ATHEISTS & BELIEVERS IN GOD: Why won't you live and let live?

I do.

After months of frustration, I decided to stay away from the Religion & Politics forums of Y!A. And the Beatles vs. One Direction debates.

I do hope you are very young and not completed your education yet!

Why are you even on here?

What do you not understand about this being an open forum‽

Surely you lack the tolerance and intellect to discuss and debate on a public forum - so feel free to leave!

But why not stay, grow your intellect and tolerance and become a better person!

Typical atheist: Because they won't get religion out of my public schools, and they won't let me run for office in Texas.

Typical christian: It's my duty to spread the word of the gospel, lest people forget and end up in hell. You choose to send yourself to hell, god wouldn't send you there (even though he lets the place exist), etc...free will, god cannot do evil! etc...

Meh. I don't care what people believe. Live and let live then. Life is often too absurd to hold such sententious moral grudges anyway, and as though there was only one right way to live for all. There doesn't seem to be, just many winding paths in life where perhaps there is no one right way, no truth but personal subjective truth.

False premise - at least from the atheist side.

'Believers in god' are told by their religion that it is their responsibility to share and spread the 'word of god'.

Some atheists might come across as 'evangelical', however it is mostly out of concern for the way that religion attempts to itself into legislation that affects everyone - not to mention high school science classrooms.

B/c these issues are too great of importance not to be talked about.

Atheist Penn Jillette;

“I’ve always said that I don’t respect people who don’t proselytize. I don’t respect that at all. If you believe that there’s a heaven and a hell, and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life, and you think that it’s not really worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward—and atheists who think people shouldn’t proselytize and who say just leave me along and keep your religion to yourself—how much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?

“I mean, if I believed, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that a truck was coming at you, and you didn’t believe that truck was bearing down on you, there is a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that.”

Because they try to force their beliefs on us through legislation!

If gay marriage was legal everywhere,

If laws weren't in place to tell a woman what she can and cannot do with her body,

If people weren't forced to pray or have a "moment of silence",

If atheists were not treated as second-class citizens,

If atheists were allowed to hold public office everywhere,

If no religion was endorsed over another

then and only then would I have absolutely no problem with religion.

As the believers we are put in this world to be salt and light for the darkness. If we keep to our selves and do not share the good news of Jesus, we could potentially be keeping someone out of heaven by NOT saying anything. Regardless if the flesh wants to believe, you HAVE a spirit that is trying to say yes to Jesus. If its not in the bible, if they cant back it up with scripture, it probably isn't truth.

For many atheists, it isn't a matter of proving people wrong ( I couldn't care less what anyone else chooses to believe), it's about keeping religious beliefs out of schools and legislation; beyond that, most don't care what you believe in or how you choose to worship.

You wana know why we won't sit back and just leave them alone? Because they won't leave us alone. I know that sounds petty, but it's true. And it's not petty. Theists of all kinds try to force us to follow their narrow little view of the world.

I refer to to this lovely little blog about why atheists are angry, and why that anger is justified: http://gretachristina.typepad.com/greta_christinas...

Kid... you don't mind if I call you 'kid', do you?

Kid, if you and your people didn't go to such extraordinary lengths to try to convince me and my people that all that imaginary little space chappie stuff was anything more than primitive superstition, you and your people would probably never hear from me and my people... just saying ;)

“Theists, especially Christians, try to control and restrict us based on their views.

If all Christians stop crusading against science, education, culture, art, sex and sexuality, religious freedom and such, stop dishonestly misrepresenting your beliefs as facts, and stop telling everybody else they're going to be tortured throughout eternity unless they join you, I assure you that you won't encounter nearly as much hostility.”

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