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What age were you when you realised God didn't exist

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    #212
    Yahew
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,491 ✭✭✭Yahew


    AnalogueKid wrote: »
    You completely took my quote out of context and only quoted the first half of it. Excellent cherry picking there!

    Accusing atheists of being externally influenced (which I've no doubt some are) whilst the overwhelming majority of people in this country are raised in the same religion as their family (not too much choice there!) and attend schools run by religious orders is a remarkably feeble statement to make. When people start actually choosing their religion after studying all faiths or philosphies, then come back to me.

    The point about this argument is to make the "atheist" some kind of genius for fighting the system. Nonsense, you are part of the system ( TV etc.) which makes fun of Christianity all the time. If Roman Catholic schools were so successful they would have made you a RCC bigot - but they are not madrassas, they teach the curriculum and teach science as they have always done ( even in the middle ages). In fact there was more mathematics and science in medieval universities.

    There are no original thinkers in modern atheism. Hitchens may be a smart guy but parroting hitchens isnt. Neither is parroting Dawkins.

    In any case there are plenty of stupid beliefs hanging around: freudianism, marxism, astrology, homeopathy, some kinds of feminism which deny any differences, most psychology. And more.

    The smartest man of the 20th century was Richard Feynman - Einstein had the greater discovery but it in terms of general breadth it's Feynman by a mile. He wasnt anti-religion, nor were scientists in the 50's ( a more scientific age, in fact). He did hate psychology though.

    The point about this is that it is not enough to be an atheist. This doesnt prove your intellectual ability, not in 2011 - particularly when most of the attacks on religion are group think anyway.


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    #213
    Yahew
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,491 ✭✭✭Yahew


    bluewolf wrote: »
    Are you 9 now? :confused:

    No. But thanks for repeating the same "joke" from page one.


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    #214
    Ebbs
    Registered Users Posts: 1,142 ✭✭✭Ebbs


    Like the majority of catholics I follow a certain trend.

    0 - finishing the confirmation money count: Believe.
    Money lodged into a junior saver account - 65: Dont believe*
    65- Death: Take the gamble and pray just incase. Repent daily.

    * Obviously believe a little when its lashing rain and throwing a little prayer out there (God/Spongebob/Allah) to make the bus come faster.


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    #215
    mrsbyrne
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,228 ✭✭✭mrsbyrne


    optogirl wrote: »
    No but you are implying that the impetus to live a moral life comes from a higher being - it is quite insulting to be told that we have no desire to live good decent lives by ourselves - that it is a man in the sky telling us to do it
    and im not to find it insulting that you accuse me of believing in a "man in the Sky"? implying that i am an infantile simpleton? you choose to ignore the fact that some of the most brilliant minds of our time and any other are practising catholics and not afraid to show it. or are they all infantile simpletons too, optogirl?


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    #216
    dj jarvis
    Registered Users Posts: 3,485 ✭✭✭dj jarvis


    how dare you say the god does not exist !!!
    hes sitting on my ****ing couch hogging the remote and picking his nose,
    but hes got the dope so swings and roundabouts

    and for the record he is NOT always right - i got a higher score on who wants 2 be a millionaire than he did - now hes pissed - watch out japan :eek:


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    #217
    mrsbyrne
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,228 ✭✭✭mrsbyrne


    Dudess wrote: »
    Mrsbyrne, how is it funny?
    some of the slightly off-topic posts are very funny :)


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    #218
    tfitzgerald
    Registered Users Posts: 2,285 ✭✭✭tfitzgerald


    What I would like to know is how many people left there faith for whatever reason but when they realised there mistake the have now returned to the faith of our fathers


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    #219
    dj jarvis
    Registered Users Posts: 3,485 ✭✭✭dj jarvis


    mrsbyrne wrote: »
    and im not to find it insulting that you accuse me of believing in a "man in the Sky"? implying that i am an infantile simpleton? you choose to ignore the fact that some of the most brilliant minds of our time and any other are practising catholics and not afraid to show it. or are they all infantile simpletons too, optogirl?


    oh how i laughed :D

    so do you just ignore the MORE brilliant minds and non practicing people ,
    sorry but your on a big loser with that argument

    and as a interesting side note - dropping out of ALL structured religion in the western world is outpacing people joining - and tbh most people joining are 3 months old and have no choice - but then they must all be wrong also ??


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    #220
    mrsbyrne
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,228 ✭✭✭mrsbyrne


    RayM wrote: »
    Cretins? How very Christian of you.

    I'm not sure how old I was when I stopped believing in god. Apart from the usual school rituals (of which I have nothing but good memories) and having to go to mass every week until I was around 12, religion was never really rammed down my throat. Because of that, it never really occurred to me to 'rebel' against it, or even to give the (now very obvious) non-existence of a deity an awful lot of thought.
    my attempts at sarcasm fail drastically tonite. i genuinely meant to imply that the op viewed any one believing in god, or at least not agreeing with him, as cretins. i was trying to be funny by introducing a mention of god. sorry. id forgotten that there can be no humour, or attempts at humour, when discussing the existance of god.


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    #221
    Dwellingdweller
    Closed Accounts Posts: 825 ✭✭✭Dwellingdweller


    Congrats OP! :D When was that, 3 or 4 years ago? ya precocious little thing ya.


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    #222
    Cypher_sounds
    Registered Users Posts: 8,121 ✭✭✭Cypher_sounds


    Have to laugh at this STUPID thread hahahhahahahahahahahaahha:D


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    #223
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    Scanlas The 2nd wrote: »
    I'm proud to say I was 9 about 1 or 2 years after I realised santa didn't exist.

    As if everyone in AH is an atheist? :pac:

    I realised God did exist and indeed does exist when I was 17. True story.


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    #224
    RichieC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,333 ✭✭✭RichieC


    I find much more comfort reading about science and astronomy than I do reading about a petty and jealous 'creator'.


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    #225
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    RichieC wrote: »
    I find much more comfort reading about science and astronomy than I do reading about a petty and jealous 'creator'.

    Or for some of us seeing what the Creator has done through science! :)


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    #226
    RichieC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,333 ✭✭✭RichieC


    Jakkass wrote: »
    Or for some of us seeing what the Creator has done through science! :)

    Amazing work for a deity with bronze age scientific knowledge.


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    #227
    Tayla
    Registered Users Posts: 2,158 ✭✭✭Tayla


    My 5 year old turned to me the other day and said "I don't believe in God, Jesus, Santy or the Easter bunny"

    I never suggested to him the Easter Bunny was real and we don't really have an Easter bunny tradition here in Ireland so why people feel the need to say to kids oh is the easter bunny coming to you is just confusing for them..........Off topic but it's been annoying me for the last few days!


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    #228
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    RichieC wrote: »
    Amazing work for a deity with bronze age scientific knowledge.

    I take it you haven't heard of the concept of omniscience, no?


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    #229
    arybvtcw0eolkf
    Closed Accounts Posts: 24,878 ✭✭✭✭arybvtcw0eolkf


    Scanlas The 2nd wrote: »
    I'm proud to say I was 9 about 1 or 2 years after I realised santa didn't exist.

    I'll tell you of an occasion I hoped he existed, because I asked for his help.

    1988 in a UN base above a village named Haris in South Lebanon.

    The Hezbollah started to launch rockets into Israel from behind our camp (Tech Town), Israel retaliated and started to bomb the crap out of us.

    It was my first day in Lebanon, didn't know where the bunker was so I crawled under an Armoured Personnel Carrier for cover and stayed there.

    I've heard it said since "There are no atheists in a fox hole", I tend to agree.


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    #230
    RichieC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,333 ✭✭✭RichieC


    Jakkass wrote: »
    I take it you haven't heard of the concept of omniscience, no?

    Yes of course.

    It's a total fking cop out and horsesh*t.


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    #231
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    Not as absurd as suggesting that a God who is claimed to have existed eternally suddenly has an bronze age mindset. Why do I bother? :pac:

    It doesn't really even matter if the Bible was written during the bronze age if it is true.


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    #232
    Irish Guitarist
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,736 ✭✭✭Irish Guitarist


    You didn't "realise" God doesn't exist. You stopped believing.

    I stopped believing in God at about age nine or ten. A few years later I started to believe there was a higher power. I'm neither proud or ashamed of either of these things. It's just something I believe.

    Anyone that's proud of not believing in something is really desperate for something to have pride in.


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    #233
    RichieC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,333 ✭✭✭RichieC


    Jakkass wrote: »
    Not as absurd as suggesting that a God who is claimed to have existed eternally suddenly has an bronze age mindset. Why do I bother? :pac:

    It doesn't really even matter if the Bible was written during the bronze age if it is true.

    The people who wrote the bible had a bronze age mindset, it stands to reason that their made up god would too. Surely god would have told us about bacteria to help prevent years and years of needless suffering...

    I've had this back and forth with you already, and realise you're quite good at twisting arcane passages to suit your needs, so I'm sure you'll have a passage there somewhere to cover your ass. :rolleyes:


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    #234
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    RichieC wrote: »
    The people who wrote the bible had a bronze age mindset, it stands to reason that their made up god would too. Surely god would have told us about bacteria to help prevent years and years of needless suffering...

    Yawn. This is just awful reasoning. The Bible doesn't claim to be a science book. I don't open Immanuel Kant to figure out how to upgrade the RAM in my computer either.
    RichieC wrote: »
    I've had this back and forth with you already, and realise you're quite good at twisting arcane passages to suit your needs, so I'm sure you'll have a passage there somewhere to cover your ass. :rolleyes:

    I haven't twisted anything. I don't leave my brain behind when I aim to read something that I want to guide my entire life.

    I just don't think there is any good basis for being an atheist. God's existence has a profound importance in my life, so yes I will defend it to the teeth when people try to rubbish it without basis more often than not. Hopefully with the kind of respect I'd hope to receive from others.

    What about you?


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    #235
    ArtSmart
    Registered Users Posts: 5,614 ✭✭✭ArtSmart


    73


    'course, by that time....


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    #236
    God...
    Closed Accounts Posts: 204 ✭✭God...


    I ****ing hate people!!!


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    #237
    philologos
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,479 ✭✭✭✭philologos


    RayM wrote: »
    the (now very obvious) non-existence of a deity an awful lot of thought.

    I honestly don't get how it is so "obvious" that God doesn't exist. Would you like to explain how?


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    #238
    Naikon
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,564 ✭✭✭Naikon


    God... wrote: »
    I ****ing hate people!!!

    Me too, brother. Maybe we should form a cult of misanthropy? There are some(few) genuine exceptions to this rule though.


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    #239
    Dudess
    Closed Accounts Posts: 37,214 ✭✭✭✭Dudess


    I agree there are plenty of smug atheists - I certainly don't wave around my atheism, and people who say stuff like "Atheist and proud" are just embarrassing - but it seems like it's getting to the point where you only have to be an atheist alone to be derided as smug and self congratulatory. I wouldn't get too worried about believers of late - there are droves upon droves to defend them.
    major bill wrote: »
    some people look down at others that have faith but its the atheists i feel sorry for..must be horrible to think thats there nothing there atall and id love to have the same faith as some people have!!!.
    What was that about looking down on people? I don't need your pity as I am happy with the notion that there's nothing there, and no, I don't envy the faith of some people. I love how you feel you've carte blanche to say something as patronising as that - I can only imagine the uproar if someone said they felt sorry for you for being, in their opinion, deluded.
    tfitzgerald wrote: »
    What I would like to know is how many people left there faith for whatever reason but when they realised there mistake started to believe again and have now returned to the faith of our fathers
    Jakkass wrote: »
    I realised God did exist and indeed does exist became a believer when I was 17. True story.
    FYPs.


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    #240
    Donkey Oaty
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,533 ✭✭✭Donkey Oaty


    Jakkass wrote: »
    I honestly don't get how it is so "obvious" that God doesn't exist. Would you like to explain how?

    Hi Jakkass.

    If by "God" you mean an omniscient, benevolent and omnipotent being, then I'd be interested in your brief thoughts from a Christian perspective on the the Epicurean paradox - if there is evil in the world, such a God cannot know about it, care about it and be able to do something about it.


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    #241
    blacktalons
    Registered Users Posts: 108 ✭✭blacktalons


    o please, not another them" versus us thread" this type of bull****e is sooooo boring,
    full marks for stirring the ****e, especially with easter upon us.


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