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    •  Many apologists will say that the arguments for God’s existence should be seen as a cumulative case rather than any single argument being a reason for belief on its own. This is understandable as the majority of arguments for God are second hand inference, God of the gaps or incredulity based, so as evidence goes none of it should not be convincing on its own.

      The cumulative case works in both directions, as there are many reasons to disbelieve in a God’s existence, but any single argument may not be convincing on its own. With that in mind, here are a few of the more common reasons for disbelief and the rabbit hole of questions that these reasons lead to:  
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    • The evidence is clear that evil and suffering exist.
       
      The evidence that god exists?  No one really has any.
       
      Moreover, we know that even if a god does exist, evil and suffering obviously do not offend him.  If it did, he'd have put a stop to it by now.  After all, if he is omniscient, then he knows how much evil and suffering there is; and how broken and miserable it makes human existence.  If he really is omnibenevolent, then he wants to prevent his children from brokenness and misery.  If he really is omnipotent, then he has the ability to prevent the evil and suffering that causes brokenness and misery.  And if he really is omnipresent, then he is present every where that evil and suffering exist.
       
      If god is all of these things, and evil and suffering offend him, then why do evil and suffering continue to exist?  Why has he not moved to alleviate his own offense and save us all in the process? The simple fact that evil and suffering continue in this world is, in itself, evidence that god is not offended by it... or maybe god isn't the omni-max he's made out to be... or maybe god simply does not exist. 
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    • Animal suffering is a subject which I have thought of as simply a variation on the problem of suffering.  If God loved every one of His creations, then why would He set up a system where predators need to kill live prey to survive.  It's a system designed around killing, which is hard to reconcile with a loving, good God.
      However, I came across some other implications of animal suffering that expand the subject in several interesting ways.  The first was that if you are an old Earth creationist, so accept evolution, then the creation of every species that we see was guided by the principles of survival of the fittest, with evolutionary pressure being horrendous suffering (predation, disease, starvation, conflict etc).  The tool that God decided to use was untold misery for hundreds of millions of years, before we get to our current world of diverse life.
      The fact that thousands of T-Rex stalked the lands killing to survive, can't be seen as necessary, when they are all extinct long before His chosen people come along.  Hundreds of millions of years of creatures being torn limb from limb, before any of it mattered for our existence.  Why have that time period of suffering without benefit?
       
      I was talking to a vegan, who said God loves all of His creations, and believing that Christians should be vegan because killing His creations was against His will.  This just led to pointing to the horrors of the OT, where God requests burnt sacrifices on a regular basis, saying that the smell was pleasing to Him.  Or to the Israelites attacks on various cities, where they are told to kill all of the inhabitants, including the innocent animals.  King Saul even angered God for not murdering all of the animals, as some were taken as plunder.
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    • Hello,
      I guess our reasons for joining this site are slightly different for each person and yet perhaps desperation might be a common theme. So, with that said, a brief introduction. I have been involved with Christianity for many years. Out of sheer despair, I suppose I ended up finding this site. 
      Here is my experience with Christianity:
      The unhappiest times of my life were when I got myself involved in Christianity. I marvel at those who appear to be at ease with it all. I conclude, there's something wrong with me. 
      Never, have I felt more powerless, worthless, unfree. 
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    • Failed prayer, the idea that there is an invisible being , listening to everyones thoughts is beyond laughable. 
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  • Recent Posts

    • Casualfanboy16
      The ones who want an attractive, yet docile boyfriend/husband 😁   (I'll answer the questions when I get the time haha)
    • Weezer
      I enjoy mowing the pasture.  Going around in circles with no other distractions for 2 or 3 hours is a great time to think.     For years I have said that throughout history wealthy and powerful humans have used the "common" people to do their dirty work.  But had never really thought much about when and how it all got started.  In my mind it seemed powerful people in the long ago simply forced "common" people to do their dirty work, and fight their battles, etc.  Later forcing them to pay taxes, etc.  Did reigions play a role? If so, when did it start?  It didn't seem logical that powerful religions sprung out of belief in rain and sun gods.  Yesterday a concept took form while I was mowing, about how this possibly all came about.   Keep in mind some of this is "tongue in cheek" (but perhaps some truth)??  I also realize there may be some "disjoints" in the post, but heck, what else is going on these days on the forum??   Looking back at the Sumerian stories of human creation, this fell into place.  The area where they lived was between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.  As the story goes, the lower Sumerian "gods" were complaining about the manual labor they had to do, so two of the higher gods decided to "create" some beings designed to do the common jobs and hard labor.  They wanted servants and slaves.  There is some confusion about how this was exactly done, but they made these "humans" to look like themselves (in their image) (sound familiar)??.  But they evidently were "dumbed down" and docile.  But smart enough to follow directions, which is what the authoritarian Sumerians wanted.  It seems to have worked, but for how long did it last?     Then the stories say the sons of some of these gods saw the daughters of these humans were attractive and started marrying them.  (sound familiar)?  After all, what male doesn't want an attractive, yet docile wife??  😁   This may have created a problem.  Would mixing "god" brains with docile "human" brains produce some problems??  Including the kids?  And if this mixing of dominate and docile, intelligent and simple, went on long enough, wouldn't the majority of "people" eventually become "average" and fight over who was in charge??  How could the powerful ones (gods) stay in control without continually using force?? . WAS A NEW RELIGION EVENTUALLY DEVELOPED??   Convince everyone that they are born incomplete, and incapabe.  Convince them they have a "spirit" or "soul" that is tainted.  And only ONE GOD can save them by worshipping him and obeying him.  Questioning and disobeying is evil.  See how he caused all those evil people to be killed in a flood!!  He will get you one way or another if you are not loyal.     And later something was added.  Don't worry about dying.  And even if you are in a terrible situation, just HANG IN THERE!  If you believe in and will follow GOD, when you die, you will go to a glorious place called Heaven where you will live forever.  Or if you don't believe in him, and disobey, you will burn in Hell forever.  This, with some brute force behind it worked for ages by keeping people "in their place."  In subjection.    But, dang it!  Democratic ideas came along and began to take hold.  People questioned authority and wanted to protect themselves from overwhelming power.  But even while this was being fought over over the centuries, powrful people supplying the war machines were making money paid for by common peoples labor and taxes.  And common soliders paying with their lives.     And much later the rich and powerful found other ways to stay rich and powerful without using force or religion.  And in some ways they are stilll our gods.  How do they stay in power??  Consider this conversation.  (1)  You need to keep the masses uneducated.  Whatever you do, don't encourage critical thinking.  We don't need them seeing the big pictire of life.  But do give them job training to do the jobs that make us richer and more powerful. (2)  They love instant gratification.  They want to "feel good" at all time. Give them gadgets to play with, trivial entertainment, and food and drink, and whatever else that feels good and helps them forget their problems.  Keep them busy, so they don't have time to sit around and think.  We don't want them contemplating on things.  (3)  Do what you can to keep them squabbling with each other.  Encourage competition---machoism---not cooperation.  Remember to promote the religions our ancestors developed that divide them into good and evil.  The division and chaos means profits for us.  Also, talking about religion, do your best to make that Jesus character look like a sissy.  We don't want people caring about each other.  Remember, all those policemen also need jobs.  And an occasional war is great for our profits ---- well, at least as long as they don't annahiliate the entire population on earth!  (4)   And that reminds me.  Do what you can to keep them having as many kids as possible.  We need people, the more the better, to make our stuff, to sell our stuff to, and to fight our wars.  And remind them that God hates queers.  They don't provide more people for us to use.   I could go into how the rich and powerful, including churches, manuplate taxes to their advantage.  And the role they play in politics, but that is getting into "No, No" land, so I will leave it at what has already been said.  The point is that I believe the rich and powerful "gods" of the Sumerians may have been the beings who started the roll toward Abrahamic religions in the middle east.  And sly people (their decendents)??  are still doing what they can to keep those concepts going??   Whoever has been responsible have kept the powerful religions based on fear rolling.  Powerful tools for powerful people from the beginning.  And some believe this "line" of people are some of the top 1% of the worlds richest people now.  Possible??    And I will end with two more questions.  (A)  Since we don't believe the biblical "God" was the originator of these powerful religions that have helped to control so many through the ages, where did the brains for the huge scheme come from??   (B)  Why do so many people today still hang onto authoritarian "pie in the sky" promises?  Religious and secular.
    • Fuego
      When I originally deconverted, it was because I realized I'd been tricked into following a cult. During my belief, I tended to only listen to Christian sources and shut out the others. But when I started questioning, it was like a flood of all the things I'd stored up over the years came rushing through my mind because I'd seen and heard so many things that didn't add up.   It still took a good year of praying, fasting, really asking questions, getting no answers, and eventually concluding no one was listening. I wrote out all of the troubling things I'd seen in scripture (god being a complete wank by setting up humanity in the garden, god having body parts, the cosmology of Genesis being messed up, Tower of Babel is tiny compared to skyscrapers but god is fine with those, airplanes go higher yet, spacecraft we built go up above and keep going without hitting a dome that separates us from Heaven, god blessing mass rape and genocide, etc). Even with built-in anxiety since I was small, I was able to overcome fear when I realized I was part of a cult and got angry at being deceived.    These days I like to watch videos by Bart Ehrman on YouTube. He covers all kinds of reasons why the stories we have in the Bible are not historically accurate or eyewitness testimonies (they are made up by writers from different groups). Other scholars on YouTube like Dan McClellan and Digital Hammurabi take apart all kinds of claims of believers using actual history and knowledge of ancient languages.    I also echo what TheRedneckProfessor wrote, get yourself involved in actual life doing things you enjoy and being with people you like, and you'll get used to not even thinking about the woo claims and ooga-booga fears of the cult. I took dance lessons, voice lessons, and now have a gang of musician friends. I garden, get out in nature, and cook well. Find fun, find humor, and explore your own unique self that has been suppressed.   
    • nontheistpilgrim
      KrustyKrabPizza: I've read your testimony with interest. Do you have any resources that you have found that might be helpful to others? Perhaps you have specific questions that folk here may be able to respond to? I know people would be pleased to hear from you. Best wishes.
    • Weezer
      Yes.  I was saying we need to get rid of the idea that what Adam and Eve did (called original sin) made all mankind defective and "lost".
    • moxieflux66
      You're losing me here. If it's not the sexual act, then I guess I need more clarification.  Do you mean eating the fruit, defying God's command? 🤔
    • Weezer
      I think we have a misunderstanding.  What you are talking about may have actually been the original sin 😁 (it has been called the oldest profession), but the one I was referring to was the fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden that resulted in us all being born sinners in Gods sight.  We probably should take discussion of the oldest profession to another forum.
    • moxieflux66
      Seems to me there has been no visible problems with just treating sex as it is; a biological inevitability. Stop pretending you can stop it and work with it for everyone's benefit.    Since twenty years have elapsed in NZ since this law's reasonable implementation, couldn't we say the positive results of treating sex rationally is a GOOD IDEA and benefits society and economies rather than 'original sin' concepts, which clearly do not work? I have not heard of any ill effects from the legalization of prostitution in Nevada either for that matter. 🤔    
    • Wertbag
      I had to double check, the "Prostitution reform bill" was passed in 2003, so we are just pass 20 years on it being legal.  Wasn't long after the Netherlands legalizing it in 2000, becoming the first European country to do so. Personally, I've seen no negative effects.  People who used the services before it was legal continued to do so, and those who didn't want to didn't change their minds.  It felt like more prostitutes changed to working at gentlemen's clubs or as escorts, and less street walkers.  We used to have red light districts (Fort St and upper K Road for those who know Auckland), but both of those cleaned up and are more mixed commercial areas now.  There are still brothels and strip clubs, but fewer and less in your face. There is a working girl support service, free health checks and all legal protections.  It's all been good from what I can see.
    • moxieflux66
      Yes, I know about Nevada. Geez, Weez. I didn't say I wanted to BE a prostitute! 😵‍💫
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      Happy New Year to my fellow heathens!!! Hope everyone has a fantastic new year and 2024 goes well for all people here! My New Year's resolution is to get a better sleep schedule (I'm not failing shhhhh! 🤫)
       
      Here's to a great 2024!! 🥳🍻🎊🎉
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