<jtem01@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1153130285.822278.277210@p79g2000cwp.googlegroups.com...

From:

http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/mathew/intro.html

| Atheism is characterized by an absence of belief in the
| existence of gods. This absence of belief generally
| comes about either through deliberate choice, or from
| an inherent inability to believe religious teachings which
| seem literally incredible. It is not a lack of belief born
| out of simple ignorance of religious teachings.

Now I understand that this is saying that atheists aren't
atheists because some proselytizing Christian hadn't
shared the "Good News" with them (so don't bother), but
but is that necessarily correct or relevant?

I myself have met a great many "coverts" in my life. Not
that these were all people who were raised as athists only
to later "find Jesus." Most were members of one religion
only to end up as members in another religion. Between
the two, there was usually some crisis of faith. Most
Wiccans I've encountered, for example, began as Christians.
And, yes, many simply traded in one religion for another,
but others completely lost one faith only later to discover
another. And in that sense they were really atheists (even
if for only a brief time) because they were ignorant of
alternative religious teachings.

The point is, why someone lacks a belief really doesn't
matter.

Then why did you post in alt.atheism?

One thing I have detected in some theists is an arrogance that seems to stem
from a certitude that 'God' truly exists. Why, given the evidence (or more
precisely, 'lack thereof') is this so? What basis is there for a person to
believe in 'God'. *You* certainly couldn't provide it. Even if your *life*
depended on it. When you add the figure 'Jesus' to the 'mix', your
assertions get even *more* preposterous. So, where did we atheists go wrong?
Why are we so despised as a group? Why the hostility towards us? We've
'enlightened' theists to the fact that their 'faith' and 'beliefs' are
groundless. We should be thanked for pointing out the error of the theist
way. It's as false as 'false' can be -- tired as I am of repeating this. The
theist position is built on sand. And hear that 'roar' in the distance? It's
a tsunami heading right for the theist's 'shore'. The theist is only
deceiving him or herself -- and in a very big way.

Greywolf