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Started by Dries, February 25, 2010, 05:24:50 PM

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Dries

Hi, I'm Dries van Tonder, a South African, and an atheist. Came here cause the locked down RD forum. I'm not much of a talker, more of a observer and socializer. Hope to make some friends here :)

notself

Welcome, Dries,

Many of us are new here.  It is a friendly place and all the threads are relatively short so it is easier to jump into a conversation.  You may feel more like posting.   :)

Whitney

I heard about the RD problem via another thread on here, that really sucks.  I hope you enjoy HAF just as much (or more) than you did RD's forum.

LoneMateria

Welcome.  Though I wasn't on RD I am sad to see it go.  I've been part of forum communities that have been broken up before and its sad.  I hope your friends from that forum find you on here and I look forward to our future conversations.

Tell us a little about yourself.  How did you become an atheist?  Whats the weather like in South Africa this time of the year?
Quote from: "Richard Lederer"There once was a time when all people believed in God and the church ruled. This time was called the Dark Ages
Quote from: "Demosthenes"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true.
Quote from: "Oscar Wilde"Truth, in matters of religion, is simpl

Dries

I like the name "The Happy Atheist", it sounds like a pub :beer:

LoneMateria

Thank you for sharing your story.  Christianity is a divisive religion that propagates a "US vs. THEM" way of thinking.  Do you have any social stigmas tied to atheism over there?  And what are some of your favorite books?
Quote from: "Richard Lederer"There once was a time when all people believed in God and the church ruled. This time was called the Dark Ages
Quote from: "Demosthenes"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true.
Quote from: "Oscar Wilde"Truth, in matters of religion, is simpl

kenh

Welcome to the forum.  I'm pretty new around here also, but I can attest to the fact that the natives are friendly.  

I think you're the first South African I've met on a forum like this.  I'll be glad to hear your views.  I once knew a girl from Durban, but that's another story...  :)

elliebean

Hi Dries! Welcome to the forum.  :)
[size=150]â€"Ellie [/size]
You can’t lie to yourself. If you do you’ve only fooled a deluded person and where’s the victory in that?â€"Ricky Gervais

Dries

Quote from: "LoneMateria"Thank you for sharing your story.  Christianity is a divisive religion that propagates a "US vs. THEM" way of thinking.  Do you have any social stigmas tied to atheism over there?  And what are some of your favorite books?

As far as I know, there are no social stigmas tied to atheism in South Africa. This could be the result of our history, where the intolerance of the past has been replaced by a culture of embracing the diversity of our nation. I certainly haven't experienced any negative reaction to my atheism. People seem to accept it and move on. A colleague at work who occupies the office next to mine is a staunch creationist and fundamentalist christian. When he invited me to attend a church meeting, I told him that I'm an atheist. Since then he hasn't bothered me about religion and we get along quite well. The guy has a brilliant sense of humour though.

Favourite books: There are two that really stand out from the rest:
One hundred years of solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marques;
The man who fell in love with the moon - Tom Spanbauer.

Thanks for the other welcome messages  :)