Psychology vs religion (mistakes, psychologist, college, complex)
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What's the difference between new atheism and old atheism? If I was an atheist, starting back in the 70's or 80's, am I considered an old atheist, or am I just old?
What's the difference between new atheism and old atheism? If I was an atheist, starting back in the 70's or 80's, am I considered an old atheist, or am I just old?
Old atheism has been around since I guess ancient Greece? Not sure.
New Atheism started after DNA was discovered, mid 20th century. They decided that evolution had been figured out. No, it has not been figured out. They are overly impressed with their own theories.
We know for a fact that evolution happened, but no one can explain why, they can only guess.
The guess in evolutionary biology was that errors happen when DNA is being copied, and these errors are sometimes lucky accidents. They help the individual survive, so the errors get passed along. So all of the complex machinery that we call life happened because of a very long chain of errors.
Well it might sound good to you. It sounds good to some people. There is nothing in science to back it up. It's all a matter if you like how it sounds. Richard Dawkins loves how it sounds, because he passionately hates religion.
The evolution by chance theory tells us that there is no intelligence behind nature, because everything can happen by accident. The magic is natural selection. Some things are better than others, some things reproduce more than others.
A very simple idea. A very implausible idea. But it supports a materialist, non-spiritual, view of life, which is what some people are looking for.
Why are they looking for a non-spiritual view of life? Maybe because they mistakenly associate spiritual ideas with dogmatic judgmental religious people they may have known.
Don't try to patronize me. I read just fine. Never claimed I wanted to be like the other animals.
This is what you said: "The best thing about it is that the animals do not argue about whether Christianity, or Islam, or Judaism, or any other religion is superior, and in fact they have never heard of any of the religious cults. It is such a breath of fresh air."
So I said the other animals also don't talk about philosophy or science.
Even atheists acknowledge that atheism can cause depression.
I'll acknowledge this anytime. I personally was much happier as a religious kid than as an atheistic adult. Does that mean I should reject all that I know to be true/willingly incur a traumatic brain injury/etc? I have studied philosophy for the greater part of the last 13 years (I am 31) and am not one of the 'fashionable atheists' you wish to portray to be the majority....
A very simple idea. A very implausible idea. But it supports a materialist, non-spiritual, view of life, which is what some people are looking for.
Why are they looking for a non-spiritual view of life? Maybe because they mistakenly associate spiritual ideas with dogmatic judgmental religious people they may have known.
Plus probably a lot of people who have not have grown up in a spiritual or religious family have no paradigm for it. They didn't see family members practicing anything and so it just doesn't factor in to their reality, and they never feel a need or draw to pursue it. I know plenty of people who aren't spiritual or religious and they've made it through life no better, no worse than the religious or spiritual people that I know. In some cases, they have fared better and are mostly decent, fine people. Yes, you are right about how a lot of people associate spirituality with religions-dogmas that clearly are rife with human-made concepts that end up oppressing, weakening, and crazy-making the adherents to it.
I'll acknowledge this anytime. I personally was much happier as a religious kid than as an atheistic adult. Does that mean I should reject all that I know to be true/willingly incur a traumatic brain injury/etc? I have studied philosophy for the greater part of the last 13 years (I am 31) and am not one of the 'fashionable atheists' you wish to portray to be the majority....
No, of course you should not reject all you know and become religious, just to make yourself happier! That would not be possible anyway, since we can't ignore things we know to be true.
My point is the things you "know" have not been demonstrated by science. That is a myth.
We know that evolution happens, and therefore biblical creation myths are just myths.
We know that we need a functioning brain to interact with this world.
But we do NOT know what causes evolution, and we do NOT know what kind of machine the brain is or how it works.
Materialist/atheists assume the brain is some kind of computer, with no wireless capabilities and not connected to any higher order mental dimensions. Why should they assume that, when the brain is mostly not understood?
When I tell an atheist I think the brain has wireless capabilities -- after all, our phones can do it, why should it be impossible for our brains -- they tell me no wireless machinery has been discovered in the brain.
So, if scientists have not discovered something, it can't be possible?
Theories about the brain being some kind of receiver (in addition to possibly being an insanely complicated computer) are just as plausible (and to me, much more plausible) than the materialist concept.
And regarding evolution -- we have no reason to accept all the old 20th century ideas about DNA. Some of them have already been proven wrong. More recently, scientists have observed cells doing all kinds of intelligent things, and modifying their own DNA. Cells also correct copying errors in DNA.
So we have NO reason to think all changes in DNA are errors and accidents! We already know they aren't.
There is also the new field of epigenetics.
Materialist/atheists are stuck in an outdated mythology.
Plus probably a lot of people who have not have grown up in a spiritual or religious family have no paradigm for it. They didn't see family members practicing anything and so it just doesn't factor in to their reality, and they never feel a need or draw to pursue it. I know plenty of people who aren't spiritual or religious and they've made it through life no better, no worse than the religious or spiritual people that I know. In some cases, they have fared better and are mostly decent, fine people. Yes, you are right about how a lot of people associate spirituality with religions-dogmas that clearly are rife with human-made concepts that end up oppressing, weakening, and crazy-making the adherents to it.
The majority of people probably do not have an innate spiritual drive. Maybe only 20% of us do. The rest are just as well off without religion or mystical traditions. When they go to church, they just do it to fit in with the community. Now days, there is much less need for that.
agnosticism - neither faith supporting nor opposing the belief in deities.
this has nothing to do with science.
the scientific-method is a discipline to teach us how to be logical, methodical problem solvers.
the methods involved include:
creating a hypothesis
doing initial research
expanding to a testable thesis
staging an experiment
setting controlled variables
analysing results
drawing conclusions
So what? There is nothing wrong with the scientific method, but it tells us nothing at all about things that have not yet been researched.
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