mjw47 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 It made perfect sense and successfully countered your claim that You do realise that I was specifically referring to atheists on here who claim that they are not 'believers' don't you? They make this claim despite the definition of an atheist as 'one who holds the 'belief' that God does not exist.' You are simply saying that you don't know either way, and that either option may happen. You don't necessarily believe that I will die in the next twenty years, but on the other hand you don't necessarily believe that I will live for another twenty years. What you are saying is that you haven't a clue, and lack 'belief' in either outcome. And may I say how thoughtful it was of you to introduce the subject of my death into the conversation in view of my fairly advanced years. I shall sleep well tonight and no doubt have pleasant dreams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivanava Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 You do realise that I was specifically referring to atheists on here who claim that they are not 'believers' don't you? They make this claim despite the definition of an atheist as 'one who holds the 'belief' that God does not exist.' You are simply saying that you don't know either way, and that either option may happen. You don't necessarily believe that I will die in the next twenty years, but on the other hand you don't necessarily believe that I will live for another twenty years. What you are saying is that you haven't a clue, and lack 'belief' in either outcome. And may I say how thoughtful it was of you to introduce the subject of my death into the conversation in view of my fairly advanced years. I shall sleep well tonight and no doubt have pleasant dreams. Whilst your definition does apply to me, because I know that God does not exist. Many atheists don't actually make the same claim that I make and are happy with this definition. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/atheism Disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods They are not claiming that it doesn't exists, they just don't have belief that it does exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 They are not claiming that it doesn't exists, they just don't have belief that it does exist. Huh?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unedited Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 I browsed the last couple of pages of the thread hoping for an entertaining little argument about ghosts. Imagine my disappointment when I discovered an entertaining little argument about... who the hell knows what it's about any more... Keep up the good work SF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryedo40 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Huh?! Alan, there is a difference between asserting something doesn't exist, and having an absence of belief. Atheists have an absence of belief in the existence of god. That does not mean they all assert god does not exist; as one could very well exist but they are not aware of its existence. Some atheists do assert god does not exist: placing the burden of proof on them. Not all atheists do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lockjaw Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 It's back Giving advice as usual. ---------- Post added 07-03-2014 at 15:51 ---------- Only six words this time. Well done. Keep it up and you may regain your dignity. You might need to have a little look at you penchant for punctuating your nonsense with the "smilies", though. Keep going ... We're all rooting for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjw47 Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 Alan, there is a difference between asserting something doesn't exist, and having an absence of belief. Atheists have an absence of belief in the existence of god. That does not mean they all assert god does not exist; as one could very well exist but they are not aware of its existence. Some atheists do assert god does not exist: placing the burden of proof on them. Not all atheists do that. Surely if a person claims to be an atheist then they are aligning themselves with the belief that God does not exist. In which case they believe that there is no God. No problem with that, they are fully entitled to hold that belief. The person that people have come to associate most recently with atheism is Richard Dawkins, who has put himself firmly in the limelight - and earned a considerable amount of money by doing so - by being strident and persistent in his belief that there is no such thing as a deity. How can someone call themselves an atheist if they are prepared to accept that there actually may be a God? They are placing themselves directly at odds with people like Dawkins, and can hardly then describe themselves using the same label. That has to make them agnostic, admitting to doubt is admitting that you do not know the facts, and therefore lack knowledge which is the agnostic position. ---------- Post added 08-03-2014 at 00:11 ---------- Only six words this time. Well done. Keep it up and you may regain your dignity. You might need to have a little look at you penchant for punctuating your nonsense with the "smilies", though. Keep going ... We're all rooting for you. Reduced to smartarse remarks, you really are a pathetic little man when it comes down to it aren't you? Why don't you attempt to answer the questions I put to Redwhine at post 865 as he seems to have gone missing in action? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinz Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 OED Atheism : 'The BELIEF that God does not exist.' The belief can be interpreted as : Opinion (Atheist)? http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/opinion?s=t Conviction (Theist)? http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/conviction?s=t Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryedo40 Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 Surely if a person claims to be an atheist then they are aligning themselves with the belief that God does not exist. In which case they believe that there is no God. Absence of belief is not the same as 'the belief that God does not exist.' Atheism is the absence of belief in the existence of God. Atheists are NOT theists who hold the belief in the existence of God. Atheists can, for intellectual reasons, give the benefit of doubt because they recognise they don't know everything. So an atheist while having an absence of belief in the existence of God, can state God could exist but given they lack evidence they find no reason to believe so. Some atheists do assert God does not exist - but that is not what atheism is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilypiglet Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 I browsed the last couple of pages of the thread hoping for an entertaining little argument about ghosts. Imagine my disappointment when I discovered an entertaining little argument about... who the hell knows what it's about any more... Keep up the good work SF. Totally agree, 44 pages with the majority of the last few pages being the same SF'ers repeating their opinion, using a different wording/grammar but basically re-writing what they said earlier same old thing over and over again.....I would have contributed to the Thread, but it's just plain ridiculous now.... HEY, NOBODY KNOWS EVERYTHING.....PROOF/NO PROOF..... It doesn't matter in the long run...get over it!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now