Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Religion and Spirituality > Atheism and Agnosticism
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 11-28-2018, 07:28 AM
 
Location: West Virginia
16,590 posts, read 15,515,175 times
Reputation: 10829

Advertisements

Quote:
Originally Posted by OzzyRules View Post
A classroom of preschool children might laugh at an adult sometimes. That doesn't mean they know more than the adult. When it comes to the Bible, I see atheists discussing it as a group of children at play.
Well, once again Ozzy, you don't know what you are talking about, and you seem to forget everything that is said to you. Please remember this:

A significant percentage of the regular members posting in this forum were once devout Christians. At some point in their lives as Christians, they began to have doubts about the beliefs their churches taught. In order to dispel those doubts, they started reading their Bibles, reading over and over, from front to back, trying as hard as they could to dispel those doubts. It's a pretty serious thing to begin to have doubts about the eternal salvation you have been taught since infancy, so they studied the Bible intently to prove to themselves that it was true and their doubts could go away.

For those regulars I'm talking about here, it did not work. The more they studied their Bibles, the more they learned that what they had been taught in church failed to make sense to them and great portions of the Bible were overlooked. Gradually, they came to disbelieve what their churches taught and they became atheists.

Please remember this. Most of these people in this forum know the Bible better than you do, and better than most of the regular posters in the Christianity sub-forum as well.

You don't have to take my word for this. First, go search for the threads here that have discussed the topic. (It has come up several times.) Second, pay attention to what they post, and believe what they tell you. Third, ask them, pay attention to what they tell you, and remember what they say.

Please remember this. This is the truth for a large number of the regulars in this forum.

Incidentally, this is also an answer to the questions asked in the OP.
__________________
Moderator posts are in RED.
City-Data Terms of Service: http://www.city-data.com/terms.html
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 11-28-2018, 07:35 AM
 
29,849 posts, read 11,406,378 times
Reputation: 18343
Quote:
Originally Posted by phetaroi View Post
1. Yes. The vast majority of christians in the U.S. get their christianity taught through attending church. Period. I have known very few who do any extensive reading...maybe the bible...but rarely anything beyond that. If that level of christian knowledge is good enough to lead to a decision to "accept" christ, then it's also good enough to make a decision to reject christ.
It seems to me someone who understands what the bible is suppose to be saying as well as a good understanding of science and then rejects religion is a much more thoughtful person than just someone whose entire understanding of the world comes from attending church once a week.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phetaroi View Post

2. When I was teaching evolution in earth science in high school, far too many parents came in and said -- literally -- "I don't want my son to think".

I know really devout Christians that believe independent thinking allows the devil to control your thoughts.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 08:16 AM
 
Location: Southwestern, USA, now.
21,020 posts, read 19,205,708 times
Reputation: 23653
Quote:
Originally Posted by OzzyRules
It is possible to know the textual content without having any understanding of it's meaning. If you can't even explain why the stories have endured and been believed for so long, then you have no real understanding. The understanding is only superficial, and most of the atheist views on the Bible that I've seen would be laughed out of a high school religious studies class.
Perfect Ozzy, here is your chance with an atheist audience to explain the context
and meaning of these enduring stories....do you need someone to pick one?
Pick one you can explain...regarding murder, stoning, flooding, raping, smashing babies against rocks...pick
any that you believe a child could laugh at as superficial understanding.


What a perfect platform! I am not mocking you...this is a good platform to explain.

Go for it.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 08:26 AM
 
Location: City Data Land
17,156 posts, read 12,862,289 times
Reputation: 33164
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn View Post
I don't get it...some are out and out scholars it seems!
Whassup with that? And you know who you are.
Because I was religious growing up. Mom sent us to church. It's not hard to understand.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 08:33 AM
 
Location: Missouri, USA
5,671 posts, read 4,326,291 times
Reputation: 2610
Quote:
Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn View Post
I don't get it...some are out and out scholars it seems!
Whassup with that? And you know who you are.
For the record, I know very little. That's probably because I wasn't raised Christian. I'm assuming lots of the people who know so much about it know so much about it because they began questioning their Christian views and extensively researching the Bible to verify or refute those views.

I'm sure someone else has mentioned that on this thread somewhere or other by now.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 08:37 AM
 
15,692 posts, read 20,198,574 times
Reputation: 20858
I grew up attending CCD classes and went to a catholic HS. Bible study was just a regular thing. During high school I frequently got assigned various books and/or verses and had to write papers on them.

A lot of that critical thinking over the bible is ultimately what convinced me to become atheist.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 10:22 AM
 
Location: USA
4,747 posts, read 2,329,088 times
Reputation: 1292
Quote:
Originally Posted by phetaroi View Post
1. Yes. The vast majority of christians in the U.S. get their christianity taught through attending church. Period. I have known very few who do any extensive reading...maybe the bible...but rarely anything beyond that. If that level of christian knowledge is good enough to lead to a decision to "accept" christ, then it's also good enough to make a decision to reject christ.

2. When I was teaching evolution in earth science in high school, far too many parents came in and said -- literally -- "I don't want my son to think".
During an attack on evolution and science in one of his televised sermons, and Jimmy Swaggart once thanked God for not making him intelligent. Given his subsequent defrocking for his ongoing penchant for getting caught with prostitutes it was an unprecedented bit of insight on Swaggart's part.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 10:22 AM
 
Location: California side of the Sierras
11,162 posts, read 7,589,300 times
Reputation: 12523
Quote:
Originally Posted by OzzyRules View Post
It is possible to know the textual content without having any understanding of it's meaning. If you can't even explain why the stories have endured and been believed for so long, then you have no real understanding. The understanding is only superficial, and most of the atheist views on the Bible that I've seen would be laughed out of a high school religious studies class.
Oh, I think we have a very good understanding of why these stories endure. Young children are told over and over that the Bible is true, and the majority will go through their lives accepting that it is so.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 10:25 AM
 
Location: California side of the Sierras
11,162 posts, read 7,589,300 times
Reputation: 12523
Quote:
Originally Posted by OzzyRules View Post
A classroom of preschool children might laugh at an adult sometimes. That doesn't mean they know more than the adult. When it comes to the Bible, I see atheists discussing it as a group of children at play.
I see you as someone who puts forth many claims with no evidence whatsoever. Oh look, here is yet another one.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 11-28-2018, 10:36 AM
 
Location: USA
4,747 posts, read 2,329,088 times
Reputation: 1292
Quote:
Originally Posted by BostonMike7 View Post
I grew up attending CCD classes and went to a catholic HS. Bible study was just a regular thing. During high school I frequently got assigned various books and/or verses and had to write papers on them.

A lot of that critical thinking over the bible is ultimately what convinced me to become atheist.
George Carlin said that at the Catholic school he attended, the Priests went out of their way to encourage critical thinking. The result was that Carlin and many of the other students became atheists.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZGDKj6GUC0
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Religion and Spirituality > Atheism and Agnosticism

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top