151 replies to this topic

[piet]

Dear Members,

To promote skepticism/critical thinking I wrote some questions for the Christian believer. Are you able to put the link to these questions at this forum.

Thank you very much,

Piet - Rotterdam - Netherlands.

The original questions

http://www.freethink...php?f=31&t=8382

The translation
http://www.freethink...hp?f=31&t=10033

Ps. It's for me quite a problem to discuss in another language.

[Cousin Ricky]

"We must have faith that there are answers to these questions."

"When we meet God face-to-face in heaven, we will know all the answers."

For Catholics: "It's a [joyful|sorrowful|glorious|luminous] mystery"

And, when all else fails...

"When you die, you will understand, but it will be too late. Why not believe, just in case?"

[Storybook]

Hi Piet, welcome to this forum! You have asked some good questions but it seems that religious people have a way of making up answers no matter what question is asked. If they don't know the answer, they will often say that "god works in mysterious ways".

[piet]

Hi Piet, welcome to this forum! You have asked some good questions but it seems that religious people have a way of making up answers no matter what question is asked. If they don't know the answer, they will often say that "god works in mysterious ways".

Yes, if they can not beat the question they pray for me. Or accuse me for blasphemy. By the way thanks for your welcome.

Grtz,

Piet.

[Ungodly]

Yes, if they can not beat the question they pray for me. Or accuse me for blasphemy. By the way thanks for your welcome.

Grtz,

Piet.

Please let me join the others in welcoming you, Piet. Happy holidays.

[piet]

Please let me join the others in welcoming you, Piet. Happy holidays.

Thank you and I wish everybody a good christmas and happy new year. By the way are there many Christians in this arena.

[Joe Bloe]

No Christians here at the moment. I've seen only one or two this year.

The last one left a single comment several weeks ago and hasn't been back since then.

Enjoy your holidays Piet.

[Ungodly]

Our elite and watchful staff do a marvelous job of keeping Ain't No God free of riff raff and fools on a mission from Gawd. We have admins in two hemispheres giving us nearly round the clock coverage so that any miscreant is soon dealt with, our two moderators also help to keep a lid on any disruptive forces. We just want to be atheists hanging around with other atheists. Curious people are welcome, but we do not allow proselytizing or hostility based on religious grounds.

The timing of the best wishes in this thread is just perfect since tomorrow is the Solstice and therefore today is Seasonal Holiday Gift Man Day Eve. As we all know the early Christians settled on celebrating their super-friend's birthday at the same time of year as pagan Sun-related ceremonies. It seems right to return to celebrating on the actual Solstice as it does have actual relevance and significance in the real world. The days will finally start getting longer for some of the staff while summer begins (already did) by our standards for another admin.

Oh and what's his face, doesn't post much lately, White Coyote, is one of the founding fathers of ANG, it would not exist now without him.

I want to wish everyone, religious or rational, a very happy Seasonal Holiday Gift Man Day and many more to come.

[Joe Bloe]

The timing of the best wishes in this thread is just perfect since tomorrow is the Solstice and therefore today is Seasonal Holiday Gift Man Day Eve. As we all know the early Christians settled on celebrating their super-friend's birthday at the same time of year as pagan Sun-related ceremonies. It seems right to return to celebrating on the actual Solstice as it does have actual relevance and significance in the real world. The days will finally start getting longer for some of the staff while summer begins (already did) by our standards for another admin.

Christmas - How it works in Australia:

We have our fair share of fundies, and each year there are sure to be a few "Letters to the Editor" in the newspapers, imploring us to "put the Christ back into Christmas", but nobody takes them seriously - not even other Christians. It's just not an issue down here. Even when a Christian wishes you a "Merry Christmas", there is usually no overtly religious message behind it; it's just like saying "I hope you have good weekend". [I'm generalising of course, but it's really not an issue for most people.]

The last couple of years the Archbishops of the Catholic and Anglican churches have tried to start a war with claims that atheists are destroying the "reason for the season", but even their parishioners haven't gone along with that idea (because there is no dispute). In fact, the church leaders seem to have realised they were flogging a dead horse, and this year they've kept their traps firmly shut. I haven't heard a word from any of them.

Also, unlike America, we don't have Christians trying to plant their religious messages and Nativity Scenes in the town square. They set up their displays on their own property in front of their own church (and everybody is happy with that arrangement).

So Christmas in Australia really is a time for family get togethers - after Christmas dinner the Christians go to church and the atheists go to the beach - it's all good, and nobody is excluded.

[Storybook]

tomorrow is the Solstice and therefore today is Seasonal Holiday Gift Man Day Eve

I just love your phrase for this holiday. It cracks me up each time I read it. I hope you get a nice prize from your DH.

the church leaders seem to have realised they were flogging a dead horse, and this year they've kept their traps firmly shut. I haven't heard a word from any of them.

I have more appreciation of them for keeping quiet rather than all their bellyaching.

They set up their displays on their own property in front of their own church (and everybody is happy with that arrangement).

That sounds fair to me.

[piet]

No Christians here at the moment. I've seen only one or two this year.

The last one left a single comment several weeks ago and hasn't been back since then.

Enjoy your holidays Piet.

2 billion and there's no one at this place. So this is the hell.

Edited by piet, 21 December 2011 - 02:44 AM.

[Joe Bloe]

So this is the hell.

Nice people though...

click to enlarge

[piet]

Nice people though...

click to enlarge

Some of my favorite writers

[Cousin Ricky]

Nice people though...

In accordance with the thread topic, none of these people were Christians.

However, since this is an atheists' Web site, in the interest of avoiding the appearance of "membership inflation," here are the religious positions of these great figures, to the best of my ability to determine:

• Ernest Hemingway: atheist
• Abraham Lincoln: deist
• Carl Sagan: agnostic atheist (denied being an atheist, but clearly misunderstood the definition of "atheist")
• Mark Twain: deist
• Thomas Jefferson: agnostic^[1] deist (claimed to be Christian, but only in the "Atheists for Jesus" sense)
• Benjamin Franklin: deist (though he supported the Presbyterian church in Philadelphia)
• Albert Einstein: Spinozan pantheist ("sexed-up atheist")
• Charles Darwin: agnostic (whether theist or atheist, I don't know)

(I post this because I have seen all these people described as atheists, and I don't want this Web site to fall into the same trap.)
_________________
^[1]Based on his letter to his nephew, Peter Carr. At the time, the term agnostic had not yet been coined.

[Joe Bloe]

I was working on the idea that they were not Christians and therefore (according to the Christian religion) all of them are in hell.

You might be thinking of this poster where the caption writer did get it wrong.

click to enlarge

[piet]

So how are you doing? Does anybody saw a christian since my last visit?

Regards,

Piet

[Joe Bloe]

Check back through the older posts - you never know what you will find.

[peterk]

Hi Piet,

I'm one of those dreaded Christians you're looking for I'm very new here and just browsing at the moment.

115 questions! That's impressive.

My main uncertainty at present is what kinds of response are valid within the rules of the forum. I'd be happy to have some kind of constructive discussion, but I'm not even sure if that's allowed. The rules seem to limit discussion to atheist community topics rather than debate.

Maybe more experienced members can clarify. I certainly don't want to cause offence.

Regards,
Peter.

[Ungodly]

Hi Peterk, welcome.

As a Christian you are welcome here just as everybody else, thank you for taking the time to read the rules and especially for having the courtesy to express your intention to respect those rules.

If you feel that you can express what you wish to say without claiming that an invisible deity, sometimes called God, exists then please go ahead. If you have questions for us please ask. I guess we also hope you will not condemn or berate other users because of what they do not or do believe.

The primary purpose of this site is as a refuge from the constant bombardment with Christian dogma that goes on at many other places, it is a refuge from dogma, not a place for serving dogma.

We don't hate Christians. Most of us, probably all of us, have relatives, friends or neighbors who are Christan. We tolerate them, they tolerate us, no worries.

I hope this helps you decide how to proceed.

Ungdy

[Great Ape]

Hi peterk, and welcome. I hope you enjoy your stay here.

Edited by Great Ape, 12 April 2012 - 03:40 AM.