Non-Theists- How has your lack of belief changed your life?

[Modem Butterfly]

I'm especially interested in hearing from folks who have left theism.

Personally, I feel my lack of beliefs have made me a better person. I'm a humanist, so I spend time and money working for charity and making donations because I know there's no invisible friend who's going to do anything to help. It's also helped me to focus on my own health and improve my life, since this is the only chance I get, I might as well enjoy it. My lack of belief has also made me more tolerant of people with differences- for instance, I know that people who have a different sexuality than me aren't cursed or demon-posessed or anything other than human. I think my lack of beliefs has made me a better person. How about you?

[Wright Patman]

1. Actually, true Christianity

as reflected in the words of Jesus Christ, who may be invisible now but was very visible for a while there, dictates no different an attitude than that which you have.

Spirituality is very subjective. I cannot transmit to you the experiences I have had in life during which I have no doubt that an extraterrestrial spiritual being was there with me and intervened for me.

I had a Near Death Experience on November 9, 2003. A Chevrolet Suburban (very heavy vehicle) ran off the road into me going 40 mph, catapulted me 15 feet into the air and threw me about 90 feet after I was hit head-on by its grille and then bounced off its windshield.

If anything like that were ever to happen to you, I would not have to explain to you why I am a believer. The only thing that survives this life is love. An angel or messenger or whatever you want to call the entity clearly told me that when I was at the point of death and also told me I was being miraculously spared. He/she/it really didn't tell me why (clearly I expected to die as the SUV was bearing down on me), but I had made peace with being dead. I just knew that if I lived through it, I was commanded by this spirit to be a conduit of pure love. It is hard to do, but I try. My several decades of life passed before my eyes and all that. It seemed as if my whole life had just been a dream that was now over. Toda La Vida Es Sueno as the poem from my Spanish class described life.

So, I conclude--from my miraculous experience from which I fully recovered after being in critical condition for several days--that there really is an afterlife and love is the only real force, if you could call it that, that is eternal. So if you have no love, there is no afterlife for you. It all makes perfect sense and also is consistent with the teachings of Jesus, who had only two commandments, both dealing with the topic of love.

[Modem Butterfly]

2. It did happen to me

I was clinically dead. I didn't see squat. As Stunster showed yesterday, the majority of people who die and are resuscitated don't.

Nope, I don't believe in an afterlife. So, no excuses for me!

[Wright Patman]

3. I used to think

when I was a teenager and very skeptical of spirituality and especially down on Christianity (I am from the Bible Belt and have been constantly "witnessed to" for my entire life; you can't avoid it around here) that maybe whatever you believe is what you will receive.

I had already chosen to believe in an afterlife before my NDE and maybe that is why I was shown there actually was one. As I say, I don't want to preach. This is very subjective. I respect your right to believe whatever you wish. It is too bad that so many people no longer do.

[Desertrose]

10. as neither an non-theist or a theist...I agree, LOVE is the only thing

that we can take with us when we leave these mortal bodies.

Love endures, plain & simple. Thanks, WrightPatman...I agree.



As for non-theists thinking they have a lack of beliefs...what do you call what you think now? Isn't it merely a different perspective? a different set of beliefs? just askin' :hi:



Does everyone here seem to envision *god* as another perhaps more powerful "version" of man? Just seems to be a very limited way to percieve something so large. :shrug:



(on edit -changed subject to non-theist)

[wtbymark]

4. i wouldn't know

i never joined in theism. I live my life everyday the way i want to, i answer to no one except myself. There is somewhat of a "karma" thing going on, but its a product of the sub-conscious - purely human- IMO.

[RoBear]

5. Incredible sense of freedom from the feeling

of being watched by a malevolent god who actually cares about some of the foolishness "they" throw at us. I'm amazed that people can still hang onto old beliefs based on tribal rules ascribed erroneously to "God."

Those "near-death" experiences are simply the brain shutting down. One of the other atheists at our MeetUp group was asked by someone, "What happens to you when you die?" Her response: "The worms eat you just like they do all dead things."

Another friend pointed out to me that there's actually a shelf of books on atheism in the story. The lady in front of him turned and remarked that that was awful. R---- remarked, "I'm an atheist." Her response: "You'll be sorry some day!"

It's all based on fear. Shed that and you're out of the frightened bunch and on the way to living a full life.

BTW, I left for many reasons, but the thing I could absolutely NOT reconcile is the idea that JC was "sacrificed" on the cross. I couldn't shed the idea that sacrificing a life to a god was such a pagan thing to do.

I too have no problem with the things jesus said, but paul (that screaming queen) and the rest of the women-hating child molesters are not for me. The odd thing is my best friend is a nun and she understands completely and agrees with many things while studying arcane and esoteric "paths" to the truth. She is so put off by the church, but because of her age and the fact that she can work within the structure of the church, she stays in the convent.

Sorry for the dissertation! O8)

[Modem Butterfly]

7. My partner experiemented with theism briefly when he was married...

My partner married a fundie after college, and he experimented with theism for awhile. He said it made him miserable, and as far as he could see, it made the other fundies miserable, too. His wife couldn't deal with his lack of belief and eventually their marriage broke up.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

6. My Christianity has done all the same things for me.

[arwalden]

8. Happiness Quotient Increased Tenfold!!

At the point where I finally realized that there were no deities and that Jesus was dead (or perhaps even fictional)... I stopped begging, waiting, and relying on my imaginary friend in the sky to steer me towards happiness. Whether it was romantic fulfillment or happiness in my career... the moment I stopped praying and waiting, and instead started taking responsibility for my OWN decisions (and my own results) then my life improved.

The guilt and regret and feelings for being unworthy... and the feelings of being punished disappeared too.

The ONLY thing about being a theist that I miss, is the notion of an afterlife. It's sad to finally realize that my friends and loved ones aren't watching over me and that I cannot communicate with them. They have simply ceased to exist. But the belief that they "lived" on was comforting and the belief that I would see them again was comforting.

In a way, it was sad for me to realize that this is our ONE life and that when it's over, it's over. It was a difficult security blanket to finally let go of.

But you know... what's EVEN SADDER are the people who are content to suffer through this one-and-only life with the belief that something better awaits them. They believe that the amount of misery they endure (or create for themselves) means an even greater reward in the "afterlife". --- When instead... if they realized that this is their ONE shot, they would enjoy and appreciate their brief life while they have it.

I--for one--am NOT waiting for an "afterlife reward"! This is it, folks! Enjoy the ride while you can.

-- Allen

PS: My realization that there is no afterlife also reinforces my opposition to the death penalty. When we execute someone is punishment for a horrible crime, at that moment, their punishment ENDS. They are no longer being punished because they are dead. They don't care anymore because they are dead. There is no hell or other "eternal punishment" for them to endure. (Ah... but that's a topic for another thread.)

[Modem Butterfly]

14. Did you come out before or after you left theism?

BTW, interesting perspective on the death penalty!

[arwalden]

15. I Was Out For Many Years...

... before I abandoned theism.

[lachattefolle]

9. Well, for one thing I get to sleep in Sunday morning! Seriously, I

was raised by a fundamentalist mother who dragged me to church every week. Even as a young child I questioned the inconsistencies in the Bible, and was told alot of bull that signified absolutely nothing. I don't have faith in the tooth fairy and I don't have faith in a non-existent god. If I did believe in god, I'd think s/he was a monster, based on those old testament fire and brimstone stories. I used to believe, when I was young, that god watched me constantly. Talk about a stalker! That's how it felt to me, although I know lots of people derive comfort from thinking god cares about them. As my hubby says, everyone has to believe in something, I believe I'll have another beer (as taken from the bumper sticker we once stumbled across).
In short, without god in my life, I am FREE.

[progressoid]

12. Free Sundays are great!

And peaceful too (if you don't turn on the TV). When I'm not exhausted from work, I love to go out on Sunday morning - anywhere, the city or country - because no one is around. It's great.

[progressoid]

11. Wow, I'll be thinking about this all day now

but briefly...

First, was the feeling of a fog clearing from my mind - - the freedom of thought. Removing the restraints of religious dogma was very liberating. All of that befuddled rationalization was so frustrating (not to mention, a huge waste of time). Of course, for religions, it's a completely necessary evil. Thankfully, I am no longer limited by this. In order to come to a conclusion about an issue, I don't have to weigh which contradictory (and often erroneous) idea from a church, book or religious leader to accept. I get to use something better...common sense.

Concerning morality. I'm continually amazed at how often I meet believers that profess their moral superiority based solely on their belief in God. If man was made in God's image, evidently, (s)he is a angry, spiteful, murderous, adulterous, thieving, immature, (etc ad infinitum) God. If I was a believer, I'd be ashamed of my fellow followers.
As for me, a lack of belief has not made me a worse citizen. It has actually required me to become more diligent in being a good person. When all is said and done, I can't blame the devil and I can only thank myself for my actions.

-----

edited for icky spelling

[YankeyMCC]

13. Except for a brief couple of years

It would be quiet a stretch to have called me a theist but I was brought up nominally catholic.

Since I've come to terms with what I think about the existence of a god(s) I'm much happier.

And I measure that happiness by how much more confident I feel about myself and my value system, and how much more connected I am with my community and the people around me.

Like MB stated it has a lot to do with realizing as the Humanist Manifesto states: "...humans are responsible for what we are or will become. No deity will save us; we must save ourselves."

I remember watching the story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates nearly fatal climb of a difficult peak in the Andes. Simpson broke his leg and fell into a crevasse. Yates assumed his partner was dead. Simpson was utterly alone and seemingly in an impossible situation. Simpson explained that while he was brought up christian he wasn't religious and he realized that praying would do nothing but delay action on his own part. And only action by him was going to save him. He acted. He lived. I was more inspired by that than any story of someone praying for salvation and getting lucky.

It's up to me to affect the world and get whatever it is I think needs done for myself or for my community done.

My father died not long ago. The fact that I know all we will ever have is his life means that I'm holding onto those memories and how he affected my life all the more dearly. Because of this I took closer look at what about me I got from him and now I can take comfort from those things and remember him all the more intimately. I take a closer look at what it was I admired about him and I try to use that as a guide to improve my life and again this has meant mostly getting more involved with other's lives and hopefully affecting them in positive ways.

Most certainly coming to firm terms with my atheism has been the most positive personal step I've ever taken in my life.