DJS wrote:
I was amazed at how many theists routinely made definitive statements that atheists were immoral, murderous, fornicators since they did not believe in god (not god, really but THEIR god).
...I always refute these ridiculous assertions and accusations with empirical evidence, but the theists don't like empirical evidence; it hurts their tiny little brains and their feelings.
...I push back with sarcasm and biting wit, including mocking and humiliation when necessary. Those tactics work; it shuts the theist the fuck up up for a while, at least until another one comes along in a few days and says the same things.
I can see that.
But not all theists believe that about atheists. I'm a Roman Catholic. I have not only written several times that atheism can be a source for good, I think the world would lose a vital and very moral necessity if the rationalism and security found in many atheists and their views were lost.
So you can't judge every theist by the example of the worst ones you come into contact with. That was what I was saying. Stalin, for instance, is one of the worst examples of a human being I can think of, not to mention a very bad example of what an atheist is or should be. It would thus be illogical to judge atheists by what Stalin's Communism has done.
Thus I understand the emotional scars and how they cause this reaction. But there comes a time that if we want to stand for reason, that we have to respond with reason and not react with emotion. I never wrote in any of most posts anything against atheism, but I got judged as if I had. This judgment was made not upon evidence, examination, test, or anything logical--and by people who claim that logic is they way to go--but emotion.
The original post and the thread is merely about reading the Bible again without Watchtower influence. Nothing else. Look what we are discussing! It's about an emotional response that caused an assumption about me, my views, and what I was writing about.
I find no evil in atheism and have little tolerance for those who do. I'm not advocating my personal convictions either. There shouldn't be a problem, and I feel for you, I really do. I am truly sorry for how you and your views have been treated. But just because a lot of atheists have told me I was an idiot and said horrible and false things about me doesn't me I treat them in any way less than giving them the honor they deserve as people. I would lose something very vital to my life if I turned a deaf ear to others just because they did not share my views. I understand if you cannot or choose not to be the same way as you don't owe me anything, and I don't judge you for your "sarcasm...mocking and humiliation" if that is the way you choose.
I'm here worshipping burning bushes and virgin births. Who am I to judge?