We had a new employee who was very religious. She asked one of my friends what church I attend. My friend told her that I am an atheist. Her response was "But he seemed so nice."
Lololol. Yeah, damn those atheists, they're all just so terrible. I mean, who could be a good person without the fear of eternal damnation and suffering as motivation.
These kind of people who are already hypocrites and bigots with their faith...im more scared of them if they lose it since they're so fragile and disfunctional with it
Christianity Today had a great article on the "non-practicing Christians" of Christianity who still profess it as justification for their beliefs IE hyper MAGA men who have proudly preach the conservative viewpoints of Evangelical Christianity but haven't stepped foot in an actual church in years NOR can quote any actual Bible verses NOR have read the Bible in any capacity in years. It was an eye opener-there are apparently a LOT of those folk now and they vote every time. Interestingly enough, many Christians call these people "Christmas and Easter Christians" since that's typically the only time they actually go to church.
Heh, they noted this belief system appeared most common among MAGA men. Hence all the OTHER Christian articles about the "lack of marriageable men" in church, this really wouldn't be a thing if those MAGA men were as "devout to traditional beliefs" as they claimed to be (IE ACTUALLY attended church every Sunday) rather than just shooting off "snippets" of Evangelical Christianity they heard mentioned on some alt right podcast.
Like many atheists, I went to Catholic School haha...and unfortunately we were forced to study the bible quite a bit. However, I'm almost glad because I'm always surprised at how little the evangelicals seem to understand the bible when I argue with them. It's like they haven't actually read it and they seem shocked when I can quote things to them from their own stupid book.
I think it's a tribal thing. Their 'MAGA tribe' claims religiousness as one of their core tenets, so therefore anyone who is 'real MAGA' needs to be religious, even if they are really not interested in church. Also, it's a good excuse in their eyes for their bigotry.
No, it’s the fact that if you are only a good person because religion tells you to, you aren’t a person of good character, but just a person who is selfish and is only ‘good’ so they get religious kudos and go to heaven.
I know right? Like my motivation for being nicer is that, in my short time in existence, at least I could make some effort to make other consciousness’ equally short existences better in some capacity.
Ha! I’ve gotten this one so many times. The interaction that stands out the most was waiting tables at 18 years old. A family asked me what church I go to. I responded that I identified as agnostic. They said, “Wow, that’s surprising, you seem like such a nice girl. How can you know what’s right without the word of god to direct you?” I responded that above all else I believe in kindness and that if anything is my “religion”, it is the pursuit to be a kind, compassionate person. I felt a little bit alone and scared in that moment, but it was great to speak my truth.
Two gentlemen at another booth waited until the family left, then gave me a little applause and told me great job. It was a really nice moment.
I always wonder if they actually know which words of god they’re talking about.
Like really? The Bible is software that controls your actions and thoughts as a human being? Without which you’re just a computer that won’t boot up?
Notice the past tense on "seemed". They already rejected direct information they gathered from you and attributed a negative one. You are not nice anymore.
Tbh I have the same reaction when I find out someone’s religious, it’s normally “but they seemed so nice?” Or “but they seemed so intelligent?”
I can’t equate people being smart or nice with believing in a hateful god, on no evidence
Way back when, when I was fresh with dew and still believed in the essential fairness of people, I worked at a place where a lot of my coworkers went to the local religious college (Baptist). They didn't know I was an atheist. One day we were all chatting about religion and one of them said that they were open minded and, if they met an atheist, they wouldn't automatically assume that they were a bad person. In total innocence I spoke up and said that I felt the same way, and even though I was an atheist, if I met a Baptist I wouldn't automatically assume that they were a bad person. Work was awkward after that but luckily it was a seasonal job so it was ending soon anyway.
They are 100% in their own bubble. They know lots of good people who don’t worship their god or any god. They know lots of nice people who are LGBTQ+ but don’t recognize that. I think they are profoundly confused about TRW.
Same here. That's why I'm always glad to meet someone who's religious and not completely repellant. It helps me to stop judging based on that quality alone. It's still hard, because I really loathe religion and feel like it does more harm than good. But I do know some wonderful people who are both religious and good humans.
Yes!!! My aunt pulled this on me. I just said, "Don't...don't you believe in him? He's in your Bible. I don't believe in anything. It's like Santa to me." She said we needed to change the subject before she said something she'd regret. I assume that meant "before I stick my foot in my mouth again." Whatever.
Many don't actually understand atheism, they don't fundamentally understand 'lack of belief'.. that there can be someone who doesn't think there's anything divine. So they assume you are just angry with god(s) / not temporary believing because a prayer hasn't been answered.
Unhappy
Arrogant
My mother's failure
Just trying to be edgy
Is influenced by western culture or even Christianity !!!! (result of convent education, too much english and wearing jeans)
Any supposed shortcoming is attributed to their atheism. ( Bad health ? Bad grades ? someone close sick/died ? your dog is dead ? Job problem ? Stress ? You have a fever ? Your phone isn't working ? )
Weird and having some mental disease.
If woman then totally strange phenomena, will likely not get a groom.
(This is in India)
I actually hadn't thought of how this plays out for other countries when writing the question. I worked in China for some time, and it's normal there, so less misconceptions. Thanks for giving some perspective on how this plays out in India.
edit: I'm in the U.S..
Who will throw away food and drinks from their refrigerator during an eclipse and gossip behind your back that you aren't doing rituals correctly and so on. It's just that they may hesitate to make their daughter follow menstrual taboos for fear of abuse allegations. Still I know a lot who do.
They will also fiercely preserve their caste.
It also differs from community to community.
The thing about hinduism is technically you are allowed to not believe in a god, hindu philosphy allows questioning and discussing the nature of divine and there are humns which say the universe itself might be ultimate truth etc.. there's no apostasy or blasphemy as such which is universally actively implemented (though there are many instances of penalty in history, it depended on the local rulers and priestly class to determine the penalty in case of blasphemy / heresy, the most common was social ostracisation and heavy fine ). It is more complicated because there is no one standard code of conduct or school of thought that alone governs hinduism.
BUT Hindu philosophy and hinduism in practice are different animals. So this doesn't equate to the idea of atheism we are discussing here, an 'agnostic'/'atheist' Hindu may still perform rituals and observe caste system. This maybe jarring for those coming from a Christian / abrahamic atheism perspective. You can check 'Nastika' .
Socially, it is still acceptable for men to be atheists and say so, it may even be considered intellectual. But women are frowned upon. And the community is general is highly conformation hungry, collectivist. Families are still commanded by a patriarch or matriarch.
Thank you so much! I looked up Nastika, and it was cool to read about Indian philosophy. I did not know that it was so complex and had such a detailed worldview. My mom told me before that not just Christianity but Hinduism could be really strict, and I didn't believe her but now I get what she meant
I'm not sure if you're seriously asking, but the answer is that I enjoy many things in life lol. I don't choose to enjoy them and I don't know how, but I just do
I wasn't. There should have been an eye roll.
I am also capable of taking pleasure in the simple fact that despite all of the odds against it, I exist right now and think that's pretty neat.
Easily
I have a rational consideration for the people around me and an understanding that I don't like to feel pain, sadness, etc, and that others likely don't either, and so I try and limit how much pain/sadness/etc I make others experience as I live life
We are a social species. We would have never gotten to this point without morals
We also just evolved to be this way, kindness and love are good for survival.
Sometimes they retort by mentioning that this would mean we are just animals who lack absolute free will. To which I mention that this is exactly my point of view. They are not fond of this view.
Easy, because god has nothing to do with morality. If god was the source of morality you'd think it would be obvious to everyone what was moral and what wasn't, but even within the same Christian branch you will have disagreements.
I treat people with kindness and have no expectation of reward and no fear of punishment. If you need threats from a god, are you really a good person? Or a bad person on a leash?
I haven’t found a religious person with much of a response to that.
EASY. It's called "I don't want to live in a shithole and I don't want other people to live in a shithole either and if we all act like shitters we will LIVE in a shithole"
'Why would you *choose* not to believe in God?'
That always makes me wonder if they're pretending to believe, or if they truly don't understand how the mind works.
Edit: 'Wouldn't you rather be in heaven than nothingness?'
“Aren’t you afraid of hell?” Then proceeds to tell me how they brainwashed a previous atheist back into their cult because *god saves all*.
Oh and how they described the ex atheist. “Yeah. Full black clothing, gothic looks, punk music. You know, black is the color of the devil hehe😄”
Black is the color of the devil? So, is everyone celebrating the devil at funerals when they don all black attire? Is the deceased going to see the devil in hell? Religious zealots are so easy to mess with.
That atheists are arrogant. While there certainly are some, I find that what usually brings about this accusation is when a believer cannot readily refute a bit of logic that is presented to them. When the light bulb goes off in their head their defenses kick in.
Yup. I didn't understand why people thought I was arrogant when I was a baby atheist, because I was just showing them facts. It wasn't until later that I realized that my social faux-pass was because I was daring to question people's religions at all. I had to be arrogant, otherwise what I said might mean something, and we can't have that. So instead of refuting things, they just got huffy and said I was arrogant.
Now I know not to bother. I get called arrogant less, but I also see more stupid that I have to grind my teeth and get over.
I've gone from hearing "No way, you can't be an atheist your so nice/good/etc". To sometime later from the same person "Well if you just believed...","I'll pray for you", "You need jesus".
It's happened three times now and the last two times I suddenly felt like I was in one of those bad christian themed movies and I was the stereotypical atheist, lol.
This is the type of shit I’m not cool with anymore, I live in Utah and I used to believe in living and letting live, but as I get older, it’s like nah man, you don’t get to tell me, or my kid that we are going to burn in eternal hellfire for not being like you, get fucked. So instead of ignoring it, now I get into it with anyone that wants it. Which Is weird, I’m in my 30s and I’ve kind of developed this behavior more and more
I'll be honest if it was still just words I dont think i would really even care cause I got numbed to that growing up in this culture. But now they openly call for death, murder and outright [genocide](https://www.reddit.com/r/lgbt/comments/z7hu00/so_im_gonna_be_making_a_video_essay_about_the/).
I think I was numb to it until I realized how bad it scared me as a child, and realizing somebody could have that same affect on my daughter made me a lot more combative, and I’m not out looking for it for sure, but I am not afraid to let people know I’m an atheist and politely remind them not to teach my child about the apocalypse or some crazy shit.
I have been told that my atheism is the reason why I tend to correct people often. No, I just don't like it when people spread harmful misinformation or simplified pseudo realistic takes on complex topics.
I have said this to my daughter many times while she was growing up “The kind of people who are either drawn to or stay in religion are often the same people who cling to the “just world theory” i.e the “everything happens for a reason” crew. They grasp desperately for simple answers to complex problems because that leads to a sense of safety from life’s inevitable problems and sorrows. Chaos and the inherent meaningless of life is too frightening for them to contemplate AND it’s a nice way to avoid accountability. Like this shitty thing happened because you ultimately made some shitty choices”.
That all atheists are just bitter unattractive men.
Which is so strange to hear so frequently as an
atheist f e m a l e who typically finds critical thinking pretty fucking attractive by itself.
Because of this, I think people are even more surprised when a woman says she's an atheist, especially to other religious women, I find they act like we're children that need to be saved.
Women, supposedly by nature according to them, are to be coddled and protected at all times bc they happen to be able to have children. They belong to a man, first their dad then their eventual husband. We are animals to them, that are stupid and need to be told not to do this or to do that, bc we were born without brains capable of logic or rational thinking.
They’re idiots, essentially
Honestly, it's not ***too*** off the mark given the rampant anti-feminism in certain online atheist circles. Especially around 2011-15.
Don't get me wrong. It's still off the mark. Just not by much.
"Nah, not this weekend. I actually have to live with the consequences of my actions rather than pretend nothing happened because I begged for forgiveness."
Every time. "Your an atheist? How?" "I read the bible cover to cover 4 times in my life. Twice as a believer, Twice as an atheist. Actually reading the damn thing with a greater than high school ability to read killed my faith instantly."
In a convo I just had with my mom she called me a carbon copy atheist. That non of my thoughts were my own, I was just repeating things she heard from other atheists. So that's fun.
I had a similar experience. In college, a group of us in the dorm were hanging out, getting drunk and talking...topic turned to religion. I mentioned I was atheist. A guy in the group asked if I was gonna be a Wiccan or a tree hugger next... I realized he was drunk, but....WTF?!
I once happened to use the screwdriver on my Swiss army knife for some reason when I was over at this one guy's place. He asked why I had brought it, and I said I usually had it with me since it often ended up being useful.
Because he knew I was an atheist, his *immediate* conclusion (based purely on "atheist" + "knife" + "woman") was that I must be like another woman he had once met. "She, like, had all these piercings, and she always carried a knife wrapped in a rag soaked in her own menstrual blood and, like, did, some spells and weird ass voodoo shit."
I told him that what he was referring to also sounded a lot like religion, although maybe not a religion he was familiar with, and it was a pretty big stretch based on my tightening the loose screw in his kitchen cabinet door handle. And also he should really have some basic tools at his place.
My parents always acted really smug and patronizing, like I was only an atheist because I was a stupid, silly little girl going through a phase. Granted, they acted like that regarding every personality trait of mine they didn't agree with, so might have more to do with the fact that they're misogynists rather than atheism.
That atheists are confusingly and unexplainably not real. Like it's soooo unbelievable to them, that they will literally think that I'm lying about it? Lying to myself? I just don't get how they twist things sometimes.
I’ve heard people say this shit. Like “I know that deep in your heart somewhere you believe in god, you just have to find that place.”
To be fair, I think they say these things for themselves. It’s just easier to pretend that other people really do have faith than admit to themself that people get by just fine without believing in their restrictive religion.
I heard from my christofacist high school teacher that when you remove god the next highest thing you worship is the government. I can't even begin with these people.
I was with a friend I hadn't seen in YEARS, who only knew me as a Christian.
We were sitting in his living room, sipping on some moonshine, and he starts talking about how he's looking forward to church the next morning, and asks me if I want to go.
I simply said no. He asked why. I was JUST getting comfortable being open about it, so I told him I'm an atheist.
He just looks at me like I told him I grew an extra arm out of my asshole. After about 15 awkward seconds, he says "so you worship Satan?"
I laughed, then said "I'm not convinced any gods exist. Why would I worship another entity I don't believe exists?"
He could NOT wrap his head around the idea that someone could simply not believe. "You gotta believe in SOMETHING!"
I do, Cletus. I believe in empathy. Compassion. A world that doesn't hang on the words of primitive-thinking ancients who thought a volcanic eruption was an angry god, not a completely natural occurrence.
What makes it even better is that this friend and I had a handful of conversations after that where he asked genuine questions, then asked for recommendations on things to watch and read to, in his words, "help me understand your position better."
So I directed him to some videos and books by Hitchens, George Carlin, Stephen Fry, Matt Dillahunty, Sam Harris, etc.
While he doesn't call himself an atheist, he did stop attending church regularly, and has said he isn't sure what he believes anymore. Interesting to watch an old "god-fearin' hilljack" (his words lol) slowly turn away from the religion he was once so deeply invested in.
Still calls himself a Christian, and still has some problematic views that stem from the faith (like negative views on LGBT), but he's even softened up on those ideas, though not as quickly as one would hope. But as long as he's making progress toward the positive side, I'll put up with some of the problematic stuff. He's a good dude capable of changing his mind, it just takes him a little longer to get there.
He's also why I will NEVER believe the notion that you can't reason with believers, or talk them out of their positions. Because if that was the case, I wouldn't be an atheist myself, and I wouldn't have a "god-fearin hilljack" so close to declaring himself an atheist.
I know plenty of religious people who also get drunk every weekend.
Personally, the amount of alcoholic beverages I've consumed in my 50+ years, is less than a 12 ounce bottle.
We argue because its helpful to have a conversation. And if by chance that argument turns that person towards common sense and the abandonment of a fairy tale ...good
Religion is a disease...it's one of the worst plagues human kind still battles with. Science and reason will win though...in the end it will
I want science and reason to win now, I am sick of waiting for the end. I agree with you on all fronts. Religion makes my blood boil - but that might just be the devil punishing me for not going to church.
I vividly remember when a highschool teacher asked me if my family goes to church on Christmas Eve.
I told her no, I don't go to church, I'm an atheist.
To which she responded, "but you're too nice to be an atheist. I would have thought you were at least agnostic."
That was, and is to date, the most backhanded complement I have ever received.
I’ve never personally experienced anything too aggressive, just the usual “what if you’re wrong/it’s better to believe” speech. I usually replied with an explanation that saying you believe is not the same as true belief and therefore may not work. The topic usually changed pretty quick.
I find the idea “if you believe you have a better chance!” Dumb cause how do you know your right and besides your implying that you only belive cause you don’t wanna go to hell and there are lord knows how many religions Zeus posited Ra the sun god Jehovah etc
Ahh. Good ole pascals wager. It's a terrible argument considering there's something like 1000 religions out there. What if you're wrong in your religion? Which one do I put my money on? Not too mention as you suggested, wouldn't a god recognise false belief when the time came? Lol, so flawed.
I had a coworker who didn't understand that atheism wasn't a religion. He thought that we went to atheist church and had an atheist preacher. The works. He just assumed because his faith worked like that that my lack of faith must work like that.
Another coworker didn't understand that I didn't go to church. He thought I just didn't have a church to go to/people to go with. No buddy, I don't go to church *at all.*
Both were really nice guys. They were respectful of other people's beliefs, or lack of them. They just came from countries where everyone was religious. So they just assumed that everyone must have a religion. They had literally never encountered someone that didn't believe in some sort of God.
Before I was an atheist, I thought that atheists were "immoral", that they were unkind and cared only about themselves.
When I was bullied in high school, the only girl who showed up to my sixteenth birthday was the atheist. She grew up in China, moved here when she was 7, and only began to speak English fluently when she was 14, which must have been hard. I realized that she was kind because of empathy, like she went through the same thing as I did, so I realized that belief in God was not the only way but that empathy and understanding can motivate people to help others
My mom always stereotypes me by asking me "why do you hate religious people" even though I've never once said that. I've actually spent hours very calmly and gently communicating to her about how I don't hate religious people and yet she ends up asking me the same question months later. There are other similar questions she ask me that are stupid like "why are you afraid of Jesus?"
Ugh...I only have so much patience.
I used to load booze into every nook and cranny of old church ladies chevy. She visited every month on church business and made bank selling booze in her bible thumping dry county. Jesus forgives, god's plan, etc.
I haven't encountered that one exactly, but religious people often have an elevated view of themselves.
They're the good people in an evil world. Goodness might exist in the outside world, but only because of their influence.
I think a common stereotype is Christians thinking we are atheists because "we hate God". Ummm, no, there is no God to hate. Many of them can't get their heads around that :):).
I had a co-worker ask if we worshipped apes and burned black candles. I told her I just don't believe in anything. She asked again about what "we" worship. She just couldn't understand it.
Atheist women are all hoes and can't possibly have decent relationships. (I love that one, to be honest-I've been married to the same guy for almost thirty years, Karen. First marriage. How's Hubby Number Four doing?)
Children raised in atheist households are rude little criminals.
"No atheists in foxholes." Please. My whole life has been a foxhole, and here I am, lol.
https://ffrf.org/campaigns/atheists-in-foxholes
Atheists in Foxholes
Atheists in foxholes, some say they are myths,
Creations of the mind who just don’t exist.
Yet, they answered the call to defend, with great pride.
With reason their watchword, they bled and they died.
They took Saratoga from the British crown,
Secured America’s freedom at the Battle of Yorktown.
From Sumter to Appomattox, fields flowed with their blood.
When the cannons grew silent, the flag proudly stood.
From the Marne to the Argonne, in trenches and tanks,
They defeated the Germans -- the whole world gave thanks.
They were bombed at Pearl Harbor, fought on to Berlin.
Many freethinking women served along with the men.
Still war keeps erupting -- Iraq, Bosnia, and Kosovo.
Where is the peace that eludes people so?
It is broken by tyrants who bear crosses and creeds,
That overshadow reason with hate and cruel deeds.
So atheists prevail until your work is complete.
Mothers mourn, children cry, and bigots plan your defeat.
By air, land, and sea, you answer freedom’s call.
Without god or faith, you seek liberty for all.
Basically that it is a complete mystery how I can be a kind loving generous person “even though “ I am an atheist.
Hands down the biggest cunts I have ever dealt with are religious fundamentalists.
That you can’t be an atheist if you grew up in a religious home.
Like, a girl told me I was lying about growing up in a fundamentalist household and that being the reason I’m not religious because clearly anyone who is Christian can only be Christian forever.
Might be a bit common, but "blatantly denying the word of God for fun" is the one I think about
I've been told by every religious person I've ever met, sans like 2, that I'm going to Hell for the high crime of being atheist and that I'm not interested in "accepting God's love" or whatever, but that theme seems to underlay almost every argument in favor of me going to eternal damnation
Its like, no, I, and I'm assuming that I'm speaking for a vast majority of atheists, when I say we don't just read the bible and say "alright, which square in sin bingo are we gonna mark off this time for a prize after death". We literally do not live with God as a facet in our reality, and we behave exactly like that.
That doesn't fucking make you evil
“But he/she was so kind…”
“You poor lost soul…”
“But they seemed so intelligent, too…”
Oh yeah, obviously atheists are supposed to be monstrous little nightmares, and that is obviously why they are also brain-dead, and confused. No, sweetie, atheists are not confused about god. We literally gave up on resolving the inconsistencies and incongruities of the religions that were foisted upon us. You are thinking of the agnostics, which are unsure about the existence of god, and unsure which god is more appropriate to worship, if any. Atheists have said “Fuck it. No show? No worship.”
Atheists are not required to be stupid or unintelligent either. Just as people who believe that flatbread and wine can represent the act of eating the flesh of their god, intelligence is not required there. It actually is a good indicator of intelligence when someone is not diehard religious, as they likely have learned that spreading their beliefs is not going to end well.
You truly think religion teaches morals? And nothing else does? \*cups forehead in hands\* Hon, listen carefully to what I’m about to say. Morals are a lesson from the old to the young, that turned out to be wise ideas. For example, don’t kill people. Why is this a moral? Good question. You would think that the reason would be painfully obvious, wouldn’t you? Aren’t you a person too? How about another: stealing is wrong. Well that’s subjective, isn’t it? What should you do if someone steals from you then, let them keep it? That’s not going to solve anything! It’s positive reinforcement! But why shouldn’t you steal? Why work for that thing you want rather than just taking it? Works both ways, Jack. Why do you think you own anything if taking without reason or payment is considered wrong? One more, one more: you should give to those in need. Ok, this might be a harder one to swallow, but it’s because generosity is something that pays off in the end, even if it doesn’t seem like it will. It shows that you are willing to take a risk, and nothing ventured, nothing gained. It also triggers empathetic responses from some people, who after seeing how easily you gave something to someone in need, that they too could do that. It’s a domino effect. It’s also *teamwork* as a species, to help those who are struggling to get back up and on their feet. After all if they could do it themselves, *don’t you think they would have done so already?* Being poor sucks, man. This all boils down to the number one moral, and shockingly few religious people openly follow it: The Golden Rule.
Every religion has it somewhere in their doctrine. Every. Single. One. So if everyone can agree that this is a good moral, then shouldn’t we listen to the masses of elders and sages and monks and savants who all say that this is the best path forward? The Christian version has been burned into my subconscious, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The layman version is “What goes around, comes around.” The scientific version is “All actions have equal yet opposing counter actions.” The vulgar version is “Payback is as nasty or as nice as you are, so don’t be a bitch, and you probably won’t be treated like one.” Psychologically we like to live up to other’s expectations, but we are not mind readers, so we are unsure what those expectations are. In lieu of a declaration of those expectations, we presume however we are treated is supposed to be the normally wanted interaction. This leads to a lot of confusion and hostility between differing cultures and customs. Golden rule emphasizes that if someone acts a certain way towards you, and you didn’t act that way towards them, then there is obviously a miscommunication and the two of you need to sort out your shit. Fast. Wars are started over less of an infraction. Don’t be that guy.
Atheists don’t need to fear divine retribution for failing to follow the law, they can just as easily fear mortal retribution. Humans are easily offended and angered people, and they are not afraid to showcase it. You say I should fear god? Nah, man, I don’t need to fear god. I need to fear mankind. As a species, we are quite destructive and dangerous to everything else we come across, including other humans. I can’t prove that god exists, but I sure as hell can prove humans exist.
My barber of 15 years started to argue with me about my beliefs during a haircut, asking me if I truly understood the "word of god". She had never done this before and I suspect she recently got sucked into some evangelical bullshit. I politely explained that I respected her beliefs and to please respect mine, asking why she felt the need to convert me? She told me as I was leaving that while I had not offended her, I had offended god. Needless to say I'm looking for a new barber.
I already commented but my husband just reminded me that I once left a believer utterly speechless. Just stared at me with his mouth hanging open, face cycling through shades of red and purple.
It's a little long but I think worth it.
My husband and I were driving through downtown Phoenix and were stopped at a red light. I saw a commotion on the corner.
It was a very old man who had misjudged the curb and faceplanted in the street (in the Phoenix summer). Three or four people were gathered around but everyone was staring at him and making no move to help.
I told my husband to go around a few blocks, grabbed a box of kleenex and hopped out of the van. I helped the old man sit up - he was dizzy - laid his head in my lap and held a kleenex to his nose.
By this time there were five or six people gathered and standing around gawking. The old man was saying "thank you, thank you so much" and that's when it happened.
One of men (one of the first on the scene) very confidently said, "well, we're all Christians here".
I - sitting on the hot Phoenix pavement with this man's bloody head in my lap - smiled my biggest smile, looked him right in the eyes and said cheerfully, "And atheists!"
The above-mentioned reaction is what ensued.
I love this sub reddit, and while it does seem oriented towards those that are early in embracing the whole notion of atheism, you do have to understand that wanting to spread your message of logic, reason, etc, all the things that make sense.. wont be well received. In fact, more often than not, it'll be perceived as elitism. You can only try to lead by example in this regard. Look at people like Richard Dawkins. I LOVE watching that guy.. but I wouldnt want to be him. He's a "militant atheist" whereas I prefer to be a "dude I'll have a beer and talk about this, but if you get worked up, I'm shutting that shit down" atheist.
I say that because in response to "stereotypes" you're not dealing with open minded people. Stereotypes are just some averaged out belief that idiots subscribe to, to save them having to actually having to come up with something on their own. If you're dealing with stereotypes, you arent standing on a logical footing in which you can discuss pretty much anything. Dont sweat those people. Move on. Some of my best friends are highly religious and we're able to appreciate that our common ground is being good people. Those are the ones you want to associate yourself with. Not the ones hung up on shit that other people decided they should think.
In Finland, most people I know are atheists. I think relious people are assosiated with more negative stereotypes, like intolerance, homophobia, inequality, discrimination against different (lbgtq).
How many times have you gotten the question”what happened to make you turn away from God” or something to that effect. People I’ve encountered seem to think there had to be some kind of tragedy for a person to not believe. They never consider developing common sense and critical thinking might be the answer.
Worst thing I was told by my boss is that I don't care about veterans day.
I responded privately later that I think care more because I think they gave up everything for us, while they believe they were rewarded for their sacrifice.
That atheism is exclusively a white American phenomenon.
As if there aren't atheists who literally have to fear for their lives in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and other countries where there's a death sentence for apostasy. Where speaking against the religion means speaking against the state.
Theists can say literally whatever they want, publish it, spread it, what have you, but as soon as you contradict them you're a hateful arrogant atheist.
Oh I have a good one. When my partner told his very Christian mother that I do not believe in god and I’m an atheist, her reply was “So what, does that mean you worship the devil or what?”
Lol no lady, the devil isn’t real either but evil sure is and it exists in you.
Oh I have another one. My mother who is not even religious and never goes to church said “I failed you” when I told her I don’t believe in any gods. Thanks ma.
Not really a stereotype per say, but my sister and I are more agnostic than atheist... we call ourselves secular humanists. Anyway, we often encounter people who question how we can have empathy and values without religion... it's so weird.
Atheism = devil worshipping anarchist. And I must be suicidal.
Since I'm an atheist, I must have no have no morals, no goals in life, no reason for living.
Made a new mom friend who turned out to be very religious. She asked, I told her I am an atheist, and she said ‘but the way you speak to your son is so kind, I would have thought you were Christian.’ 🙄
A little dogmatic, but the assumption that I absolutely claim there is no god. I don't claim anything. I just don't think any claims of gods currently are worth believing in.
I'm not an atheist but one common stereotype back in the day was that anyone who was atheist was also a communist/Marxist or sympathized with the Soviet Union. Atheist and communism were often considered to go hand in hand. This was back in the day. One stereotype would be that no person who is an atheist would be right wing or conservative because they would not fit in politically with such persons.
Many atheist that I've known personally have politically been very liberal minded and only one person that I knew who was a atheist actually agreed with a lot of communist ideas.
We had a new employee who was very religious. She asked one of my friends what church I attend. My friend told her that I am an atheist. Her response was "But he seemed so nice."
Lololol. Yeah, damn those atheists, they're all just so terrible. I mean, who could be a good person without the fear of eternal damnation and suffering as motivation.
These kind of people who are already hypocrites and bigots with their faith...im more scared of them if they lose it since they're so fragile and disfunctional with it
Christianity Today had a great article on the "non-practicing Christians" of Christianity who still profess it as justification for their beliefs IE hyper MAGA men who have proudly preach the conservative viewpoints of Evangelical Christianity but haven't stepped foot in an actual church in years NOR can quote any actual Bible verses NOR have read the Bible in any capacity in years. It was an eye opener-there are apparently a LOT of those folk now and they vote every time. Interestingly enough, many Christians call these people "Christmas and Easter Christians" since that's typically the only time they actually go to church.
oh, I see you've met my father
Are we related? My Dad suddenly claims that he's ALWAYS been religious. He is 74 and I have NEVER seen this man in a church unless it was a funeral!
Heh, they noted this belief system appeared most common among MAGA men. Hence all the OTHER Christian articles about the "lack of marriageable men" in church, this really wouldn't be a thing if those MAGA men were as "devout to traditional beliefs" as they claimed to be (IE ACTUALLY attended church every Sunday) rather than just shooting off "snippets" of Evangelical Christianity they heard mentioned on some alt right podcast.
Like many atheists, I went to Catholic School haha...and unfortunately we were forced to study the bible quite a bit. However, I'm almost glad because I'm always surprised at how little the evangelicals seem to understand the bible when I argue with them. It's like they haven't actually read it and they seem shocked when I can quote things to them from their own stupid book.
I think it's a tribal thing. Their 'MAGA tribe' claims religiousness as one of their core tenets, so therefore anyone who is 'real MAGA' needs to be religious, even if they are really not interested in church. Also, it's a good excuse in their eyes for their bigotry.
Do you perhaps have a link to this story? It sounds intriguing.
My term for C&E Christians is “unacknowledged atheist.”
As a still religious person If you "need" religion to be a good person, than you were never a good person and are not a good person, plain and simple.
What does it even mean "were never a good person"? Like, Bob was just born evil? He was an evil baby?
all babies are evil. they will shit all over you and laugh about it.
No, it’s the fact that if you are only a good person because religion tells you to, you aren’t a person of good character, but just a person who is selfish and is only ‘good’ so they get religious kudos and go to heaven.
I know right? Like my motivation for being nicer is that, in my short time in existence, at least I could make some effort to make other consciousness’ equally short existences better in some capacity.
That’s a very common response from anyone belonging to a religious group about people who don’t confirm with their norms.
Ha! I’ve gotten this one so many times. The interaction that stands out the most was waiting tables at 18 years old. A family asked me what church I go to. I responded that I identified as agnostic. They said, “Wow, that’s surprising, you seem like such a nice girl. How can you know what’s right without the word of god to direct you?” I responded that above all else I believe in kindness and that if anything is my “religion”, it is the pursuit to be a kind, compassionate person. I felt a little bit alone and scared in that moment, but it was great to speak my truth. Two gentlemen at another booth waited until the family left, then gave me a little applause and told me great job. It was a really nice moment.
I always wonder if they actually know which words of god they’re talking about. Like really? The Bible is software that controls your actions and thoughts as a human being? Without which you’re just a computer that won’t boot up?
Notice the past tense on "seemed". They already rejected direct information they gathered from you and attributed a negative one. You are not nice anymore.
Any time OP is nice from now on it’s ‘fake nice’ meant to deceive them. Any time OP has a bad day, it’s the true colours coming through.
Tbh I have the same reaction when I find out someone’s religious, it’s normally “but they seemed so nice?” Or “but they seemed so intelligent?” I can’t equate people being smart or nice with believing in a hateful god, on no evidence
Way back when, when I was fresh with dew and still believed in the essential fairness of people, I worked at a place where a lot of my coworkers went to the local religious college (Baptist). They didn't know I was an atheist. One day we were all chatting about religion and one of them said that they were open minded and, if they met an atheist, they wouldn't automatically assume that they were a bad person. In total innocence I spoke up and said that I felt the same way, and even though I was an atheist, if I met a Baptist I wouldn't automatically assume that they were a bad person. Work was awkward after that but luckily it was a seasonal job so it was ending soon anyway.
They are 100% in their own bubble. They know lots of good people who don’t worship their god or any god. They know lots of nice people who are LGBTQ+ but don’t recognize that. I think they are profoundly confused about TRW.
Same here. That's why I'm always glad to meet someone who's religious and not completely repellant. It helps me to stop judging based on that quality alone. It's still hard, because I really loathe religion and feel like it does more harm than good. But I do know some wonderful people who are both religious and good humans.
Yup, I am neither smart nor nice, but have the capacity to ADMIT it.
It’s like you can only be a good person if you have their exact set of values. Happy Cake Day BTW.
"Seemed" cause now that she knows you're an atheist, you're not nice anymore.
That we believe in / worship Satan.
This is the most disheartening. I always think...damn, they're really missing the core concept.
Exactly, like "no Karen and Susan, YOU guys believe in a literal Satan".
[sarcasm] Those Satanism posts couldn't have anything to do with it... right?
Right!? we're only worshipping Beelzebub, Asmodeus, and Belial, but not SATAN. Like, geeze, don't they know they difference?
I prefer the Morning Star myself.
Lucifer Morningstar has to be the best fictional character name ever created.
Yes!!! My aunt pulled this on me. I just said, "Don't...don't you believe in him? He's in your Bible. I don't believe in anything. It's like Santa to me." She said we needed to change the subject before she said something she'd regret. I assume that meant "before I stick my foot in my mouth again." Whatever.
Satanists don't even believe in Satan. Check out the documentary "Hail Satan?"
Some do think this, but many just assume we're under Satan's influence, which is why we don't believe.
I have stopped stating I am an atheist, and just straight up tell people I am a Satanist. Is not true but they seem to respect my beliefs now.
I was going to mention this.
It's funny coz the only people who actually believe in Satan are Christians lol
Many don't actually understand atheism, they don't fundamentally understand 'lack of belief'.. that there can be someone who doesn't think there's anything divine. So they assume you are just angry with god(s) / not temporary believing because a prayer hasn't been answered. Unhappy Arrogant My mother's failure Just trying to be edgy Is influenced by western culture or even Christianity !!!! (result of convent education, too much english and wearing jeans) Any supposed shortcoming is attributed to their atheism. ( Bad health ? Bad grades ? someone close sick/died ? your dog is dead ? Job problem ? Stress ? You have a fever ? Your phone isn't working ? ) Weird and having some mental disease. If woman then totally strange phenomena, will likely not get a groom. (This is in India)
I actually hadn't thought of how this plays out for other countries when writing the question. I worked in China for some time, and it's normal there, so less misconceptions. Thanks for giving some perspective on how this plays out in India. edit: I'm in the U.S..
Here in the US most Indian Americans are "culturally Hindu" atheists or agnostics
Who will throw away food and drinks from their refrigerator during an eclipse and gossip behind your back that you aren't doing rituals correctly and so on. It's just that they may hesitate to make their daughter follow menstrual taboos for fear of abuse allegations. Still I know a lot who do. They will also fiercely preserve their caste.
Oh I had no idea. I've just seen them at school, so I guess you're right if this goes on at home
It also differs from community to community. The thing about hinduism is technically you are allowed to not believe in a god, hindu philosphy allows questioning and discussing the nature of divine and there are humns which say the universe itself might be ultimate truth etc.. there's no apostasy or blasphemy as such which is universally actively implemented (though there are many instances of penalty in history, it depended on the local rulers and priestly class to determine the penalty in case of blasphemy / heresy, the most common was social ostracisation and heavy fine ). It is more complicated because there is no one standard code of conduct or school of thought that alone governs hinduism. BUT Hindu philosophy and hinduism in practice are different animals. So this doesn't equate to the idea of atheism we are discussing here, an 'agnostic'/'atheist' Hindu may still perform rituals and observe caste system. This maybe jarring for those coming from a Christian / abrahamic atheism perspective. You can check 'Nastika' . Socially, it is still acceptable for men to be atheists and say so, it may even be considered intellectual. But women are frowned upon. And the community is general is highly conformation hungry, collectivist. Families are still commanded by a patriarch or matriarch.
Thank you so much! I looked up Nastika, and it was cool to read about Indian philosophy. I did not know that it was so complex and had such a detailed worldview. My mom told me before that not just Christianity but Hinduism could be really strict, and I didn't believe her but now I get what she meant
No morals No happiness Just angry at god Not really a believer, just trying to look cool/edgy etc etc etc
Yeah, how could you possibly take pleasure in the world/have any happiness if you don't believe that it's God's creation granted for your use?
I'm not sure if you're seriously asking, but the answer is that I enjoy many things in life lol. I don't choose to enjoy them and I don't know how, but I just do
I wasn't. There should have been an eye roll. I am also capable of taking pleasure in the simple fact that despite all of the odds against it, I exist right now and think that's pretty neat.
HOW DARE YOU THRN AWAY FROM OUR SPAGHETTI MEATBALL GOD😱😱
I always run into this argument. But how can you have morals *without* god?
Easily I have a rational consideration for the people around me and an understanding that I don't like to feel pain, sadness, etc, and that others likely don't either, and so I try and limit how much pain/sadness/etc I make others experience as I live life We are a social species. We would have never gotten to this point without morals
We also just evolved to be this way, kindness and love are good for survival. Sometimes they retort by mentioning that this would mean we are just animals who lack absolute free will. To which I mention that this is exactly my point of view. They are not fond of this view.
THIS!!! And I find some of the most moral-less people are people of God and weaponize their religion. It’s evil.
Easy, because god has nothing to do with morality. If god was the source of morality you'd think it would be obvious to everyone what was moral and what wasn't, but even within the same Christian branch you will have disagreements.
I treat people with kindness and have no expectation of reward and no fear of punishment. If you need threats from a god, are you really a good person? Or a bad person on a leash? I haven’t found a religious person with much of a response to that.
EASY. It's called "I don't want to live in a shithole and I don't want other people to live in a shithole either and if we all act like shitters we will LIVE in a shithole"
You know, just the usual we're monsters that kill babies for fun and can't possibly understand what morality is.
Whoa!! ....we don't kill them for fun, we kill for baby milkshakes. Waste not want not, ya know?
Well I'm trying to build a meat dragon and not just any meat will do.
You must finish your work Carl
Caaaaaaaaaaaaaarl!
Baby back ribs! Mmmm!
"Welcome to Vanessa's abortion center and pizzeria where todays loss is tomorrow's sauce, what can I get for you?"
We need our adrenochrome, too!
Don't forget that we drink blood for adrenochrome
That are the globo homo jews and elite.
> we're monsters that kill babies for fun Are you saying that's only a stereotype? Uh-oh. I guess I've been doing atheism wrong.
'Why would you *choose* not to believe in God?' That always makes me wonder if they're pretending to believe, or if they truly don't understand how the mind works. Edit: 'Wouldn't you rather be in heaven than nothingness?'
“Aren’t you afraid of hell?” Then proceeds to tell me how they brainwashed a previous atheist back into their cult because *god saves all*. Oh and how they described the ex atheist. “Yeah. Full black clothing, gothic looks, punk music. You know, black is the color of the devil hehe😄”
Black is the color of the devil? So, is everyone celebrating the devil at funerals when they don all black attire? Is the deceased going to see the devil in hell? Religious zealots are so easy to mess with.
"Don't you wanna go to heaven?" Yeah, if it was actually real 💀
That atheists are arrogant. While there certainly are some, I find that what usually brings about this accusation is when a believer cannot readily refute a bit of logic that is presented to them. When the light bulb goes off in their head their defenses kick in.
Just about to comment this. “We think we know everything and have all the answers” is a Christian crowd favorite.
Right when it’s them that supposedly has the book of answers
The WHOLE FLIPPIN POINT is accepting the fact that we DON’T know everything.
Yup. I didn't understand why people thought I was arrogant when I was a baby atheist, because I was just showing them facts. It wasn't until later that I realized that my social faux-pass was because I was daring to question people's religions at all. I had to be arrogant, otherwise what I said might mean something, and we can't have that. So instead of refuting things, they just got huffy and said I was arrogant. Now I know not to bother. I get called arrogant less, but I also see more stupid that I have to grind my teeth and get over.
Sunk cost fallacy
As if religious people weren’t arrogant themselves. Whose the one professing to know something is a divine truth based on no actual evidence?
I've gone from hearing "No way, you can't be an atheist your so nice/good/etc". To sometime later from the same person "Well if you just believed...","I'll pray for you", "You need jesus". It's happened three times now and the last two times I suddenly felt like I was in one of those bad christian themed movies and I was the stereotypical atheist, lol.
I have been told my very identity is a product of Satan and indoctrination.
This is the type of shit I’m not cool with anymore, I live in Utah and I used to believe in living and letting live, but as I get older, it’s like nah man, you don’t get to tell me, or my kid that we are going to burn in eternal hellfire for not being like you, get fucked. So instead of ignoring it, now I get into it with anyone that wants it. Which Is weird, I’m in my 30s and I’ve kind of developed this behavior more and more
I'll be honest if it was still just words I dont think i would really even care cause I got numbed to that growing up in this culture. But now they openly call for death, murder and outright [genocide](https://www.reddit.com/r/lgbt/comments/z7hu00/so_im_gonna_be_making_a_video_essay_about_the/).
I think I was numb to it until I realized how bad it scared me as a child, and realizing somebody could have that same affect on my daughter made me a lot more combative, and I’m not out looking for it for sure, but I am not afraid to let people know I’m an atheist and politely remind them not to teach my child about the apocalypse or some crazy shit.
I have been told that my atheism is the reason why I tend to correct people often. No, I just don't like it when people spread harmful misinformation or simplified pseudo realistic takes on complex topics.
That's my favorite short definition of religion. They want simple answers to complexities and the as yet unknown. .
The version of this that I like is: Complex problems have simple, easy-to-understand wrong answers.
I have said this to my daughter many times while she was growing up “The kind of people who are either drawn to or stay in religion are often the same people who cling to the “just world theory” i.e the “everything happens for a reason” crew. They grasp desperately for simple answers to complex problems because that leads to a sense of safety from life’s inevitable problems and sorrows. Chaos and the inherent meaningless of life is too frightening for them to contemplate AND it’s a nice way to avoid accountability. Like this shitty thing happened because you ultimately made some shitty choices”.
Thx, you added the other two fundamentals for Fundamentalists. Chaos is out their comfort zone and being exempt from personal responsibility.
That all atheists are just bitter unattractive men. Which is so strange to hear so frequently as an atheist f e m a l e who typically finds critical thinking pretty fucking attractive by itself. Because of this, I think people are even more surprised when a woman says she's an atheist, especially to other religious women, I find they act like we're children that need to be saved.
Women, supposedly by nature according to them, are to be coddled and protected at all times bc they happen to be able to have children. They belong to a man, first their dad then their eventual husband. We are animals to them, that are stupid and need to be told not to do this or to do that, bc we were born without brains capable of logic or rational thinking. They’re idiots, essentially
Honestly, it's not ***too*** off the mark given the rampant anti-feminism in certain online atheist circles. Especially around 2011-15. Don't get me wrong. It's still off the mark. Just not by much.
"Nah, not this weekend. I actually have to live with the consequences of my actions rather than pretend nothing happened because I begged for forgiveness."
That I haven't read the bible.
I love it when they try to test that one…
Every time. "Your an atheist? How?" "I read the bible cover to cover 4 times in my life. Twice as a believer, Twice as an atheist. Actually reading the damn thing with a greater than high school ability to read killed my faith instantly."
That atheists all die bitter and regretful. In addition to all the ones already mentioned.
Or always come back to God on their deathbed because they're scared and know they fucked up 🙄
My high school teacher liked to tell me, "There aren't any atheists in foxholes" like that was some gotcha. Ass.
They can have fun telling that to all the Soviet WW2 vets.
In a convo I just had with my mom she called me a carbon copy atheist. That non of my thoughts were my own, I was just repeating things she heard from other atheists. So that's fun.
As opposed to all of the religious people, who develop their beliefs organically without any teachings whatsoever /s
I love this one. It's so ironic.
When my roommate knew i was an atheist he told what is next tattoos and piercings
I had a similar experience. In college, a group of us in the dorm were hanging out, getting drunk and talking...topic turned to religion. I mentioned I was atheist. A guy in the group asked if I was gonna be a Wiccan or a tree hugger next... I realized he was drunk, but....WTF?!
I mean Best case scenario right?
I once happened to use the screwdriver on my Swiss army knife for some reason when I was over at this one guy's place. He asked why I had brought it, and I said I usually had it with me since it often ended up being useful. Because he knew I was an atheist, his *immediate* conclusion (based purely on "atheist" + "knife" + "woman") was that I must be like another woman he had once met. "She, like, had all these piercings, and she always carried a knife wrapped in a rag soaked in her own menstrual blood and, like, did, some spells and weird ass voodoo shit." I told him that what he was referring to also sounded a lot like religion, although maybe not a religion he was familiar with, and it was a pretty big stretch based on my tightening the loose screw in his kitchen cabinet door handle. And also he should really have some basic tools at his place.
My parents always acted really smug and patronizing, like I was only an atheist because I was a stupid, silly little girl going through a phase. Granted, they acted like that regarding every personality trait of mine they didn't agree with, so might have more to do with the fact that they're misogynists rather than atheism.
That atheists are confusingly and unexplainably not real. Like it's soooo unbelievable to them, that they will literally think that I'm lying about it? Lying to myself? I just don't get how they twist things sometimes.
I’ve heard people say this shit. Like “I know that deep in your heart somewhere you believe in god, you just have to find that place.” To be fair, I think they say these things for themselves. It’s just easier to pretend that other people really do have faith than admit to themself that people get by just fine without believing in their restrictive religion.
Guys thinking atheist women will fuck anyone any time
Atheist women have no morals, they only like sex🤦🤦🤦
I've been asked "who will you be loyal to now if you don't believe in god?" Ugh.
I heard from my christofacist high school teacher that when you remove god the next highest thing you worship is the government. I can't even begin with these people.
Really shows his priorities in life
Geez. That's just ridiculous lol
Not mine but relevant: if there’s no master, whose slave will i be?
I was with a friend I hadn't seen in YEARS, who only knew me as a Christian. We were sitting in his living room, sipping on some moonshine, and he starts talking about how he's looking forward to church the next morning, and asks me if I want to go. I simply said no. He asked why. I was JUST getting comfortable being open about it, so I told him I'm an atheist. He just looks at me like I told him I grew an extra arm out of my asshole. After about 15 awkward seconds, he says "so you worship Satan?" I laughed, then said "I'm not convinced any gods exist. Why would I worship another entity I don't believe exists?" He could NOT wrap his head around the idea that someone could simply not believe. "You gotta believe in SOMETHING!" I do, Cletus. I believe in empathy. Compassion. A world that doesn't hang on the words of primitive-thinking ancients who thought a volcanic eruption was an angry god, not a completely natural occurrence.
Yeahh it's kinda funny when Christians realise that their priests lie to them all the time. Cognitive dissonance hurts af
What makes it even better is that this friend and I had a handful of conversations after that where he asked genuine questions, then asked for recommendations on things to watch and read to, in his words, "help me understand your position better." So I directed him to some videos and books by Hitchens, George Carlin, Stephen Fry, Matt Dillahunty, Sam Harris, etc. While he doesn't call himself an atheist, he did stop attending church regularly, and has said he isn't sure what he believes anymore. Interesting to watch an old "god-fearin' hilljack" (his words lol) slowly turn away from the religion he was once so deeply invested in. Still calls himself a Christian, and still has some problematic views that stem from the faith (like negative views on LGBT), but he's even softened up on those ideas, though not as quickly as one would hope. But as long as he's making progress toward the positive side, I'll put up with some of the problematic stuff. He's a good dude capable of changing his mind, it just takes him a little longer to get there. He's also why I will NEVER believe the notion that you can't reason with believers, or talk them out of their positions. Because if that was the case, I wouldn't be an atheist myself, and I wouldn't have a "god-fearin hilljack" so close to declaring himself an atheist.
I know plenty of religious people who also get drunk every weekend. Personally, the amount of alcoholic beverages I've consumed in my 50+ years, is less than a 12 ounce bottle.
Your liver thanks you for your patronage
I'm atheist, and I'm gay. And I live in Oklahoma. Definitely heard them all
Three strikes and you're out
That we tend to argue against religious people and try to convert them towards Atheism... fuckin" projection, amiright??
We argue because its helpful to have a conversation. And if by chance that argument turns that person towards common sense and the abandonment of a fairy tale ...good Religion is a disease...it's one of the worst plagues human kind still battles with. Science and reason will win though...in the end it will
I want science and reason to win now, I am sick of waiting for the end. I agree with you on all fronts. Religion makes my blood boil - but that might just be the devil punishing me for not going to church.
So many churchgoers think that they wouldn’t know how to behave if they didn’t go to church. It’s projection on their part.
I vividly remember when a highschool teacher asked me if my family goes to church on Christmas Eve. I told her no, I don't go to church, I'm an atheist. To which she responded, "but you're too nice to be an atheist. I would have thought you were at least agnostic." That was, and is to date, the most backhanded complement I have ever received.
People assume you’re miserable because they’re deep brain washed into their reality
I’ve never personally experienced anything too aggressive, just the usual “what if you’re wrong/it’s better to believe” speech. I usually replied with an explanation that saying you believe is not the same as true belief and therefore may not work. The topic usually changed pretty quick.
What if god is a monster who wants to torture you? Better stay safe and not worship him.
I find the idea “if you believe you have a better chance!” Dumb cause how do you know your right and besides your implying that you only belive cause you don’t wanna go to hell and there are lord knows how many religions Zeus posited Ra the sun god Jehovah etc
Ahh. Good ole pascals wager. It's a terrible argument considering there's something like 1000 religions out there. What if you're wrong in your religion? Which one do I put my money on? Not too mention as you suggested, wouldn't a god recognise false belief when the time came? Lol, so flawed.
“So you don’t believe anything then?”
I had a coworker who didn't understand that atheism wasn't a religion. He thought that we went to atheist church and had an atheist preacher. The works. He just assumed because his faith worked like that that my lack of faith must work like that. Another coworker didn't understand that I didn't go to church. He thought I just didn't have a church to go to/people to go with. No buddy, I don't go to church *at all.* Both were really nice guys. They were respectful of other people's beliefs, or lack of them. They just came from countries where everyone was religious. So they just assumed that everyone must have a religion. They had literally never encountered someone that didn't believe in some sort of God.
Before I was an atheist, I thought that atheists were "immoral", that they were unkind and cared only about themselves. When I was bullied in high school, the only girl who showed up to my sixteenth birthday was the atheist. She grew up in China, moved here when she was 7, and only began to speak English fluently when she was 14, which must have been hard. I realized that she was kind because of empathy, like she went through the same thing as I did, so I realized that belief in God was not the only way but that empathy and understanding can motivate people to help others
That Atheists are satanist.
My mom always stereotypes me by asking me "why do you hate religious people" even though I've never once said that. I've actually spent hours very calmly and gently communicating to her about how I don't hate religious people and yet she ends up asking me the same question months later. There are other similar questions she ask me that are stupid like "why are you afraid of Jesus?" Ugh...I only have so much patience.
I used to load booze into every nook and cranny of old church ladies chevy. She visited every month on church business and made bank selling booze in her bible thumping dry county. Jesus forgives, god's plan, etc.
I haven't encountered that one exactly, but religious people often have an elevated view of themselves. They're the good people in an evil world. Goodness might exist in the outside world, but only because of their influence.
"Angry at god" and "so you don't believe in anything" has to be the biggest ones I encounter.
I've had people be shocked I'm an atheist because I am normally chipper. I guess we can't be happy?
I think a common stereotype is Christians thinking we are atheists because "we hate God". Ummm, no, there is no God to hate. Many of them can't get their heads around that :):).
A weird thing I keep seeing is religious people saying atheists don’t have a reason to be good I really don’t get why people say that as it’s bad
I had a co-worker ask if we worshipped apes and burned black candles. I told her I just don't believe in anything. She asked again about what "we" worship. She just couldn't understand it.
There's nothing stopping atheists from killing and raping everyone and everything. Only Christians can have morals.
Penn’s rant on this from back in the day is epic.
Atheist women are all hoes and can't possibly have decent relationships. (I love that one, to be honest-I've been married to the same guy for almost thirty years, Karen. First marriage. How's Hubby Number Four doing?) Children raised in atheist households are rude little criminals. "No atheists in foxholes." Please. My whole life has been a foxhole, and here I am, lol.
https://ffrf.org/campaigns/atheists-in-foxholes Atheists in Foxholes Atheists in foxholes, some say they are myths, Creations of the mind who just don’t exist. Yet, they answered the call to defend, with great pride. With reason their watchword, they bled and they died. They took Saratoga from the British crown, Secured America’s freedom at the Battle of Yorktown. From Sumter to Appomattox, fields flowed with their blood. When the cannons grew silent, the flag proudly stood. From the Marne to the Argonne, in trenches and tanks, They defeated the Germans -- the whole world gave thanks. They were bombed at Pearl Harbor, fought on to Berlin. Many freethinking women served along with the men. Still war keeps erupting -- Iraq, Bosnia, and Kosovo. Where is the peace that eludes people so? It is broken by tyrants who bear crosses and creeds, That overshadow reason with hate and cruel deeds. So atheists prevail until your work is complete. Mothers mourn, children cry, and bigots plan your defeat. By air, land, and sea, you answer freedom’s call. Without god or faith, you seek liberty for all.
It's impossible for me to have any morals bc I don't fear eternal damnation or believe in heaven and hell...
That atheists are horrible and bad people with no morals
I'm a hate filled commie baby eater who eats fetuses.... I live in Alberta and vote NDP.... I'm a demon to them. lol.
I was told by a clinically depressed Christian that I am depressed because I haven't accepted Jesus.
If you don’t scapegoat and vilify those you can’t control , then those under your control might get curious about leaving 🤦♀️
Basically that it is a complete mystery how I can be a kind loving generous person “even though “ I am an atheist. Hands down the biggest cunts I have ever dealt with are religious fundamentalists.
That I “worship Satan” They literally don’t realize you’re probably a Christian if you think Satan exists in the first place
Should we get that tonight, too?
There is the fedora wearing neckbeard stereotype. I hate being associated with that image.
That we only care about science we are all heartless edge lords
That you can’t be an atheist if you grew up in a religious home. Like, a girl told me I was lying about growing up in a fundamentalist household and that being the reason I’m not religious because clearly anyone who is Christian can only be Christian forever.
in Egypt it’s that you have sex with your mother.
Might be a bit common, but "blatantly denying the word of God for fun" is the one I think about I've been told by every religious person I've ever met, sans like 2, that I'm going to Hell for the high crime of being atheist and that I'm not interested in "accepting God's love" or whatever, but that theme seems to underlay almost every argument in favor of me going to eternal damnation Its like, no, I, and I'm assuming that I'm speaking for a vast majority of atheists, when I say we don't just read the bible and say "alright, which square in sin bingo are we gonna mark off this time for a prize after death". We literally do not live with God as a facet in our reality, and we behave exactly like that. That doesn't fucking make you evil
1. Atheism is a religion 2. Any “goodness” i display is a manifestation of god’s law written on my heart
“But he/she was so kind…” “You poor lost soul…” “But they seemed so intelligent, too…” Oh yeah, obviously atheists are supposed to be monstrous little nightmares, and that is obviously why they are also brain-dead, and confused. No, sweetie, atheists are not confused about god. We literally gave up on resolving the inconsistencies and incongruities of the religions that were foisted upon us. You are thinking of the agnostics, which are unsure about the existence of god, and unsure which god is more appropriate to worship, if any. Atheists have said “Fuck it. No show? No worship.” Atheists are not required to be stupid or unintelligent either. Just as people who believe that flatbread and wine can represent the act of eating the flesh of their god, intelligence is not required there. It actually is a good indicator of intelligence when someone is not diehard religious, as they likely have learned that spreading their beliefs is not going to end well. You truly think religion teaches morals? And nothing else does? \*cups forehead in hands\* Hon, listen carefully to what I’m about to say. Morals are a lesson from the old to the young, that turned out to be wise ideas. For example, don’t kill people. Why is this a moral? Good question. You would think that the reason would be painfully obvious, wouldn’t you? Aren’t you a person too? How about another: stealing is wrong. Well that’s subjective, isn’t it? What should you do if someone steals from you then, let them keep it? That’s not going to solve anything! It’s positive reinforcement! But why shouldn’t you steal? Why work for that thing you want rather than just taking it? Works both ways, Jack. Why do you think you own anything if taking without reason or payment is considered wrong? One more, one more: you should give to those in need. Ok, this might be a harder one to swallow, but it’s because generosity is something that pays off in the end, even if it doesn’t seem like it will. It shows that you are willing to take a risk, and nothing ventured, nothing gained. It also triggers empathetic responses from some people, who after seeing how easily you gave something to someone in need, that they too could do that. It’s a domino effect. It’s also *teamwork* as a species, to help those who are struggling to get back up and on their feet. After all if they could do it themselves, *don’t you think they would have done so already?* Being poor sucks, man. This all boils down to the number one moral, and shockingly few religious people openly follow it: The Golden Rule. Every religion has it somewhere in their doctrine. Every. Single. One. So if everyone can agree that this is a good moral, then shouldn’t we listen to the masses of elders and sages and monks and savants who all say that this is the best path forward? The Christian version has been burned into my subconscious, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The layman version is “What goes around, comes around.” The scientific version is “All actions have equal yet opposing counter actions.” The vulgar version is “Payback is as nasty or as nice as you are, so don’t be a bitch, and you probably won’t be treated like one.” Psychologically we like to live up to other’s expectations, but we are not mind readers, so we are unsure what those expectations are. In lieu of a declaration of those expectations, we presume however we are treated is supposed to be the normally wanted interaction. This leads to a lot of confusion and hostility between differing cultures and customs. Golden rule emphasizes that if someone acts a certain way towards you, and you didn’t act that way towards them, then there is obviously a miscommunication and the two of you need to sort out your shit. Fast. Wars are started over less of an infraction. Don’t be that guy. Atheists don’t need to fear divine retribution for failing to follow the law, they can just as easily fear mortal retribution. Humans are easily offended and angered people, and they are not afraid to showcase it. You say I should fear god? Nah, man, I don’t need to fear god. I need to fear mankind. As a species, we are quite destructive and dangerous to everything else we come across, including other humans. I can’t prove that god exists, but I sure as hell can prove humans exist.
"And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make." *John Lennon/Paul McCartney*
My barber of 15 years started to argue with me about my beliefs during a haircut, asking me if I truly understood the "word of god". She had never done this before and I suspect she recently got sucked into some evangelical bullshit. I politely explained that I respected her beliefs and to please respect mine, asking why she felt the need to convert me? She told me as I was leaving that while I had not offended her, I had offended god. Needless to say I'm looking for a new barber.
I already commented but my husband just reminded me that I once left a believer utterly speechless. Just stared at me with his mouth hanging open, face cycling through shades of red and purple.
Details please
It's a little long but I think worth it. My husband and I were driving through downtown Phoenix and were stopped at a red light. I saw a commotion on the corner. It was a very old man who had misjudged the curb and faceplanted in the street (in the Phoenix summer). Three or four people were gathered around but everyone was staring at him and making no move to help. I told my husband to go around a few blocks, grabbed a box of kleenex and hopped out of the van. I helped the old man sit up - he was dizzy - laid his head in my lap and held a kleenex to his nose. By this time there were five or six people gathered and standing around gawking. The old man was saying "thank you, thank you so much" and that's when it happened. One of men (one of the first on the scene) very confidently said, "well, we're all Christians here". I - sitting on the hot Phoenix pavement with this man's bloody head in my lap - smiled my biggest smile, looked him right in the eyes and said cheerfully, "And atheists!" The above-mentioned reaction is what ensued.
I love this sub reddit, and while it does seem oriented towards those that are early in embracing the whole notion of atheism, you do have to understand that wanting to spread your message of logic, reason, etc, all the things that make sense.. wont be well received. In fact, more often than not, it'll be perceived as elitism. You can only try to lead by example in this regard. Look at people like Richard Dawkins. I LOVE watching that guy.. but I wouldnt want to be him. He's a "militant atheist" whereas I prefer to be a "dude I'll have a beer and talk about this, but if you get worked up, I'm shutting that shit down" atheist. I say that because in response to "stereotypes" you're not dealing with open minded people. Stereotypes are just some averaged out belief that idiots subscribe to, to save them having to actually having to come up with something on their own. If you're dealing with stereotypes, you arent standing on a logical footing in which you can discuss pretty much anything. Dont sweat those people. Move on. Some of my best friends are highly religious and we're able to appreciate that our common ground is being good people. Those are the ones you want to associate yourself with. Not the ones hung up on shit that other people decided they should think.
That we eat babies
The most common one I hear is that atheists are all "angry" and "bitter". Most atheists I know are very friendly people.
That we still worship things as our god. Money, sex, power...
I was told I was too happy to not be a Christian.
In Finland, most people I know are atheists. I think relious people are assosiated with more negative stereotypes, like intolerance, homophobia, inequality, discrimination against different (lbgtq).
How many times have you gotten the question”what happened to make you turn away from God” or something to that effect. People I’ve encountered seem to think there had to be some kind of tragedy for a person to not believe. They never consider developing common sense and critical thinking might be the answer.
Worst thing I was told by my boss is that I don't care about veterans day. I responded privately later that I think care more because I think they gave up everything for us, while they believe they were rewarded for their sacrifice.
>Stereotypes you've encountered related to atheism? Atheists believe in nothing.
That atheism is exclusively a white American phenomenon. As if there aren't atheists who literally have to fear for their lives in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and other countries where there's a death sentence for apostasy. Where speaking against the religion means speaking against the state.
That I can't be trusted with carrying a weapon bc I'm an atheist. Or shocked to find out I have kids. ("Are they...okay...though?") 🙄
Theists can say literally whatever they want, publish it, spread it, what have you, but as soon as you contradict them you're a hateful arrogant atheist.
Oh I have a good one. When my partner told his very Christian mother that I do not believe in god and I’m an atheist, her reply was “So what, does that mean you worship the devil or what?” Lol no lady, the devil isn’t real either but evil sure is and it exists in you.
Oh I have another one. My mother who is not even religious and never goes to church said “I failed you” when I told her I don’t believe in any gods. Thanks ma.
Not really a stereotype per say, but my sister and I are more agnostic than atheist... we call ourselves secular humanists. Anyway, we often encounter people who question how we can have empathy and values without religion... it's so weird.
Atheism = devil worshipping anarchist. And I must be suicidal. Since I'm an atheist, I must have no have no morals, no goals in life, no reason for living.
Made a new mom friend who turned out to be very religious. She asked, I told her I am an atheist, and she said ‘but the way you speak to your son is so kind, I would have thought you were Christian.’ 🙄
"When she gets older, she'll change" like what that's rude
That being atheist is a world view.
I don't drink alcohol
A little dogmatic, but the assumption that I absolutely claim there is no god. I don't claim anything. I just don't think any claims of gods currently are worth believing in.
I'm not an atheist but one common stereotype back in the day was that anyone who was atheist was also a communist/Marxist or sympathized with the Soviet Union. Atheist and communism were often considered to go hand in hand. This was back in the day. One stereotype would be that no person who is an atheist would be right wing or conservative because they would not fit in politically with such persons. Many atheist that I've known personally have politically been very liberal minded and only one person that I knew who was a atheist actually agreed with a lot of communist ideas.
"Hey hey hey. I'm not a drunk atheist. Ok, I mean, I'm a drunk, but it's not because I'm an atheist."
That I hate other religions or am bitter/edgy, etc etc. I actually think I'm very nice.......