Posted by Steve on 09/18/07 22:41

"Jerry Stuckle" <jstucklex@attglobal.net> wrote in message
news:lOqdnSHxypjj0W3bnZ2dnUVZ_jGdnZ2d@comcast.com...
> Steve wrote:
>>>> Atheism is a religion?
>>>> Do you actually have any clue?
>>>>
>>> Yes, I do. It is a disbelief in a god, as Shelly pointed out from
>>> Websters.
>>
>> perhaps you need several clues then!
>>
>> i don't believe the toothfairy is real. am i religious now, being an
>> atoothfairian?
>>
>
> If you could get the rest of the world to agree the tooth fairy is a
> god,then yes. But I doubt you would be able to do that.

oh, so concensus is what makes a god a god...interesting.

>> or, is this a special case because the word gawd is the object of
>> disbelief?
>>
>
> The belief in a higher power. Call it God, Jehovah, Allah or any of the
> other names the higher power is known by, yes. That is the definition of
> religion.

funny how non of that exists in atheism. declaring the obvious, there is no
evidence of any god(s), does not follow your definition of religion, now
does it. we, atheists, are without belief in a higher power.

>>>> Please Jerry: I read this whole thread (my bad) and came to the
>>>> conclusion you better stick with PHP.
>>>> You can speak with some authority on PHP, but your worldview....
>>>> It is dangerous singleminded dribble in my humble opinion.
>>>>
>>> Fine, you're entitled to your opinion.
>>
>> hmmm...if we apply the scientific method to this, and since there is no
>> observable evidence god does exist...yep, i'd say his is more likely
>> right than not.
>>
>
> Faulty logic. Lack of proof that something exists is not proof it does
> not exist.

scientific method would say the case that one does exist is not valid
without supporting evidence.
logic goes further. since there is no evidence supporting the claim, the
original state of affairs remains the same...therefor, there is no god.

but lets stick to what we don't have...proof that gods exist. i'll ask you
the same question that i asked shelly. this should be more pertenant to you
since you are a christian and believe in a personal savior...

what kind of relationship can you infer that a god, that does not give
evidence for himself, would want to have with humanity? if he seems to want
to be hidden, it kind of follows that he/she/it/they really don't want to be
known, much less know you. further, if you have no objective evidence that
god exists, how could you possibly jump to the conclusion that the bible is
his word and that jesus is his son and that that perspective is the only way
to eternal life...much less be assured that there is a heaven or hell?

without evidence, we cannot confirm god(s) intentions toward us and can't
really know anything about him. without evidence, your most fundamental
question should not be whether or not a god(s) exist, rather it should be
what are his intentions toward me.

>> jerry, religion makes the claim god exists. atheist just don't believe
>> them until they provide evidence. it's the logical thing to do. for you
>> making the claim, it would only be responsible to provide such evidence
>> so that we needn't go back and forth.
>>
>
> That's fine. You're entitled to your beliefs, also.

however, you are not entitled to say atheism is a religion just because you
want to. you clearly have no understanding of any other perspective other
than christianity. i suppose i shouldn't have expected any more from you
than that.

you stumbled right into pascal's wager even when i warned you one post
before...i guess i should at least give you credit, given this thread's
length, for not pulling a godwin at this point. if you're not done with this
thread yet, i may have just predicted your next post...unless you're
googling now to avert another blunder. ;^)

EOT

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