Interestingly, I'm told that studies of terminal patients in hospitals have consistently found that the atheists are generally much more at peace than their religious brethren. Interesting, huh?

Remember that atheists believe that after death, nothing happens and we are not held responsible or accountable for our actions.

Religious people generally believe that after death we have to answer for what we do in our lives.

So of course atheists are more at peace with the idea of death; it must be a great comfort and make it much easier to face the unknown if you convince yourself that it just doesn't exist.

But either way it’s just beliefs, right?

Religious people don’t KNOW that we’re held responsible, just as atheists don’t know for a fact what happens after we die.

Yeah, I'd agree with that.

We pick our beliefs and we take what comes with them. I envy atheists; it must be very nice to face death with the support of believing that you won't have to take responsibility for what you've done.

You know better - I've seen it pointed out to you numerous times.

Aw, blond's all butt-hurt because it's his beliefs under the microscope for once. How cute.


What, so you do believe that you'll be held repsonsible for your life's actions after death?

What kind of "atheism" is this exactly?

:lol:

You will find very few atheists who state their position as a positive belief - the vast majority simply refuse to believe either way without proof. We - don't - know. I have absolutely no problem with that - I love surprises!

OTOH, there is a very large (and IMHO particularly dangerous) subset of christianity that teaches that you will not be judged after death, but that the only thing you need to do to gain access to heaven is accept The Lord Jesus Christ into your heart. That scares me.

Atheism is the doctrine that there are no deities. What you're talking about is the agnostic version of "weak atheism". Clue: it's called weak for a reason.

Honest question, is there really a doctrine?

I think there is, yes.

Doctrine just means a code of beliefs", "a body of teachings" or "instructions", taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system.

Atheists teach, compare and share their beliefs and justifications in the same was as religious people do

- in fact you can see it happening right here most days.

The "group" we call atheists is organised for the most part only in so far as it shares similar or identical beliefs. It does have representatives, mostly self-nominated, but for the most part it's informal as far as I know.

[

We pick our beliefs and we take what comes with them. I envy atheists; it must be very nice to face death with the support of believing that you won't have to take responsibility for what you've done.

Oh nooo my friend...it can be TERRIFYING, crushingly saddening, knowing that "I", the sentient entity that is me, will end absolutely, gone like snuffing out a candle, and that death, in it's actuality is, for the individual experiencing it, like that period of undreaming sleep, that blank, oblivious, unrealized discontinuity of identity. nothingness. That stilleto-sharp realization wakes me in the night, in tears.

No more Me. to my mind, the average Believer, willfully choosing to believe some magic father figure (what's THAT about?) in an alternate reality - invented in ancient times by what amount to superstitious primitives - is going to transport them to a realm of eternal happiness or eternal pain is a cowardly denial of the actuality of individual death, because they really don't wanna accept that they are really going to die.

"oh after I die, I'm gonna live some more!"

Sure, buddy. Good luck with that.

trust me, if I shuffle off this mortal coil and wind up screaming in teh burning pitch with my skin flayed from my meat by cackling demons, I'll be relieved, because it'll mean I'M NOT REALLY DEAD YET.

...and your implication that this generalized "atheist" you so often go on about, somehow doesn't feel responsible for his or her actions is s---. I absolutely do, right now, to my peer group and the collective entity embodied by my immediate and extended socio-cultural-familial group.

I don't need to know that the aforemention imaginary magical father figure is going to judge me: My immediate social group will judge me, and is judging me, RIGHT NOW.

The only true immortality is at the subatomic level.

Now, the universe is soul-numbingly vast, impossible for our tiny, finite minds to comprehend in anything other than the abstract, and full of wonders. Do we know the true nature of it's actuality? Nope, not a bit. well, MAYBE the tiniest smidgen. could there be a being of the nature usually attributed to the characteristics of God, or various gods? Sure.

do I think that such an entity wiould be anthing like the pantheon of predictably anthropomorophic human gods? not a f---ing chance.

No, strictly that's agnosticism (it literally means, "unknowable")

Atheism is the doctrine that there are no deities. What you're talking about is the agnostic version of "weak atheism". Clue: it's called weak for a reason.

Really? Wow. You've got about 5 different things all confused together there.

You must be easily frightened if your own mistakes scare you.

I don't care how much "good" stuff you do, you still can't go to heaven. You are dead in tresspasses and sins. Your good deeds do not commend you to God in any way. You've ignored Him chosing to live life the way YOU see fit.

...

Jesus waits with open arms for those that want life. The choice is yours. If you're sick of being alienated from God, if you're tired of what this wicked and perverse world has to offer, if you want Jesus Christ as Lord of your life, if you want to be reconciled unto your Creator, if you want to go to heaven, if you want to escape hell -- put your faith in the One who can do something about it! Do you believe that Jesus Christ died for you? Do you believe that He rose from the dead? Do you repent of your sins? Do you want to follow Jesus?
If so, REPENT and talk to the Lord in prayer in your own words right now. Don't put off making a decision for Jesus, tomorrow may be too late. Some people don't know how to pray. Praying is just talking to the Lord. If you want to be saved, repent and pray--you can say something like, "Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and I want to be saved. I repent of my sins, every one. I don't want to do evil anymore, I want to do righteousness through the blood of Jesus. I'm asking you to please forgive me of my sins against you. I want a new life in the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to be everything that You created me to be. I believe that Jesus shed His blood and died for me so that I could be saved from my sins. I believe that He rose from the dead on the third day. I want to be your child. Thank you for being merciful to me, a sinner. Thank you Lord Jesus for saving my soul from sin. Please fill me with your precious, Holy Spirit so that I can live a righteous, self-denying life for you. I'm giving you myself. Please show me what you want me to do. In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen."

show me just 1 scrap of evidence that proves I am NOT Jesus. Just one.

I am convinced that it is impossible for such self-contradictory beings to exist.

You were saying?

No more Me. to my mind, the average Believer, willfully choosing to believe some magic father figure (what's THAT about?) in an alternate reality - invented in ancient times by what amount to superstitious primitives - is going to transport them to a realm of eternal happiness or eternal pain is a cowardly denial of the actuality of individual death, because they really don't wanna accept that they are really going to die.

...and your implication that this generalized "atheist" you so often go on about, somehow doesn't feel responsible for his or her actions is s---.

I don't need to know that the aforemention imaginary magical father figure is going to judge me: My immediate social group will judge me, and is judging me, RIGHT NOW.

Really? Teach? Any links, articles, any proof of this?

Ha! Ha! Ha!

So anything that you don't understand is impossible?

Wow, I knew your world view was tiny, but I didn't realise it was that microscopic.

:lol:

I said nothing of the sort. I said that the average atheist believes that they won't be held responsible for their actions after death. (And if you do believe that, you are one strange "atheist")

This is getting boring. I understand the biblical description of God well enough - that's why I said it was self-contradictory, not incomprehensible.

For the last f---ing time,

A lot of things look self-contradictory if you don't understand them and don't bother learning about them.

For the last f---ing time,

In a thread about an instructional book published by an atheist for atheists, in which atheists repeat and discuss the book's teachings and congratulate each other on their excellent atheist ideas?

What, are you f---ing kidding?

would have been nice if you had cited the book you mention

No one I know who does not believe in God or an afterlife has read anything telling them how they should go about being an atheist.

Classify away if you like, but you’re artificially creating a group where none really exists, as if the ideology of “Atheism” stands alongside Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc., as a religion all by itself.

Really, you need to bring swearing into the discussion? Given the crap flying around between you and other posters in this "discussion" I thought I'd at least try to be civil...