...I am now atheist.

[memimemi]

No. It is not because of the youtube trolls, but because it's been happening too long. BE CHRISTIAN BE CHRISTIAN BECHRISTIAN is all the bible says, and frankly, I've just had enough that I up and went atheist.

So, you have no reason for your philosophy, beyond a reaction to others?  For the record, the Bible has very little to say about being Christian; Jesus (if he existed) was an Essene, a sub-set of Judaism - not a Christian.   The Bible has a great deal to say about following the Christ; it has very little to say about following the Church.  In fact, if we remove the newer parts (i.e. the Pauline doctrines, esp. Corinthians and Thessalonians), the Bible has more to say against institutionalized Churches than it does for them.  "Nobody comes to the Father, but through me," is a far cry from "Nobody comes to the father, but through the clergy, who speak with Jesus, who intercedes with the Father, to let you into His presence."

Once again, I agree with the direction you've chosen; just make sure that it's truly YOUR choice, before joining up with one of the more reviled groups in North America (in the US, Atheists are pretty much the only non-hate-based group that can still be legally discriminated against). Just be careful, and consider what you're giving up: the community within the congregation, the comfort of ritual, the solace of faith, etc.  If you still find it worthwhile to embrace your Truth, despite these sacrifices, then more power to you.

But hey, take this all with a pillar of salt ('grats to you if you catch the reference) - it is, in the end, your life; not mine to dictate.

[Skotadi Phobos]

Quick tip, don't mistake extremists as being accurate representations of the religion. And trust me on this, you don't have to be christian to believe in God.

[RootRanger]

People are extremely sensitive and insecure about religion, more so than maybe anything else. This is because if they pick the wrong religion, the consequences are very severe (some versions of Christianity, for example, have nonbelievers suffering in hell forever.) This deep insecurity drives people to do stupid things involving religion. It's just how humans are.

[Drake_XIV]

Quick tip, don't mistake extremists as being accurate representations of the religion. And trust me on this, you don't have to be christian to believe in God.

Agreed.  In addendum, just because you're Christian doesn't mean you walk the streets condemning non-believers and whatnot.

[Naesala]

Hard to quote on my phone, so this is aimed at Arums last post(be christian is all the bible says.) Yo evidently have not read the bible yourself. Memimemi basically said what I was thinking, there is quite a bit against churches.

Also: respond to cheesy, pineapple, and I's point about extremists having little to nothing to do with choice of religion especially with regards to christianity

[Ilias22]

Yeah, I used to be christian, but now I'm atheist.

The only problem is that the overly religious zealots in this world keep shoving christianity down my throat, and this guy managed to turn me away for good.

Sigh. And it's just not him.
People on facebook/youtube are being extremely ignorant to actual science. There are countless adults who believe god pulls everything to the ground, and not the sky, but could pull to the sky, when we know that won't happen cause of gravity. Some people don't even believe in the theory of evoloution, even though any sane person would believe in them.

No, I'm not hating on christians who are normal, I'm hating on the stupid, ignorant, dumb christian zealots who will proceed to shove their religion down my throat while being the extremely narrow minded people they are.

I am  ashamed of them.

(Insert "I DON'T WANT TO LIVE ON THIS PLANET ANYMORE." meme)

everyone has a god.nobody is atheist...because i am sure if a war starts when war ends there will be only 0,1% who will be atheist because evryone will be afraid.Thats why we need a god...because without a god everyone afraid because he knows that nobody can protect him.But i can say that this things you write in your post is true...As i bilieve jesus was really god or he was really clever because he make all these people believe in him.

[Cheesy111]

Yeah, I used to be christian, but now I'm atheist.

The only problem is that the overly religious zealots in this world keep shoving christianity down my throat, and this guy managed to turn me away for good.

Sigh. And it's just not him.
People on facebook/youtube are being extremely ignorant to actual science. There are countless adults who believe god pulls everything to the ground, and not the sky, but could pull to the sky, when we know that won't happen cause of gravity. Some people don't even believe in the theory of evoloution, even though any sane person would believe in them.

No, I'm not hating on christians who are normal, I'm hating on the stupid, ignorant, dumb christian zealots who will proceed to shove their religion down my throat while being the extremely narrow minded people they are.

I am  ashamed of them.

(Insert "I DON'T WANT TO LIVE ON THIS PLANET ANYMORE." meme)

everyone has a god.nobody is atheist...because i am sure if a war starts when war ends there will be only 0,1% who will be atheist because evryone will be afraid.Thats why we need a god...because without a god everyone afraid because he knows that nobody can protect him.But i can say that this things you write in your post is true...As i bilieve jesus was really god or he was really clever because he make all these people believe in him.

I remember reading a study about the whole 'no atheists in foxholes' thing, and it turned out that it made people of most major religions (jewish, christian, muslim, hindu, etc.) believe more of their faith but it did not do anything similar to atheists.  If someone could pull it up for me that would be great, if not I'll work on finding it later. 

[Naesala]

Yeah, I used to be christian, but now I'm atheist.

The only problem is that the overly religious zealots in this world keep shoving christianity down my throat, and this guy managed to turn me away for good.

Sigh. And it's just not him.
People on facebook/youtube are being extremely ignorant to actual science. There are countless adults who believe god pulls everything to the ground, and not the sky, but could pull to the sky, when we know that won't happen cause of gravity. Some people don't even believe in the theory of evoloution, even though any sane person would believe in them.

No, I'm not hating on christians who are normal, I'm hating on the stupid, ignorant, dumb christian zealots who will proceed to shove their religion down my throat while being the extremely narrow minded people they are.

I am  ashamed of them.

(Insert "I DON'T WANT TO LIVE ON THIS PLANET ANYMORE." meme)

everyone has a god.nobody is atheist...because i am sure if a war starts when war ends there will be only 0,1% who will be atheist because evryone will be afraid.Thats why we need a god...because without a god everyone afraid because he knows that nobody can protect him.But i can say that this things you write in your post is true...As i bilieve jesus was really god or he was really clever because he make all these people believe in him.

I remember reading a study about the whole 'no atheists in foxholes' thing, and it turned out that it made people of most major religions (jewish, christian, muslim, hindu, etc.) believe more of their faith but it did not do anything similar to atheists.  If someone could pull it up for me that would be great, if not I'll work on finding it later.

Maybe it's the fact I havent slept in three days, but I had the most hilarious mental image of atheists in foxholes suddenly becoming "extremely atheist" and shouting out random scientific quotes.

[furballdn]

everyone has a god.nobody is atheist...because i am sure if a war starts when war ends there will be only 0,1% who will be atheist because evryone will be afraid.Thats why we need a god...because without a god everyone afraid because he knows that nobody can protect him.But i can say that this things you write in your post is true...As i bilieve jesus was really god or he was really clever because he make all these people believe in him.

What.

[Aves]

That was a tad offensive, Ilias. Not sure if it was just the wording that irked me.

Something that might be a bit tangential:
To what degree is extremism associated with the 'core belief' of a set of beliefs, and what degree of control/association should moderates have with extremists?

[artimies7]

I'm not much qualified to speak in protest against much of anything right now, but I just need to point one thing out.

The second of the ten commandments in the Bible is 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
(The very first of the commandments is 'love the Lord your God,' but that's not relevant right here.)
I said I wasn't qualified, and that proves it. The actual commandments don't say that, but Jesus himself does, I'm pretty sure. It's very important at any rate!

I think that anybody that would go so far as to hate or shove anything upon anyone who isn't exactly like themselves has lost this. Even the people that hold close things that the Bible disapproves (extramaritial relationships, etc) should not be discriminated against, but rather taken in stride.

Arum, those 'overly religious zealots' that you've encountered are not really following what the Bible says as truth. They're just misinterpreting it and making false assumptions around that.

I can't make you or anybody else do anything. I can't exactly what is truth or not in such a complex world. Yet I would suggest that you take even a few minutes off to just sit and read what the Bible says before making such a large life choice.

It may seem overly forward of me to say this here, but Psalm 46:10 says 'Be still, and know that I am God.'

[Pineapple]

i am sure if a war starts when war ends there will be only 0,1% who will be atheist because evryone will be afraid.Thats why we need a god...because without a god everyone afraid because he knows that nobody can protect him.

It's the complete opposite. When a war starts, people will pray to something so that their loved ones survive and such. When a war ends, there will be no reason for the protection you mentioned.

In addition, tragedies do not scare people into religion. Instead, they force people to question it.