I saw another blogger (ArmyWifeSara) doing this and I thought I would join in. I have been wanting to do something daily like this lately and this allows me to share with you how I feel and what I believe. This 15 Day Atheism Challenge... and I am an Atheist.
Day 1: At what point did you know you were an atheist? Why did you become one, what were the factors leading up to the decision, if you weren’t always one?
I was never baptized as a child. My mom wanted to leave that sort of decision up to us and not force it on us. When I was in Middle and High School I tried subscribing to Christianity and studied the Bible but the answers I was given to my questions weren't very satisfying. I couldn't just believe... though I tried. When I went to college I explored other religions but never really dove in to anything again. I realized I needed to have conclusions, evidence and proof. The more science I studied, and Engineering requires a lot of science, the more I realized that I couldn't believe in religion and any God and believe in science. They contradict each other too much. I don't remember the day or the time when I had the light bulb moment but I realized that science gives me satisfying answers that have evidence to back them up and religion doesn't. If you believe in one you can't really believe in the other and for me being able to see, smell, hear, taste and feel is believing. I made my decision and that decision didn't involve having religion in my life. The older I get the more I believe in my choice to follow science and the less I believe in religion and I still don't see how you can believe in both.
If you are interested in this challenge all 15 questions are below and they came from http://xinxang.tumblr.com/post/2832501206/15-day-atheist-challenge
- At what point did you know you were an atheist? Why did you become one, what were the factors leading up to the decision, if you weren’t always one?
- What religion did you grow up with? Did you have positive or negative experiences with religion?
- Are you a more outspoken or more apathetic atheist? Why?
- Do you think religion is obsolete and should be wiped completely off the face of the Earth, or does some good come out of it?
- Did you lose any friends because you decided to be an atheist? Did your family flip out?
- How do you feel about so-called “militant atheists” such as Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, and Sam Harris?
- Except for God, do you believe in anything supernatural or pseudoscientific? (Ghosts, alien abductions, spirits, souls, demons, psychics, magic, Harry Potter, etc.)
- What’s your political alignment? Does your atheism influence how you vote and how you feel on issues?
- Even though you’re an atheist, have you ever experienced a moment that could be called “religious?” Like an epiphany about the world or complete peace?
- Are you spiritual, or are your feet always on the ground?
- Do you have/plan on having a career in the sciences? Alternatively: which branch of science intrigues you most?
- What happens when we die? Do you fear death?
- Would you ever date/marry somebody who follows a religion? Be honest.
- On a scale of 1-10, how happy are you with life at this moment, and why?
- Recommend a book. :) (Doesn’t have to be relevant to atheism, just any good book.)
5 comments:
Hmmm not sure I'd say I'm atheist [ I was reading the other questions ] but I do agree with you ... I have more science in my life. And that has always made me need to feel, taste, touch, experience...
I don't ever feel myself reaching to the Bible for answers, and I listen to people who speak about religion with the same type of questioning feeling I have when someone explains a computer hardware issue.
I grew up Christian and was very strong in my beliefs but due to this baby thing and other things that have happened in my life- not to mention the obnoxious asshole religious people who like to shove it down your throat, I can't say that I'm really a believer in "God" anymore but I do think I am truly going to become a Buddhist- there is no greater power, just the power within us. Sounds good to me =]
I agree with you 100% but couldn't really ever call my self a pure atheist... Hmmm. Oh, Ash@Life as Lucy, I like Buddhism too! But I would rather have no religious, cause I am lazy. lol
I was reluctant to call myself an Atheist at first, too, but the more I thought about it the more I realized that if I were to call myself something that was it. But it seems our culture has put such a negative stigma on it that you tend to shy away from it. I detest labels in general but I guess if they fit, they fit.
I'm an atheist too, but I never given religion much thought. I studied all kinds of religion in college (Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, various native American and African polytheisms...) from an art historian and historian viewpoint and only really see hate, war, violence and hypocrisy. The whole "us vs them" doesn't sit well with me and the creationism thing is just plain bullshit.
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