Are you an atheist, or a Christian? What are your beliefs? What do you think of the other side?

I'm Catholic, which is basically Christian. So, I believe in God and always will. I think.

Um, there are other religions besides Christianity, you know... Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and many more are all practiced by millions of people and don't deserve to be left out of this debate. :P

I consider myself Jewish, although I am in reality part Christian as well. I celebrate both Chanukah and Christmas, as well as Easter and Passover. :3 I'm not very dedicated to either one- my family belongs to no churches or temples, and we don't have daily/weekly sessions for worship or anything. In the scheme of all things, I suppose you could say I'm an Atheist. I honor their stories and believe some of them (But mostly I just enjoy hearing of the miracles and incredible lessons taught in them) but I'm not actively engaged in worship of any god.

Like Zephyr, my family and I are not involved in the church (I am Lutheran btw). BUT I still belive in god, even though science is pretty acurate.

I don't really have any religion; we (my family) celebrates Easter and Christmas, and the only time I go to church is on Christmas. Or... for a funeral, but that doesn't exactly count...

Other than that, I'm not highly religious. I believe in God, but I don't have that firm belief and faith that others might have.

By the way. I've kinda been wondering, what is atheism? I've never been clear on that. XD

Atheism is belief in no god. You can be considered partially atheist even if you do celebrate occasionally, depending on who's looking at you. If I were someone who dedicated their life to worship, when I looked at you I would say you were atheist, but then again it's all a matter of opinion.

...That made no sense.

Hmm. No, that made partial sense. XD Thanks.

I myself am a Christian, but I'm not an avid Christian. I think there're far too many coincidences for there to not be a God, and besides, even if there wasn't one, religion isn't necessarily a bad thing - teaches to treat others as you would like to be treated. Therefore, the roots of religion are all good; it's the extremists who are bad.

I think of myself as a Buddhist (my mom is one, too). Personally I think there's too many consequences in the Christian religion if you don't do as God says. In Buddhism, it's all about the teachings, decision you yourself make, and good/bad karma. XDDD

I'm not a religion expert, really. I think religion's good for the purpose that there's something you can believe in, something that's beyond all the science-y stuff humans know.

I think if you follow the Golden Rule, you're fine. =P

What's the Golden Rule? XD; Don't sin?

Treat others as you want to be treated.

Bahá'í World Faith
"Ascribe not to any soul that which thou wouldst not have ascribed to thee, and say not that which thou doest not." "Blessed is he who preferreth his brother before himself." Baha'u'llah
"And if thine eyes be turned towards justice, choose thou for thy neighbour that which thou choosest for thyself." Epistle to the Son of the Wolf

Brahmanism
"This is the sum of Dharma [duty]: Do naught unto others which would cause you pain if done to you". Mahabharata, 5:1517 "

Buddhism
"...a state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another?" Samyutta NIkaya v. 353

Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful."
Udana-Varga 5:18

Christianity
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets." Matthew 7:12, King James Version.

"And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise." Luke 6:31, King James Version.

"...and don't do what you hate...", Gospel of Thomas 6. The Gospel of Thomas is one of about 40 gospels that were widely accepted among early Christians, but which never made it into the Christian Scriptures (New Testament).

Confucianism
"Do not do to others what you do not want them to do to you" Analects 15:23
"Tse-kung asked, 'Is there one word that can serve as a principle of conduct for life?' Confucius replied, 'It is the word 'shu' -- reciprocity. Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.'" Doctrine of the Mean 13.3
"Try your best to treat others as you would wish to be treated yourself, and you will find that this is the shortest way to benevolence." Mencius VII.A.4

Ancient Egyptian
"Do for one who may do for you, that you may cause him thus to do." The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant, 109 - 110 Translated by R.B. Parkinson. The original dates to 1970 to 1640 BCE and may be the earliest version ever written.

Hinduism
This is the sum of duty: do not do to others what would cause pain if done to you. Mahabharata 5:1517

Humanism
"(5) Humanists acknowledge human interdependence, the need for mutual respect and the kinship of all humanity."

"(11) Humanists affirm that individual and social problems can only be resolved by means of human reason, intelligent effort, critical thinking joined with compassion and a spirit of empathy for all living beings. "

"Don't do things you wouldn't want to have done to you." British Humanist Society.

Islam
"None of you [truly] believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself." Number 13 of Imam "Al-Nawawi's Forty Hadiths."

Jainism
"Therefore, neither does he [a sage] cause violence to others nor does he make others do so." Acarangasutra 5.101-2.
"In happiness and suffering, in joy and grief, we should regard all creatures as we regard our own self." Lord Mahavira, 24th Tirthankara
"A man should wander about treating all creatures as he himself would be treated. "Sutrakritanga 1.11.33

Judaism[b/]
"...thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.", Leviticus 19:18
"What is hateful to you, do not to your fellow man. This is the law: all the rest is commentary." Talmud, Shabbat 31a.
"And what you hate, do not do to any one." Tobit 4:15 6

[b]Native American Spirituality
"Respect for all life is the foundation." The Great Law of Peace.
"All things are our relatives; what we do to everything, we do to ourselves. All is really One." Black Elk
"Do not wrong or hate your neighbor. For it is not he who you wrong, but yourself." Pima proverb.

Roman Pagan Religion
"The law imprinted on the hearts of all men is to love the members of society as themselves."

Shinto[/b]
"The heart of the person before you is a mirror. See there your own form"
"Be charitable to all beings, love is the representative of God." Ko-ji-ki Hachiman Kasuga

Sikhism
"Compassion - mercy and religion are the support of the entire world". Japji Sahib
"Don't create enmity with anyone as God is within everyone." Guru Arjan Devji 259
"No one is my enemy, none a stranger and everyone is my friend." Guru Arjan Dev : AG 1299

Sufism
"The basis of Sufism is consideration of the hearts and feelings of others. If you haven't the will to gladden someone's heart, then at least beware lest you hurt someone's heart, for on our path, no sin exists but this." Dr. Javad Nurbakhsh, Master of the Nimatullahi Sufi Order.

Taoism
"Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your neighbor's loss as your own loss." T'ai Shang Kan Ying P'ien.
"The sage has no interest of his own, but takes the interests of the people as his own. He is kind to the kind; he is also kind to the unkind: for Virtue is kind. He is faithful to the faithful; he is also faithful to the unfaithful: for Virtue is faithful." Tao Teh Ching, Chapter 49

Unitarian
"We affirm and promote respect for the interdependent of all existence of which we are a part." Unitarian principles.

Wicca
"An it harm no one, do what thou wilt" (i.e. do what ever you will, as long as it harms nobody, including yourself). One's will is to be carefully thought out in advance of action. This is called the Wiccan Rede

Yoruba: (Nigeria)
"One going to take a pointed stick to pinch a baby bird should first try it on himself to feel how it hurts."

Zoroastrianism
"That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto another whatsoever is not good for itself". Dadistan-i-dinik 94:5
"Whatever is disagreeable to yourself do not do unto others." Shayast-na-Shayast 13:29



I therefore dispute anyone who says religion isn't a good thing.

I rest my case. =P

Eheh, my family's Christian, but we walk on loose land. For years I haven't been to church, let alone one I can understand, so I've had it a little hard to believe in that stuff. I've had the atheist attitude since a long time--I choose to believe the facts, no matter how crazy they may be--so I've decided to become an atheist myself.

Of course, that doesn't stop my family from going to church... >.<

I'm an aethist... xD I don't really believe in god and never will. And I've only ever been to a church 3 times in my life (two weddings and I had to go cause part of my family's christian and I was with them at the time) Plus I would hate to be religious in any way (sorry if that sounded offending.. D=) I just think that there's two many restrictions if you're reiligious... And personally I would feel kinda dumb praying to a guy stuck to a post on the wall.. oO (Once again not tryin to sound offending to religious people I'm just stating my opinion. D=)

There aren't really any restrictions. I'm inclined to believe that it's simply their stance on something, and not necessarily what's correct or what God Himself believes. If I followed everything the Pope said, I wouldn't be here. I'd be flaming this site 'cause Pokemon's evil and demonic.

'sides, there can't be anything wrong with religion if you follow that Golden Rule.

Because Pokemon's evil and demonic... that part made me crack up. xD

I have a really religious Christian friend, so even though I'm an atheist doesn't mean I go to church. I just find... the information doesn't quite get to my head, yeah? I think it's much more interesting to learn about "The Big Bang" and such and such.

Sad fact: Under 50% of the people in our country believe in Darwin's theory of evolution. Why? Because the whole idea of it goes against the rules set down by religion: that God or Allah or whoever created the world and created people to be its leaders. No matter how much evidence there is to day otherwise, the concepts wrought from years of worship prevents people from perhaps accepting new concepts.

While the golden rule is genius and is the key to our growth as a species, there are some things religion provides that just ends up hindering us.

I find ways of making religion and science agree instead of constantly butt heads. For instance, religion says that God said "Let there be light". That could be reminiscent of a kind of huge explosion, i.e the Big Bang.

Jesus' miracle of the fish - that is, when he approaches the fishermen who've had no luck of catching fish, then tells them to cast over the right side, and they haul in a ton - is possible due to hot springs in that particular pool. It's possible that Jesus knew about the hot springs (something that people at the time knew nothing about) and told them to cast over that way on top of it.

It's natural to question religion and sometimes to go against it, but ultimately I think it's like anything - you pick out the good and bad stuff.

I really don't go to church, and I'm not religious at all. I don't usually like talking about religious things in real life either. I don't consider myself an atheist, I'm just, sorta. . .still deciding.

As my friend puts it, "I'm not athiest, and I'm not agnostic, I just don't give a @#$%!" =P

Me, I attend a Catholic school. I also try to make science and Christianity agree somewhat. Also, I don't believe abortion should be stopped, but some restrictions placed against it. Oh yeah, and I usually don't go to church (oops), but my school has all-school Mass every Tuesday and Thursday, so I have to go then.

I admit, I don't often go to church too, but I consider myself Catholic though.

Yes! That's just less to think about.

I like any holiday that gives me presents. :D

Quoted for agreement. XD

*Gulp* Sorry to say, i don't believe in God, & it doesn't seem very convincing either... All my friends & family try to convince me into believing...
I've never liked church, but that has nothing to do about being athiest.

Why are you sorry to say that? It's not like we're gonna flame you for not believing in God. I'm not sure if I do, in case you missed my earlier post.

Hmm. I'd like to believe in a God, but with the things that have happened in my life have convinced me that there's no all-loving God. No offense meant to anyone, of course.

If I believed, I'd say that science and God meet halfway, that God guided evolution and nature, and started it all.

Well because I think like noodles I'd like to believe in God.

It's just his tactics are a little much... ._. Man i hate complicated stuff....

Would you believe I used to be a Mormon? For a couple years we went to a Mormon church, though I was really too young to understand anything about religion. And then we left the church for some reason I don't remember and haven't really been religious since, though we do celebrate Christmas and stuff, just because we like presents.

I don't care about this stuff, it's just crap to me. Why would anyone put so much effort into it? But I do know there is a god(Big Bang=stupid).

I find myself to be, uh, more of a mix. xD
But, seriously, I think i'm more of a Catholic/Christian religion, but tI mostly belive that no one really knows it until they die. I don't worship anything, I just belive in god. I think he's real, but I don't know.
And, uh, I really don't care much. xP

I'm not exactly religious, sure, I go to church occasionally with friends but not all that often.

But! I do have views on this subject. Being religious, at least for major religions, is having something to look up to, whether it be a corn cob or an all-powerful being, when you're sad/uneasy/anxious/insertfeelinghere and you need something to relax you. Personally I don't really believe in the whole heaven/h3ll thing and you're right, in the Christian religion there are a lot of consequences.

This is sort of offtopic but my mom considers herself Buddhist.

I cant decide yet i'm still making up my mind

I'm apparently a Catholic. I only half believe in God myself, but I do reckon there are higher beings. I'm not a devout Catholic. I hardly ever go to church myself. If you read the Old Testament of the Bible there are some pretty bad messages in there that I won't dictate through this post due to the age of some members, but it isn't morally right. I'm sort of half-Atheist half-Catholic, if that's possible.

Seems like you're more agnostic than athiest or Catholic. It's really a contradiction of terms, what you said. In that sense, actually, you're kind of like me - believe in science to a certain extent and the rest is faith. Am I right?

To a certain extent. As in some people just reckon religion was an early way to explain things that science couldn't. Nowadays science is getting more an more advanced and it is getting harder to believe. It's easier to believe in science than in God (do you agree with that), but sometimes there isn't any science to prove and all you've left to believe in is religion. So yes, I guess I am agnostic.

I personally find that religion influences the world through science...I mean it's true that at first religion didn't really support the Big Bang theory, but seriously, a big explosion had to be instigated by SOMETHING.

I'm an atheist, but I try to avoid talking about religion because it gets me all heated up and passionate. I have many rants about religion, because to be honest, I don't really like it that much. I mean, I believe that there is a possibility of some religions being true, but I don't generally think they're true, if that made sense.

But what I don't like is every one asking me why I'm an atheist. Would you ask someone why they're Jewish/Christian/Catholic/Buddhist/etc? No. It's like they all think some dramatic/tramatizing event happened to me to make me stop believing. One day, I was thinking and decided that I believed that there was no God and then boom, I was an atheist. It's really that simple.

I've never really been sure whether I'm religous or not. I want to be able to decide eventually, but there are some things about religion that don't make sense, and there are some things about science that don't make sense. It just seems confusing to me, so I never decided.

As for the Big Bang, an explosion can't just appear out of nowhere. So I'm not sure it ever happened.

Nay, science has pretty much proven that the Big Bang happened. It's a theory, but it's pretty damn impossible to prove. So far the best evidence we've gathered is from the galaxies' redshift - that is, as galaxies move farther and farther apart, they look redder (because it has to do with the electromagnetic spectrum - I did a project on Edwin Hubble)

Hm... this topic looks interesting...

I'm a Baha'i. *pokes one of Zephyr's earlier posts on this thread* It basicllly a religion where we believe that all the prophets came from the same God. And even though we believe you should try to keep moving on to other prophets as He sends them, our religion states that it doesn't matter to God what religion you belong to, even if you are an atheist.

And yet, I'm not a person who trys to tell everyone about it and convert them (even though it's not really converting since they can and will still believe in their own religion). I just go around and if somebody hears about it and is interested, great! If they aren't interested, that's ok. As long as they're a good person, that's all I care about. =)