Why are Atheists so obsessed with hating Christians?

[Gibsons]

This is why:
http://youtu.be/cUXDKnL4xGE
This is what you all sound like when we ask the hard questions.

The sermon she's defending
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2n7vSPwhSU&feature=player_embedded

 

[AnonymouseUser]

Honestly, I've never met anyone in my 37 years on this earth, either in passing or friends or members of my family who have tried to convert anyone from one religion to another or from no religion to theirs. This is a common argument from the atheist side as to why they try to justify their agenda of hating religion, but it has no merit. If you don't want to practice a faith, then fine, that's your call, but I'm with the OP on this, don't hate on my beliefs in an effort to try to justify yours.

I have first-hand experience in this. I was born atheist (we all are), indoctrinated into the Christian cult at a young age, went to church regularly until ~18, and still held onto those beliefs for many years before I straight up quit believing (thus returning to my atheist roots). I had many religious conversations in those years, and have tried converting others myself (though never did door-to-door ministry thankfully), and have had many others try to convert me to their choice of cult. It. Happens. All. The. Time.

 

[rivan]

Pretty sure this has been prohibited longer than 37 years (although if he was 57 you'd have a valid point).

Sure, prayer was removed, about the time 'under God' was added to the pledge, said every morning and afternoon of my gradeschool experience in the 70s. The same Pledge that my daughter says every morning in grade school today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pledge_of_Allegiance

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

 

[destrekor]

Sure, prayer was removed, about the time 'under God' was added to the pledge, said every morning and afternoon of my gradeschool experience in the 70s. The same Pledge that my daughter says every morning in grade school today.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pledge_of_Allegiance

We have far too many Cold War legacies that have proven worthless and counter-intuitive to the "American Way."
Our closet needs a drastic cleaning session.

 

[WelshBloke]

... This is legitimate towards your point, but it's also pretty trivial tbh. No worse than the political proselytizers on campus or anywhere else.

RE the door to door stuff: Can you imagine the level of butt hurt if atheists went round door to door telling people that their religion was a farce. I'm guessing that a lot of religious types wouldn't think that was trivial. The level of "war on Christians" complaints would be epic.

 

[Puppies04]

Are you dumb?



Before you mock someone else's intelligence, make sure your own house is in order.

And before you assume everyone in the world speaks American maybe you can remove your head from your anus long enough to try googling a word before you go of on a rant about it and make yourself look dumber than you are.

 

[Pia]

I am an atheist and my girlfriend is christian, she can believe what she wants. I honestly don't care.

I would not mind dating someone religious, even very deeply religious, but before committing I would have to know they are willing and able to keep parenting strictly secular. If my kids eventually choose to be religious in some way or another, fine, but indoctrinating them is a no-no.

I wonder how large part of Christians/Muslims/whatever would be fine with that.

 

[CRXican]

All I can say is I've never had Atheists come knock on my door. The bible thumpers on the other hand are around far too often.

 

[micrometers]

I have first-hand experience in this. I was born atheist (we all are), indoctrinated into the Christian cult at a young age, went to church regularly until ~18, and still held onto those beliefs for many years before I straight up quit believing (thus returning to my atheist roots). I had many religious conversations in those years, and have tried converting others myself (though never did door-to-door ministry thankfully), and have had many others try to convert me to their choice of cult. It. Happens. All. The. Time.

exactly. Most atheists as envisioned by the OP really are disillusioned Christians. Many atheists are also firmly within the Christian framework.

 

[polarmystery]

I would not mind dating someone religious, even very deeply religious, but before committing I would have to know they are willing and able to keep parenting strictly secular. If my kids eventually choose to be religious in some way or another, fine, but indoctrinating them is a no-no.

I wonder how large part of Christians/Muslims/whatever would be fine with that.

Christian women are demons in the sack.

 

[AFurryReptile]

Christian women are demons in the sack.

Only because it's "wrong." Once they marry, things go straight back to hell

 

[polarmystery]

Only because it's "wrong." Once they marry, things go straight back to hell

*High Five* :awe:

 

[Jaepheth]

I think for most atheists it's really more of a hobby than an obsession.

 

[Aikouka]

I would not mind dating someone religious, even very deeply religious, but before committing I would have to know they are willing and able to keep parenting strictly secular. If my kids eventually choose to be religious in some way or another, fine, but indoctrinating them is a no-no.

I wonder how large part of Christians/Muslims/whatever would be fine with that.

At least down here, a lot of Christians seem unwilling to date an unsaved person, because of the whole unequally yoked verse in The Bible. Although, I personally think they're just misunderstanding it, which wouldn't come at much of a surprise. The point of that verse is to tell you to avoid someone who will lead you astray, but if the other person doesn't care, then you can "keep along your path."

 

[sourceninja]

I honestly feel I don't attack religion so much as I attack people with hateful and bigoted world views. People who try to take freedom and liberty away from people in the name of of some book they believe to be fact. I attack people who justify their hatred with parts of their faith while explaining away why they don't follow the other horrible parts.

Christians get the brunt of this attack because they are the majority of idiots like this I run into. If the US suddenly got a influx of muslim or buddhist people who tried the same thing, I would attack them as well.

Overall I think this problem stems from blind faith as a whole. Politics are just as bad as religion in using belief where we should be using facts. An atheist left wing democrat can be just as bad as a christian right republican. Why? Because political ideology is no different than religion, it causes people to be blinded by facts and logic and instead base their notions of how the world should be on the whims of some stranger, who may or may not give a shit about you. All of this leads to polarization and holds the whole world back from advancement.

So if I'm attacking you, it's not because your a christian. I'm attacking you because I think you have hateful, ignorant, and stupid views.

 

[SlitheryDee]

I can't think of any time that I've actually hated a Christian for being a christian. I usually hate people for much more mundane reasons, such as being evil bastards. Most Christians are not evil bastards. Almost all of them are infuriatingly thick skull-ed when it comes to thinking critically about religion though. They don't want to give up something that they can't adequately explain or defend, which results in ideas like the one expressed in the OP of this thread.

"We don't want to have to defend the way we think the entire universe works. We just want to believe it. I mean, what's the harm? It's just a fundamental idea about the nature of everything. Not even worth debating really..."

 

[Pia]

At least down here, a lot of Christians seem unwilling to date an unsaved person, because of the whole unequally yoked verse in The Bible. Although, I personally think they're just misunderstanding it, which wouldn't come at much of a surprise. The point of that verse is to tell you to avoid someone who will lead you astray, but if the other person doesn't care, then you can "keep along your path."

But of the Christians who would be willing to date an "unsaved" person, how many do you think would go along with their children growing up in "unsaved" status (at least until the children are in their teens and are capable of making their own choices)?

 

[slayer202]

Not attacking religion is accepting it. It has a negative impact on the world and it's irresponsible to take an "I don't care" stand. The nice moderate religious folk clear the way for the nutjobs(and there are LOTS of them even if you're fortunate enough to live in the more civilized parts of the country/world).

People going door to door trying to convert people is very tame in comparison to what has been done and is being done in the name of religion.

 

[Aikouka]

But of the Christians who would be willing to date an "unsaved" person, how many do you think would go along with their children growing up in "unsaved" status (at least until the children are in their teens and are capable of making their own choices)?

Wouldn't making a kid wait be the best idea? A child doesn't truly understand the concepts, which makes me ask how can they truly accept the religion's teachings?

 

[slayer202]

Wouldn't making a kid wait be the best idea? A child doesn't truly understand the concepts, which makes me ask how can they truly accept the religion's teachings?

The only way to brainwash them is to start at an early age

 

[SlitheryDee]

Wouldn't making a kid wait be the best idea? A child doesn't truly understand the concepts, which makes me ask how can they truly accept the religion's teachings?

“Give me the child until he is seven and I’ll give you the man”. ~St. Francis Xavier

 

[Atomic Playboy]

“Give me the child until he is seven and I’ll give you the man”. ~St. Francis Xavier

Given the age we live in, with all the scandals that have rocked the church with the abuse of altar boys, this sentence reads very differently than it may have in the past.

 

[slag]

Are you blind deaf and dumb?

*You have never driven past a chuch with a sign outside with some thinly veiled threat about what happens to non-believers?

*You have never seen a religious nutjob with a placard stood at the side of the road?

*You have never seen a news report of christians protesting outside a soldiers funeral?

*You didn't have to join in prayers at school?

*You haven't been asked to attend a church for "X" amount of services because you want to get married there (or if you are male because your partner wants to get married in a church)?

*A believer has never knocked on your door asking if you have time to talk about your lord and savior?

Of course you are already a christian so none of this would bother you, but trust me it pisses the rest of the world off. By the way your magic book specifically tells you to go out and convert non believers, some christian you are.

P.S I swear on my mothers life I just walked back from doing some shopping in town with my wife less than 2 hours ago and there was a group of 12 jehovas witnesses walking down the street knocking on doors. Got home and had a lovely leaflet to put in the bin.

If you want to walk through life with blinkers on that is your choice but the proof is all around you.

You raise some important points, but let me address some of them.

I dont consider a church putting a bible verse or "witty" remark as someone speaking directly to me trying to convert me. If it doesn't pertain to me, I just ignore it, just as a commercial for maxi pads doesn't pertain to me. Why would it piss me off?

I have never had to join in a prayer at a school unless I wanted to. I was free to not do it.

People protesting outside a soldier's funeral are not Christians, although they claim to be. They are misguided and again, are protesting the funeral based on their beliefs, not the beliefs of God.

I've never seen a nutjob under the guise of Christianity or the church on a roadside trying to convert anyone.

"You haven't been asked to attend a church for "X" amount of services because you want to get married there (or if you are male because your partner wants to get married in a church)?"

This has happened to me. I had forgotten about this one

"A believer has never knocked on your door asking if you have time to talk about your lord and savior?"

Yes, but boy scouts also come to my door as do girl scouts, siding replacement people, UPS drivers, the mailman, etc. I simply tell the people I do not want to talk to that I'm not interested. I'm not a mormon, but it doesn't piss me off that they come to my door.

 

[SlitheryDee]

You raise some important points, but let me address some of them.

I dont consider a church putting a bible verse or "witty" remark as someone speaking directly to me trying to convert me. If it doesn't pertain to me, I just ignore it, just as a commercial for maxi pads doesn't pertain to me. Why would it piss me off?

Every week the church across the street from me has a different message. Most of them clearly are meant to pertain to everyone. Not just the members of that church. Not just christians. They'll say things like "Friends don't let friends go to hell", or "Eternity is a long time to think about where you went wrong". Whether I think these pertain to me or not is irrelevant when the sign makers clearly think it does. I can't change the nature of the sign by pretending the writers were just talking to their congregation any more than Christians can make god exists by wishing for him really hard.

I have never had to join in a prayer at a school unless I wanted to. I was free to not do it.

This never really bothered me that much. They stopped doing it in my school when I was in the 6th or 7th grade. I see now that an "official" time for prayer in public schools does imply support for religion that doesn't belong in any government organization, but I still can't manage to get worked up about it too much. I was already an atheist before they stopped leading prayers over the PA in my schools, so it didn't really do anything for me at all I suppose.

People protesting outside a soldier's funeral are not Christians, although they claim to be. They are misguided and again, are protesting the funeral based on their beliefs, not the beliefs of God.

This is a logical fallacy. They believe they are christians, and they likely have many reasons directly from the bible for behaving as they do. They would probably say that YOU are not the true christian because you don't support them. Who are you to decide who is and who isn't a christian? This is commonly know as the No True Scotsman fallacy.

I've never seen a nutjob under the guise of Christianity or the church on a roadside trying to convert anyone.

I don't recall seeing anyone on a roadside, but a definite nutjob used to set up shop outside the union at LSU and scream at passersby for being carnal and sinful. I have also had more normal people come to me in my place of work and inquire about the state of my soul as though this should be a great conversation starter or something.

"You haven't been asked to attend a church for "X" amount of services because you want to get married there (or if you are male because your partner wants to get married in a church)?"

This has happened to me. I had forgotten about this one

That sucks, but I would have no trouble doing it. Churches don't exist just for people to get married in. It's kind of crappy for someone who never goes to church to suddenly show up and want to get hitched there.

"A believer has never knocked on your door asking if you have time to talk about your lord and savior?"

Yes, but boy scouts also come to my door as do girl scouts, siding replacement people, UPS drivers, the mailman, etc. I simply tell the people I do not want to talk to that I'm not interested. I'm not a mormon, but it doesn't piss me off that they come to my door.

It pisses me off because everyone except the religious proselytizers at least intends to exchange value for value. My money for something tangible is always better than my life for a hope of a myth.

 

[Puppies04]

"A believer has never knocked on your door asking if you have time to talk about your lord and savior?" Yes, but boy scouts also come to my door as do girl scouts, siding replacement people, UPS drivers, the mailman, etc. I simply tell the people I do not want to talk to that I'm not interested. I'm not a mormon, but it doesn't piss me off that they come to my door.

Seriously, if you don't see the difference between a group of boy scouts or a double glazing salesman coming to your door to either raise money for charity or try to get you to buy something and a person trying to get you to change your entire life to follow the teachings of a cosmic jewish zombie who was his own father which involves telepathically teling him you love him and drinking his symbolic blood then I will leave this conversation where it is.