Survey for nonbelievers

[artsylady]

That day I realized that parents can teach nice stories which are not true

I don't think parents should do that.

You are probably quite familiar with the stories of the Bible, nice or not. Knowing what you know, what kind of evidence would you look for? You know how the God of the Bible operates, basically. Is it usually to the faithful that He makes Himself known, unless you're a tyrant like Pharoah. So what kind of evidence would cause you to become a believer.

Do you think the fact that the people you trusted most in life knowingly told you a what is actually a lie, did this make you more skeptical? Did your parents teach you about God at all?

I'm getting way off track here. I didn't really want to get into this discussion. Oh well.

Still looking for more honest answers from people though if you don't mind.

[artsylady]

Attel:

You are probably quite familiar with the stories of the Bible, nice or not. Knowing what you know, what kind of evidence would you look for? You know how the God of the Bible operates, basically. Is it usually to the faithful that He makes Himself known, unless you're a tyrant like Pharoah. So what kind of evidence would cause you to become a believer?

Yes, my parents were believers. But I never believed in anything written in the Bible, not even as a

small child.

As a small child? Why not?

[nebula]

A few years later I de-converted both my parents and my sister,

we are all happy atheists in the family now.

A happiness you seek to spread around?

[Guest man]

A few years later I de-converted both my parents and my sister,

we are all happy atheists in the family now.

A happiness you seek to spread around?

Attel60 is not as happy as he would like us to believe. If you'll notice, he doesn't find the thought of eternal damnation as amusing as he once did. I think he's having second thoughts and he's searching for a way to bridge that gap.

Therefore, I decided never to believe anybody teaching nice stories without the required evidence, anymore.

So you consider someone dying in their sins and being cast into the Lake of Fire, "a nice story"?

Yes. I used to find it amusing when I learnt about it .

[Guest man]

A few years later I de-converted both my parents and my sister,

we are all happy atheists in the family now.

A happiness you seek to spread around?

Attel60 is not as happy as he would like us to believe. If you'll notice, he doesn't find the thought of eternal damnation as amusing as he once did. I think he's having second thoughts and he's searching for a way to bridge that gap.

Therefore, I decided never to believe anybody teaching nice stories without the required evidence, anymore.

So you consider someone dying in their sins and being cast into the Lake of Fire, "a nice story"?

Yes. I used to find it amusing when I learnt about it .

No second thought, really. I found them amusing when I heard of them. Now they are just irrelevant.

Sorry, but your presence at this site would indicate that these stories are relevant, otherwise you wouldn't be here.

[nebula]

A few years later I de-converted both my parents and my sister,

we are all happy atheists in the family now.

A happiness you seek to spread around?

[artsylady]

It just sounded so unbelievable! If my mother had taught me another book, e.g. Homer's Iliad, or another fantasy book,

I would have not been able to say the difference. I liked it, the stories were nice, but I did not believe a single word.

I remember I liked a lot the story of Jonah in the whale, but again I did not believe it really happened.

Well, I guess if you can't believe there's a God that is capable of creating a universe you can't people that same God could preserve a man inside the belly of a large fish right?

There are a lot of things that sound unbelievable though that are true. For me, it's that a mother could kill her own child in cold blood. Happens a lot these days. I remember first hearing of this from Susan Smith and now it seems to be an everyday occurance.

Or that a man can walk into a kindergarten classroom and start shooting at 5 year olds he doesn't know.

I was about to look up 'unbelievable but true' stories but I think you can probably agree with me that there are probably thousands of instances here on earth that have happened that are difficult to grasp or beleive right? I guess unless you saw it for your own eyes, you would not believe, right?

As well, you'll probably agree with me that there are many unknowns and mysteries here on earth. As far as the universe goes, there are far more unkonwns than knowns, right? Yet, you seem to know what can happen and what cannot happen with some sort of certainty. Are you some kind of god who already possesses all of the knowledge of the universe?

You talk about evidence that can convert me. Well, I do not know where to start. There are many things that could convert me.

I don't know... A real miracle, maybe? All miracles I have heard about until now are quite lame, unfortunately.

Have you ever asked God for one?

Have you been an atheist since the age of 5?

[artsylady]

You talk about evidence that can convert me. Well, I do not know where to start. There are many things that could convert me.

I don't know... A real miracle, maybe? All miracles I have heard about until now are quite lame, unfortunately.

I thought a bit more but then again, if you are familiar with the accounts of humans in the Bible, I can't think of a single instance where God showed a miracle to an unbeliever unless, like I said earlier, he was a tyrant, like Pharoah or King Nebuchadnezzar or the gospel writer Paul (who was indeed a tyrant before that miracle.)

In any case, I wonder if you've ever heard of the story during WW2 when two American soldiers and two German soldiers happened upon a house in Europe on Christmas Eve? The homeowners welcomed the Germans but said they had to remain peaceful. That night, during the war, they all enjoyed Christmas Eve with the Christian people in their home. The next day, they went off again to fight in their wars. I'd call this a Christmas miracle. There are probably thousands of stories like these. Medical 'miracles' happen every day. They are unexplained.

I always find Nelson Mandela's story like a Biblical miracle - from prison to presidency. Or the story of Elisabeth Elliot, who stayed on to minister to the Auca Indians in Ecuador, after they had brutally murdered her husband. Her son, as well, later baptized the man who killed his father. Then there's Joyce Meyer, who forgave and baptized the father who molested her for years as a young girl.

These are miracles. The humans who have been able to perform such feats give total credit to God for doing so. I believe God is intervening all the time here on earth.

I'm afraid that, having such skepticism ingrained in you for such a long time, you would be unable to see a miracle if it did happen.

[artsylady]

Attel: Like I said earlier, if you can't believe there's a Creator that created the world, you certainly can't believe that same creator could preserve a man in the belly of a fish for 3 days.

You said you'd believe if you saw a miracle that defied natural law?

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/874255--medical-miracles-a-must-for-saints

I'm not sure you would. The woman in this article knows there is no explanation and beleives there is something more to it, but remains an atheist.

Frankly, if you WANT to remain an atheist you always will. There will be nothing that can change your mind. Your viewpoint will always be skewed.

Have you been an atheist since you were 5 years old?

[artsylady]

Yes, Santa Claus was my last "supernatural" belief, even thought I had an ESP phase when I was

a teenager

Would you mind explaining this further?