Hello there, I'm an atheist
Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2015 12:28 am
Hello Theos forums,
I was referred to this board by someone I was talking to on YouTube with the G+ handle of Brendon Biggs. If you are here, "Hi Brendon they let me in." We had been talking, loosely, about the debate between PZ Meyers and Dr. Fuz Rana. here if anyone is interested.
At any rate I applied here with the same user name I use for YouTube and Atheism + and any other website where I talk about philosophy, theology and such. I'm not sure if this board actually welcomes non-christians though so I'm going to limit myself to this introductory post until the admins have had a chance to send me packing if I'm not wanted.
Should I not get banned I'll stick to this sub forum. The remainder of the board would not likely be a good fit for me and I have no desire to upset or inflame. I am looking for good discussions and so I'll use the rest of this post to introduce myself a bit.
I'm a father of 2, husband to 1 and live within the Mountain Time Zone of the US. I was once a Lutheran, and was raised within the ELCA traditions, I actually had to lie to pass my confirmation as I have never believed in transubstantiation. From talking to others at the church, and my family, it seems many of us felt the wine and bread were symbols, and not actually flesh and blood. When I got to college I met many more people from many other worldviews. I had long questioned the core tenants of Christianity, it seemed to me that god would do better. College split me off entirely, as I still recall my last prayer. Since then I tried paganism, Islam, Deism and found no peace in any of them. Atheism, though, has been a place where I feel comfortable, and honest, and intellectually fulfilled.
I'm a humanist, a skeptic, a progressive liberal (on most social issues) but also hold with conservatives on some things (almost no social issues but I believe in the right to bear arms and favor a strong military and foreign policy).
Being a skeptic I am open to the idea that my reasoning is bad. So while it is unlikely I'm not against rediscovering some form of faith, should evidence, or argument sway me. I hope there is some kind of afterlife, I just don't believe there will be one. It would be neat though.
If you folks are up on talking to someone who is respectful, but will likely disagree with you, I'm happy to entertain questions here, and should I get kicked it has been nice of whoever got to, to read all of this.
Cheers,
-Apos <--- That's the best way to address anything to me, the whole handle is a bit cumbersome but it does let folks track back to a consistent online presence.
p.s. If you look at comments I've made elsewhere you'll probably spot one or two where I was not particularly nice. This is your space and I respect that so I'll remain on my best behavior here, no need to fear personal attacks, or excessive hyperbole. I'm looking for a conversation, not a fight.
I was referred to this board by someone I was talking to on YouTube with the G+ handle of Brendon Biggs. If you are here, "Hi Brendon they let me in." We had been talking, loosely, about the debate between PZ Meyers and Dr. Fuz Rana. here if anyone is interested.
At any rate I applied here with the same user name I use for YouTube and Atheism + and any other website where I talk about philosophy, theology and such. I'm not sure if this board actually welcomes non-christians though so I'm going to limit myself to this introductory post until the admins have had a chance to send me packing if I'm not wanted.
Should I not get banned I'll stick to this sub forum. The remainder of the board would not likely be a good fit for me and I have no desire to upset or inflame. I am looking for good discussions and so I'll use the rest of this post to introduce myself a bit.
I'm a father of 2, husband to 1 and live within the Mountain Time Zone of the US. I was once a Lutheran, and was raised within the ELCA traditions, I actually had to lie to pass my confirmation as I have never believed in transubstantiation. From talking to others at the church, and my family, it seems many of us felt the wine and bread were symbols, and not actually flesh and blood. When I got to college I met many more people from many other worldviews. I had long questioned the core tenants of Christianity, it seemed to me that god would do better. College split me off entirely, as I still recall my last prayer. Since then I tried paganism, Islam, Deism and found no peace in any of them. Atheism, though, has been a place where I feel comfortable, and honest, and intellectually fulfilled.
I'm a humanist, a skeptic, a progressive liberal (on most social issues) but also hold with conservatives on some things (almost no social issues but I believe in the right to bear arms and favor a strong military and foreign policy).
Being a skeptic I am open to the idea that my reasoning is bad. So while it is unlikely I'm not against rediscovering some form of faith, should evidence, or argument sway me. I hope there is some kind of afterlife, I just don't believe there will be one. It would be neat though.
If you folks are up on talking to someone who is respectful, but will likely disagree with you, I'm happy to entertain questions here, and should I get kicked it has been nice of whoever got to, to read all of this.
Cheers,
-Apos <--- That's the best way to address anything to me, the whole handle is a bit cumbersome but it does let folks track back to a consistent online presence.
p.s. If you look at comments I've made elsewhere you'll probably spot one or two where I was not particularly nice. This is your space and I respect that so I'll remain on my best behavior here, no need to fear personal attacks, or excessive hyperbole. I'm looking for a conversation, not a fight.