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.
It is our own choice to decide if life has meaning. We alone either seek or do not seek for a meaning and it is our own responsibility as to what we do with our findings.
If one finds a purpose for life, they alone, assume the role of fulfilling or not fulfilling that purpose.
His comment makes perfect sense, life is only difficult if you choose to make it so otherwise there's nothing difficult about it, people put too much thought into things that really require very little thought at all. Why make things any more complicated than what they are, but then again you're entitled to your opinion but that doesn't necessarily mean that everybody else agrees with it.
I never said life was difficult. You did. I said life was profound. Webster defines profound as "difficult to fathom". Who's to say if anyone has it "figured out"?
Why can't people accept that life has no inherent purpose or meaning?
Basically this translates to the more personal.. why do I have no purpose or meaning in life?
It is very difficult for the ego to come to the realization that it is not somehow special in life. That it will not be treated in some unique way. And, that there is no ulterior plan for the individual to transcend everything, including death. Fear accompanies those thoughts. So to deal with that, and the fear of death is the most basic fear, mechanisms have been created by religions to help cope. That is why people are treated so differently from the rest of nature by religions and there is no mention of your cat or parakeet having a purpose and a meaning and a soul that will someday enter the Kingdom of Heaven.... along with you..... because only "you" are special and nothing else can compare. It soothes the ego and calms the fears.
you are missing the point. one can only waste time when there is something else ought to be doing. On atheism we create our own purpose, so saying that it is waste of time to worship is mistaken. Maybe it brings comfort to the religious person to worship on sunday irrespective of whether God is real or not, this is not a "waste" for the religious person.
Dunno where you are trying to go with this angle? Yes I was being facetious.
Tell us atheists what we waste time on? This is gonna be pretty hard as the only common denominator is the lack of belief in the supernatural and man made gods.
Discussions are moot as theists are here discussing too.
Are you suggesting we waste our time exposing the fallacies and hypocrisy of religion(s)? If so I do not think it is a waste of time. There are many fence sitters battling with the reality check of myths on religion and to post information they can then further research may just help them out of the closet.
As for the purpose to life, well the best purpose is the one we create not the one we are supposed to imagine exists when we are dead. Hint. We are not immortal. This life is all you get then it is game over, fade to black and then nothing.
Dunno where you are trying to go with this angle? Yes I was being facetious.
Tell us atheists what we waste time on? This is gonna be pretty hard as the only common denominator is the lack of belief in the supernatural and man made gods.
Discussions are moot as theists are here discussing too.
Are you suggesting we waste our time exposing the fallacies and hypocrisy of religion(s)? If so I do not think it is a waste of time. There are many fence sitters battling with the reality check of myths on religion and to post information they can then further research may just help them out of the closet.
As for the purpose to life, well the best purpose is the one we create not the one we are supposed to imagine exists when we are dead. Hint. We are not immortal. This life is all you get then it is game over, fade to black and then nothing.
You were initially making the claim that theism in practice was wasteful. I didnt say atheism in practice was wasteful. Im just saying if the religious person chooses to value church culture because he finds comfort in it, then how is this wasting? What ought they be doing? If we make up our own purpose, then he ought to be doing what he wants, right?
On atheism, the universe doesn't issue out commands like a God would. We are free to choose what we value, no matter what it is.
But see, that is the crux of the problem isn't it? No oneknows with any certainty what happens after death. That is why faith and beliefs exist, isn't it? There are no actual facts to support any of the staggering number of religions and beliefs out there. If there were, they would not be so many disparate belief systems out there. This contemplation of "what happens after we die" has been going on since the first early humans became self-aware creatures.
Since this is the case, all humans can do is hope via one faith or another or come to the conclusion that there is nothing. "From dust you came and to dust you shall return" is the case for all other creatures on earth, so why is it not the same for humans? It's really that simple. I think that for the atheist, determining that there is nothing more than this life is easier isn't it? There is no fear of afterlife now. Since they essentially see us returning to the earth and being part of the natural cycle, all meaning is right here, right now. And quite frankly, I understand why they think the way they do. What else are they to conclude with no verifiable evidence of anything else? Faith and belief systems (yes, even mine) are hope and best guesses...nothing more.
For myself, I cannot call myself an atheist. But even so, I have no idea what happens after we die, so I don't concern myself with it too terribly much. Whatever Creator is (god, force of nature, spirit, does it even actually exist, etc), it will do what it will and there isn't much I can say or do about it. All I can do is try to be the best person I can, love my wife and children, help them to grow up and be good upstanding people, help out those I can or wish to help and mainly concern myself with those things I have some extent of control over. What more can one do?
Last edited by Fullback32; 06-25-2012 at 12:36 PM..
One "ought" to use logic, reason and common sense, love, compassion, empathy, conscience, morals etc etc to guide ones behavior.
It would be more socially beneficial(maybe), but one does not have an absolute obligation from the universe. Also, what if one's morals include "worshipping God"?
His comment makes perfect sense, life is only difficult if you choose to make it so otherwise there's nothing difficult about it, people put too much thought into things that really require very little thought at all. Why make things any more complicated than what they are, but then again you're entitled to your opinion but that doesn't necessarily mean that everybody else agrees with it.
This reminds me of the Eastern vs Western philosophical view in general.
In the West in academic philosophy, thinkers tend to overthink; to breakdown and wring out truth(s) through use of logic.
In the East (or in even some Native cultures) there tends to be a simpler approach of, "What is, is."
Granted, both are problematic.
If I'm assuming what I think the OP is saying, I think people tend to think or believe that no meaning = death. And that in our Western society when there isn't meaning, we tend to think something is wrong with us and therefore, meaning needs to be prescribed.
The old irony is that "no meaning" can be a belief system, just like Atheism and you can adhere to dogmatic behavior even if you don't know it, or refuse to accept it.
On a personal note, I think we all need to be reminded how special life is, and how unique thought is from time to time. To allow ourselves to be amazed, to wonder and to love. These may just be feelings and chemical reactions, but I think it's wondrous to think that we, humans are the creators of thought even if we were flicked or jump started by something bigger.
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.
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.
