Brother Jeff Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 I posted to Facebook recently about some of the weird things that have happened to me in the past that make me wonder from time to time about what is going on. My mind is not closed to the possibility of something spiritual being real, but it is closed to the possibility of disproved religions being true. I got this response from my Christian friend Giuseppe: I think you know the truth and you resist it for whatever reason. Usually hurts cause us to do that. You obviously have an affinity to the spiritual realm which is why I think you are being pulled in many directions. Even though you continue to deny the reality of God and Jesus Christ I am convinced you will only find true rest and peace in Him. When it comes to God no man can "decide" that He doesn't exist; nobody has the mental, spiritual, universal knowledge and ability to unequivocally and with absolute certainty come to such conclusion. You either accept Him or you decide to live your own life and deny Him.I believe. And because I do I believe in His faithfulness and guidance. I know He's got your best interest in mind. It all will make sense one day. You are on a journey. My response was this: Giuseppe, there is no evidence that a god of any kind actually exists. God never says, thinks, or does anything at all except in the minds of believers. I was not hurt in the church either. I actually have many good memories from church days. What led me away from faith was questions that Christian apologists had no good answers for. Also, research and facts led me away from faith, and I am not even slightly concerned that I have made the wrong decision. I know for a fact that Christianity is not true, so the chances of me ever returning to it are slim to none. There are simply too many facts and too much evidence that argues against Christianity for it to be true. I also had this to say: Also, Giuseppe, it's hard to take the Bible seriously as the "word" of a god once you have read it and know what is in it. If God was going to author a book, he could do a LOT better. Giuseppe responded with this: Christianity may be (and probably is) wrong in many ways. God, however, isn't. He will never fit in your mind. Only in your heart, if you open it. There are some interesting scientists and apologists around: Dr. Carl Baugh and Ravi Zacharias, but I'm pretty sure you've heard of them. A purely intellectual approach to God is not adequate. Mankind is able to transcend intellect. God is Spirit. Jesus said "you must be born from above". My response was this: God is nonexistent, and so is Jesus. He never lived, never died, and never rose again. The historical record proves it. End of conversation. Giuseppe does not know me well and he has no idea what my journey from Christian belief to Atheism has been or what it has been like. Yet he felt free to judge me, which is typical of Christians. My journey away from faith was initially horrendously painful, and I was very, very angry. And I had a right to be angry! I was lied to and deceived for 15 years of my life! But now I am FREE, and I am not even slightly concerned that I may have made the wrong decision. Like I told Giuseppe, there are just too many facts and too much evidence arguing against Christianity for it to possibly be true. LINK: http://religionisbullshit.me/i-am-allegedly-on-a-journey/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midniterider Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 "You are on a journey." God told him this? God is such a gossip. :-) It is interesting how these people just pull stuff out of thin air and say it as if it is a fact. That might be my new theme for the day: Asserting bullshit as absolute fact. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mydisplayname Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 "You are on a journey." So am I. Away from bullshit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pantophobia Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 They really think they're providing help, comfort, and love by saying crap like this, don't they? My family has no idea of the damage they caused me with insisting "God is testing you!" or "Just open your heart to Jesus, and you will understand why." It's cotton candy, sugar floss nothing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted November 8, 2013 Share Posted November 8, 2013 He replied: "Christianity may be (and probably is) wrong in many ways. God, however, isn't. He will never fit in your mind. Only in your heart, if you open it. There are some interesting scientists and apologists around: Dr. Carl Baugh and Ravi Zacharias, but I'm pretty sure you've heard of them. A purely intellectual approach to God is not adequate. Mankind is able to transcend intellect. God is Spirit. Jesus said "you must be born from above". What? He's saying that god isn't wrong, but xianity may be wrong in many ways. But then he points to people, XIANS? Why? Are those two NOT wrong? He says god won't fit in your mind and a purely intellectual approach to god isn't adequate. So why is he pointing to scientists and apologists (people who are supposedly scholars working within an intellectual approach)? And mankind can transcent intellect? Look, I know I'm not brilliant, but I don't wanna be stupid. You may now continue your journey. The journey of your life here on earth, which is infinitely interesting without needing to believe in myths. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milesaway Posted November 8, 2013 Share Posted November 8, 2013 Technically you ARE on a journey. You're on a journey free of superstition and plagiarized Iron Age folklore presented as fact and rational thinking. I've met a couple people like Giuseppe at the last church I went to. I know there were people like him at the other churches I visited, but I wasn't there long enough to meet them or to give them a chance to start their shit with me. They're so full of themselves, and they think they know everything about everything. I remember an incident late last year as I was leaving church, this guy was all like "whoa, don't run me over" as I was unlocking my bike and getting ready to head home. I wasn't even in a hurry. I'd never met him before, I'd only seen him a couple times in all the time I'd been visiting. I hadn't spoken a single word to him, I don't even know his name. We get to talking, and that's when the claws come out. He cranks out the unsolicited advice, telling me I need to do X, need to do Y, need to do Z, why don't you become a this or that for the church, do it all NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW, and then started in on how I'm "wasting your talents", and interrupts me every two seconds. The whole conversation left me feeling like I'd been punched in the stomach. A little over two months later, I was gone from there. What a judgmental piece of garbage! Anyways, there's no point in arguing with people like Giuseppe. You're gonna get nowhere, since they'll just dig their heels in and give you nothing but their trite canned responses. He actually admits that it has nothing to do with logic and reason, and that it's all based on emotion and feeling. There's no way to try to reason with that. They won't listen. You said he doesn't know you or what you've been dealing with, so take it with a grain of salt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisstavrous Posted November 8, 2013 Share Posted November 8, 2013 I think that phrase (you're on a journey) is what new age spiritualists say. It's funny how christianity keeps on taking ideas from other beliefs. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milesaway Posted November 8, 2013 Share Posted November 8, 2013 I think that phrase (you're on a journey) is what new age spiritualists say. It's funny how christianity keeps on taking ideas from other beliefs. Hey, this kind of thing happens when you're dealing with a religion that's basically copied everything from the religions that predated it by thousands of years and passed it off as something new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TristanJay Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 I actually like the whole personal spiritual journey concept, because at this point I've taken ownership of it and am ready to throw it back at anyone who tries to preach to me. I've not been tested, but my pre-prepped responses are something to the effect that "It's my spiritual journey" and if clarification is needed "It's between me and God" and if they're dense it'll be "It's not your place to make sure that I'm right with God to your satisfaction" and "Between God and me, and no other humans are allowed." As a last resort I'll lie and say God communicated very clearly to me that other humans will obfuscate the truth, and if they doubt me I'll just question their belief that God communicates with them, in the face of their questioning the same thing of me...stalemate, I hope. It's not foolproof, I'll bet. But perhaps I'll have the chance to test it out and work out the kinks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prometheus Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Jesus never existed? There are multiple references to him throughout history. - A fellow atheist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 I actually like the whole personal spiritual journey concept, because at this point I've taken ownership of it and am ready to throw it back at anyone who tries to preach to me. I've not been tested, but my pre-prepped responses are something to the effect that "It's my spiritual journey" and if clarification is needed "It's between me and God" and if they're dense it'll be "It's not your place to make sure that I'm right with God to your satisfaction" and "Between God and me, and no other humans are allowed." As a last resort I'll lie and say God communicated very clearly to me that other humans will obfuscate the truth, and if they doubt me I'll just question their belief that God communicates with them, in the face of their questioning the same thing of me...stalemate, I hope. It's not foolproof, I'll bet. But perhaps I'll have the chance to test it out and work out the kinks. That's cool that you're prepared! Let us know if you get a chance to use your responses, and how it works out. I need to refine my own pre-prepared responses. Mine mainly consist of a little smile, and non-committal comments like, "Mm-hm," and "Wow," and "Really?!" I'd have to have serious rehearsals to get a word like "obfuscate" out without my tongue tripping over it! I like your responses a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother Jeff Posted November 10, 2013 Author Share Posted November 10, 2013 Jesus never existed? There are multiple references to him throughout history. - A fellow atheist No, there really aren't. Those references can easily be dismissed as hearsay. See: http://www.nobeliefs.com/exist.htm Also, check out the works of Earl Doherty and a book entitled "Nailed", which you can find here: http://www.amazon.com/Nailed-Christian-Existed-Paperback-Common/dp/B00FBC2EUQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1384102304&sr=1-3&keywords=nailed+ten+christian+myths+that+show+jesus+never+existed+at+all My review of that book is located here: http://religionisbullshit.me/nailed/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prometheus Posted December 4, 2013 Share Posted December 4, 2013 Jesus never existed? There are multiple references to him throughout history. - A fellow atheist No, there really aren't. Those references can easily be dismissed as hearsay. See: http://www.nobeliefs.com/exist.htm Also, check out the works of Earl Doherty and a book entitled "Nailed", which you can find here: http://www.amazon.com/Nailed-Christian-Existed-Paperback-Common/dp/B00FBC2EUQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1384102304&sr=1-3&keywords=nailed+ten+christian+myths+that+show+jesus+never+existed+at+all My review of that book is located here: http://religionisbullshit.me/nailed/ Thanks, I'll check those out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts