I wish atheists would encourage more social networking... (Buddhists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormon)

[McDweller]

At the beginning of every school year, my alma mater would have several student organizations on campus, welcoming new students to explore the possibilities and extracurricular student clubs on campus. Many religious student organizations tend to be Christian or affiliated with a Christian denomination. Since there are a lot of Christian sects and denominations, there are a lot of clubs/organizations for almost every major denomination. Meanwhile, the only thing that the Secular Student Alliance is interested in is political activism, which may not appeal to everyone.

I wish more atheists would get together and learn how to form a close-knit community like their Christian counterparts, but instead of focusing on political activism and sharing beliefs with others, atheist communities may focus on community service, celebration of life's milestones (child dedication and naming, coming of age, weddings, funerals, school graduations, remembering the dead), and instructing ethics to children in a safe, family-oriented environment. And maybe work on outreach programs, like those Christian evangelists. But instead of spreading Christianity, atheists may be spreading the gospel of love, charity, compassion, and benevolence.

[Joe90]

I can't really seeing have much to say to other atheists. It might be a bit like having a club for those who don't believe Bigfoot exists

[Nozzferrahhtoo]

Wishing is like praying, it is not likely to get you anywhere or change a thing.

Here the old saying "If you are not part of the solution you are part of the problem" might come into play. If you want such societies to be formed then remove your rear from the couch and start doing it yourself.

That is what I did for example and I became a founding member of Atheist Ireland. A politically active association which also has a non political social side. We have secular and atheist meet ups, drinking nights, brunches, comedy and music events and more. We also engage in social and charity work.

And we have regional groups setting up school groups, college groups and youth groups around Ireland.

And those who want to get political and activist on some of the issues can do so in their own time and at their own behest with no pressure or recruitment going on.

In your place I would get in touch with the umbrella organisations like AAI and Atheism America and so forth and ask them what advice / experience / start up packages / contacts they can offer you for setting up regional and social groups.

[Cruithne]

Originally Posted by Joe90

I can't really seeing have much to say to other atheists. It might be a bit like having a club for those who don't believe Bigfoot exists

I don't think that is what McDweller is getting at. I don't think his post indicated that he wanted to get together just to talk about atheism.

McDweller is clearly a Humanist who cares about the world and his fellow man. What I get from his post is that he would like to give something back to society without all the Christian baggage attached. I understand what he means. All the people I admire most in the world happen to be atheists - I think it is about associating with like-minded people.

McDweller I assume you are living in America? I understand what you are saying - many of the well-meaning societies particularly on student campuses, can be somewhat limited to Christian groups - as though atheists somehow didn't care about society, when quite clearly the opposite is the case.
Same when you think about it with things like boy scouts and girls scouts which tend to be associated with a local church (although I'm lucky, my kids are in 3 separate scout groups and all of them really just pay lip service to church associations to get use of the hall space).

I think the problem in America is the taboo / ignorance and prejudice that still exists surrounding atheism, so if you want to give something back to society, it many ways it is still easier to contribute through a Christian group.
Nozzferrahhtoo is right - there is nothing to stop you forming your own group and it doesn't have to have 'atheism' in the title. For example, myself and a few other moms, worked with our kids this year to raise money for this charity:Waves For Water .
Our kids held a bakesale and we raised enough in one day to buy 6 of these water filters ($50 each), each of which will serve 100 people in a third world country with drinkable water for up to 5 years: MVP Filter | Waves For Water
We thought it was such an easy way to give something back and show the kids how they could so easily make a difference to other people's lives.

There are many, many such organisations. You could easily start a group to support one of these charities with very little effort.

[McDweller]

Originally Posted by Cruithne

McDweller is clearly a Humanist who cares about the world and his fellow man.

Well, I don't actually self-identify myself as Humanist, because the term is closely associated with Secular Humanism. Although I believe it is a useful philosophy in medicine and science, I believe it is quite weak in ethical philosophy. The basic idea is that you use a vague thing known as "reason" instead of the "supernatural", whatever that is supposed to mean. I think I can closely identify myself with Confucianism, as my parents were Chinese immigrants who raised me in the United States since I was four. People from Mainland China are seldom Christians. Most of the time, they may identify themselves as Buddhists, Taoists, or Atheists.

I think the problem in America is the taboo / ignorance and prejudice that still exists surrounding atheism, so if you want to give something back to society, it many ways it is still easier to contribute through a Christian group.

Yeah, that's what my parents thought too. As a matter of fact, in autumn 2011, my mother thought she wanted to join a church for friendship and social networking, so she opted for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I was a bit skeptical about the choice, because I knew that church was not mainstream, and I didn't trust the Book of Mormon. But my mom and dad invited Mormon missionaries anyway, and for a while, they preached at our house. That didn't last long, because my mom thought church was boring. In November 2012, I paid a visit to each neighborhood church - a Southern Baptist Church, a Fundamentalist/Bible Church, and an extremely small non-denominational church. In May 2013, I decided to pay a visit to more neighborhood churches - Lutheran (ELCA), Methodist (United Methodist Church), United Church of Christ, Roman Catholic, Episcopal. The only church I have not visited yet is the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA). During that time, while I attended church one Sunday, some Jehovah's Witnesses arrived at our house, and my Dad answered. I didn't know how they found out about our address, since the Jehovah's Witness denomination was never on my mind, but I suppose they tried to look up for every Chinese household in the neighborhood. Anyway, they found my Dad, and my Dad accepted their magazines, because he thought I would be interested in them. So, for a couple of weeks, Jehovah's Witnesses were invited to our house for a Bible Study. That didn't last long, and I made an excuse that I was too busy with that type of stuff. I also made a mental note to not show such an interest in religion again, because my parents would always pick these really non-mainstream churches with non-mainstream beliefs, and I never felt safe with these churches. I like older churches, because I feel that they are more settled into the greater society, and people are generally more aware of them and their beliefs.