News:

Unnecessarily argumentative

Main Menu

In God We Must

Started by Thunder Road, February 06, 2012, 07:37:39 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

Sweetdeath

That captures my feelings, Traveler. I feel like most atheists are in the twilight zone in Usa.
Law 35- "You got to go with what works." - Robin Lefler

Wiggum:"You have that much faith in me, Homer?"
Homer:"No! Faith is what you have in things that don't exist. Your awesomeness is real."

"I was thinking that perhaps this thing called God does not exist. Because He cannot save any one of us. No matter how we pray, He doesn't mend our wounds.

Thunder Road

The change from a Catholic high school in PA to a Lutheran college in Indiana is ridiculous.  Really makes me wish I had looked into some colleges in New England more.
"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see." -John Lennon, Strawberry Fields Forever

Freshman Meteorology major at Valparaiso University in Indiana and fan of exclusively classic rock.

Ali

Denver seems fairly secular, or maybe I just run with a bad crowd.  :D

Amicale

Quote from: Mocha Chief on February 06, 2012, 09:18:39 PM
You should have seen my classes reaction when I told them that I'm Atheist. Definitely interesting. Definitely won't do it again

Mocha, a huge part of it is that right now, you're surrounded by fairly cliquey, sheltered teenagers who mostly haven't had enough exposure to difference and diversity. It's a trend in a lot of high schools for students to at least pass themselves off as being religious; spirituality is very "in", in that kind of setting. I wasn't immune to this mentality either. I remember all too well being 15, naive and narrowminded, proudly wearing a cross around my neck, and making friends with a boy in my math class who admitted to me that he was both bisexual AND an atheist, and that was too much for my narrow little mind to take at the time -- I regarded both labels as mysterious and 'deviant', according to my Catholic family's sensibilities. It probably didn't help that at the time, I was deeply in denial about my own sexuality. Even the THOUGHT of 'being that different' scared the crap out of me when I was 15. Thankfully, I grew up really quickly, got at least a bit more common sense and a LOT more life experience, came out of the closet myself, and not long after that, stopped calling myself a Catholic, and then stopped calling myself a Christian. It took me longer than it takes some people, but I am who I am now, and I'm thankful for that, and happy about it. I have a life that, despite its challenges, I love and wouldn't trade for the world.

All that to say... seriously, hang in there. You're just in an awkward place, and if/when you head either into college or the workforce, you're probably going to find many, many people who won't have that shocked reaction when you tell them you're an atheist. Getting a little older and a little more life-smart has its advantages, even if you do have to pay bills too.  ;D


"Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb we are bound to others. By every crime and act of kindness we birth our future." - Cloud Atlas

"To live in the hearts of those we leave behind is to never die." -Carl Sagan

Amicale

Quote from: Ali on February 06, 2012, 11:20:57 PM
Denver seems fairly secular, or maybe I just run with a bad crowd.  :D

I have a tshirt that says "we are the people our parents warned us about."  :D


"Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb we are bound to others. By every crime and act of kindness we birth our future." - Cloud Atlas

"To live in the hearts of those we leave behind is to never die." -Carl Sagan

Crow

Quote from: Amicale on February 07, 2012, 12:04:00 AM
Quote from: Ali on February 06, 2012, 11:20:57 PM
Denver seems fairly secular, or maybe I just run with a bad crowd.  :D

I have a tshirt that says "we are the people our parents warned us about."  :D

What! Kiddie fiddlers  :P
Retired member.

Amicale

Quote from: Crow on February 07, 2012, 12:19:23 AM
Quote from: Amicale on February 07, 2012, 12:04:00 AM
Quote from: Ali on February 06, 2012, 11:20:57 PM
Denver seems fairly secular, or maybe I just run with a bad crowd.  :D

I have a tshirt that says "we are the people our parents warned us about."  :D

What! Kiddie fiddlers  :P

What? Hell no!  :o Ack!

In elementary and highschool, my family always said 'don't hang around with any crazy people/bad influences'. I've become one of those. Which is what the shirt means.  :P


"Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb we are bound to others. By every crime and act of kindness we birth our future." - Cloud Atlas

"To live in the hearts of those we leave behind is to never die." -Carl Sagan

Tank

Quote from: Crow on February 07, 2012, 12:19:23 AM
Quote from: Amicale on February 07, 2012, 12:04:00 AM
Quote from: Ali on February 06, 2012, 11:20:57 PM
Denver seems fairly secular, or maybe I just run with a bad crowd.  :D

I have a tshirt that says "we are the people our parents warned us about."  :D

What! Kiddie fiddlers  :P

If religions were TV channels atheism is turning the TV off.
"Religion is a culture of faith; science is a culture of doubt." ― Richard P. Feynman
'It is said that your life flashes before your eyes just before you die. That is true, it's called Life.' - Terry Pratchett
Remember, your inability to grasp science is not a valid argument against it.

Twentythree

Quote from: Sweetdeath on February 06, 2012, 05:45:12 PM
Honestly, i've never been to a part of the US free of religion.
I live in a heavily black and spanish infested area of NYC, and there are tons of baptist and catholic churchs surrounding me. *groan*

Did you really use the term infestation to describe the cultural makeup of a neighborhood? Also, by using the term Spanish do you mean that the area is literally crawling with Spaniards like Inigo Montoya?




Sweetdeath

I wish! ( love that movie btw.)
I guess I meant hispanics like puerto ricans amd domincans. Yeesh.
Law 35- "You got to go with what works." - Robin Lefler

Wiggum:"You have that much faith in me, Homer?"
Homer:"No! Faith is what you have in things that don't exist. Your awesomeness is real."

"I was thinking that perhaps this thing called God does not exist. Because He cannot save any one of us. No matter how we pray, He doesn't mend our wounds.

philosoraptor

Quote from: Twentythree on February 07, 2012, 04:13:46 PM
Quote from: Sweetdeath on February 06, 2012, 05:45:12 PM
Honestly, i've never been to a part of the US free of religion.
I live in a heavily black and spanish infested area of NYC, and there are tons of baptist and catholic churchs surrounding me. *groan*

Did you really use the term infestation to describe the cultural makeup of a neighborhood?
Also, by using the term Spanish do you mean that the area is literally crawling with Spaniards like Inigo Montoya?

I'm kind of glad you brought this up.  I was bothered by it, but didn't feel inclined to say anything at the time.  The term 'infestation' seems really inappropriate in reference to other people, because it implies that they are unwelcome pests.  You could have just as easily said that you live in a primarily conservative religious area without ever mentioning the races of the people that make up that area.  That you chose to mention race and then use the term infestation right after reads as kind of...well, racist.

I don't think it was necessarily your intention to be disparaging, but none the less, it reads that way.  Maybe just be more mindful of language and context moving forward?
"Come ride with me through the veins of history,
I'll show you how god falls asleep on the job.
And how can we win when fools can be kings?
Don't waste your time or time will waste you."
-Muse

Firebird

Quote from: Sweetdeath on February 07, 2012, 11:01:03 PM
I wish! ( love that movie btw.)
I guess I meant hispanics like puerto ricans amd domincans. Yeesh.

I admit your comments bothered me too, as does this one. I should have said so earlier. Please don't say "infested".
"Great, replace one book about an abusive, needy asshole with another." - Will (moderator) on replacing hotel Bibles with "Fifty Shades of Grey"