Happy National Atheist Day!

Rusty · Post by **Rusty** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 8:18 am

[quote][/quote]

Christians have Christmas shouldn'd they have a day too?

Pitchy · Post by **Pitchy** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 8:32 am

Rusty wrote:
Christians have Christmas shouldn'd they have a day too?

Yep, a pray for them day.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 9:47 am

Yep, prayin' for them. Cause there ain't no athiests on the other side.

pwl44m · Post by **pwl44m** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 9:51 am

Grizz wrote:Yep, prayin' for them. Cause there ain't no athiests on
the other side.

Oh there are some on the other side, jest Aint the side I'm going to.
Perry
My keyboard is mussed up

madman4570 · Post by **madman4570** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 9:52 am

Will just pray that they see the light before it's too late.
Have to say though I am usually pretty consistent on here (wishing Happy whatever)

This is one event I will not wish anything but hoping the lost sheep will find their way.

Must be pretty pitiful those not believing/accepting thinking when their planted (that's it)good times over

jeepnik · Post by **jeepnik** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 9:53 am

I remember the old saying, "there are no atheist in foxhles", maybe we shoud invite these folks to experience the "enlightenment" that comes with being in one.

Griff · Post by **Griff** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 10:18 am

Us agnostics don't need one, we just usurp everyone else's!

3leggedturtle · Post by **3leggedturtle** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 10:25 am

If you are living like there is no GOD, You better be right.

Post by **Ysabel Kid** » Sun Apr 01, 2012 10:06 pm

Fort Bragg actually just hosted an atheist event. No April Fools!

.45colt · Post by **.45colt** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:19 am

A few years ago on the History Channel they did a show about the German U-Boats in WW2. if I rember right only a few U-Boat Captians who started the War lived to See the end of it.
One of the old Captians said that He had many,many Men on His U-Boats that were athiests and did not beleave in God.
He said that every single one could be found on their knees Praying when the Depth Charges were going off.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 8:53 am

pwl44m wrote:
Grizz wrote:Yep, prayin' for them. Cause there ain't no athiests on
the other side.
Oh there are some on the other side, jest Aint the side I'm going to.
Perry
My keyboard is mussed up

Perry

I'm thinking there are former athiests on the other side. Bible says "every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord..."

At that point they are "has been" athiests.

Athiest = (a) + (theos) = (no) (God)

by definition an athiest BELIEVES that no God exists.

you cannot prove a negative. so athiesism is a wish and a hope that the wish is right. it's the "blind leap of faith" they accuse the believers of. every human will see Christ face to face. that's based on the evidence of the resurrection and the evidence of the hundreds and hundreds of people who saw Christ after He rose from the dead.

if you get that far in a conversation with an athiest you might get a convert to agnosticism, which is a shrug of the shoulders with the hope that that doesn't have any negative consequences. Bible says that humans are without an excuse because just by the observing the creation around us it is evident that God exists.

My hope is that all the doubt-ful will take the time to visit with someone who knows what they believe and why they believe that Jesus paid it all when He bore our sins to the cross, and that Jesus rose from the dead, proving the affirmative declaration that He is Himself God and He has provided Himself a Sacrifice for the offering, proving His infinite love for each of us. (a fulfillment of Abraham's declaration thousands of years before Jesus did exactly that)

This is God's own Hope for each of us for our eternal future WITH HIM.

Looking forward to the annual resurrection celebration with y'all in His Spirit, and Prayers UP for everyone who doesn't believe yet, that they will believe before it's too late to change one's mind. Open hearts Lord. Open minds Lord. In Jesus' Name.

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 9:43 am

Ysabel Kid wrote:Fort Bragg actually just hosted an atheist event. No April Fools!

Perhaps a gay marriage was performed to ice the cake. Really sad.

Old Ironsights · Post by **Old Ironsights** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:08 am

Griff wrote:Us agnostics don't need one, we just usurp everyone else's!

Militant Agnosticism: "I don't know, and you don't either."

Long term Theological study has made me a committed Deist of the Jeffersonian stripe.

G_d made men, and Men made Religion. I prefer to believe in the things Jesus believed in rather than what Men developed later...

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:31 am

Old Ironsights wrote:
Griff wrote:Us agnostics don't need one, we just usurp everyone else's!
Militant Agnosticism: "I don't know, and you don't either."

Long term Theological study has made me a committed Deist of the Jeffersonian stripe.

G_d made men, and Men made Religion. I prefer to believe in the things Jesus believed in rather than what Men developed later...

Just to stir things up a bit. My question has always been that everything we know about Him, men wrote. It makes for a real dog chasing tail thang.

Old Ironsights · Post by **Old Ironsights** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:51 am

BlaineG wrote:
Old Ironsights wrote:
Griff wrote:Us agnostics don't need one, we just usurp everyone else's!
Militant Agnosticism: "I don't know, and you don't either."

Long term Theological study has made me a committed Deist of the Jeffersonian stripe.

G_d made men, and Men made Religion. I prefer to believe in the things Jesus believed in rather than what Men developed later...
Just to stir things up a bit. My question has always been that everything we know about Him, men wrote. It makes for a real dog chasing tail thang.

Yeah, funny that...

KISS. While it is true that men wrote the history of Jesus (Gospels), and those histories were specifically selected by the Council of Nicea to be reflective of the Pauline texts that are the genesis of Christian Theology, those same histories express a far more simple belief system than described either by Jewish Law or Pauline Theology.

Essentially:
G_d IS
G_d Judges
BUT
G_d is Merciful if you actively, un-self-centeredly, accept that Mercy

Jesus of Nazereth preached G_d's Mercy
Acceptance of that Preaching ("no man comes to the Father except by Me") is acceptance of Mercy (no acceptance, no Mercy)
Salvation comes through the acceptance of Mercy as Preached/demonstrated by Jesus.

The rest is tortured "logic", created by Men, in an attempt to fit the idea of "acceptance of Mercy" (a priori) vs. "begging for mercy" (post hoc) into a polytheistic worldview.

Later, that "logic" was further tortured into a Political meme used to support Government, which is bizarre because 1 Sam 8 shows specifically that Government (an earthly King) was anathema to G_d and was "allowed" to the Jews more as a punishment than anything else.

Later Theopolitical governments (as all "governments" in pre-enlightenment history had been) used cherry picked writings (mostly from Paul) to support their "Divine Right" to plunder/murder the people within the reach of their violence.

Only the re-assertion of the idea of non-sectarian Grace (vs "Divine Right") during the Enlightenment (the period of the American Revolution) allowed the idea of Freedom tht created the (now failing) American Experience.

shooter · Post by **shooter** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:10 pm

OI,

I'll have to re-read your post and think on it some more, but it seems like a succinct summary of what went down. For me, though, it's important to note why Jesus' teachings are much simpler than traditional Jewish law. God gave the Jews the law, not as a means of attaining salvation, but to show them that they could in no way achieve salvation by their own merits. The Jews took it in a different direction, however, and expanded the Law astronomically, thus focusing strictly on the letter of their law rather than the spirit of God's Law. Salvation has always come by grace, through faith, and not from the works of man. God is never changing, so he couldn't have changed the method of salvation after Jesus came. Jesus came to show the Jews that it is only by grace that one can be saved.

I don't share your view of Deism, but to each his own. I believe that the Bible is 100% divinely inspired by God as a guide on what to believe and how to live. If it were just a bunch of writings by man it would hold very little if any value to me. It would then be not much different from the Koran, or Greek mythology, or Hinduism, etc.

You are right, however, that man created religion. Jesus never preached for people to be religious, rather he taught to have a heart for God. He doesn't need your words or your deeds, but he does want your faith. Accepting grace is the only way to go...nothing else you can do.

new pig hunter · Post by **new pig hunter** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:06 pm

Steve Martin wrote a song ......
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghk-Va4Gdvs

Cheers,

Carl

Streetstar · Post by **Streetstar** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:13 pm

Having a national recognition day would be one step closer to the atheists being one step closer to being an organized religion in and of itself.

The true atheist /agnostic likely just wants to be left alone and not broadcast their beliefs - or lack thereof.

Broadcasting and forming groups and having special days, rallys/meetings etc. now makes the non-religion a religion

Mescalero · Post by **Mescalero** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:16 pm

streetstar hit nail on the head.

Les Staley · Post by **Les Staley** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:17 pm

Okay, youse guys asked for it...: Did you hear the one about the dislexic agnostic insomniac? He laid awake all night wondering if there realy is a dog.........

Old Shatterhand · Post by **Old Shatterhand** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 2:34 pm

.45colt wrote:A few years ago on the History Channel they did a show about the German U-Boats in WW2. if I rember right only a few U-Boat Captians who started the War lived to See the end of it.
One of the old Captians said that He had many,many Men on His U-Boats that were athiests and did not beleave in God.
He said that every single one could be found on their knees Praying when the Depth Charges were going off.

A proof of the old lutheran doctrine that the human soul in fact is naturaliter christana, by nature christian.

Pete

Old Ironsights · Post by **Old Ironsights** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:11 pm

Streetstar wrote:Having a national recognition day would be one step closer to the atheists being one step closer to being an organized religion in and of itself.

The true atheist /agnostic likely just wants to be left alone and not broadcast their beliefs - or lack thereof.

Broadcasting and forming groups and having special days, rallys/meetings etc. now makes the non-religion a religion

+1

El Chivo · Post by **El Chivo** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:13 pm

Thank God for National Atheist Day!

piller · Post by **piller** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:18 pm

Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".

Old Ironsights · Post by **Old Ironsights** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 4:43 pm

piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".

I have. Penn Jillette is one of the happiest men I've ever met, as is L.Neil Smith.

The only things that make those guys unhappy are Politics & Authoritarianism.

2ndovc · Post by **2ndovc** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 5:52 pm

piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".

Yes you have. At 86er's place two years ago.

No, i've never been in a foxhole but I've been in more than
a few sticky situations.

Still ain't buying it. When it's over it's over. I know I'm in the
minority here but we are free to chose in this country.

as far as i know...

jb

Machado · Post by **Machado** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 6:43 pm

piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".

Pleased to meet you, Piller.
Antonio

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 7:32 pm

2ndovc wrote:
piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".
Yes you have. At 86er's place two years ago.

No, i've never been in a foxhole but I've been in more than
a few sticky situations.

Still ain't buying it. When it's over it's over. I know I'm in the
minority here but we are free to chose in this country.

as far as i know...

jb

Of course you're free to believe that.

You're also free to change your mind. The Bible calls that repentence, and as long as you're breathing in this life you are free to chose, as you say.

To quote a preacher, "we preach repentance toward God and faith toward Jesus Christ. You are free to choose. now. But what if it ain't over when it's over, what then?

Anyway, thanks for pitching in and thanks for listening.

Mescalero · Post by **Mescalero** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 9:00 pm

2ndovc.
stick to your guns
mescalero

KWK · Post by **KWK** » Mon Apr 02, 2012 10:06 pm

This agnostic worries about you religious types, for if it turns out there is a creator, he might punish all who had the temerity to proclaim they knew the unknowable.

As for atheism, it's as much a religion as all the others, so a "national" day for them would be a violation of the separation of church and state.

BAGTIC · Post by **BAGTIC** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:41 am

The trick is how to separate the wheat from the chaff. I doubt that Jesus himself would be able to recognize what is being promoted in his name as 'Christianity'.

piller · Post by **piller** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 6:27 am

Penn Jillette is always unhappy when I see him on TV, he is ranting about something or other. I equate him with the Jim Baker type of preacher from TV. Both types turn me totally away from what they might be saying just by their behavior.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 8:15 am

this believer worries about all the non believer types. imagine discovering that you really are an eternal being and having an eternity to mull over the forsaken opportunity to, say, read the Bible and sincerely seek to learn whether it is true or not....

that would get old on the first day and there would never be any relief. .... I coulda read the Gospel of John.... I could have read the Gospel of Luke...... .... I could have read the whole thing over and over... but I didn't. I didn't seek... I didn't try... I didn't care... I didn't even take it seriously...... coulda... shoulda... woulda.... forever.

doesn't look all that delicious to me.

This is from the Gospel of John, Chapter 20. This is an eyewitness account concerning Christ's visit to Thomas to dispell his doubts. This was many days after He was killed and buried, and RISEN from the dead.

30 And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: 31 But these are written, that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life through his name.

Happy Resurrection Day

Grizz

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 12:47 pm

If you follow Jim Tayor on FB....Well, his Papa God, and Jesus are friendly, kind and supportive. I like them alot, and Brother Taylor's sage writings.

I really don't like going to "church" and having mere men try to control me.

gundownunder · Post by **gundownunder** » Tue Apr 03, 2012 10:50 pm

Hallelujah, for man made god in his own image. So that he might have something to believe in, for his own mortality caused him great fear.

KCSO · Post by **KCSO** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 9:45 am

God Bless every one of them, there that should really make 'em happy!

new pig hunter · Post by **new pig hunter** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 8:03 pm

personally, I enjoy all these viewpoints. Gives me some new ideas, viewpoints, and topics to present when I work a prison ministry weekend. Some surprisingly deep and insightful discussions ensue.

Cheers,

Carl

2ndovc · Post by **2ndovc** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 8:41 pm

Grizz wrote:
2ndovc wrote:
piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".
Yes you have. At 86er's place two years ago.

No, i've never been in a foxhole but I've been in more than
a few sticky situations.

Still ain't buying it. When it's over it's over. I know I'm in the
minority here but we are free to chose in this country.

as far as i know...

jb
Of course you're free to believe that.

You're also free to change your mind. The Bible calls that repentence, and as long as you're breathing in this life you are free to chose, as you say.

To quote a preacher, "we preach repentance toward God and faith toward Jesus Christ. You are free to choose. now. But what if it ain't over when it's over, what then?

Anyway, thanks for pitching in and thanks for listening.

Thank you for respecting my point of view.

I'll say that I'm more agnostic than atheist. I've read about and researched many religions and one that appeals to me the most is Buddhism. They are all about peace and happiness. One goal is to remove "want" from your life to achieve true happiness.

My issue is that I can't believe that anyone or group " Knows" what will really happen when it's all over.

Believe what you want! I'm all for that, but don't try to make me believe what you believe in. Let Me make My own choice. If its not the same as yours then I'm on my own. Thank you for respecting my beliefs or lack there of.

jb

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Thu Apr 05, 2012 8:25 am

Hey JB,

Thanks for the straight reply. It sounds like you are interested in finding some kind of truth you can rely on.

but don't try to make me believe what you believe in. Let Me make My own choice. If its not the same as yours then I'm on my own. Thank you for respecting my beliefs or lack there of.

I do respect your choices. I get it that you like the happy outlook. If you ever want to delve into and investigate what underpins the choice others have made I recommend a book by Josh McDowell called Evidence That Demands a Verdict.
This book is kind of statistical and evidentiary in nature and appeals to folks who think things through and make up their own minds. At the risk of "trying to make you believe" I highly recommend this book.

.

http://www.amazon.com/Evidence-Demands- ... 0785243631

It's a really good book.

Best Regards,
Grizz

piller · Post by **piller** » Thu Apr 05, 2012 12:18 pm

2ndovc wrote:
piller wrote:Funny, but I have never met a "Happy Athiest".
Yes you have. At 86er's place two years ago.

No, i've never been in a foxhole but I've been in more than
a few sticky situations.

Still ain't buying it. When it's over it's over. I know I'm in the
minority here but we are free to chose in this country.

as far as i know...

jb

OK. I do remember that hunt and everyone seemed like good folks. If we ever discuss beliefs on religion or such, I'll promise to not act like a TV preacher if you promise to not act like Penn Jillette. I actually enjoy discussions, but when it becomes a rant it loses the fun quickly. I think you would be able to keep it on a friendly basis.

2ndovc · Post by **2ndovc** » Thu Apr 05, 2012 7:37 pm

Grizz and Piller,

Thank you for your responses. I put off re-reading this post all day. I thought for sure I'd
Be blasted for my views. Happy I was wrong.

Grizz, I will look for your book. I'm very open minded and love to learn. Factual or theoretical.

I've been searching for some inner peace for years. There's good out there. Just have to find my own way. Whatever or wherever that path may lead. I'm not convinced that it's going to come from some "Higher Power" any more than it will come from within my own being.
That's my job to figure out.

jb

Booger Bill · Post by **Booger Bill** » Thu Apr 05, 2012 8:38 pm

I havent read every post here but got the drift. Without researching it for book and verse, there is a verse in the bible that says: Doth thou belive? The devil also believes, --- and trembels! A person can belive in God, and that alone isnt enough. You have to repent for your past sins, acknowledge that God is God, ask forgiveness and declare you will try to live for him from now on.
We dont make the rules, but we are in trouble if we dont follow them.

El Chivo · Post by **El Chivo** » Thu Apr 05, 2012 10:08 pm

I have inner peas right now and some inner carrots too. Essentially I am non-denominational and I believe in recognizing God's gifts by making use of them as much as I can; building something, creating something, learning something, etc. And being reasonable along the way.

So I don't go to church but use my spare time to do the things I was put on earth to do, to try to serve God that way.

shooter · Post by **shooter** » Fri Apr 06, 2012 12:51 am

2ndovc,

I also respect everyone's right to believe as they choose, and I don't ever try to force anyone to believe the way I do. I don't appreciate it when people do it to me, so I try to be respectful also. If you are open minded and interested in learning, there are a couple of good videos on Netflix you might enjoy. They are both by Lee Strobel, who is a journalist and former atheist. They are called "The Case for Faith", and "The Case for Christ". He documents how he systematically had to work through his views and the Bible to make sense of everything. Pretty interesting story even if you don't end up seeing things the same as he did. Grizz's book recommendation is also a good one.

FWIW, I think that Jesus wouldn't even recognize "Christianity" of today as what He intended it to be. His message is simple: Believe in Him. There isn't supposed to be any greed, selfishness, or bickering within the Church, but the sad fact is that after Jesus left, humans took over, and we all know how bad we usually screw things up

. People felt they had to put their own spin on things, whether for power, money, or simply because of incompetence. Just because people have screwed things up doesn't negate what the truth really is.

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Fri Apr 06, 2012 9:04 am

Shooter

Thank you so much for the Lee Strobel reference. I don't know how I managed to evade him for so long. I will vett him and introduce him to some kids if he's the real deal.

Those videos on his website are perfect for showing to the youth group kids. Been stressing those evidence aspects with them.

Grizz

shooter · Post by **shooter** » Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:10 am

Grizz, glad I could help

I like Lee Strobel, and he might be interesting to kids also, idk. He's a good speaker, and he really appeals to thinkers because of the way he came to his faith. He accepted nothing at face value and questioned everything, and even fought it for quite some time not wanting to believe the evidence.

new pig hunter · Post by **new pig hunter** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:05 am

shooter,

I'd like to modify your statement just a tad, "..... but the sad fact is that after Jesus left, humans took over ....."

Actually, the humans were here before Jesus showed up and made a general uproar of things. Then Jesus showed up and we know what humans did to Him. Then He departed, and humans carried on just like before.

Are we messed up or what ??

Good thing Jesus showed up the first time, and I look forward to His return.

Cheers,

Carl

piller · Post by **piller** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 2:31 am

2ndovc wrote:Grizz and Piller,

Thank you for your responses. I put off re-reading this post all day. I thought for sure I'd
Be blasted for my views. Happy I was wrong.

Grizz, I will look for your book. I'm very open minded and love to learn. Factual or theoretical.

I've been searching for some inner peace for years. There's good out there. Just have to find my own way. Whatever or wherever that path may lead. I'm not convinced that it's going to come from some "Higher Power" any more than it will come from within my own being.
That's my job to figure out.

jb

I don't believe Jesus would have blasted you for your views. I read and believe that he came to show a better way, and that I should follow his example. The only ones he got rough with were the religious leaders who should have known better. Again, if you ever want to discuss it, let me know. Besides, isn't blasting another person's views the best way to make them dislike you?

Booger Bill · Post by **Booger Bill** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:12 pm

Why do we gloss things over now days? It seems we try to convert people in the nice way of telling them how much of a nicer life they will have following christian views, ten commandments etc. While true, its far the most serious choice in anyones life. It`s not popular to point out the alternitive, hell anymore. Fire and brimstone, agony, torture etc. I never will be accused of being politicaly correct!

Pitchy · Post by **Pitchy** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:32 pm

Booger Bill wrote:Why do we gloss things over now days? It seems we try to convert people in the nice way of telling them how much of a nicer life they will have following christian views, ten commandments etc. While true, its far the most serious choice in anyones life. It`s not popular to point out the alternitive, hell anymore. Fire and brimstone, agony, torture etc. I never will be accused of being politicaly correct!

There is a lot of feel good and prosperity religion going on today that has people deceived.
As far as Christ leaving and man taking over that`s not entirely true, Jesus said when He left that He would send someone else to help us, that is the Holy Spirit.
If man lets the Holy Spirit into they`er heart they will change and see the world for what it is. Will it get better and everything be great, probably not, in fact Satan will attack you worse because he doesn`t want Spirit filled people spreading the word about Christ and how to be saved.
No one should judge others or cut them down for their beliefs, it`s the Holy Spirits job to draw people to Him, our job is to tell them about the work that Christ accomplished.