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Permalink Reply by Laura Johnson on January 25, 2011 at 7:50pm

I've heard about Norway's overwhelming population of Atheists...I envy you in that aspect. Have you seen this little cartoon? It always makes me laugh. =) http://freethoughtpedia.com/wiki/Image:Norway.jpg

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Permalink Reply by Violet Chartreuse on January 25, 2011 at 8:18pm

Great cartoon, Laura!

Too funny.

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Permalink Reply by Hilde Olaussen on January 25, 2011 at 8:20pm

Hehe :P That's awesome!

The strange thing in Norway is that, because we have a state church, something like 80% of the population are actually members, and listed as christians. But the reality is that most people hardly ever go to church, and most people don't really believe the biblical myths.

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Permalink Reply by Natarajan Shanker on January 26, 2011 at 11:10am

It depends. Most of the time among my friends the topic doesn't come up, but sometimes it does, for example someone says "let us all go to the temple" and I say "no, let's go to a bar, its more fun" and someone quickly mentions that I am a non-believer and then everyone avoids the topic.

 

But, at other times when someone mentions a news item about a woman getting raped, and a particularly religious guy comments that she had it coming / deserved it because she wears jeans or some such crap, that REALLY pisses me off and I take a moment to tell him what an asshole he's being. Or when someone comments that homesexuals should be given counseling (on how not to be homosexual), I give that person counseling on how the world would be a better place for everyone if he chooses not to wake up in the morning and goes right back to sleep. But this kind of thing happens rarely. Mostly everyone avoids the topic, and so do I.

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Permalink Reply by Scott Jones on January 26, 2011 at 12:10pm

Here's my point of view. If your Christians friends are open to talking about the "big" questions, then I would certainly talk about atheism. Why do I think this is the appropriate road to take?

 

1) The church does not teach reason, rationality and the mythology of all religions to their followers. You will be talking about concepts which they have never heard about. I think this is a golden opportunity for you to talk to them.

 

2) They are willing to talk to you about their faith, why can't you have the same amount of time talking to them? (Stated another way: Why not be as willing to talk to them?)

 

3) They are making huge truth claims. They know (thunder and lighting) a god. Wow. If more people called Christians on the carpet about what they are really saying, I really think they'd start feeling silly.

 

4) There is either conversation or no conversation. If there is no conversation, how can your friends come to the realization that they are simply believing in ancient mythology?

 

A few sites to help get the conversation started:

• Talk about why prayer never works (http://whywontgodhealamputees.com/)
• The absurdity of adults having invisible friends (http://godisimaginary.com/)
• The fraudulent teaching of original sin (http://meaningwithoutgodproject.blogspot.com/2010/10/insipid-myth-o...).
• Atheist Quote of the Day (http://atheistweb.org/posts)
• Evil Bible (http://www.evilbible.com/)
• American Atheists (http://www.atheists.org/)

 

One of my favorite things is to use small quick quotes. Such as: 

• When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours. —Stephen F. Roberts 
• Religion is the one area of our discourse where it is considered noble to pretend to be certain about things no human being could possibly be certain about. -Sam Harris
• “(Faith is) a choice? It’s a celestial dictatorship. If you don't believe, what happens? You go to hell." —Christopher Hitchens
• Science says if we don't know, let's find out. If we can't find out, we are okay with that. Religion says we know. Do you see a problem with this line of thinking? Religions knows more than science?
• Would it not be more wise to use your brain in all areas of your life, including your faith?

 

I think that discussing why Christianity is mythology is a long and tedious process because there are many invalid teachings that followers simply accept without thinking about them.

 

I think that main stream religions are simply functional cults. These cults allow you to go to work and live your own life without forcing people to live in a communal setting. This is why I think it's a good thing to talk to your friends and ask them to examine the truth claims they are making and if these truth claims really make sense.

 

If you need book recommendations or online videos, let me know.

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Permalink Reply by Violet Chartreuse on January 26, 2011 at 12:43pm

Scott-

That was a great answer.  Something I am printing out to use myself.  It's the most valuable, concise "how-to" on debating religious sentiment: A bit of information, a few quotations, and a line of thinking to keep in mind - all neatly contained.  Thanks for sharing it.

 

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Permalink Reply by Scott Jones on January 26, 2011 at 2:25pm

Kristin,

 

Thanks for your reply. I just started an account with Think Atheist as of November 2010. I think I'd like to post (on Think Atheist) all my favorite online videos by my favorite public atheists but I'm not sure where to do this.

 

However, if you or anyone would like my list of online videos, let me know and I'll email them to you. I also have more atheist reference websites as well. Oops, I think I just created a lot more work than I think I have time for.

 

Let me know if you need more information.

 

Scott

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Permalink Reply by Hilde Olaussen on January 26, 2011 at 6:51pm

I agree with Kristin; this is really helpful!

I especially like the insightful quotes, I think I might use them :)

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Permalink Reply by Doug Reardon on January 26, 2011 at 12:56pm

This poem by Tim Minchin might be apropos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB_htqDCP-s

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Permalink Reply by Richard Raymond on January 26, 2011 at 1:38pm

I won't try to convert them or persuade them they're wrong unless they make some ridiculous statement in regards to religion and its dogma.  At that point, I will counter with some comment that will make them stop and think about what they've said.   Since I am a militant atheist in my head, my brain tells me to keep it low-key, before you start a war.

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Permalink Reply by Troy C on January 26, 2011 at 9:02pm

I have this problem too. I just keep telling myself that " I don't want people preaching their beliefs to me.. so I should not preach mine to them". I think the best way to become Atheist is to come to the realization yourself.

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Permalink Reply by Laura Johnson on January 26, 2011 at 9:15pm

I agree. You can argue with a Christian until you are blue in the face. 99.9% of the time, you won't phase them in the least. Christianity has had thousands of years to come up with "answers" and excuses for everything. While these "answers" are absurd and baseless to someone thinking rationally, they make perfect sense to them. You can't argue with someone who's rebuttle to everything is, "Because the Bible says so.".

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