Im new to the website as well as to the freethinking world. I have been listening to IG for a couple of weeks and he has really opened my eyes. I feel like I have been taught to discredit claims that conflict with the beliefs of my christian family. I am only interested in the truth and I am determined to find it.
infidelguy Site Admin
Joined: Feb 21, 1999
Posts: 5388
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posted:
Thu Jan 07, 2010 11:26 pm
Wow.. confuzed. Thank you so much for listening and now sharing some of your story. How did you find us originally? Have you read the questions about god section?
_________________ ----
"To be truly open-minded is to accept the possibility that you may be wrong." - R.Finley Sr.
valholla03 Newbie First Class
Joined: Sep 08, 2009
Posts: 40
Posted:
Thu Jan 07, 2010 11:28 pm
confuzed wrote:
Im new to the website as well as to the freethinking world. I have been listening to IG for a couple of weeks and he has really opened my eyes. I feel like I have been taught to discredit claims that conflict with the beliefs of my christian family. I am only interested in the truth and I am determined to find it.
There is also a cool new affiliate website that you may want to visit that could possibly help out somewhat. But Infidelguy.com is definitely the place to be for "eye opening" material. The other site is http://www.becomeanatheist.com. Enjoy! And welcome!
Well I recently took a religions course in school and it started my journey. It reallly helped me realize that all religions are a bit crazy to put it nicely. I then started listening to podcasts at work about atheism and religion. I first heard about the IG show while listening to DogmaFreeRadio. You were on as a guest and the coversation really grabbed my attention so I decided to check you out. Ive been hooked since. I really enjoy the show keep up the good work.
Brian37 Master of Logic
Joined: Oct 04, 2003
Posts: 9832
Posted:
Fri Jan 08, 2010 7:49 pm
YOU WANT THE TRUTH? YOU CANT HANDLE THE TRUTH!
In religion we use words like "faith" and "miracle". You use them as a punchline. I'd rather you hide your scrutiny and thinking and say "Thank You".
"COLONEL JESUS, DID YOU ORDER THE MYTH!"
"GODDAMN ME I DID"!
confuzed Just Arrived
Joined: Jan 07, 2010
Posts: 6
Posted:
Sat Jan 09, 2010 2:18 am
Brian37 I have no idea of what you just said. I guess that is why I am so CONFUZED.
Brian37 Master of Logic
Joined: Oct 04, 2003
Posts: 9832
Posted:
Sat Jan 09, 2010 10:36 am
confuzed wrote:
Brian37 I have no idea of what you just said. I guess that is why I am so CONFUZED.
I was just being silly. It is a spoof of Colonel Jessup in the movie with Jack Nicleson(sp) and Tom Cruise in "A FEW GOOD MEN". If you haven't seen the movie, it is a good movie.
DigitalAtheist Thinker
Joined: Apr 13, 2009
Posts: 431
Location: Canada
Posted:
Mon Jan 11, 2010 1:44 pm
Brian37 wrote:
confuzed wrote:
Brian37 I have no idea of what you just said. I guess that is why I am so CONFUZED.
I was just being silly. It is a spoof of Colonel Jessup in the movie with Jack Nicleson(sp) and Tom Cruise in "A FEW GOOD MEN". If you haven't seen the movie, it is a good movie.
That's funny. I should rewatch that movie. Or maybe give it the
Rainbo
treatment. Colonel Jesus.
_________________ Be very, very careful what you put into that head, because you will never, ever get it out. - Cardinal Wolsey
iPondR Resident
Joined: Aug 19, 2009
Posts: 394
Location: Aussie Prawn Facility; District 10
Posted:
Mon Jan 11, 2010 9:20 pm
Hi, y'all... [just got back from the wildz of Tasmania, shooting endangered wildlife - kittens already extinct down there...]
D_A ; OMNG - - LOL m-fn LOL - - just saw the trailer to
Rainbo
... priceless (ie, you mean someone paid to see the original?) talk about white-sploitation...
@confuzed; you obviously don't know Jack... [kidding!!]
_________________ "You have enemies? Good, that means you stood up for something." - Eminem
confuzed Just Arrived
Joined: Jan 07, 2010
Posts: 6
Posted:
Mon Jan 11, 2010 10:17 pm
Of course I have heard that saying. I was asking Brian 37 what he was talking about when he refered to faith and miracles. That whole thought was confusing to me.
iPondR Resident
Joined: Aug 19, 2009
Posts: 394
Location: Aussie Prawn Facility; District 10
Posted:
Mon Jan 11, 2010 10:33 pm
confuzed wrote:
Of course I have heard that saying. I was asking Brian 37 what he was talking about when he refered to faith and miracles. That whole thought was confusing to me.
I don't speak for Brian, I get the reference... perhaps he meant the TRUTH that it's all random chance and that 'kaka happens' - but I leave that to his indulgence to explain or not.
BTW, your OP mentions
'I feel like I have been taught to discredit claims that conflict with the beliefs of my christian family.'
You may find BornAgainAtheist 's discussions (which is also an interest of mine) - concerning how our brains lock onto a certain mindset... what you mention above is perceptual filtering... or possibly selection bias... all interesting stuff... needs it's own thread... > specifically, how the brain actually gets 'wired' to accept certain information as 'reality' and others as 'false reality' (try the 2012 WTF thread) >> and how difficult it is to unwire and rewire (unlearn/relearn) and why that can be traumatic and painful yet necessary if one wishes to percieve real reality.
cheers
_________________ "You have enemies? Good, that means you stood up for something." - Eminem
Brian37 Master of Logic
Joined: Oct 04, 2003
Posts: 9832
Posted:
Tue Jan 12, 2010 12:43 am
iPondR wrote:
confuzed wrote:
Of course I have heard that saying. I was asking Brian 37 what he was talking about when he refered to faith and miracles. That whole thought was confusing to me.
I don't speak for Brian, I get the reference... perhaps he meant the TRUTH that it's all random chance and that 'kaka happens' - but I leave that to his indulgence to explain or not.
BTW, your OP mentions
'I feel like I have been taught to discredit claims that conflict with the beliefs of my christian family.'
You may find BornAgainAtheist 's discussions (which is also an interest of mine) - concerning how our brains lock onto a certain mindset... what you mention above is perceptual filtering... or possibly selection bias... all interesting stuff... needs it's own thread... > specifically, how the brain actually gets 'wired' to accept certain information as 'reality' and others as 'false reality' (try the 2012 WTF thread) >> and how difficult it is to unwire and rewire (unlearn/relearn) and why that can be traumatic and painful yet necessary if one wishes to percieve real reality.
cheers
First and foremost it was parody. But yea, "faith" and "miracles" are merely gap answers in the wishful thinking that a disembodied invisible super hero in the sky will swoop down and sweep his fans off the railroad tracks.
BornAgainAthiest Graduate Thinker
Joined: Jun 16, 2008
Posts: 571
Location: Here.
Posted:
Tue Jan 12, 2010 2:10 pm
confuzed wrote:
Im new to the website as well as to the freethinking world. I have been listening to IG for a couple of weeks and he has really opened my eyes. I feel like I have been taught to discredit claims that conflict with the beliefs of my christian family. I am only interested in the truth and I am determined to find it.
Hi Confuzed!
Perhaps a good place to start would be John 18:38.
"What is truth?", Pilate asked.
As far as I'm concerned, this is the wisest question anyone utters in the whole of the Bible. Forget King Solomon, the prophet Daniel, John the Baptist or the Apostle Paul. Nope. Stick with Pontius Pilate. At least he knew enough to know that he didn't know what the truth was. Even if he was simply mocking Jesus, so what? The question is still a valid one, imho.
With this thought in mind, may I question you about your introduction, Confuzed?
From those few words I draw (rightly or wrongly) the following conclusions. That you currently believe that...
* There is one (and only one) absolute, real and ultimate truth?
* That this truth applies to everyone, everywhere and everywhen?
* That this truth might not be found in Christianity?
* That this truth might be found thru thinking freely, outside of religion?
* That somehow, you can find this truth by seeking it out?
* ...or perhaps, someone else can give you this truth?
Am I anywhere close with these? I ask because deep down, like you, I'm a truth-seeker. If we share this trait, then I know where you're coming from. Also, from my moniker, you might have guessed that I'm an ex-Christian. A hard core Born-Again evangelical, to be exact. Baptized by full immersion in a river; a tongues-speaking, prophesying, hellfire-believing, Bible studying, Bible-toting, fully-committed and evangelizing Christian. One of the Elect. A co-inheritor of God's kingdom. One flesh with Christ. A pillar and rock of the Church. Justified and glorified by the blood of Jesus! You get the picture?
Anyway, that was then. This is now. Now I'm a Born-Again Atheist. I've rejected Jesus as a lie, a myth, a fantasy, a falsehood and no God at all. So I can see both sides of the coin, so to speak. Therefore, if I can be any help to you, just lmk. Just for the record, I reckon that many of the regulars here are just as much truth-seekers as you or I - so you're in good company.
Another site you might like to check out is Ex-christian.net. Here...
http://www.ex-christian.net
Thanks.
BAA.
_________________ Nietzsche was wrong - god never lived.
confuzed Just Arrived
Joined: Jan 07, 2010
Posts: 6
Posted:
Sat Jan 16, 2010 10:47 pm
Born Again Atheist
Thank you for the insight and the history of your deconversion I guess it is called. You nailed it on the head. I am a truth seeker looking for answers. I am not asking for someone to give me all the answers, I am just hoping I will find some along my journey. I really appreciate the support and the link that you provided. I have a couple of questions for you if I may.
How long have you been an atheist?
What made you realize that god did not exist?
Any recomended reading material?
BornAgainAthiest Graduate Thinker
Joined: Jun 16, 2008
Posts: 571
Location: Here.
Posted:
Sun Jan 17, 2010 3:06 pm
confuzed wrote:
Born Again Atheist
Thank you for the insight and the history of your deconversion I guess it is called. You nailed it on the head. I am a truth seeker looking for answers. I am not asking for someone to give me all the answers, I am just hoping I will find some along my journey. I really appreciate the support and the link that you provided. I have a couple of questions for you if I may.
How long have you been an atheist?
What made you realize that god did not exist?
Any recomended reading material?
Hello again Confuzed!
Thanks for the courteous reply.
Yes, there's something in the core of us truth-seekers that won't be still, won't be silent and won't quit! Ain't that the truth!
Anyway, to answer your questions...
I was a Christian from 1984 to 1995.
Yet, this is 2010. So, to bring things up to date, it's necessary to run them back a bit, to 1984, to be exact. This was the year that my older brother Paul suddenly dropped dead from an undetected heart condition. That event shattered my family life and my emotional well-being. Dad grieved in private (men of his age
never
displayed their deep feelings openly) and my Mom suffered a nervous breakdown, leaving me to cope on my own, at the difficult age of fourteen. Is it any surprise that I turned to religion, firstly for comfort and then for answers?
Up till Paul's death I hadn't been at all religious, but I was fascinated with science - specifically astronomy, physics and geology. The wonders of the natural world were an endless source of fascination and delight to me. Now, believing that I'd been lead to the one vital, ultimate truth of reality, I set science aside and embraced the truth of the Bible. Plunging deeply into all aspects of the faith I sponged up everything I was taught and devoted much time to Bible study, prayer and praise. This mindset persisted for a whole decade, before events forced me to confront the truth. (More about that below.) In 95, I finally broke with Jesus, God, the Church and the whole she-bang of religiosity. I'm ashamed to say that I didn't have the balls to announce this to my 'brothers' and 'sisters' in Christ. I simply stopped going to church, to Bible study and to anything connected with the faith. At first I thought that God was punishing me for my unfaithfulness when my wife filed for divorce in 96, my Dad died in 97 and I was laid off from my job in 98.
However,
everything
changed for the better in 2000, when I met my partner Maureen. She raised me up from my despair and loved me for who I am. All the striving I did as a Christian (to be a better person, a good disciple, a faithful servant, etc.) gave way to the profound realization that she loves me and is happy with me, just as I am. So now there's a deep sense of calm and peace in my life, that replaces the unspoken fears and worries about sin and punishment that plagued my decade of Christian belief. Thanks to her, I'm a better, stronger, more balanced person that I ever was. Ok, I'm still a truth-seeker, Confuzed. But these days I'm happy to seek the truth of reality thru open-eyed science, not thru blind faith. Then I found this forum in 08 and have stayed put.
What made me realize that that god did not exist?
Well, since I was convinced that god was the Christian triune deity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit I have to be specific and rephrase your question to read, "What made me realize that the god of the Bible did not exist?" The answer is the unchanged, untransformed, unredeemed lives of my fellow Christians. If god were real, then his love, grace and mercy would surely manifest itself in the lives of his people, right?
Wrong!
I've told this story before Confuzed, so you can find it if you go to the 'General Discussion' section of the 'Religion' sub-forum and find the seventh thread down, "Previous Believers". Mine's the fourth reply to the opening question. You see, I just couldn't square the casual indifference of my fellow Christians with the Bible's promises of renewed lives of compassion and belonging for all who have faith in Jesus. There were other issues, but the false veneer of smiles, glad-handing and so-called fellowship in my old church really finished me!
Lastly, I have to counter your question with a question.
Could you be a tad more specific as to what kind of reading material interests you?
Accounts of de-conversions, scientific stuff, criticism of the Bible's accuracy or something else? I'll try and help out as best I can, but I need a bit more help from you. Ok?
Thanks.
BAA.
_________________ Nietzsche was wrong - god never lived.
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