.

Peace be with you my friend.

Star and Flag.

I get "hope" internally from myself.

I am my own god. For the time being at least, until I become aware of other tangible information and facts. Then I may reconsider my views.

Originally posted by OptimusSubprime
where do you find hope?
What gives you strength in the face of adversity?
Do you ever feel alone and empty inside without a belief in a higher power?

Hope is something that comes from within me. I can look around me and feel the love of my family and friends and feel hopeful about things.

What gives me strength? I do. I can look at my past and see what I've been through (losing a baby, having cancer, losing my parents, quitting smoking, etc.) and I know I am FULL of strength! I have all the hope and strength I need. If I need strength, I just reach deep down inside and there it is... Every time.

I used to feel somewhat alone and strange. I never felt empty. But it didn't take very long to realize that I have everything I need. All the times when I thought I was praying or trusting in God, I now realize that I was talking to myself and trusting in myself.

I LOVE my life now! I have very high morals and standards as regards living this life and I don't feel afraid or guilty like I used to. I feel free.

I find hope in my own potential and the potential of others. I sort of do believe in a God (I'm very agnostic) but I don't quite believe that someone is holding my spiritual hand throughout my life.

If there is a God, he gave us free will and boundless potential - and there's plenty of hope in that

i believe that when we are gone then that is the end but i also believe that if there is a place that you go to then i think you would be more likely to be judged on your actions through life than on what you believe gods name to be..

I am not an atheist in the true sense of the word but I don't look to any god for hope so I will answer, but I will answer with a question:

Why is God required for hope?

I believe the ultimate goal of every person be them an atheist or the most devout follower would be to be able to look within themselves and find hope.

If you are a religious person it should please a creator God immensely that his creation can look within and find hope, if you are an atheist you can find that same hope from within. It is a capacity we all have if we simply use it.

I simply view the idea of celestial divinity to be toxic; one too easily corrupted. Deists do things in the name of their respective god(s) but it is still their hands that influence the deed. I derive hope from myself and good people that I know. To suggest that god(s) have a monopoly on altruistic tendencies is to denounce all good deeds done (or those yet to be done) by people of a non-theistic inclination.

I sincerely tried to reply to your post with as little volatility as I could muster, and I appreciate level-headed theistic threads like this one.


If we did a good act merely from love of God and a belief that it is pleasing to Him, whence arises the morality of the Atheist? ...Their virtue, then, must have had some other foundation than the love of God.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Thomas Law, June 13, 1814

I do not wish to worship any God or entity. What gives me hope...........I realized a long time ago that my meaning for life is to just try to better myself and my family. My kids and my family give me the strength to try to accomplish this. Whether or not I am accomplishing this is up for debate.,.

I do not wish to pray to something just because everybody else I know does, or has in the past..... Logic

wishing and hoping for things dont get you anywhere...i dont believe that Jesus was real or that that there is een a GOD like so many are lead to believe....i do believe in a higher power but surely not in heaven and some dude sitting there and walking through pearly gates and all...i do believe that something help creat us though...just dont know exactly..but anyway i believe that in order for things to happen you need to take it upon yourself to make things happen...rely on yourself and not on others...hoping is just the easy way for people to get things they want without doing anything about it

Originally posted by middleclasssoldier
reply to post by OptimusSubprime

 

Well i agree with you on most of your points. But lately I have been really looking into the ancient astronaut theory as opposed to religion. To me that makes the most sense. I grew up in a christian home and went to church and i dont feel any less or full of faith now then i did back then. I suppose i just try to live my life in an honest way and try to do the right thing and that gets me by. Hope that answers your question.

edit on 18-4-2011 by middleclasssoldier because: (no reason given)

I too have been studying the Ancient Astronaut Theory, and considering all of the evidence I have to say that there is a lot of merit to it.

I have never understood how intelligent person can have faith in Christian god.

Its always:God works in mysterious ways - unless he does something good...
The Bible is "Perfect word of God" Yet it is open for interpretation...
Every church and even all christians read the bible, and what they do not like is "Metaphore"

And the christian favorite - Something cannot be created from nothing - well except God..

I could continue about absurdity which is the Christianity as a whole. But that is on another topic. My point is, if you are sufficiently intelligent, you will not pray, you will not let the misfortune to be placed upon your head because god wants it that way, you will stand up from your chair and do something.

Something bad happens ? Does it kill you ? No ? Well you can still live a happy life. Do not accept things that are bad for you, seek compromise and try to do better, you have only one life, and because all of us are "sinners" and God loves us so much he created hell for us, you have to enjoy this life

Originally posted by Exhibeo
I simply view the idea of celestial divinity to be toxic; one too easily corrupted. Deists do things in the name of their respective god(s) but it is still their hands that influence the deed. I derive hope from myself and good people that I know. To suggest that god(s) have a monopoly on altruistic tendencies is to denounce all good deeds done (or those yet to be done) by people of a non-theistic inclination.

I sincerely tried to reply to your post with as little volatility as I could muster, and I appreciate level-headed theistic threads like this one.


If we did a good act merely from love of God and a belief that it is pleasing to Him, whence arises the morality of the Atheist? ...Their virtue, then, must have had some other foundation than the love of God.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Thomas Law, June 13, 1814

I didn't detect any volatility at all in your response. You articulated your point well and it certainly makes me think. I also appreciate the TJ quote, because I have studied him for a long time and that is one of my favorite quotes of his.

How does putting your hope in a mystical creature any more inspiring than putting your hope in the flow of things?

I don't really see the difference between a religious person, and a non religious person, in this regard other than the fact that the religious person usually loses their faith when something terrible happens, and a non religious person has no faith to lose.

My simple point that I'd like to make is this, if an omnipotent being did exist, and I was presented before it, I would spat on it, for all the suffering it has allowed in this world.

reply to post by OptimusSubprime

My intent with this post is not to challenge your belief as an atheist, we can have that debate at another time and in another thread. I welcome it. I respect your belief, and would never try to cram mine down your throat, and I expect the same courtesy.

Hm, perhaps a good start to your thread would be be to knowledge the fact atheism is not a belief but a lack of belief . So, you are not challenging anyone as there is no belief to be challenged,bald is not a hair colour.

Hope ? Faith ? An atheist is more likely to understand this as wishful thinking and less likely to be drawn to it.

Most people deny there is a heaven because they are afraid of being held responsible for their immorality.
Just because you tell yourself there isn't a hell doesn't mean you will be excluded from it.
Wake up, grow up. The end is near. Would you risk eternity just because God isn't "logical"?
Sounds like a risky gamble to me.