Read some Thomas Aquinas and see if it's all "child-like beliefs."
Fellow atheists/agnostics with young kids. What’s your play?
- Thread starter General Roman Malaise
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Read some Thomas Aquinas and see if it's all "child-like beliefs."
No one said it's "all" child-like beliefs. Aquinas's arguments justifying mistreatment of women and animals weren't child-like - just awful.Read some Thomas Aquinas and see if it's all "child-like beliefs."
Do you have a link? I know he didn't equate animals with humans although he didn't think they should be mistreated uncessarily.
(Cartman voice) Whateva, I was a few beverages deep when I made this post last night!
Anywho, back to the original topic. I agree 100% that children should be taught the Golden Rule, kindness, charity, and empathy. Whether that’s under the umbrella of organized religion or not is up to the parents. My question was less about how we teach our kids these values in a non-faith household, and more about how folks in our same position help their kids be open-minded and feel ok asking questions without telling them we think they’ll be wormfood someday and nobody 50 years after their death will care they ever existed.
Just lighthearted stuff like that.
Yeah, my wife’s parents are of very strong faith and all 3 of our kids went to a Presbyterian preschool for 2-3 years each. So they have a working knowledge of the basic concepts of Christianity, especially creation and heaven (which I also recall being my biggest fascinations when I was in the 8-12 years old range). We keep waiting for them to ask why we don’t go to church when several of their friends go frequently, but so far that hasn’t come up.
It's pretty dark thinking we'll all be worm food and forgotten in a few decades.
In a sense, Christianity is darker because the Bible teaches that many, many people will end up in torment after death.
faith
/fāTH/
1.complete trust or confidence in someone or something.
"this restores one's faith in politicians"
A universe where God does not exist is something.
The original comment was about following (believing) in science. There is no proof that life and the universe began from nothing and just happened. There was a backhanded comment about religion and science. No proof of either in that context.
Christianity teaches that God in his divine wisdom and power
created the universe. This world with oceans, mountains, forests,
and fields with birds, animals, and fish is no accident. The miracle
of the human body did not evolve but was created by God.
The fact of day and night, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter, with
sunshine, rain, and snow are part of God's creation. Yes, God placed
the Sun, Moon, and Stars in their orbit. Only an almighty and majestic
God could have created this universe.
created the universe. This world with oceans, mountains, forests,
and fields with birds, animals, and fish is no accident. The miracle
of the human body did not evolve but was created by God.
The fact of day and night, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter, with
sunshine, rain, and snow are part of God's creation. Yes, God placed
the Sun, Moon, and Stars in their orbit. Only an almighty and majestic
God could have created this universe.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with allowing kids to be exposed to different belief systems. For me, I believe in being honest and teaching kids how to apply critical thinking skills while forming their own opinions and beliefs.
It is incredibly stupid and shows an egregious lack of self awareness. Everyone is an atheist at some level, unless you believe in Yahweh and Jesus as well as Allah, Krishna, etc. Everyone denies many gods. That’s a form of atheism.
IMO, atheism is simply stating there is insufficient evidence to believe in a god of theology.
And you have no proof of your god either. Take it easy.
Very few, if any, atheists believe that. The alternative to a belief in a god of theology is not nothing from nothing. This is a common misconception religious people have.
I've never been religious but my mom was as are many friends. I just never over thought it. Believing seems to bring joy to those that are into that stuff so as long as someone doesn't get into my face about insisting I go to church or snatching like that I don't sweat it.
I can enjoy Christmas bow my head when in a setting someone leads prayer etc... and not feel weird about it.
I can enjoy Christmas bow my head when in a setting someone leads prayer etc... and not feel weird about it.
I’m more of an agnostic, I have more own beliefs, but definitively do not believe in the Christian god. The wife went to church when she was really young, but never went again.
We sent our daughter to a public elementary school in CR for her first few years, it was a mess at the time. We decided after that to send her to Trinity Lutheran. My sister’s daughter went there and they really liked it. My sister and her husband aren’t religious either.
My daughter got baptized in 5th grade, her choice, and completed confirmation. Trinity only goes to 8th grade and she goes to a public high school now.
My personal belief is that she’s on her own journey in life. She can make her own decisions on her beliefs. We didn’t force her into any decisions either way. (Trinity doesn’t require students to be baptized, complete confirmation, or attend church. I would say roughly half the kids do not). She still attends weekly youth group activities at the church.
I will say this, the sense of community and the eagerness to donate time to either the church or school, in my opinion, was much higher than the public schools. Maybe because it was a Lutheran school instead of a Catholic school, but the religious aspects didn’t seem to be pushed as hard.
We sent our daughter to a public elementary school in CR for her first few years, it was a mess at the time. We decided after that to send her to Trinity Lutheran. My sister’s daughter went there and they really liked it. My sister and her husband aren’t religious either.
My daughter got baptized in 5th grade, her choice, and completed confirmation. Trinity only goes to 8th grade and she goes to a public high school now.
My personal belief is that she’s on her own journey in life. She can make her own decisions on her beliefs. We didn’t force her into any decisions either way. (Trinity doesn’t require students to be baptized, complete confirmation, or attend church. I would say roughly half the kids do not). She still attends weekly youth group activities at the church.
I will say this, the sense of community and the eagerness to donate time to either the church or school, in my opinion, was much higher than the public schools. Maybe because it was a Lutheran school instead of a Catholic school, but the religious aspects didn’t seem to be pushed as hard.
Mom had a fallng out with the Catholic church when her Dad died. My grandfather raised all his kids catholic and never missed church. He's the kind of guy who would come back from vacation Saturday so he could go to his home church on Sundays because going to the vacation towns local church wasn't the same. I later found out my grandfather got divorced about 9 months after being married because his wife was having an affair, but he never annulled his marriage. When he was dying of cancer, the priest at mayo clinic refused to give him his last rights because he'd been living in sin for all those 45+ years of being married to my grandma. It's really all he really wanted before dying. Mom said she and her kids would never step foot in church again.
Fast forward, I struggled for years as a kid when others seemed to be religious and it meant nothing to me. I minored in religion in college to find out what I believed. Turns out studying religion teaches you they are all very similar.
My wife was raised conservative and very religious. She's now non practicing due to gaffe by the church- spending outrageous amounts on churches but not helping the poor (go look at the Vatican sometime), priest cover ups, hypocrisy of religious people.
We told our kids they were free to believe what they want. If you don't go to church you lose the indoctrination and they're unlikely to see the necessity of church and religion.
My kids started to come home and say thing like if we lived in Saudi Arabia we'd be Muslim. Or, "why would all the people before JC go to hell simply because they didn't follow him before he even existed." It all comes down to logic and when a 12 year old can figure it out there isn't much else to say.
Biggest issue is dealing with other kids who tell your children they're going to hell, not fitting in with religious after school stuff/camps/etc., and participating in things like scouts with a Christian slant.
Fast forward, I struggled for years as a kid when others seemed to be religious and it meant nothing to me. I minored in religion in college to find out what I believed. Turns out studying religion teaches you they are all very similar.
My wife was raised conservative and very religious. She's now non practicing due to gaffe by the church- spending outrageous amounts on churches but not helping the poor (go look at the Vatican sometime), priest cover ups, hypocrisy of religious people.
We told our kids they were free to believe what they want. If you don't go to church you lose the indoctrination and they're unlikely to see the necessity of church and religion.
My kids started to come home and say thing like if we lived in Saudi Arabia we'd be Muslim. Or, "why would all the people before JC go to hell simply because they didn't follow him before he even existed." It all comes down to logic and when a 12 year old can figure it out there isn't much else to say.
Biggest issue is dealing with other kids who tell your children they're going to hell, not fitting in with religious after school stuff/camps/etc., and participating in things like scouts with a Christian slant.
There are answers to all those questions. It sounds like your Grandfather had a bad priest, unfortunately. There are thousands of good ones.
Every group has bad people in it. I don't think Muslims are going to Hell just because they're Muslims and nor do most churches.
There are thousands of free articles here with answers. It's a radio show in San Diego.
www.catholic.com
Did All the People Who Died Prior to Jesus Go to Hell?
Is it true that all the people who died prior to Jesus (including Moses and Abraham) went to hell? What does the Catholic Church teach? Click here.
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a wordy version of this:
“I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.”
― Stephen Roberts
Amen.Those other gods are myths.
Jesus is real.
There are answers to all those questions. It sounds like your Grandfather had a bad priest, unfortunately. There are thousands of good ones.
Every group has bad people in it. I don't think Muslims are going to Hell just because they're Muslims and nor do most churches.
There are thousands of free articles here with answers. It's a radio show in San Diego.
www.catholic.com
Did All the People Who Died Prior to Jesus Go to Hell?
Is it true that all the people who died prior to Jesus (including Moses and Abraham) went to hell? What does the Catholic Church teach? Click here.www.catholic.com
When I was agnostic/atheist, I brought up the same common questions like @Urohawk and his family did; little did I know there are good answers to them.
Those other gods are myths.
Jesus is real.
The other myths are no less plausible than your favorite.
The other myths are no less plausible than your favorite.
The other "gods" like Zeus and Thor didn't exist. Jesus did.
And Jesus's was crucified. That's a historical fact and it was brutal...it was hardly giving up a weekend.
I have the same proof for Quetzalcoatl that you do for Noah and the flood.
Muhammed existed too.
He was brutal.
Doesn't mean he was divine, or divinely inspired.
Noah and the flood were probably metaphors.
Mohammad did exist. He was also a warlord that married a 6 year old girl when he was 53. He had 11 other wives and promised his followers women in the afterlife.
He wasn't really credible.
It's 'metaphors' all the way down, baby!
To you, and that's the point Stephen Roberts was making.
There are almost 2 billion people as convinced about him as you are about Jesus.
I'm convinced y'all just have inferiority complexes.
A mystic is a man who surrendered his mind at its first encounter with the minds of others. Somewhere in the distant reaches of his childhood, when his own understanding of reality clashed with the assertions of others, with their arbitrary orders and contradictory demands, he gave in to so craven a fear of independence that he renounced his rational faculty. At the crossroads of the choice between “I know” and “They say,” he chose the authority of others, he chose to submit rather than to understand, to believe rather than to think. Faith in the supernatural begins as faith in the superiority of others. His surrender took the form of the feeling that he must hide his lack of understanding, that others possess some mysterious knowledge of which he alone is deprived, that reality is whatever they want it to be, through some means forever denied to him.
Sure, some people are right and some people are wrong. Mohammad is pretty easy to discredit.
And if you atheists are right, you'll never even know when you're dead. You won't get bragging rights.
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WHO TOLD YOU ABOUT THE VEIL!!?!?!You'll never find out this side of the veil, brah.
Seriously, the world over people made up stories to explain what they could not.
e.g. What happens when you die.
What you choose to believe in this regard is simply an artifact of where you grew up.
If you were born in Yemen you'd be a muslim.
If you born in Norway a 1000 years ago you'd believe in Thor, Valhalla, etc.
Some people figure this out for themselves after the Santa Claus myth is busted.
Many don't.
Please...stop regurgitating silly atheist memes.
Truth has nothing to do with location of birth.
I could say the same about you...you're an atheist because you live in America, which is an atheist country now.
You will never know the truth IF atheism is true.
Obviously.
Here's a quote from the greatest scientist of all time about atheism:
"The Supreme God is a Being eternal, infinite, and absolutely perfect. Opposition to godliness is atheism in profession and idolatry in practice. Atheism is so senseless and odious to mankind that it never had many professors."
- Sir Isaac Newton
What's 'perfect' about letting an Aztec priest carve out some child's heart?
