Also, Steve K, I think you’ll find that pride has nothing to do with atheism. Intelligence maybe. A will to learn; to discover the immense and incredible, awesome beauty of this world and the space in which it resides, but not pride.

To believe that pride is “THE factor in de/conversion” is in itself one of the most pride-filled utterances I’ve ever read. To suppose that one knows it all is prideful. N.B. atheists for the most part (who are a very disparate group) do not do this despite what theists may think; they just know more about the way the world actually works and the inherent inconsistencies of organised religion to call “bullshit” when they smell it on theists’ breath.

Theists conversely tend to say that THEY have all the answers – “god did it.”
This makes no sense to rational people.

Jen, your “faith” may have blinkered your worldview, but all you have done is merely sacrificed the only chance you have to learn something about this world before you are gone.

If that doesn’t make life special and worth living to the fullest then I don’t know what does.

Being intellectually lazy, sitting back, giving up and saying, well this is just too hard – “god” must have done it is denying yourself the opportunity to REALLY find out what is going on.

You may be happy with a “god-of-the-gaps” but all that says is that you are intellectually weak – you simply cannot handle the endeavour that is constant learning and discovering.

I sincerely hope you are happy, but given the choice I’d choose to be wise, because I know too much about the hypocrisy of religions and the absurdity of their claims to ever feel like I have found any truths in any of them.

Maybe I just can’t partition my mind like you have done, Jen (which is no more than a sophisticated method of self-deception) and I don’t think that’s a question of personality (as you stated), I’m just being honest with myself.

I’m angry at your thinly disguised superiority and hatred towards homosexuals. All of whom are real people, too.

The bad grammar and punctuation is catching…

I guess it’s not.

So sorry. My bad. Gotcha now, though.

*note to self: Catholics are okay with deliberately baiting, lying to, and manipulating other people as long as it provides them with an opportunity to “discuss” their beliefs with those people…

December 07, 2006 9:08 PM “

I have no idea what this is about. I was just commenting in general what is like to be baited as a person that’s all. You know, when you got lemons, you make lemonade type thingy. As a Catholic people have lots of questions for me, usually they have misinterpetations of my beliefs. Even if in the end of the discussion they disagree me, they have a better understanding of what isn’t Catholicism.

These are the “true believers”, I like to call them, to borrow a term: “fundamentalist atheists”.

They don’t simply not believe in God, they staunchly believe in “no God”.

And you’re right, there is no proof that will work for them. Should Jesus Christ fly down to earth in a flaming chariot pulled by the three Archangels, they would simply think that they had a brain tumor, or someone has slipped LSD into their Ovaltine.

Most of the pseudo scientific bloviating (and I call it pseudo-scientific, because eliminating a possibility without being able to disprove it is counter to the scientific method) is aimed toward shoring up their crumbling position.

It’s a lot like the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz muttering to himself: “I don’t believe in spooks, I don’t, I don’t, I don’t believe in spooks!” (because he is really afraid of the spooks, and is trying desperately to convince himself otherwise).

The pouring over here to comment on your post is not the actions of someone who is comfortable in their atheist skin, and can chuckle at the poor deluded Catholic with her “sky daddy”.

Oh, BTW…

You might be a fundamentalist atheist…

#41 When you’re shown that your view of origins is silly, you can only respond, “Well…at least it’s better than believing in some invisible SKY DADDY!”

I hardly “spit” on her, either, if you’re referring to my first post.

I merely took exception to the notion that she was drawing conclusions about people based on some half-assed “experiment”, the results of which she had already assumed anyway.

_I_ also never claimed _I_ was without flaws…

So glad you have the spine to so publicly spit on Jen…oh…wait…you’re anonymous. Right.

Glad you can display so much courage in attacking Jen’s personal reflection. Get over yourself. She has not once claimed to be “holier than thou”, yet by your reaction, it seems she struck a nerve in you. Perhaps a mirror might help you recognize the flaws in your own reactions?

Jen, I can’t pretend to understand your journey as I have never been an atheist, although I have been a confused Catholic! Yet the vitriol with which you are regarded is still amazing to me. Good for you for leaving these posts up…the posters speak for themselves alone, and their hatred is reflected back for all to see.

I did not see pride in your post…only introspection. Only a hypothetical idea which you used to understand another concept.

While it’s true that it would be “bearing false witness” to do such a thing, the fact that you were using this idea to explore a concept is not sinful, it does not make you a hyprocite, it does not mean anything. So for someone to jump on you all over this really only indicates their own insecurities.

Your journey is fascinating…please keep sharing your thoughts, in spite of the beating you are taking. It takes courage to stand up to that, and you are doing so with grace…keep it up!

God bless!