The ultimate question...

[tsisawesome]

Why don't people believe in God? Are they afraid of something beyond them? Can they just not grasp the idea of an Almighty? Do they really not believe or are they just *choosing* not to believe? What does anyone have to lose from not believing? Those out there who don't know about God, i am not talking about them. Give me a GOOD legitimate answer for not believing. And don't say it's because of science and proof. Because, to me, thhe entire world is proof. If you have heard truthful things about him, then you should only want to please and praise him. I am not not being hateful or angry, i am just profoundly curious.

[John 6:29]

People don't believe because the Gospel has been blinded from the world and unless God opens their eyes, they will not see it. Yet, even if people could see the glory of the Gospel, they would not believe the Gospel because the Gospel declares us to be wicked, when mankind thinks of themselves as generally good. It not only declares them wicked, but it claims them to be slaves to sin and offers the opportunity to become slaves of righteousness, but they hate righteousness and the things of God. They want their life to be their own, but they don't see that their life ISN'T their own, that sin rules in everything they do. And the Gospel shows us that there is only salvation in the Holy Lamb of God, something completely apart from ourselves. And no one wants to be saved, they want to be their Savior.

There's tons of reasons people don't believe.

They CAN'T believe. They DON'T want to believe. And they WON'T believe. And they have been blinded from believing. It is paradoxically all. That's why it is dependent on God making them alive (see Ephesians -- assuming this is about the Biblical God).

Also, you are, therefore you think.

[Anthropomorphic]

Using the world and science as proof is as sound of proof as you can have for arguments either way. Such proof is up to personal interpretation, and therefore is highly subjective. My lack of belief in God is based partially in scientific ideas, and partially in vast anomalies in the histories and belief patterns of the faithful and their religious guidelines. The Bible is incredibly self-contradictory, and is often muddled in ambiguity and discourse.

[OMFG!You'reActuallySmart!]

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Why don't people believe in God? Are they afraid of something beyond them? Can they just not grasp the idea of an Almighty? Do they really not believe or are they just *choosing* not to believe? What does anyone have to lose from not believing? Those out there who don't know about God, i am not talking about them. Give me a GOOD legitimate answer for not believing. And don't say it's because of science and proof. Because, to me, thhe entire world is proof. If you have heard truthful things about him, then you should only want to please and praise him. I am not not being hateful or angry, i am just profoundly curious.

My reasoning is in part based on science but for the purpose of this response, I won't go into any of that. I'm saying it now though to show the long post below covers some of the reasons but there are others (i.e. scientific ones).

I'm not understanding this part of your post: "Do they really not believe or are they just *choosing* not to believe?" To me both phrases mean the same yet it appears you intend for there to be a difference between them. Can you explain what each is asking?

As for what I lose by believing in it, I'll answer it by pointing to the somewhat flawed Pascal's Wager. If you don't know what it is, look it up. Additionally, I like to have some knowledge that what I believe in has some rationality as well as ability to interact with. However there are many religions and most of them say they're each correct. This may be true but it may be that 1 of this is right or none are right. When someone opens the idea that the "world is proof", it applies to all gods and beings, not simply theirs, so it's a moot argument. For example, Hinduism, Islam, Shintoism, Theistic Satanism, etc... all believe in at least 1 god and all say they're correct. You can say to me they're not and give whatever reasons but those reasons are the same as the reasons the listed religions can give. In turn, there's no way to know which is ever correct so I find it distasteful when a religion says it is using fear tactics (mentioned more below).

I'll start off by saying I've heard nothing truthful about him. When people claim to have seen heaven or hell, every single person is a Christian, which to me isn't a coincidence. Something happens they don't understand and aren't given many details for, so they grab onto the first thing that they think is factual.

I'm addressing the Christian faith when I say this. I don't believe in god because of the philosophy behind it. For starters, it's a being who refuses to answer and justify any of their actions even when asked for them. In a sense, it's more of a "go along and don't ask". The problem I see is it's so out-dated, many things in the modern world aren't covered in the bible yet people still desparately try to find some sort of connection to see if the bible permits it or not. Although this phenomenon varies in frequency amongst people, it's encouraged for all because of the idea that god gave the bible and it has everything you'll ever need to know in there, so you should check it when confused. It serves as an excellent method of social control, probably the best one that has ever existed over time.

Many won't like my opinion on them but to me, believing in god requires some abandonment of rationality because you have to decided what "tales" or fairytales to believe in. It's automatically assumed all are true for circular reasoning that the bible says it is. I find that those who are more devout often are more irrational, deluded and narrow-minded bigots. The latter I think applies the least compared to irrationality and deluded. As much as a personal attack as this may appear, it's what is encouraged in Christianity. Irrationality and deluded because any thinking for oneself is often prohibited or accredited as god giving you that knowledge. It's narrow-minded because many parts of the bible clearly state that it prohibits certain actions and even certain people.

Although this isn't directly stated, the bible seems driven off of fear. People could believe in some other god but they believe in Christianity because of fear of what will happen should they refuse to. Once people begin believing, they find it hard to let go not only because it'll leave them confused as would occur for other beliefs, but fear over what may happen to them. This does apply to modern times but looking at the bible, this seems to be a reason so many believed.

Second, god is the self-appointed judge, the only judge and he doesn't obey the law he sets down (some can argue he's not part of the world so they don't apply to him). However, he penalizes people using the law he applies to them. In other words, it's like going to a legal court and the judge hammers down the official sentence yet he can never be convicted in any remote possible way.

Third, between the old and new testament, god is a blood-thirsty, childish, immature, vain and angry being lacking all confidence. For someone who is meant to be "perfect", he hardly fits the bill. In the Old Testament, he does things humanity declares as horrible to do, such as his mass killings. For those three reasons alone, he's the most blood-thirsty tyrant.

Fourth, I have no desire to worship him even if I did believe. I don't see why such a great creator who considers his creations to so stupid and weak, want gratification? If he is all-powerful he could make creations that he's absolutely pleased with yet he doesn't, he makes a bunch that are morons, knows they'll screw up but wants all them to bow down and say "thank you, thank you for making me in a screwed up nature with a nose the size of a basketball player's foot. As part of this, I find praying to be a waste of time and effort because it's a guessing game if god does anything. Nobody bothers to pray and not do any other attempt to see if their goal occurs, people pray and do stuff so logically, one is unable to determine who to thank. To be even, it should be both yet people undermine themselves, they belittle themselves, they consider themselves to be flea-bitten scum of Earth in relation to their god. When they're not thinking about god, their religion still has them think so negatively about themselves. The notion that god will give us knowledge means we become entirely dependent on him not just to do things but for mental concepts. We can find out information but the general idea is god gave you all that because you're too stupid to find it out otherwise.

Fifth reason is the concept of freedom. If we're made according to god, then what we do is already known, otherwise god cannot be all-knowing. If so, we have a perceived sense of limited freedom (limited because of the laws we impose on ourselves). The unusual thing is if god is such a perfect being, it's reasonable to assume he has something we only dream of:freedom. However, the bible shows either he has no freedom at all or he has freedom but couldn't give a damn to exert any of it. People want to be with god in heaven but thinking about it, he doesn't care enough to help anyone on Earth, is he different in heaven?

Sixth, if god is so powerful and perfect, he can allow us to have something we dream of, something that the bible rubs in our noses: perfection. God could have simply made us all in a heaven-like area yet he chooses not to and justifies it by "testing". That's a silly excuse because if he knows everything, there's not really any testing going on.

Lastly, the "after-life" seems horrible either way. Hell is deemed as horrible because of torture in various ways lasting forever. Heaven is horrible because you'll become so bored eventually by living endlessly (until the events explained in the bible happen at some unknown date). Death brings a value to life, it tells us we only have around 70-80 years on average to live, although if we take care of ourselves we can live up to around 120 years old. Those numbers put a value on life because we can only do so many things in that time, there's not enough time to do everything we like, not enough time to keep correcting every mistake. We have to align a set of continuously-changed goals however with heaven and hell, no goals exist because you'll have done pretty much everything yet still keep living. Furthermore, you're always wondering when the "great days" or judgement day will come. This paranoia occurs also on Earth. To me, life is ruined if you're constantly wondering when something magical will happen.

As for Christianity itself, I disagree with the philosophy behind it, which is "do as you're told, don't ask". Some of the things in the books of the bible are good pro-social concepts that occur in modern-times, with the necessary changes to fit the differences in societies. Much of it proclaims love, peace and forgiveness, yet it's either the way it specifies to do it I disagree with or other parts of the bible are so harmful they over-ride it. For example, the 6th commandment (of the new testament) is one I agree with, however the 10th commandment, when not applied to actual people, I disagree with because if you think about it, that's how the modern economy is driven: you see something you don't have but want it and have resources (preferably legal) to obtain it.

Originally Posted by mewithYou

People don't believe because the Gospel has been blinded from the world and unless God opens their eyes, they will not see it. Yet, even if people could see the glory of the Gospel, they would not believe the Gospel because the Gospel declares us to be wicked, when mankind thinks of themselves as generally good. It not only declares them wicked, but it claims them to be slaves to sin and offers the opportunity to become slaves of righteousness, but they hate righteousness and the things of God. They want their life to be their own, but they don't see that their life ISN'T their own, that sin rules in everything they do. And the Gospel shows us that there is only salvation in the Holy Lamb of God, something completely apart from ourselves. And no one wants to be saved, they want to be their Savior.

You really do like telling people why they act the way they do, don't you? So according to you, I don't believe because I don't want to be told how awful I am and that I want to dig myself out of the holes I created. Did it ever occur to you people may find the belief absolutely ridiculous? That it's filled with fairytales written by anonymous authors and believed because everyone intrinsicly assumes the fairytales are correct? The list continues but it's not just for the reasons you gave.

[01love]

I can understand why people don't believe in God. Hell, sometimes I question why I DO believe. My brother's reasoning is this: If there is a loving God, the world wouldn't be such a horrible place. Innocent people won't be dying, crooked liars won't be living the rich life. He also thinks that if there is an allmighty God, He wouldn't care if we love Him or not. Valid points, I think.

[Cosmo]

I just don't see why I should.

What proof is there of any God? None.

Any for the Christian God? Nope. Islam? Nope. Hinduism? Nope. Wicca? Nope.

There's just no evidence for any of them, so nobody SHOULD believe them. Plus the God portrayed in Christianity is a terrible person, I consider myself a better person than the one described as "God" in the bible. I don't stone adulterers, break babies against rocks and order genocide.

[Boobies]

I don't believe in god because there is so little proof there is one (or more) and there's plenty of scientific proof that goes against it.
Plus god is a flawed concept.

[Guile]

Originally Posted by MonsterCosmonaut

I just don't see why I should.

What proof is there of any God? None.

Any for the Christian God? Nope. Islam? Nope. Hinduism? Nope. Wicca? Nope.

There's just no evidence for any of them, so nobody SHOULD believe them. Plus the God portrayed in Christianity is a terrible person, I consider myself a better person than the one described as "God" in the bible. I don't stone adulterers, break babies against rocks and order genocide.

Since when was all that bad? Ohh sorry, just watched 300....

Overall though, I don't think the things he ordered were bad, I think sometimes we have to do something that is hard, painful, difficult, for the greater good.

[BDF]

Everyone believes in something. Maybe not god... but then they have an alternative. It might not be a world-renowned religion, but everyone has beliefs which they adhere to, such as that "education is the key to success", and they live by it, bringing up their kids sending them to good schools. The less you believe in whatever the less direction you have, and you'l just end up stuck unemployed begging.

It may seem unrelated at first what I'm saying, but it is.

[ICantCreateACoolUsername]

The belief in god represses creativity, free thought, intellect, advancements in society and human developments.
Further more the belief in god supports bigotry, racism, homophobia, sexism, and much more bias around the the word. God's personality, as described in the bible, is petty, jealous, unjust, bloodthirsty, sadomasochistic, genocidal, vindictive, malevolent, and wildly egotistical overall.
When you say "Why not just believe in god? What's could you possibly lose?"
I'd be losing the very core of my morals; for I have no wish to support something so hellbound and evil as monotheism, or any other type of theism.
I would honestly rather go to hell then support something so morally unjust.
Isn't it funny that the people who get to heaven are the ones that have the most faith; when this "test of life" has nothing to do with any of the valuable characteristics; such as humility, integrity, courage or intellect? According to the bible it's all about believing and you don't have to do anything otherwise which shows you are a decent human being.

Plus the probability of a god is very, very low so I'd rather not even try wasting my time going to church or praying at something which I can safely say is not there.

[~Mr. Self Destruct~]

God is justifiably rejected as a concept so that humanity can take responsibility for itself. Waiting for a messiah or "The Apocalypse" so that we can embrace "salvation" is completely devolutionary and irresponsible.
As a race, our survival is a matter of our own actions, not of a apocryphal, dubious, (and from many a perspective) fake deity. To believe that we are dictated by a higher power and that we are to enter a realm of "perpetual peace" is completely contradictory in the said "mortal realm". It is this way due the fact that secular humanitarianism is the motion which offers progression to a state exhibiting far les suffering than we experience currently, whereas religion quite frequently cites its deity as the sole offerer of salvation.
Man kind is the only "God". We are responsible for our own state, and we are capable of maintaining such as state as a peaceful one.

[John 6:29]

Originally Posted by WOW!USaidSomethingSmart!

You really do like telling people why they act the way they do, don't you? So according to you, I don't believe because I don't want to be told how awful I am and that I want to dig myself out of the holes I created. Did it ever occur to you people may find the belief absolutely ridiculous? That it's filled with fairytales written by anonymous authors and believed because everyone intrinsicly assumes the fairytales are correct? The list continues but it's not just for the reasons you gave.

I'm not telling people why they act the way they do, I'm responding to the OP's questions. But I guess that's inappropriate for this thread.

However, I do recall you finding my beliefs quite despondent. So, it wouldn't really surprise me if my answer was correct. Not only that but I also stated that the present world is currently blinded with lies which they can't even perceive, which is completely apart from you, hence, not really your choice to find it absolutely ridiculous other than you believe prevailing evidence stands against it. Which that evidence is objective, thus not really your "choice" to disbelieve, you let evidence sway your decision. Which, granted, is not a unintelligent decision, but it is also why I stated that the present world is blinded by what they believe is truth. And this has been prophesied over and over and over and over. I am quite fine with you finding my view ridiculous, but I also find yours ridiculous, however, as I mentioned before, I would not believe if it had not been for God forcing me to believe, because, I believe, beliefs are not conscious choices. Oh, and yes, it did occur to me that people find the belief ridiculous. It's been considered ridiculous even since biblical times, and is recorded as so. But as I said, I believe that the world is blinded, as you so happen to believe that I am blind to evidence.

It's very ironic to me as well, how you often are committing the same thing you are accusing me of in practically every post. But I suppose your standard is irrelevant to yourself.

[OMFG!You'reActuallySmart!]

Originally Posted by mewithYou

I'm not telling people why they act the way they do, I'm responding to the OP's questions. But I guess that's inappropriate for this thread.

In a way it does seem inappropriate because you're a believer and the questions of the OP are about non-believers. However, that does not mean you cannot answer. My comment to you was that you painted everyone with the same picture, assuming all non-believers are pretty much the same but added on a little bit at the end saying "all people are different", which really is a joke because in other threads, you've said the same reasons over and over. You clearly believe those are the reasons pertaining to non-believers and consider your reasons to be absolutely positively 100% correct.

However, I do recall you finding my beliefs quite despondent. So, it wouldn't really surprise me if my answer was correct. Not only that but I also stated that the present world is currently blinded with lies which they can't even perceive, which is completely apart from you, hence, not really your choice to find it absolutely ridiculous other than you believe prevailing evidence stands against it. Which that evidence is objective, thus not really your "choice" to disbelieve, you let evidence sway your decision. Which, granted, is not a unintelligent decision, but it is also why I stated that the present world is blinded by what they believe is truth. And this has been prophesied over and over and over and over. I am quite fine with you finding my view ridiculous, but I also find yours ridiculous, however, as I mentioned before, I would not believe if it had not been for God forcing me to believe, because, I believe, beliefs are not conscious choices. Oh, and yes, it did occur to me that people find the belief ridiculous. It's been considered ridiculous even since biblical times, and is recorded as so. But as I said, I believe that the world is blinded, as you so happen to believe that I am blind to evidence.

It's very ironic to me as well, how you often are committing the same thing you are accusing me of in practically every post. But I suppose your standard is irrelevant to yourself.

I got to say, you got a fair amount correct but not all of it correct. I don't believe you're blind to evidence, I believe you are aware of some of it but willingly ignore it with a rationale coming from your belief.

I find your belief not simply despondent, you should be well aware of that given the amount of threads we've been in. However, assuming I did find it despondent without any other views on it, I fail to see how it shows anything from your previous post as being correct or incorrect.

As for the world being blinded with lies, you're also part of that world so you are also blinded by them. Perhaps not the same lies but nonetheless, you're blinded by the lies. So that argument of yours applies to everyone, nothing profound.

[Eldora]

Because I choose not to believe in God because I don't like God's way of ruling the world, which is just a little too hypocritical for my tastes.

I don't like being told I need to read something every day in order to not go to Hell.

I don't like the idea that anyone who is different by default goes to Hell, and I don't like the idea of Hell at all, because I just don't think that anyone in this world can be so evil that they end up burning in eternity.

I don't like being told I can't like members of my own sex or, above all, that I'm supposed to stay at home and cook and clean all my life, and even remain silent when it comes to religion-related things, because I don't believe in using myself like a broodmare to breed and raise more and more people in the same brainwashed, hypocritical, judgemental way.

And last but not least, there are too many flaws and contradictions in the Bible for my tastes.

However, I have nothing against anyone who chooses to be a Christian. I even like the idea of Jesus Christ and think He (capitalizing out of respect to your beliefs, here) is pretty awesome. And in the words of Gandhi: "I like your Christ; I do not like your Christians, they are not like your Christ." I refuse to worship in a congregation of people who come to church on Wednesdays and Sundays and think they've got an automatic ticket into Heaven even though they're worse than I -- a bonified non-believer -- would ever think of being.

Thus, it is for all those reasons above that I choose not to believe in God, myself, though I recognize that He may be real to others, as I believe there are many places to go after you die and many things to believe in while you yet live, and faith gives them all their share of realness.

So.

*cough*

Sorry if I was a bit insulting.

[the.real]

There is no God. The idea pf monotheistic religion hasn't been around very long. It developed from such religions as the ancient greek mythology and hinduism- polytheistic religions. And most of the world, for example, christians, think greek mythology is utter bull. What makes your religion ANY different? It doesn't. Science is real. Science is proven. Science is factual. There is no god because there is no place for a god. Believers are blinded by reality.

[thebigmole]

The following is my belief and not meant to be insulting to anyone.

I don't believe in God because, in my opinion, the Christian/Catholic God is an egotistical jackass that demands everyone worship him or they get eternal suffering.

However that's only partly why. I don't believe in any god because it makes my life much simpler. I feel that I have very good morals, that I'm a very good person and that I'm intelligent enough to decide for myself how to live my life. I don't need some old book telling me what to do.

I would like to add though that I respect peoples' need to believe in God. I understand that some people need to believe there is something bigger than them that is watching over them. It's a comfort, I get it, I just don't need it. I feel like a lot of people that believe in God are focused more on their afterlife than their life. I believe that our lives are the most important part of our existance, and we should just live and not worry so much about what happens after.

[Sythan]

Originally Posted by MonsterCosmonaut

I just don't see why I should.

What proof is there of any God? None.

Any for the Christian God? Nope. Islam? Nope. Hinduism? Nope. Wicca? Nope.

There's just no evidence for any of them, so nobody SHOULD believe them. Plus the God portrayed in Christianity is a terrible person, I consider myself a better person than the one described as "God" in the bible. I don't stone adulterers, break babies against rocks and order genocide.

For those who do not believe in the Christian God, ever try another religion? I agree the Christian one is masochistic and egotistical, but ever study another religion instead of "Oh, I don't like this one, there must not be a God".

Why must you have evidence to believe they exist? It's hard to imagine some people just put a name to a face and said "This shall be our God/dess and he/she shall control this because we need an explanation".

[bitesize]

I'm agnostic so I think there is SOMEthing, I'm not arrogant enough to think otherwise. However I just can't reslly grasp the idea that there might be something ruling us that hates homosexuals and contraception and premarital sex. I just don''t really think it's true.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by Sythan

For those who do not believe in the Christian God, ever try another religion? I agree the Christian one is masochistic and egotistical, but ever study another religion instead of "Oh, I don't like this one, there must not be a God".

Why must you have evidence to believe they exist? It's hard to imagine some people just put a name to a face and said "This shall be our God/dess and he/she shall control this because we need an explanation".

Actually I don't require evidence for religion. I don't think religion works in that way, personally. I'm very interested in Shinto and Buddhism atm.

[the.real]

Originally Posted by thebigmole

The following is my belief and not meant to be t to anyone.

I don't believe in God because, in my opinion, the Christian/Catholic God is an egotistical jackass that demands everyone worship him

CATHOLICS ARE CHRISTIANS. The separation between the two is unnecessary. Also, i hate when people's excuse for there not beIng a god is that they think god is mean and they dont like the way gpd runs the world. Thats inadvertently admitting that you believe in a god! If you think hes the one running the world then you obviously still believe in him.
And no, I don't believe in god myself. But for legitimate reasons.

[Jocelyn.]

I think people believe in god(s) because they can't take life as it is. We live, and then we die. We just are unfortunate enough to have the knowledge that we will die someday. To me people like to make themselves feel better by giving their life more meaning with trying to please their god(s) and giving themselves hope that they will be rewarded for worshiping and being a good person after they die. Not to mention its made to make people fear doing bad things because they will go to Hell, instead of just being told they shouldn't do them and punished. I would really hope people would want to be good and do good things to help others without doing it because their higher power tells them they should.

Not to mention, in my opinion, current religions stem from all those other religions that we now think are out dated an primitive. When I think of modern religions I still can help but think of tribes who would say that a certain God would carry the sun across the sky and that's how the sun rose and set. Current religions have just ruled out of the the ridiculousness that was proven by science to be wrong.

Those who do believe in God just do so because others tell them its the truth and not to question it. That the bible is law and is fact. The fact that Christians can say things about there religion and claim them as truths appalls me. That they feel they can say what God does or does not want from us, even though the bastard hasn't made his presence known for a long ass time (so claimed by average people who just happened to be "chosen" and spoken to by God).

I'm sorry but I just can't believe there is some magical man in the sky watching over us. And if there is one I see him to be more of something like Cartman in the South Park episode about the incredible living sea people. If you haven't seen it, you should watch it. Its hilarious.

Originally Posted by the.real

CATHOLICS ARE CHRISTIANS. The separation between the two is unnecessary. Also, i hate when people's excuse for there not beIng a god is that they think god is mean and they dont like the way gpd runs the world. Thats inadvertently admitting that you believe in a god! If you think hes the one running the world then you obviously still believe in him.
And no, I don't believe in god myself. But for legitimate reasons.

No. They aren't inadvertently admitting they believe. They are saying that IF he did exist he isn't someone they would want to worship anyway. Just because he (may have) created us doesn't mean he is worthy of the praise and worship he demands.

Like, in another thread some Christians were stating that if God asked them to kill a family member they would consider it because God told them to do so. That kind of devotion is scary and reminds me of the radical Islamic people we seem to talk so much shit about. I don't really want to be apart of that type of brain washing, thanks.

[Smitten]

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Why don't people believe in God? Are they afraid of something beyond them? Can they just not grasp the idea of an Almighty? Do they really not believe or are they just *choosing* not to believe? What does anyone have to lose from not believing? Those out there who don't know about God, i am not talking about them. Give me a GOOD legitimate answer for not believing. And don't say it's because of science and proof. Because, to me, thhe entire world is proof. If you have heard truthful things about him, then you should only want to please and praise him. I am not not being hateful or angry, i am just profoundly curious.

Three words: Unified Field Theory

That is where my faith resides, and once you accept and take into account everything that it has to teach - you realize that there is no almighty god. Everything, everyone, all existence - is tied together and we all are equally as much a part of energy as another. There is no one "god", because we are all god - we all are parts of the universe.

[ChaosControl]

My opinion? Because it's just not plausible. I have never had an experience that has deterred me away from adamant atheism.

I want to live my life free of any ideology that attempts to constrain my beliefs as an individual, my free will, and my imagination.

As others have said, if there is a loving God then why is the world such a mess? Just as I won't vote for a politician whose ideas I don't support, I won't believe in a God whose justification of behaviour and events I don't agree with.

Although religion is beneficial to some and provides a source of faith and belonging in their world, I feel I can do without it in mine. To me, religion is something I can't get my head around, and don't particularly want to.

[OMFG!You'reActuallySmart!]

Originally Posted by Sythan

For those who do not believe in the Christian God, ever try another religion? I agree the Christian one is masochistic and egotistical, but ever study another religion instead of "Oh, I don't like this one, there must not be a God".

Yes, I'm currently looking into Theistic Satanism although I don't currently practice any of it, I find some of it interesting. The main reason as to why I don't practice it is I don't feel I know a lot about it and some of it I disagree with or find too silly. That said, it's not simply a monotheistic religion like Christianity is, much of it is polytheistic or pantheistic and there's no demanding social control as seen in monotheistic religions, there's no set of guidelines as to how to behave in life. There are only guidelines for how to perform the various rituals.

Originally Posted by Sythan

Why must you have evidence to believe they exist? It's hard to imagine some people just put a name to a face and said "This shall be our God/dess and he/she shall control this because we need an explanation".

I find evidence is only needed when certain claims are consistently made and are said to always be true in that they happened to people. At that point, to me, the way to test that is to see if any of it has happened in ways that cannot be adequately explained by other reasons. So far I haven't found any of that. Comparing to Theistic Satanism, few claims are made and those that are made usually pertained to the person saying them, not to others. For example, in 1633, priest Urbain Grandier was burned at the stake after writing "pacts" with Satan written in backwards Latin and translated it gives statements about what he would do. A part of it reads:

"He will go whoring three days long; the carousal will be dear to him. He offers us once in the year of a seal of blood, under the feet he will trample the holy things of the church and he will ask us many questions; with this pact he will live twenty years happy on the earth of men, and will later join us to sin against god". The "us" refers to the several beings listed in the pact, including Lucifer, Satan, Leviathan, Beelzebub, Elimi and Astaroth.

Full pact he wrote: http://www.angelfire.com/az3/synagog...andierPact.htm
Translated part: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urbain_Grandier

[Xujhan]

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Why don't people believe in God?

I can't speak for everyone, but I'm happy to give you my perspective.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Are they afraid of something beyond them?

Nope. There are many, many things that are greater than I am. There are even many people who are greater than I am. I am happy to be a small, insignificant part of this magnificent universe. I am not an atheist out of fear.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Can they just not grasp the idea of an Almighty?

Nope. Without meaning to brag, I consider myself fairly well-versed in religion and philosophy. I actually find the Christian god much easier to grasp than many philosophical concepts; he is a remarkably simple, human character. I am not an atheist out of ignorance.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Do they really not believe or are they just *choosing* not to believe?

Choosing to not belief would constitute really not believing, so I assume you mean merely pretending to believe. I choose to not believe in the sense that I have weighed the arguments and evidence, and my reasonable mind cannot come to the conclusion that a god exists. It would be to me as bizzare to me as believing that leprechauns exist and there really are pots of gold at the end of every rainbow; I could not believe even if I cared to. I am not an atheist out of convenience.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

What does anyone have to lose from not believing?

I assume you mean gain, not lose. I gain many things from not believing. I gain a greater understanding of the truths of the universe, first and foremost. I gain the freedom to determine my own morals and values. I gain the freedom to object vocally to the harm I see religions causing. I gain the freedom to do as I see best without fear of angering an omniscient dictator. If you'll allow me the irony: "The truth shall set you free." (John 8:32)

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

Give me a GOOD legitimate answer for not believing. And don't say it's because of science and proof. Because, to me, thhe entire world is proof.

If I said to you: "To me, the existence of the world is proof that the world was sneezed out by a giant space-goat three million years ago," you would rightfully think me crazy. To quote a brilliant man: "Throughout history every mystery ever solved has turned out to be not magic." Not all answers are equally valid, and saying "God did it" has never once increased the sum of human knowledge.

It doesn't even really matter that science has given us many good, tested, reliable insights into the nature of reality. It's fantastic that it has - scientific understanding is the pinnacle of human achievement - but even if it hadn't the god hypothesis wouldn't be any more valid because of it. If you want to gain reliable knowledge about the world, the only way to do that is with skeptial inquiry. The scientific method is not one of multiple methods of gaining knowledge; it is the only one. Trying to gain understanding without reason is like trying to bake a cake without ingredients; it's absurd to the point of contradiction.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

If you have heard truthful things about him, then you should only want to please and praise him.

I should want to praise the god of the bible? The god who, for Pharaoh's hubris, saw fit to slaughter the first-born child of every family in Egypt? The god who called a flood to destroy every human being on the planet? The god who is so vain and so disgusted with human nature that he demands that we bow and swear undying fealty to him before he will approve of us? No. If I thought for a moment that the biblical god actually existed, I wouldn't praise him. I would fight with every fiber of my being to destroy him and free humanity from the chains he has inflicted upon us.

Originally Posted by tsisawesome

I am not not being hateful or angry, i am just profoundly curious.

That's good; curiosity is the first step on the road to freedom. Never stop asking questions, never be satisfied with what you know.

[Power Cosmic]

Fletcher, have I ever told you that you're a legend? >.>

[Kaisada]

Because beliefs are personal matters.
Knowledge and intellectual understanding is never a substitute for intuitive understanding. Nor is blind faith. Spirituality is, after all, that which pertains to the spirit, which has its own domain in the fabric of existence.

Not everyone has the tendency to intuitively connect with the teachings of a particular religion. Some connect to this religion better than that one, others with none at all. That's why different religions exist and continue to exist, and that's why there is no way to decisively settle the endless debate.

It is really that simple.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by The Odinson

Fletcher, have I ever told you that you're a legend? >.>

I second this.

[AnaMZ]

Everybody else has pretty much covered my personal reasons for not believing in a god already. I just wanted to add that the OP was incredibly patronising as to why people might not believe in a god, and made the sorts of assumptions that we constantly have to struggle against just to try and justify our lack of belief in YOUR god. So thanks for that.

</frustrated>

[Xujhan]

D'aww, you guys. Actually I think M&M did a better job than I did and sooner too, but I couldn't help but drag out my own soapbox. Glad you liked it.

[Fictional]

I know it's not much of an explanation, but I don't believe in God because I just plain can't.

[QuantumModulus]

Originally Posted by Guile

Since when was all that bad? Ohh sorry, just watched 300....

Overall though, I don't think the things he ordered were bad, I think sometimes we have to do something that is hard, painful, difficult, for the greater good.

So, are you honestly trying to say that those things which "God" dictated were GOOD? That just because they were painful, and difficult (and, of course, said by god) they were justified and morally sound? I'm sorry for sounding condescending or rude, but I don't think there would be much objection to the idea that ANY institution or ideology that promotes the notions of genocide, murder, or any other injustice, as good things, should be eradicated swiftly and without hesitation. If you honestly need to justify the murder of infants, adulterers, and entire groups of people with the argument that "God said it, so it must be good and true," then I think you seriously need to re-assess your worldview, for the sake of the rest of us who are influenced by your decisions. I find people who subscribe to such views to be utterly deplorable and THAT is (part of) the reason why I don't believe in God. Everyone else here pretty much covered all of my other reasons.

Originally Posted by AnaMZ

Everybody else has pretty much covered my personal reasons for not believing in a god already. I just wanted to add that the OP was incredibly patronising as to why people might not believe in a god, and made the sorts of assumptions that we constantly have to struggle against just to try and justify our lack of belief in YOUR god. So thanks for that.

</frustrated>

I agree; it's completely condescending.

I don't think I've ever spoken to a single atheist/agnostic who felt conflicted or struggling to keep his/her demeanor. :P I actually think the opposite's going on -- most religions tell their subjects that they are scum and worthless, and that the only way to redeem themselves (from actions they didn't even commit) is to funnel their money, faith, prayers, and devotion to hope that they'll one day please their merciless creator. I think it's a pretty sad system when you have to degrade yourself to the point of devotion and prayer so that you'll get into a good spot in heaven.

[Marguerite]

There is no proof to make me believe that there is a God and most evidence points to the contrary, despite what you believe. This is why I don't get into religious debates that often. Me trying to prove that God does not exist (if you could prove a negative) would involve me talking about scientific stuff that pretty much goes way over my head, while your proof is 'oh, a babies laugh! A beautiful smelling flower! A sunset by a lake! The Banana Theory!'

I just don't believe in God. Not because I don't want too. Trust me, if I could, I would. It's quite a nice idea to think that when you're dead you do more than rot in the ground. That you'll see your loved ones, and that someone is watching out for you. I'm not 'rebelling', I just don't believe. I don't understand why that is so hard to grasp.

[Beth.]

I don't believe in a god or "God" because there is no proof. I don't feel I need that belief, others who do get no further then I do. "God" to me is there for people who need a reason for everything because they can't cope without an explanation. And I am not one of those people, I'm okay with not knowing how everything was created, and emerged.

[Noah Zomby]

Well my reasons are that the whole religion is just a huge hippocratic story after another. Also with all the killing of the religion, but what really gets me is the hippocraticness of it all.

[BDF]

I don't believe in god because I'd limiting my understanding of a lot of things by instead believing that it's "god's will". And it's not a choice I made... it just is what it is. My gran was quite religious, my mum probably at the most half as much but even from the age when I was first able to actually comprehend what they were saying I just didn't buy into it. It just didn't explain things the way I wanted it.

I ask why do pockets of air appear at the bottom of a saucepan when you're boiling water? Sorry... "because god designed it that way" is not an answer. 0 marks. The answer is that the water at the bottom of the saucepan exceeds 100 degrees celcius and turns to gas, which occupies 24 times as much space as the water it was formed from, hence the pockets of "air" so to speak.

Believing in "god" just doesn't give me the answers I want. I'm understanding if it works for other people, but it doesn't for me. Some people aren't bothered about the intricate way things work, it's easier to simplify it by believing in god and focus on perhaps more important aspects of life such as relationships.

I'm simplifying the whole issue in this post, it goes further than that. The actual fact is that by nature, even if you or I won't admit it, if you can't find the asnwers in life to something, then you'l look to god. Hence why in past the planet was generally far more religious because science was not advanced to provide all those answers such as gravity. Today science is able to provide a lot more answers, so there's less belief in god generally... but there are still huge grey areas which people look to god for to explain, at least untill we find the answers using science. For example what exactly exists beyond the edge of the universe? Or what gave rise to the big bang in the first place?

[The Morrigan]

The evidence against there being a God is much greater than the evidence for. I know you don't want Scientific excuses but if you look around you can see evidence of evolution ; Similarities between species, plenty of molecular evidence for evolution etc.

Also, the bible is full of so many contradictions and usually contradictions in stories point towards lies.

If someone can show me absolute fool-proof evidence of there being a God then sure, I'll believe. I don't think anyone would be that arrogant to reject the existence if it was presented right there in front of them.

[Xujhan]

Originally Posted by Noah Zomby

Well my reasons are that the whole religion is just a huge hippocratic story after another. Also with all the killing of the religion, but what really gets me is the hippocraticness of it all.

I'm really sorry to be such a huge grammar nazi, but "hippocratic" typically refers to the oath sworn by doctors, after the greek Hippocrates. The words you were looking for are 'hypocritical' and 'hypocracy'.

[Noah Zomby]

Originally Posted by Xujhan

I'm really sorry to be such a huge grammar nazi, but "hippocratic" typically refers to the oath sworn by doctors, after the greek Hippocrates. The words you were looking for are 'hypocritical' and 'hypocracy'.

Bahahaha. No need to apologize. That was my bad. I thought I was just changing it into a adjective. I like how you actually explained the root and stuff. And I'm a grammar nazi too (except for when I get things wrong. Haha). Tis all good!

[snappydog]

A large part of it is because there are so many religions, and I as an intelligent being feel the need to use my intelligence in order to assess each one for truth, or the absence thereof. I can never find any one religion to be certainly true, nor false, though the probability of an individual belief being true must decrease with the number of equally justified beliefs. Essentially, I take a non-believer's position because I can find no more justification in any belief than any other.