I'm Becoming a Fabulous Atheist
Do you think destiny (the concept) has anything to do with God, necessarily?
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I believe that destiny is an illusion... right along with God.
So, yes, in that regard, yes.
So, yes, in that regard, yes.
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That's backwards, though: determinism is the inevitable result of believing in materialism (though I know lots of people hate this idea). The idea of free will is what makes choice possible, and therefore makes disbelief in destiny possible. So, if this is about disbelieving in destiny, it wouldn't lead you to atheism, it'd lead you to some form of theism, or at least mysticism.
Not that the ups and downs of one's social life should factor into any of this too heavily to begin with...
Not that the ups and downs of one's social life should factor into any of this too heavily to begin with...
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We've actually got a couple of threads devoted to it already, and I don't want to hijack this thread, so any discussions or replies should probably go there. The Cliff Notes version of the argument goes like this:
If there is nothing supernatural in existence, then all that exists is physical matter (materialism). This means that our brains/minds are only composed of physical matter and not imbued with any sort of soul or special ability outside of the laws of physics. Matter, of course, has no choice about how it reacts to things around it, any more than a stone has a choice about falling to the ground when you drop it. Thus, if our minds are purely physical, there's nothing special about the molecules and atoms in our brains that would exempt them from the same laws of cause and effect that govern every other molecule and atom.
What we believe to be choices, then, would merely be the result of a long chain of causation which became inevitable the moment the universe was set into motion (determinism).
If there is nothing supernatural in existence, then all that exists is physical matter (materialism). This means that our brains/minds are only composed of physical matter and not imbued with any sort of soul or special ability outside of the laws of physics. Matter, of course, has no choice about how it reacts to things around it, any more than a stone has a choice about falling to the ground when you drop it. Thus, if our minds are purely physical, there's nothing special about the molecules and atoms in our brains that would exempt them from the same laws of cause and effect that govern every other molecule and atom.
What we believe to be choices, then, would merely be the result of a long chain of causation which became inevitable the moment the universe was set into motion (determinism).
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I beg to differ. I am a Christian, of course in this situation (according to Sexy Celebrity) that is like saying I like to paint. Of course that is not the way I see it, and this is entirely Sexy Celebrity's choice of faith, not mine.
Great post, Sexy! Great, but a bit sad... But the dog saved it.
I wouldn't exactly call myself an atheist, I'm rather agnostic leaning towards atheism.
Of all the big religions, but without knowing that much about any of them, I would have to say that buddhism seems the most appealing to me.
I wouldn't exactly call myself an atheist, I'm rather agnostic leaning towards atheism.
Of all the big religions, but without knowing that much about any of them, I would have to say that buddhism seems the most appealing to me.
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The novelist does not long to see the lion eat grass. He realizes that one and the same God created the wolf and the lamb, then smiled, "seeing that his work was good".
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They had temporarily escaped the factories, the warehouses, the slaughterhouses, the car washes - they'd be back in captivity the next day but now they were out - they were wild with freedom. They weren't thinking about the slavery of poverty. Or the slavery of welfare and food stamps. The rest of us would be all right until the poor learned how to make atom bombs in their basements.
The novelist does not long to see the lion eat grass. He realizes that one and the same God created the wolf and the lamb, then smiled, "seeing that his work was good".
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They had temporarily escaped the factories, the warehouses, the slaughterhouses, the car washes - they'd be back in captivity the next day but now they were out - they were wild with freedom. They weren't thinking about the slavery of poverty. Or the slavery of welfare and food stamps. The rest of us would be all right until the poor learned how to make atom bombs in their basements.
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Actually, I am beginning to think Sexy Celebrity is not an Atheist. The definition of God is the force or existing thing that created everything we know, including us. It doesn't have to be a person, and he believes it is science - which means Sexy Celebrity believes in God (science as she suggests.) God just took the form of a person as far as Jesus is concerned. That does not mean that God is a person. So Sexy Celebrity thinks the force (God) that created everything in this world was science (The force/God.)
Last edited by The Moviegoer; 06-03-09 at 06:10 PM.
I think we're talking past each other a little. I'm saying that it doesn't quite add up to become an atheist because you don't believe in destiny -- it's the other way around. Determinism is the order you say you don't believe in any more. Free Will (and its supernatural implications) is what introduces the possibility of chaos. Your reasoning points you towards some kind of theism, but for some reason your conclusion is atheism.
This is, of course, assuming that atheism in this instance also means materialism (which it usually does). I suppose you could believe in some sort of supernatural mysticism, but at that point I don't know if you could really call yourself an atheist.
This is, of course, assuming that atheism in this instance also means materialism (which it usually does). I suppose you could believe in some sort of supernatural mysticism, but at that point I don't know if you could really call yourself an atheist.
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Urgh, I can't even go atheist without becoming female.
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Originally Posted by KasperKristensen
Come on dude. Moviegoer's a new member and when people mention a romantic relationship with a dude, the normal, immediate reaction is to assume that person is a woman.
I'm gonna go scream in the MoFo Support Group now.
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By believing in only science are you not putting all your beliefs into what one person has said just because he studied it and decided that what he had researched was proof?
Id much rather believe in fate and god and destiny than to lay all my belief into what someone else has decided is a fact. The only true facts are what you see yourself, not what someone else determains for you.
If it meant to be it is meant to be, just because you thought it was meant to be, doesnt mean it is. You could think the next 10men were meant to be, and then one day, the guy who is actually meant to be is.
Im a firm believer in everything happens for a reason, be it a good reason or not.
Id much rather believe in fate and god and destiny than to lay all my belief into what someone else has decided is a fact. The only true facts are what you see yourself, not what someone else determains for you.
If it meant to be it is meant to be, just because you thought it was meant to be, doesnt mean it is. You could think the next 10men were meant to be, and then one day, the guy who is actually meant to be is.
Im a firm believer in everything happens for a reason, be it a good reason or not.
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"Why pay a dollar for a bookmark? Why not use the dollar for a bookmark?"
Steven Spielberg
"Why pay a dollar for a bookmark? Why not use the dollar for a bookmark?"
Steven Spielberg
Oh, I'm always trying to trick people into believing in God, but don't worry, I still make sure what I'm saying adds up.
Anyway, what I mean to say is...uh...nevermind.
Anyway, what I mean to say is...uh...nevermind.
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The sad part of this thread is that I'm pretty sure you're not kidding. Now we just have to wait for you to start dating a believer and turn into a born again Christian or something.
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Originally Posted by adidasss
The sad part of this thread is that I'm pretty sure you're not kidding. Now we just have to wait for you to start dating a believer and turn into a born again Christian or something.
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The crazy thing is, Adidasss has found a portal inside my brain ~ I actually did pick up a bible while dating this religious guy, and I never wanted a bible before. But it was free and bound in pink & black leather.
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