NationStates Jolt Archive


Acceptance...?!

Jayate
29-12-2007, 21:47
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).
New Birds
29-12-2007, 21:51
Don't know about the first question because it's not something that's ever bothered me, but for the second one...

2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

I have many friends and real people who love and care about me, who are ready and willing to listen, and who can offer advice, help, or just a shoulder to cry on.

Much more comforting than some mythical old dude in the sky who doesn't even acknowledge your troubles let alone try and help. That's how.
Pan-Arab Barronia
29-12-2007, 21:51
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1) It's not hard - you just do. It means you enjoy what you have now better, though.
2) There are people out there to listen to me cry. They're called family and friends - much better than a sky-faerie.
Isidoor
29-12-2007, 21:52
1) First it didn't feel so good, but after some thinking I realized it's just the way it is and I don't try to worry over it but try to live life to it's fullest... wait, I haven't really been doing that, but it could be worse. Just try to enjoy the limited moments you have and be happy with the small things.

2) I have friends/parents who actually listen. I don't have to make up fairytales.
Dundee-Fienn
29-12-2007, 21:53
1. I don't find anything scary in the idea that once I die there will be nothingness. To me it is as scary as going to sleep. In fact I find the idea of everything ceasing to be quite comforting.

2. Friends and family in my experience are much more helpful
Aggicificicerous
29-12-2007, 21:54
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1: I haven't. You can be an atheist and believe in an afterlife. The mostly likely explanation is that when you're gone, you're gone, but some people (scared to die) cling to the idea that there might be something else.

2: If there is some sort of god, why would it waste it's time listening to millions of people praying and whining? If you're scared of the idea that you're on your own, get over it.
Imperial isa
29-12-2007, 21:56
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
really easy

2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

what a load of bull , like to know how you came up that no one listen to us when things are going wrong and we need someone to talk too
Nouvelle Wallonochie
29-12-2007, 21:57
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

I don't remember a time where I didn't accept those two things.
Jayate
29-12-2007, 22:01
what a load of bull , like to know how you came up that no one listen to us when things are going wrong and we need someone to talk too

This question can be rephrased many times, but it basically asks "How did you accept that there is no God?"

My view of God is that he is supposed to be someone who listens to your cries 24/7 and deals out your justice. I don't believe in God anymore and it was pretty hard for me to accept that. When I first heard the idea of no God, I felt light-headed, dizzy, and scared (seriously).

Your view of God may be different than mine, so my question wouldn't apply to you.
Ashmoria
29-12-2007, 22:03
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

its not being dead thats scary. its dying. you die whether youre religious or not. whether there is life after death or not. once you think it through you realize that being dead is no more scary than not being born. its not terrifying to think of the time before i existed; its not scary to think about the time after i die.

2) How did you accept that there is no one out there to listen to you cry?

i find it very sad. it would be a wonderful thing if by saying prayers or doing sacrifices the outcomes of life would be different. i see no evidence that it is so so i accept that its not true.

what else can i do?
Extreme Ironing
29-12-2007, 22:09
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

Why would you accept anything different? I never believed in eternal life nor the 'happy ever after' line in children's stories, a finite life seems far more plausible.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

Real atheists don't cry, they cover their godless despair with revenge-plotting against moral people and conservatives, while munching on their dinner of freshly roasted baby.
Chumblywumbly
29-12-2007, 22:19
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
I accept it because I believe it to be true; it might be unsavoury, but that's no reason to deny it to myself.

I also believe that I, like everything in this universe from the smallest subatomic particle to the largest galaxy, am an intricate and necessary part of existence. That's the beauty of Chaos.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
That's quite a different question from the one that was up when I pressed 'quote', but like my answer to question 1, I accept it because I believe it to be true.

Moreover, my family and friends give me a hell of a lot, and I think a part of maturity is coming to realise and accept that you can't get everything you want. The 'human condition' is not perfect, not completely fulfilling, but I'm not too sure I'd want it to be.

Utopia, I imagine, could get quite boring.

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.
When I stopped going to church, lost my faith, I too felt this pang of loneliness that I'm sure many ex-believers feel. The universe, for a while, felt like a very cold, stark place.

But one day, lying on my back and looking up at the stars, it suddenly clicked: the universe is a much more exciting place without a god or gods. There's so much to explore and appreciate, to marvel and wonder at, that being creations of an all-powerful being sort of diminishes; for me at least.

I don't claim that this is true for all believers, but I had a much more anthropocentric and terrestrial view of the universe around us back when I went to church. Re-evaluating my thought and realising I didn't actually believe in a god or gods freed me from such a view, allowing me to truly appreciate the world, solar system, galaxy and universe around me.

To caveat this, I realise that there's plenty of religious thinkers who feel the same marvel at what they see as 'God's handiwork'.
Nouvelle Wallonochie
29-12-2007, 22:22
Also, I find it interesting that you see theism as the default position, and atheism something that one has to accept later on.

As I'm sure you didn't pop out of the womb believing what you believe now, I'd suggest thinking back to when you decided there was a God and examining what made you decide that. Or, to turn your question back at you, "How did you accept that there is a God?"
Dyakovo
29-12-2007, 22:25
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
Casually
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
Haven't run into a situation where that is even close to applicable.
I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.
Never went through that
Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).
Some people need crutches to get through the tough times, some don't.
Dyakovo
29-12-2007, 22:26
Real atheists don't cry, they cover their godless despair with revenge-plotting against moral people and conservatives, while munching on their dinner of freshly roasted baby.

Shhh! You're not supposed to tell everyone that!
;)
Sirmomo1
29-12-2007, 22:35
1) I congratulated myself on finding a theological way to save money. Already up on the no church contibutions (albeit that this was slightly mitigated by my ability to simply pass along the collection plate) I was pleased to find life insurance uneccessary

2) All the money saved from point 1 goes into a massive frenzy of consumerism to fill parts of life that are left unfufilled. I figure if I can buy my wife something to make up for my inadequacies in one area I'm sure I can do the same for myself across all the other areas. Essentially I'm looking for a theological rampant rabbit. If anyone has one for sale (preferbly unopened) then please drop me an e-mail.
Aschenhyrst
29-12-2007, 22:35
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1) Nothing is proven to me otherwise, so accepting "once I`m gone, I`m gone" was easy.
2) The other side of this issue is "If god exists, how could he allow so much evil in the world? and Why do bad things happen to good people?". I provide for my own wants/needs and do not ask for help from any human or deity. I accept that I am alone in my journey from birth to death and I may have companions for part of the trip but the voyage is mine alone.

Religion is based on faith. Some have faith in unseen deities-the religious. Others have faith in themselves-the atheists and other non-believers. I will not say my choice is for everyone. I resent those who push their beliefs on me, proclaiming that their way is the only one.
Dyakovo
29-12-2007, 22:37
I'm looking for a theological rampant rabbit. If anyone has one for sale (preferbly unopened) then please drop me an e-mail.

It sounds a little weird so you might want to ask LG :D
Cabra West
29-12-2007, 22:37
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1) What's there to accept? Even when I still tried to believe in god, not existing any more has always been my idea of heaven.
2) I think it might be called "growing up"... when you realise that there are things that you can't and never will have, and come to terms with that. My approach usually is to remind myself that I'm quite happy without whatever impossible thing I might have been wishing for, and that I therefore don't need it.
South Lorenya
29-12-2007, 22:39
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?


(1) You're not gone -- everyone is reborn eventually. Hitler will be reborn again after several hundred years of agony, and Mother Theresa will be reborn again after several hundred eyars of bliss.
(2) Because good things can be done without uncaring deities.
The Parkus Empire
29-12-2007, 22:40
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

I am not an atheist, but I figure I could answer your questions anyway.

1) Complete darkness is perfection. What is wrong with it? And atheists who are afraid to die, often think they will not...seriously. They plan on finding a "cure".

2) What need are you referring to?
Fnordgasm 5
29-12-2007, 22:41
I'm sure I'm not the only one but the thought of eternal life terrifies me. I can't see how it would be desireable.. Could someone enlighten me?
Greater Trostia
29-12-2007, 22:41
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

That's a tough question. I can say for sure though that I didn't accept it by convincing myself of a guaranteed utopian afterlife filled with everything i could ever want. I think that's worked out better for me.


2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I realized that even if there was a God, his purpose is not to be everyone's immortal manservant. I mean, aren't all the deity-iffic answers to these questions a little too much for anyone to swallow? God loves you.. he'll do anything for you... there is no true death and you can eat endless amounts of the perfect pizza in heaven if you just accept Jesus?

I never thought one needed to be a cynic in order to not believe in that.
Soheran
29-12-2007, 22:49
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

I live.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

The fact of unsatisfied needs is a simple matter of reality... what difference does it make whether one is an atheist or a theist?
Chumblywumbly
29-12-2007, 22:50
Even when I still tried to believe in god, not existing any more has always been my idea of heaven.
I kinda agree.

Even if you do believe in the afterlife, any existence after death will be, necessarily, completely different to our current existence; outside this corporeal world. A big part of our current existence, part of what makes us 'us', is the fact that we exist in our corporeal world.

Therefore, 'we' won't, and can't exist past our own lives. If something does survive (a doctrine I don't personally believe in) then it will not be truly 'us', it will be non-corporeal and not wholly human.
The Parkus Empire
29-12-2007, 23:00
2: If there is some sort of god, why would it waste it's time listening to millions of people praying and whining? If you're scared of the idea that you're on your own, get over it.

pray, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf
of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy.
Darknovae
29-12-2007, 23:02
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?


1) There may or may not be a sort of afterlife. Eitehr way, life is precious and as an atheist I value life more than I did when I adhered to any religion be it Christianity or Wicca. And once you're gone, you're not *necessarily* gone for good... you might be lucky enough to leave something behind. You're only truly gone when nobody remembers you.
2) If God/the gods do exist, they can't be here for *my* spiritual needs, nor can they be here for *everyone else's* spiritual needs. And if my friends and family can't fulfill certain needs, there is a problem and it has little to do with the presence of any sort of Higher Being.

:)
Laerod
29-12-2007, 23:14
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).I'm agnostic, so while I don't believe there's no greater power(s), I've accepted it as a real possibility.

I guess its just a "Meh. So what?" If there is no God, fretting about it won't make a difference.
The Parkus Empire
29-12-2007, 23:15
1) There may or may not be a sort of afterlife. Eitehr way, life is precious and as an atheist I value life more than I did when I adhered to any religion be it Christianity or Wicca. And once you're gone, you're not *necessarily* gone for good... you might be lucky enough to leave something behind. You're only truly gone when nobody remembers you.

I do not care if anyone remembers me. And somehow, I do not think being remembered is a substitute for immortality.

2) If God/the gods do exist, they can't be here for *my* spiritual needs, nor can they be here for *everyone else's* spiritual needs. And if my friends and family can't fulfill certain needs, there is a problem and it has little to do with the presence of any sort of Higher Being.
:)

True. Read my last post.
Darknovae
29-12-2007, 23:19
I do not care if anyone remembers me. And somehow, I do not think being remembered is a substitute for immortality.True. Read my last post.

It's not a substitute for something that doesn't exist and is impossible to achieve. But if you die and nobody really knows nor really cares, did you even exist in the first place? I'd at least like to die knowing that somebody had cared.
Chumblywumbly
29-12-2007, 23:29
I'd at least like to die knowing that somebody had cared.
Or die knowing you had achieved something, even if that something is rather small.
Jayate
29-12-2007, 23:31
I'm sure I'm not the only one but the thought of eternal life terrifies me. I can't see how it would be desireable.. Could someone enlighten me?

I can imagine it getting boring - the same environment for eternity. Eventually, God's ability to create a "new" world for you (which isn't promised in any religion's utopia) would even get boring.

Not to mention that some people like darkness, but darkness isn't in Christianity's heaven. Some people may hate fruits and be asexual, but that seems to be it in Jannah (Islam's Heaven). The list goes on.
Damaske
29-12-2007, 23:39
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
I was saddened..but you learn to accept things you have no control of.
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
Well..considering that God has never fulfilled any of my needs..no problem there!
Hydesland
29-12-2007, 23:45
I accept that our existence is meaningless and unrewarded, but that still bothers me a lot sometimes. Family and friends don't really do shit to help with this, how can they? So yeah, sometimes I wish I could believe in life after death, but I can't.
Neu Leonstein
29-12-2007, 23:45
I think I should start by saying that I never went through much contemplation to "become" an atheist. I have never believed that God, or indeed any other form of religious belief, was really, physically real. And that is despite me going to a church Kindergarten - they must have done a bad job.

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
By not bothering to think about it, mainly. There is a lot of stuff I still need to get done on this here earth which takes up all my attention. Ask me again in sixty years, and I might see this differently. But I think life is too precious to spend it thinking about death (which is one thing that puts me off about Christianity - 70% of the time, they're talking about death in one form or another).

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
There is only one person who has the obligation and the capacity to do what it takes to make me happy, and that's yours truly.

I think that making a god someone who will take care of you is nothing but shifting the responsibility. Fact of the matter is that no god has actually ever helped anyone directly. By saying "God will take care of it", you're really sitting back and waiting for another person to take care of it. That's not particularly nice, nor can I imagine that it could ever make someone happy.

I'm my own god, so to speak...Vittos has a great signature that puts it quite well:
They say of God, "Names name thee not." That holds good of me: no concept expresses me, nothing that is designated as my essence exhausts me; they are only names. Likewise they say of God that he is perfect and has no calling to strive after perfection. That too holds good of me alone.
-Max Stirner
Fnordgasm 5
29-12-2007, 23:48
I can imagine it getting boring - the same environment for eternity. Eventually, God's ability to create a "new" world for you (which isn't promised in any religion's utopia) would even get boring.

Not to mention that some people like darkness, but darkness isn't in Christianity's heaven. Some people may hate fruits and be asexual, but that seems to be it in Jannah (Islam's Heaven). The list goes on.

Heh.. yeah..

Hey, these theist people.. They've been telling me that their existance has some meaning that I, due to my lack of faith, do not have. Does anyone know what it is?
Longhaul
29-12-2007, 23:52
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).
1) I simply thought about it, rationally, and concluded that the religious teachings that I'd received pertaining to the existence of heaven and hell were, frankly, silly. Of course, from a certain point of reference you're not gone, since the atoms that go to make up your physical form will not be destroyed but will simply cease to be you. I guess that's as close I as get to acceptance of some kind of after'life'.

2) I don't need someone to "always fulfill whatever needs (my) friends/family possibly can't" and, to be brutally frank, I don't really understand why some other people do.


You mentioned that you thought that it might be religious indoctrination that causes you to have such an issue with question 2). You're almost certainly right.
Pirated Corsairs
29-12-2007, 23:55
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

Eh. I see no evidence that I continue to exist after I die, so I don't believe that I will.

However, I don't think you mean "how I accept that it's true," but "how do I come to terms with it."

So, try to think about it this way: death will be just like it was before you were born. It was no torment to you then and it will be none to you in the future.
Still, it may be unfortunate that eventually, you will die, never again to experience anything. But that's all the more reason to live the one life you have to the full, each and every day. Furthermore, consider how incredibly unlikely your own existence is (and consider how many billions upon billions of people that could have existed never have.) I mean, even the existence of our species could have not happened; indeed, given the billions of ways that it could have happened, it's incredibly unlikely that it happened in the specific way it did.
So be thankful for your unlikely existence, however short. Live it as best you can, for it is the only chance you get.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

Well, my friends and family are really great, but, unfortunately, there are times when nobody is there. I suggest to try to write a letter with your problems. If you want, email it/send it to somebody that can help, but even just writing it out helps-- you don't need to send it.

Or take up something that calms you down. Something to focus on when you need to. When I'm having problems and nobody is around, I do kata and/or meditation. It helps.


This question can be rephrased many times, but it basically asks "How did you accept that there is no God?"

My view of God is that he is supposed to be someone who listens to your cries 24/7 and deals out your justice. I don't believe in God anymore and it was pretty hard for me to accept that. When I first heard the idea of no God, I felt light-headed, dizzy, and scared (seriously).

Your view of God may be different than mine, so my question wouldn't apply to you.

Honestly, as bad a rap as it sometimes gets, I suggest you read the God Delusion by Richard Dawkins. His chapter on inspiration really is touching and comforting.


The best of luck to you!
Ultraviolent Radiation
30-12-2007, 00:18
You just get over these things, the same as you get over anything.
Ifreann
30-12-2007, 00:46
1) If this is all the life we have then it is all the more valuable.
2) There are starving children all over the world. What kind of God would help me before them?
Johnny B Goode
30-12-2007, 00:53
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

Well, I was raised in a house where everybody was atheist by default. I was about 7 or 8, just leafing through a dictionary once, for some reason, I came to the word "atheist", and BAM! I decided that's what I am.
Bewilder
30-12-2007, 01:31
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

The answer to both these questions is "with relief".

1. I'm not about to top myself, there's a lot more I want to do in life, but the idea that one day I'll be able to close my eyes and let it all go is one that soothes me, allows me some serenity. I'm finding it difficult to express that properly.

2. I was brought up in a strict and backward catholic environment - God was never about providing or caring for me. He was always about damning me, keeping tabs and making those black marks on my soul that can never be erased. His servants, the catholic church, were always about control and power and intimidation, never about love or faith. It's very hard to shake off the fear and guilt indoctrinated into one from an early age, but again, the knowledge that I am not inherently evil, not destined to damn every one I come into contact with to eternal suffering in hell is blissful. I am just an intelligent animal who will get some things right, and who will make and pay for some mistakes in this life. How could I not embrace it?


Edit: I should say that I rejected the idea of a god intellectually - the above is my response to my lack of belief, not a reason for it.
Dundee-Fienn
30-12-2007, 01:39
Or die knowing you had achieved something, even if that something is rather small.

And even if you haven't there's always the comfort that you'll only feel bad about it for a finite amount of time
Fassitude
30-12-2007, 01:43
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

It's not a matter of "acceptance". It's a matter of how things are. You might as well ask "how did you accept that the sky is blue or fire is hot?"

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I was never raised to believe in any deity and I have never believed in any, so I have never had these "needs" you mention a deity might fulfil, so again, never been a matter of acceptance, but rather of how things are.
Straughn
30-12-2007, 01:45
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?Easy. Ever been put out for surgery? Ever pass out from heat stroke? Ever gotten brained from a good fall or someone whacking you? Ever bang your head so hard on the concrete to stave off a migraine that your passed out?
Upon waking, with whatever interesting effects you do so, you come to realize that time has passed without you and you weren't really any different for it.
Also, it helps to understand cause and effect. And loss.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?I'm not an atheist, but i will say that living a real life tends to answer these questions for any significant amount of suffering you endure. I will say, also, that other peoples' gods really don't fill in the blanks well at all.
Ifreann
30-12-2007, 02:15
1) I congratulated myself on finding a theological way to save money. Already up on the no church contibutions (albeit that this was slightly mitigated by my ability to simply pass along the collection plate) I was pleased to find life insurance uneccessary

Life insurance isn't about bringing money to the afterlife, it's about leaving money for the people you don't take with you.
Chumblywumbly
30-12-2007, 02:20
Life insurance isn't about bringing money to the afterlife...
It isn't?

*burns forms*
Chumblywumbly
30-12-2007, 02:41
It's like a reward. If you survive my going out in a hail of gunfire, you get money.
*plans ambush*
Ifreann
30-12-2007, 02:42
It isn't?

*burns forms*

It's like a reward. If you survive my going out in a hail of gunfire, you get money.
Ohshucksiforgotourname
30-12-2007, 02:52
Real atheists don't cry, they cover their godless despair with revenge-plotting against moral people and conservatives, while munching on their dinner of freshly roasted baby.

I believe it.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
OK, I'm a little skeptical about the "freshly roasted baby" thing, but I believe the rest of your statement.
Pan-Arab Barronia
30-12-2007, 02:57
I believe it.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
OK, I'm a little skeptical about the "freshly roasted baby" thing, but I believe the rest of your statement.

Yeah, who eats their baby roasted anymore? ;)
The Scandinvans
30-12-2007, 03:01
2) There are people out there to listen to me cry. They're called family and friends - much better than a sky-faerie.Wait, so I do not get to burn people at the stake anymore because I just disagree with them.

*Starts crying*

What shall I do on Friday nights now that I cannot burn people for simply calling them heretics?:(
Nouvelle Wallonochie
30-12-2007, 03:02
It's like a reward. If you survive my going out in a hail of gunfire, you get money.

I had life insurance for just that eventuality when I was in the Army. If I had died in combat my mother would have received $450.000

Yeah, who eats their baby roasted anymore? ;)

I prefer mine boiled, it's better for you.
Khadgar
30-12-2007, 03:04
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).


1) I never saw what's so horrible about non-existence. I mean, I'll be dead, and have larger concerns, or not.
2) The same was I dealt with the fact there's no Santa Claus to bring me presents.
Texan Hotrodders
30-12-2007, 03:21
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

It's odd. I'm an agnostic theist, but I had no trouble getting past those roadblocks for atheists.

For 1) I'm not entirely sure. Ever since I can remember, I have considered the end of existence to be a positive thing. A beautiful oblivion has never frightened me, nor has a terrible hell or a delightful heaven or a painful purgation.

For 2) the solution was pretty easy, because the problem was fear. I didn't realize it until later when I read the Buddha's teaching on fear, but I was basically following the Buddhist strategy for eliminating it.
Chumblywumbly
30-12-2007, 03:32
I mean, I'll be dead, and have larger concerns, or not.
"If I am, death is not. If death is, I am not. Why should I fear that which cannot exist when I do?"
Dinaverg
30-12-2007, 03:36
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

Accept? Always seemed natural.
Intelligenstan
30-12-2007, 03:46
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1. It's tough for most people, but once you come to terms with it, you realize you must live your life to the best of your ability.
2. Because your needs in this world must be taken care of by things of this world. You are the ones who feel that your needs aren't fulfilled. Evolutionarily, there aren't any aparent 'needs' that can't be fulfilled by things in this world.
Sel Appa
30-12-2007, 04:11
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
Actually, I'm quite terrified of dying. I hope to extend my life as far as possible, maybe even indefinitely. In the end, you won't know you're dead, so what's the difference...

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
Because I don't see any needs getting filled. If there was some big powerful guy who could fill needs, there wouldn't be drugs, poverty, war, death, etc...I also learn to cope in other ways without talking to non-existent beings or bogeymen.
Dryks Legacy
30-12-2007, 05:00
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

Well for a start I'll be dead, so I won't be caring much about anything. Also I can't imagine a vastly prolonged existence being anything but boring, being able to eventually cease to exist is a nice thought. Pain of dying not so much.

By the way, this is what earth looks like from 4 billion miles away.
http://www.dailygalaxy.com/photos/uncategorized/321750728_fa6631941e.jpg

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I never accepted the opposite in the first place, my family claims to be Catholic but as far as I can tell only an aunty and my grandpa actually care, and as far as I can tell only he actually ever goes to church.

It's easy to accept there a God not being there for you when it was only really mentioned in passing.
Iniika
30-12-2007, 05:09
1) Atheists don't think about death, or rather, they don't think about after-death, so the only thing left to think about is life. They think about living their lives as best they can.

2) Speaking as one who has never believed that whispering wishes to the wind will ever -truly- have them granted, the answer is the same as the first: they live their lives as best they can. It's not that hard to understand. One could even ask you how you live without voodoo charms helping you in your day to day life.
New Birds
30-12-2007, 07:17
[QUOTE=Iniika;13330144]1) Atheists don't think about death, or rather, they don't think about after-death, so the only thing left to think about is life. They think about living their lives as best they can.QUOTE]

Please don't presume to know what all atheists think.
Iniika
30-12-2007, 10:45
Please don't presume to know what all atheists think.

Please try not to get your panties in a twist about every little detail. When I claim that all atheists maul babies, eat their livers and bathe in their blood, then you can be offended.
Dryks Legacy
30-12-2007, 10:49
Please try not to get your panties in a twist about every little detail. When I claim that all atheists maul babies, eat their livers and bathe in their blood, then you can be offended.

Claiming the mindset of every atheist on matters of life and death is hardly a minor detail, especially when this and the other thread have shown that atheists can and do think about the possibility of an after-life.
Iniika
30-12-2007, 10:56
Claiming the mindset of every atheist on matters of life and death is hardly a minor detail, especially when this and the other thread have shown that atheists can and do think about the possibility of an after-life.

To a generalized, vague question, I gave a generalized, vague answer. If you want me to spend tomorrow polling 100 atheists on their views of death and after-life, that'll take some cash.
FreedomEverlasting
30-12-2007, 12:29
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

What? Those are roadblocks? I thought thos are benefits.

1. In Buddhism, it is said that the 4 painful element, fire, water, wind, and earth, are the source of all pain and suffering. In normal terms it means your physical body is the source of desire and pain. Now in theory you die and reincarnate. But in practice you as you know yourself, no longer exist (unless you reach the level where you can remember your past lives). It should be no different to accept the disappearing element of yourself in both Buddhism and atheism.

Now in Christian's term you die, and on judgment day you will either be send to heaven or hell. Technically it sounds nice. But in practice heaven is more or less a rule enforcing dictatorship worth of boredom. With the God in charge who happens to know every little detail of what you are doing, just like a government putting camera in every single corner of your house. Watching you, listening to you, for eternity. And if you did something bad? You are going to burn for the rest of eternity, and even then he's still watching. You know in a sense I prefer disappearing over that kind of never ending torture and punishment, both in heaven and hell.

Now if my religion tells me that if I die, 100 beautiful virgins are waiting for me in heaven for me to do whatever I want with, then maybe disappearing isn't such a good idea. Otherwise I much prefer in me disappearing, or at least resetting so I don't know this me ever existed.

2. I thank God (figuratively speaking) for not having a God out there watching me every second, judging what I do with my life. Really why would I want to put extra rules and regulation on myself when I have enough of those in society. From jobs to relationships to government to culture and life in general. Do I really need to pay some church to tell me what I should be doing with my life? Can I at least get some privacy? To sit by myself and think what I want to think? Without someone reading my mind and judging me every second?

In Buddhism though it shouldn't be a problem since you can help yourself by doing more good deeds. If you are not sure? Just do something good. In the infiniteness of time you will be able to free yourself from the stress and becomes Buddha.

But really this whole God thing scares the hell out of me. If I want something to believe, I will make something up myself. Why would I want to accept a scenario that is so obviously worst than just disappearing? I can never understand how anyone can find comfort and still sleep at night while believing in such a God.
Dryks Legacy
30-12-2007, 12:52
To a generalized, vague question, I gave a generalized, vague answer. If you want me to spend tomorrow polling 100 atheists on their views of death and after-life, that'll take some cash.

CanuckHeaven's already doing it for free. (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=546420) :D
B E E K E R
30-12-2007, 12:53
God doesnt exist...no man with big beard sitting on a cloud...no garden of eden...nothing...

on the other hand dinosaurs did exist................

so why dont you stop asking questions such as how do we accept there is no after life...and start accepting your own fate instead of making up fantasies to get you through your existence ;)
Wassercraft
30-12-2007, 12:55
I have many friends and real people who love and care about me, who are ready and willing to listen, and who can offer advice, help, or just a shoulder to cry on.

Much more comforting than some mythical old dude in the sky who doesn't even acknowledge your troubles let alone try and help. That's how.

true, true and double true :).

Also for me more comforting shoulder to cry on (or receive emotional support) is not that silent god, but close family and relatives, friends, coursemates, colleagues, good acquaintances, roommates. In one phrase - my fellow human beings.

And yes that includes even strangers. Once in my life when i wa feeling so down that i did not even turn to my friends for support, but i rather went to the bar to contemplate alone. With a drink. And then some strangers came to me saying, "hey, man why you are drinking alone!" and then word by word (and by few drinks), we got in talking. they told me that life's just fine :). Cheered me up, so to say. I also got new friends and also this 'crying on someone's shoulder'. I think it was way better than would be praying alone for god's help. YMMV
Fishutopia
30-12-2007, 14:45
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

Just think of something that really sucks, but you have to accept. The most powerful country in the world is run by selfish gun toting nut jobs, for example. If you like George Bush, think about the Clinton years. There are so many things in life you accept, why not this thing.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?
I never was a believer but if I was, he wouldn't have always fulfilled my needs. Where was my lotto win. Why didn't he smite the school bully?
Lord Grey II
30-12-2007, 17:48
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:
1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?

It's just the way I've always seen it. Course, death isn't a scary thing to me either. I think the whole afterlife thing is simply a rationalization to prevent the fear of death being overwhelming.

2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?


Even people that believe in god will admit that it's not always out for them! Let alone being there for me. I'm as self-dependent as I can be, I don't need a phantom to fulfill my needs.
Dyakovo
30-12-2007, 18:22
Wait, so I do not get to burn people at the stake anymore because I just disagree with them.
Sure you do. ;)
*Starts crying*
*pats Scandinvans on the back*
"Now, now, it'll be ok"
What shall I do on Friday nights now that I cannot burn people for simply calling them heretics?:(
Burn them for the hell of it?
Boonytopia
31-12-2007, 05:06
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

I grew up completely without religion, so not thinking there was an afterlife & not believing in gods was the "default" position for me. I can't really explain how I accepted those ideas, because it's how I've always thought. The second question in particular really doesn't make sense to me, because I've never expected help from a supernatural source.
Vittos the City Sacker
31-12-2007, 05:08
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

When one recognizes the truth, acceptance is no longer a choice.
Vectrova
31-12-2007, 06:07
Interesting questions to all the Atheists out there:

1) How did you accept that once you're gone, you're gone?
2) How did you accept the fact that there is no God out there who will always fulfill whatever needs your friends/family possibly can't?

I'm interested in knowing how Atheists overcame these 2 "roadblocks" in their paths. These two questions are two questions most "I-wanna-be-Atheist-but-I'm-scared" people go through.

Hell, I'm Buddhist and I can't even accept the second one without shaking in my bed. Maybe it's the indoctrination and all that tea I've been drinking (I'm trying to stay away from the Kool-Aid).

1) The same way one realizes that ultimately one's actions have an indisputable chance of amounting to nothing, that one will not be remembered by anyone beyond relatives and perhaps close friends, and that one is utterly unremarkable in every way. The human mind is funny like that.

Me, it just made no sense on why I should go on after I die. Humans are in a perpetual state of decay anyway. As someone else in the thread stated earlier, it is like passing out. Life goes on without you. It isn't that hard to accept.

2) After every prayer I ever made went unanswered, every pleading went unheeded, every request ignored, it became apparent I was exercising futility. Pair this with it being very much akin to Santa Clause in believability, and you see the similarities and childishness it would take for someone to hold such delusions.

Psychologically speaking, there is no reason for the mind to require such things as a 'god' to fall back on. One has one's self, if all else fails.
Straughn
31-12-2007, 09:02
pray, v. To ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf
of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy.

satire, n.
An obsolete kind of literary composition in which the vices and follies of the author's enemies were expounded with imperfect tenderness. In this country, satire never had more than a sickly and uncertain existence, for the soul of it is wit, wherein we are dolefully deficient, the humor that we mistake for it, like all humor, being tolerant and sympathetic. Moreover, although Americans are "endowed by their Creator" with abundant vice and folly, it is not generally known that these are reprehensible qualities, wherefore the satirist is popularly regarded as a sour-spirited knave, and his every victim's outcry for codefendants evokes a national assent.
Hail Satire! be thy praises ever sung
In the dead language of a mummy's tongue,
For thou thyself art dead, and darned as well -
Thy spirit (usefully employed) in Hell.
Had it been such as consecrates the Bible
Thou hadst not perished by the law of libel.
- Barney Stims
Intangelon
31-12-2007, 09:32
I prefer mine boiled, it's better for you.

Boiled? What are you, English? Steamed is the healthiest choice. Locks all those baby nutrients in and preserves the natural juices. Seared is nice, too.

Now in Christian's term you die, and on judgment day you will either be send to heaven or hell. Technically it sounds nice. But in practice heaven is more or less a rule enforcing dictatorship worth of boredom. With the God in charge who happens to know every little detail of what you are doing, just like a government putting camera in every single corner of your house. Watching you, listening to you, for eternity. And if you did something bad? You are going to burn for the rest of eternity, and even then he's still watching. You know in a sense I prefer disappearing over that kind of never ending torture and punishment, both in heaven and hell.

So...you've been there, then? Neat trick.

Now if my religion tells me that if I die, 100 beautiful virgins are waiting for me in heaven for me to do whatever I want with, then maybe disappearing isn't such a good idea. Otherwise I much prefer in me disappearing, or at least resetting so I don't know this me ever existed.


I'll never understand that paticular afterlife delusion. Having sex with a virgin is highly idealized and vastly overrated, regardless of their beauty.
Straughn
31-12-2007, 09:42
Having sex with a virgin is highly idealized and vastly overrated, regardless of their beauty.
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/061006/16931__american_l.jpg
Well, where enthusiasm can make up for inexperience .... :p
Intangelon
31-12-2007, 09:49
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/061006/16931__american_l.jpg
Well, where enthusiasm can make up for inexperience .... :p

Only in the movies.
Straughn
31-12-2007, 09:59
Only in the movies.
Alas, a great # of NSrs only have cinema to relate to, sexually. :p
Intangelon
31-12-2007, 10:03
Alas, a great # of NSrs only have cinema to relate to, sexually. :p

All I can tell you, without being ungentlemanly, is that sex with a virgin is not what it's made out to be, that's all.
Straughn
31-12-2007, 10:05
All I can tell you, without being ungentlemanly, is that sex with a virgin is not what it's made out to be, that's all.

Oh, i agree. Had it and been it.
Intangelon
31-12-2007, 10:12
Oh, i agree. Had it and been it.

Likewise. The former was messy and I was far too concerned with being the cause of pain for her, and the latter was juuuuust plain awkward.
Straughn
31-12-2007, 10:20
Likewise. The former was messy and I was far too concerned with being the cause of pain for her, and the latter was juuuuust plain awkward.
To be fair, the first wasn't nearly as bad for one of them as it could've been, since she was the aggressor, she was pretty much in control of what worked for her, although the others, not so much.
And the latter, ayup. Would've made a funny home video, i think, 'specially for the looks on my face. Watchin' white boys dance, you know ;)