Why Are Atheists Viewed So Negatively?

[Humanista]

Humanista, of those who claim to be Christian (which is quite a big percentage of people here in the U.S.) only a percentage of those are true followers of Christ. In your life journey of trying to keep yourself living morally without God you will find it impossible to keep your life morally flawless especially in your thoughts and feelings. If you hate someone you commit murder in your mind, look at someone with lust you lay with them in your mind, lying is distorting the truth which is immoral according to federal law, bursts of anger/wrath is immoral because you commit murder in your mind. A true follower of Christ doesn't have to make an effort to live morally because the Holy Spirit in us changes us from the inside out and keeps us that way. In the other hand, atheists and other religions have to make an effort of themselves to keep a moral life. Now ask yourself, what is the reason of why you want to live a moral life that can only be seen externally when you know you fail on the inside? That is true hypocrisy. All of us, even true Christians make mistakes. The difference is that when we repent we have a God that forgives us and cleanses us from all unrighteousness.

Adrian, I have to respectfully disagree. You and I are not that different. Yes, I cannot be morally flawless because I am human and the same is true of you. I don't know a single Christian who never feels anger. If you are saying you are perfect and don't have those human feelings, you are delusional. Everyone has to make an effort to live a good life, because we are all imperfect, even you. i don't feel as though I fail on the inside. I have an ideal I strive for same as you. Just because I do not believe I need a god to forgive me doesn't make me less moral than you.

 

[Adrianv125]

I never said I was perfect, in fact i said I wasn't. And you don't have the same strive as I do. Think about this, this morality has to come from a source that is perfect. As humans we know the pain that it is to be kept away from the truth and be told lies, it really hurts us. It is our natural response to lie when we do something wrong, so this command to abstain from lying does not come from a human being who surely is a liar. Would a human being command another human being to not lie when in fact we all lie? No. This command comes from one without flaw, who knows the destructive power of lies and wants to keep us away from it.

 

[Adrianv125]

You just contradicted yourself by the way. You said we can't be morally flawless because we are human, then you said you felt like you didn't fail on the inside. If you don't feel hate, if you don't lie, lust, covet, curse, or think anything unclean then you are the first person I have met with those qualities and you'd be perfect. And the fact that we humans always do these things makes us immoral, making any effort to live a "moral" life according to every individual's standards futile.

 

[lovewithinbeauty]

Humanista I never said atheist are bad people.

What do you base your actions off of? How do you know that loving your fellow man, compassion and reason are moral things? Where is this taught other then the Bible? I suppose you could say these morals are also taught by many other religions and religious books, but did you know that many of our laws, concepts, and morals are based out of the Bible? If the Bible had never existed i honestly do believe that this world would be a completely corrupt place and no one would have morals, because we would be doing whatever pleased us. Without the Bible or religion in general, I don't believe that we would have morals, unless morals were based off of what we pleased, and in that case anything could be moral. So please do tell me what you base your morals off of, if they are not religious.

As far as not knowing any atheists that is untrue. I dated an atheist for over a year, and that was probably my weakest point in my relationship with God. He was a very sweet person, although a lot of his ideas about God were off, and weren't very logical. He had great intentions, but he did a lot of things and had a lot of ideas that were rather secular. And I suppose you could say that everyone seeks the truth, atheists included, but they tend to get stuck on their beliefs and become closed minded once they believe that there is no God. I found with my ex, that he was never willing to listen to me, but instead kept trying to justify why there wasn't a god. And I also suppose you could say christians justify why there is a God, but I know as for me I am always open to listening to others ideas. I think a lot of the time if you do your research and really look into the Bible, you will see that the Bible confirms what is already true and makes a lot of sense.

 

[FreeSpirit92]

I would say that atheists are viewed negatively by most religious groups and that is due to the nature of their belief system. The religion of the atheist is to be against religion itself. It is not for something, but rather an opposing force to others. This automatically causes tension. I also think that because their strong belief is to not believe in anything, they are not emotionally connected to their religion. Christianity is not so much a religion as it is a relationship that changes your life and the way you live it. It is a love of God, for He loved us first. God is the single most important being in your life if you are a christian and He is the one you love the most. The things that are said to christians by atheists (generalising) on a fairly regular basis are extremely hurtful. It is worse than saying these things about your wife/husband/family member for christians love God MORE than them. The gods of other religions, or beliefs are important to the person also. What is important to an atheist is to prove that there is no such thing as religion because this is their core belief. In general, because they have not experienced that emotional connection to a religious figurehead, as they do not think any exists and think that it is stupid to have said emotional connections, they come across as very aggressive and offensive as they cannot comprehend how hurtful and how much emotion is involved when talking about God, or other religions that others see as important. It's not so much that the people that most have an issue with, but rather the views of atheists and how these can often blind the individuals from being sensitive and aware when talking to people who have religious beliefs. It comes across as attacking with no concern for the person they are talking to. At least with christianity when someone comes across as pushy, it can be seen that they are merely just worried about their soul's well being. In disputes with atheists, the only thing that is concerning them is to win an argument, not to benefit the person in anyway. For from their perspective what difference does it make if someone believes in something that they are sure does not exist? They merely can come across as insulting calling religious people stupid and not being sensitive to the extent that God is someone's life.

 

[Thomas60]

The religion of the atheist is to be against religion itself.

I could be picky and state Buddhists, Raliens, Scientologists, Paganists are examples of religious atheist sects. In context thought, the atheists referred are most likely the non-theistic sort.

You just contradicted yourself by the way. You said we can't be morally flawless because we are human, then you said you felt like you didn't fail on the inside.

I believe thats just spin One can, as a general outlook aim to do good (inside), and on exception, fail.

Interesting such an old thread's been revived, but looks like we're getting what the opinions we asked for.

but did you know that many of our laws, concepts, and morals are based out of the Bible

...and that some of the bibles morals are based (were kept) out of the already known agenda that equality and reciprocal goodwill are productive for society's welfare and survival; thus promoted by society. -thats how I see it-

I don't believe in the notion of a perfect moral source, unless by that we mean the reasons for being good. Regardless of where I consider it to come from, I don't consider any religion to be of special privy to extra sources of morality and thus equal in that respect.

 

[wolfywolfs]

I would say that atheists are viewed negatively by most religious groups and that is due to the nature of their belief system. The religion of the atheist is to be against religion itself. It is not for something, but rather an opposing force to others. This automatically causes tension. I also think that because their strong belief is to not believe in anything, they are not emotionally connected to their religion. Christianity is not so much a religion as it is a relationship that changes your life and the way you live it. It is a love of God, for He loved us first. God is the single most important being in your life if you are a christian and He is the one you love the most. The things that are said to christians by atheists (generalising) on a fairly regular basis are extremely hurtful. It is worse than saying these things about your wife/husband/family member for christians love God MORE than them. The gods of other religions, or beliefs are important to the person also. What is important to an atheist is to prove that there is no such thing as religion because this is their core belief. In general, because they have not experienced that emotional connection to a religious figurehead, as they do not think any exists and think that it is stupid to have said emotional connections, they come across as very aggressive and offensive as they cannot comprehend how hurtful and how much emotion is involved when talking about God, or other religions that others see as important. It's not so much that the people that most have an issue with, but rather the views of atheists and how these can often blind the individuals from being sensitive and aware when talking to people who have religious beliefs. It comes across as attacking with no concern for the person they are talking to. At least with christianity when someone comes across as pushy, it can be seen that they are merely just worried about their soul's well being. In disputes with atheists, the only thing that is concerning them is to win an argument, not to benefit the person in anyway. For from their perspective what difference does it make if someone believes in something that they are sure does not exist? They merely can come across as insulting calling religious people stupid and not being sensitive to the extent that God is someone's life.

okay as soon as i read athesists belief system and religion of athesis i stop reading manily because if you belive that then you do not know what an athesist is athesist do not all follow one thing like relgion we are all seprate yes some athesits are insulting to religion and others arnt and why are some athesit are well thats just because they are (insert apporaite word here) and dont respect others.

another athesit may have been a christian once and then looked at the world and said why is there so much destruction in the world doesnt god care about anythign than having followers maybe that guy lost his family and lost faith at the same time who knows we have our reason and saying things like "its our core belif to disprove the exisitence of god" just shows your lack of knowledge.

 

[Humanista]

You just contradicted yourself by the way. You said we can't be morally flawless because we are human, then you said you felt like you didn't fail on the inside. If you don't feel hate, if you don't lie, lust, covet, curse, or think anything unclean then you are the first person I have met with those qualities and you'd be perfect. And the fact that we humans always do these things makes us immoral, making any effort to live a "moral" life according to every individual's standards futile.

I guess we have a different definition of moral. According to you, moral equals perfection therefore every human is immoral and there is no difference between atheist and Christian in that regard. I believe one can live a moral life without being perfect. Things are not so strictly black and white in the real world.

 

[Humanista]

Free Spirit,
I suggest you learn more about atheism before you call it a religion. Or look up the definition of religion. Why is it that atheists are called close minded but Christians appear also close minded about atheism?

 

[VikkiKate89]

I have no qualms with Atheists that are respectful to those who choose to believe in some form of religion. But that's my policy with all people of all faiths. The only that really gets me frustrated are Atheists that get angry at Christians for trying to convert them, but then turn around shove their theology down a Christian's throat. Kind of hypocritical in my opinion. But this isn't something all Atheists do, so for the most part I'm fine with them, and like I said this is my policy with all people of all faiths. People have the right to believe in whatever they want, and as long as they're letting me do the same, we're good.

 

[FSUBoy966]

I don't think "nonreligious" people are viewed THAT negatively. Like if you don't believe in ANYTHING... But when someone says "atheist," loud, obnoxious people yelling about God not existing comes to mind. Even though they are obviously in the same group of "atheist" both are viewed very differently in the public mind.

 

[Joshua175]

Personally the negativity that I have for atheists is the fact that they haven't come to the knowledge of Christ and that saddens me and then it angers me because I hate the darkness that engulfs their mind and satan of whom deceives them into thinking that there is no God. the bible says that anyone who believes there is no God is a fool. When you don't believe their is a God, It's like you're making a statement that you're your own god and you can do whatever you want and after you die you just cease to exist. It's that Lie that I hate. The lie that the Devil told Adam and Eve in the beginning, that if they ate of the fruit, they could be like God, but not so, God actually said, they would surely die. I hate the Evil that I hear from Atheists but the reason that I hate that Evil is because I know that it all leads to eternal death which I don't wish on any man.

 

[wakeup]

A few years ago, there was a survey done* that came to the conclusion that atheists were the least trusted minority in America, you can read into this that we are also flat out disliked. I'm attempting to conduct a nonscientific poll to help me understand the major reasons why this is. I've been attempting to get useful replies from general religious forums but their members seem to be more interested in bickering with each other rather than answer some of my questions. Any posts I submit turn into back and forth hate-o-thons.

For those of you who dislike or are of a less than positive opinion of atheists I would like to hear your opinions on the matter. Why do people have such a problem with atheists as an entire group?

For those of you who have no qualms with atheists there is no need for you to respond to defend yourselves, I only need the opinions of people offering criticism. I merely want to better understand why atheists are so negatively viewed. I'm not looking for any fights or anything like that, I'm here to seek genuine opinions and that is all. Thanks ahead of time for any replies.

*http://www.mndaily.com/2009/02/22/su...owest-atheists

ATHEISTS ARE JUST PEOPLE, ACCEPT THEY HAVE NOT OPENED THEIR EYES AND BOTHER TO
LOOK AROUND AND SAY TO THEM SELVES ,THIS BEAUTIFUL TASTING FRUIT COMES OUT THE
GROUND THAT HAD ACHICKEN POO ON IT. THIS BEAUTIFUL FLOWER ,CAME OUT OF THE DIRT
WE HAVE TAKEN THINGS FOR GRANTED BECAUSE SINCE WE ARE BORN ,THESE THINGS HAVE
SURROUNDED US. WE RATHER DEPEND ON SCIENCE BUT SCIENCE SIMPLY EXPLAINS HOW THINGS WORK, AND NOT WHERE IT COMES FROM. LIFE COMES FROM LIFE , AND NEVER LIFE FROM NON LIFE
WHERE DOES CONCIENCE COME FROM? KNOWING GOOD FROM EVIL, HOW CAN SCIENCE
PROOF THAT, AND LOVE ,CAN SCIENCE PROOF THAT . TO SCIENCE EVERYTHING IS ACCIDENT . BUT
IT CAN NOT GIVE SCIENTIFIC PROOF, BUT IS STILL ECCEPTED AS SCIENCE. THE PROBLEM IS THAT ATHEISTS HAVE THIS IDEA THAT THEY ARE SUPREME IN THE UNIVERSE THEY HAVE ALL THE WISDOM
THIS IS SATANS CHARACTER, FOR HE SAYS IN HIS HEART I AM LIKE GOD.: SCIENCE CAN NOT PROOF
THAT THERE IS NO GOD. SO ISNT IT SAVER TO BELIEVE IN GOD , IF WE ARE WRONG THEN WHAT HAVE WE GOT TO LOOSE: WHAT WILL WE LOOSE IF THERE IS A GOD , WE WILL BE DENIED LIFE
FOR EVER WITH GOD.

ITS NOT PERFECT BUT THERE YOU ARE.

WAKEUP

 

[VikkiKate89]

ATHEISTS ARE JUST PEOPLE, ACCEPT THEY HAVE NOT OPENED THEIR EYES AND BOTHER TO
LOOK AROUND AND SAY TO THEM SELVES ,THIS BEAUTIFUL TASTING FRUIT COMES OUT THE
GROUND THAT HAD ACHICKEN POO ON IT. THIS BEAUTIFUL FLOWER ,CAME OUT OF THE DIRT
WE HAVE TAKEN THINGS FOR GRANTED BECAUSE SINCE WE ARE BORN ,THESE THINGS HAVE
SURROUNDED US. WE RATHER DEPEND ON SCIENCE BUT SCIENCE SIMPLY EXPLAINS HOW THINGS WORK, AND NOT WHERE IT COMES FROM. LIFE COMES FROM LIFE , AND NEVER LIFE FROM NON LIFE
WHERE DOES CONCIENCE COME FROM? KNOWING GOOD FROM EVIL, HOW CAN SCIENCE
PROOF THAT, AND LOVE ,CAN SCIENCE PROOF THAT . TO SCIENCE EVERYTHING IS ACCIDENT . BUT
IT CAN NOT GIVE SCIENTIFIC PROOF, BUT IS STILL ECCEPTED AS SCIENCE. THE PROBLEM IS THAT ATHEISTS HAVE THIS IDEA THAT THEY ARE SUPREME IN THE UNIVERSE THEY HAVE ALL THE WISDOM
THIS IS SATANS CHARACTER, FOR HE SAYS IN HIS HEART I AM LIKE GOD.: SCIENCE CAN NOT PROOF
THAT THERE IS NO GOD. SO ISNT IT SAVER TO BELIEVE IN GOD , IF WE ARE WRONG THEN WHAT HAVE WE GOT TO LOOSE: WHAT WILL WE LOOSE IF THERE IS A GOD , WE WILL BE DENIED LIFE
FOR EVER WITH GOD.

ITS NOT PERFECT BUT THERE YOU ARE.

WAKEUP

 

[Humanista]

I would say that atheists are viewed negatively by most religious groups and that is due to the nature of their belief system. The religion of the atheist is to be against religion itself. It is not for something, but rather an opposing force to others. This automatically causes tension.

Atheists don't have belief system. That's the point of atheism, having NO beliefs. Atheists have opinions and points of view, which is not the same as a faith-driven belief.

I also think that because their strong belief is to not believe in anything,

Isn't that a contradiction?

they are not emotionally connected to their religion.

Atheists have no religion

What is important to an atheist is to prove that there is no such thing as religion because this is their core belief.

Not exactly. An atheist is just someone who doesn't think any gods exist. Religion, on the other hand, of course exists. Religions are sets of beliefs and dogma and practices. These things obviously exist, we can see churches,statues, holy books, clergy, worship services..all these things verify that religions exist.

In general, because they have not experienced that emotional connection to a religious figurehead, as they do not think any exists and think that it is stupid to have said emotional connections, they come across as very aggressive and offensive as they cannot comprehend how hurtful and how much emotion is involved when talking about God, or other religions that others see as important. It's not so much that the people that most have an issue with, but rather the views of atheists and how these can often blind the individuals from being sensitive and aware when talking to people who have religious beliefs. It comes across as attacking with no concern for the person they are talking to. At least with christianity when someone comes across as pushy, it can be seen that they are merely just worried about their soul's well being. In disputes with atheists, the only thing that is concerning them is to win an argument, not to benefit the person in anyway. For from their perspective what difference does it make if someone believes in something that they are sure does not exist? They merely can come across as insulting calling religious people stupid and not being sensitive to the extent that God is someone's life.

I agree that some atheists are arrogant and bullying. However, I have also talked to theists who arre arrogant and hateful and full of pride. They only pretend to be compassionate about the state of the atheist's soul. Many are gleeful about their predictions of people in hell.

 

[Humanista]

What do you base your actions off of?

I think people learn behavior and self control as they mature. First is the example they see in the home as they are growing up. How they are treated --lovingly or harshly. They see how the important adults in their lives treat each other and other people. And finally, experience and consequences. Humans want to be accepted, loved, it;s just the way we are. We learn through experience how to be successful at it. A child from a dysfunctional home who is unloved and mistreated can go to Sunday School every day and hear about what the Bible says, but his environment is going to influence him the most.

How do you know that loving your fellow man, compassion and reason are moral things?

Reason is not necessarily related to morality. Morality is a choice of how we will behave toward others. By definition, love, compassion, kindness, empathy, etc describe good moral qualities.

Where is this taught other then the Bible?

In almost every group of humans worldwide throughout time. Love and kindness are not exclusive to Christians.

I suppose you could say these morals are also taught by many other religions and religious books, but did you know that many of our laws, concepts, and morals are based out of the Bible?

How do you explain laws, concepts and morals in places that do not use the Bible as a guide? Rather than the Bible being the source, which is obviously not true, since morals arise where people have never heard of the Bible, or before the bible was written, I would suggest the Bible reflects the wisdom of humanity distilled over time. This is why almost every civilization that has ever existed has prohibitions against murder, stealing etc.

If the Bible had never existed i honestly do believe that this world would be a completely corrupt place and no one would have morals, because we would be doing whatever pleased us. Without the Bible or religion in general, I don't believe that we would have morals, unless morals were based off of what we pleased, and in that case anything could be moral.

This is disproved by the fact that people have developed morals without the Bible all over the world. They codify this in their various religions, but human beings are not wild idiots, they certainly figured out what sort of behavior produces peace harmony and happiness and what behavior results in chaos and misery.
It's not rocket science.
In fact, this pessimistic view of humanity is one of the reasons I left Christianity.

So please do tell me what you base your morals off of, if they are not religious.

See above. Behaving in a way that is compassionate, kind, loving, honest, etc results in my being happier and people around me being happier. It's obvious.

 

[Adrianv125]

Love? No other god has manifested Himself on this earth. And not only manifested Himself but became the most Humble servant. What man would wash His own disciples feet and Love His disciples so much even when they left Him? Jesus lived. Other religions say he was a prophet, satan's brother or some other thing. But the things He said would make Him either a liar, a lunatic, a legend, or the true Son of God. He is not a liar, because who would want to die such a death just for saying He was the great I am? He was not a lunatic because the words He spoke were pure wisdom. He is not a legend because His miracles are still seen today even in my life. The only choice you have left is that He is the true Son of God, and glory be to Him forever and ever!

 

[Humanista]

ATHEISTS ARE JUST PEOPLE, ACCEPT THEY HAVE NOT OPENED THEIR EYES AND BOTHER TO
LOOK AROUND AND SAY TO THEM SELVES ,THIS BEAUTIFUL TASTING FRUIT COMES OUT THE
GROUND THAT HAD ACHICKEN POO ON IT. THIS BEAUTIFUL FLOWER ,CAME OUT OF THE DIRT
WE HAVE TAKEN THINGS FOR GRANTED BECAUSE SINCE WE ARE BORN ,THESE THINGS HAVE
SURROUNDED US.

How can you possibly know whether or not atheists have awareness and appreciation of the world, or if they ask how things came to be? This is not exclusive to Christians or other theists, it is human.

WE RATHER DEPEND ON SCIENCE BUT SCIENCE SIMPLY EXPLAINS HOW THINGS WORK, AND NOT WHERE IT COMES FROM. LIFE COMES FROM LIFE , AND NEVER LIFE FROM NON LIFE
WHERE DOES CONCIENCE COME FROM? KNOWING GOOD FROM EVIL, HOW CAN SCIENCE
PROOF THAT, AND LOVE ,CAN SCIENCE PROOF THAT . TO SCIENCE EVERYTHING IS ACCIDENT . BUT
IT CAN NOT GIVE SCIENTIFIC PROOF, BUT IS STILL ECCEPTED AS SCIENCE.

Well this is a whole other conversation, but is irrelevant to whether or not atheists deserve to be viewed in a negative light.

THE PROBLEM IS THAT ATHEISTS HAVE THIS IDEA THAT THEY ARE SUPREME IN THE UNIVERSE THEY HAVE ALL THE WISDOM

That isn't true at all. I have never hear an atheist express that, and I certainly don't feel that way.

THIS IS SATANS CHARACTER, FOR HE SAYS IN HIS HEART I AM LIKE GOD.:

I could point out that within your belief system, Satan is at least a powerful demi-god, since God apparently isn't mighty enough to just get rid of him.

SCIENCE CAN NOT PROOF
THAT THERE IS NO GOD.[/QUOTE ]

Science doesn't try to do that, any more than it attempt to prove there is no Thor or garden fairies. Science doesn't set out to prove anything does not exist or does exist. It examines the natural world to figure out how it works. I might add that you cannot prove I DON'T have an invisible dragon in my garage. Its illiogical to attempt to prove something that by definition is undetectable.

SO ISNT IT SAVER TO BELIEVE IN GOD , IF WE ARE WRONG THEN WHAT HAVE WE GOT TO LOOSE: WHAT WILL WE LOOSE IF THERE IS A GOD , WE WILL BE DENIED LIFE
FOR EVER WITH GOD.

Ah Pascal's Wager. Here's why that makes no sense: which god should I believe in? (Never mind that you can't force yourself to believe something) If the Muslims are right, I would go to hell for being a Christian.
Maybe the Hindus are right. What if the Buddhists have it right? I have a LOT to lose if I pick the wrong god! Do I find out who has the worst hell for non-belief and go with that one?

 

[Adrianv125]

Quote: could point out that within your belief system, Satan is at least a powerful demi-god, since God apparently isn't mighty enough to just get rid of him.

Every being on the face of this earth has a free will, even animals and so did Satan. He is not a god, He was a servant of God who wanted to be like God and rebelled against God and was thrown out.

 

[Adrianv125]

We have the clear free will to do evil or good even to this day