Question for you atheists...

by MrFreeze 43 Replies latest jw experiences

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  steve2

  It remains socially unacceptable to disclose you are an athiest - so individuals usually don't disclose their "status". I personally teeter between agnosticism and athieism and I have the insight to acknowledge that is because I realize (some) religious beliefs do have a consoling function (however, the more reasoned regions of my brain realize that lots of things that console us are not necessarily healthy or "true" (e.g., fairy stories, alcohol and drugs).

  I am caught between amusement and irritation when believers announce to me that the reason I do not believe in "god" is because of my negative experiences with JWs and that if I only realized what "true" Christianity was like....and so on. Sure, my experiences shape me - just as believers experiences shape them. Even so, what ever those experiences are, they may provide seemingly logical reasons either to believe or disbelieve. But thaty is separate from whether or not there is a god.
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  Morbidzbaby

  steve~ Agreed. I really hate when believers try to tell me they KNOW why I'm an Atheist. If I weren't raised JW I'd have a different outlook on Christianity. Not likely. Sure I probably would look at some things differently, but the fact that there is no concrete evidence for a god does not stem from the fact that I was raised in a cult. The two are not mutually exclusive and, in fact, are quite independent from each other.
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  MrFreeze

  I agree morbid. I don't think I would ever have gotten involved in religion if I wasn't a JW. I probably wouldn't be as knowledgeable about religious flaws if I was never a JW, but I still think I would be atheist.
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  Twitch

  Or agnostics too. Are you open about your beliefs (or lack thereof I should say)?

  My beliefs about many things have changed throughout my life and will continue to do so methinks.

  When people talk about anything religious, do you mention that you don't believe in God?

  No. But if asked I would profess and if pressed would digress. Perhaps to excess.

  I find it hard to tell people unless I know them really well. I seem to always get the response "What? You don't believe in God?" Then they never look at me the same way...

  I don't get such reactions. Perhaps it's because I don't advertise my beliefs in everyday life. Perhaps it's the people I'm around. Probably both.

  If I were to get such a reaction from someone, it wouldn't bother me. And if they look at me differently because of it, that tells me a lot about the kind of person they are.