Atheist and Humanist Obsessives
Gregg has posted on his blog, in which he notes:
What I can’t understand, and doubt I ever will, is why certain atheists appear to have turned their atheism into an alternative belief system. It’s as though they are desperate for approval, or want to use their disbelief to form some kind of community to comfort themselves within. There are plenty of things I don’t believe in, but I don’t waste my time thinking about them let alone boring everybody to death banging on about what I don’t believe in.
Why waste time and effort proclaiming that you don’t believe in something? It’s very bizarre.
Indeed.
To which I responded:
I always marvel at this strange behaviour.
I frequent some Christian forums and some of the atheists post more than most Christians. Morning noon and night, they are there, ridiculing.
It’s bizarre and almost as if they’re attracted to Christians for some unknown reason.
They really do obsess at our ‘sky fairies’ and such like.
If they think we are believing in ‘imaginary sky friends’ then why do they bother themselves so?
They will never leave us in peace that’s for sure.
I wonder what the underlying motivation really is?
Tags: Christian Life
March 7th, 2011 at 9:08 pm
I think that it is worth distinguishing between atheists and Gnew Atheists.
I have plenty of friends who are atheists, they respect my beliefs, and discuss theology, philosophy and religion without the need to ridicule, as they also see Christ’s teaching are the epitome of love and justice.
I have one friend who will happily date Catholics but not Christians, strange that eh!
March 7th, 2011 at 10:28 pm
Most of the atheists I encounter are parsonage kids. So I tend to suppose that they all have a bad conscience about what they’re doing.
It’s the sort of thing that Churchill in the “River War” called “the anger that results from detected wrongdoing” — anger from the wrongdoer, that is.
The fact that the weenie atheists are the noisiest, until they figure out that no-one cares, tends to bear out this observation.
March 8th, 2011 at 3:15 am
It is a strange phenomenon. I think they are reacting to the true God and lashing out in hate.
I dunno…
March 8th, 2011 at 7:33 am
I suspect some of it is trolling. I rather suspect some of it is the zeal of the new convert. How anyone can think that a superficial sneer such as the ‘sky fairy’ comments will convince anyone is beyond me. You do see christians who seem to think that quoting a couple of bible verses at you will convert you, which betrays a deep lack of understanding of the atheist mentality. Attempted conversion by insult seems to betray a deep lack of understanding of anyone’s mentality.
I guess it shows that atheism is no longer the preserve of intellectuals.
March 9th, 2011 at 10:58 am
Simon, much of what you say is true. Roger Pearce,you need to get out more
, there can’t be all that many parsonage kids about. You need to widen your circle of friends.
I hope this isn’t trolling, but I felt the need to reply as none of the comments ring completely true to me.
Yes, newly ‘out’ atheists can be as boringly obtuse as any evangelical. Many of us avoid discussion with theists though, for the reasons you have suggested, unless we are pushed into a corner.
I and many like me are not really ‘new converts’. I drifted away from the church over a decade or so. Early childhood conditioning made me guilty that I had ‘lost my faith’ and that this was a fault of mine. A friend lent me ‘The God Delusion’ and it gave a context to what I’d already decided for myself. What had been negative became positive, so thank you, Prof Dawkins. Without hyperbole, this was a profoundly liberating experience, comparable to gaining a faith in the first place.
I do enjoy the company of like minded people. Atheists are still discriminated against. Religious privilege is so ingrained into society that theists take it for granted and see any limit as a threat. If you feel I’m overstating the case,consider the fact that EC legislation specifically protects religious freedom,so your worldview is considered worthy of respect and protection but mine is not. I could go on, but mustn’t troll.