Ahhh yes, I expected GAF to be extremely defensive about this and you guys didn't disappoint.
Great for Mark.
Seems to me like it's a mixed bag on "defensiveness", with many calling those out that called him out, but dang that old GAF anyway.
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Mark Zuckerberg Says He's No Longer An Atheist, Believes "Religion Is Very Important"
- Thread starter Jasper
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Seems to me like it's a mixed bag on "defensiveness", with many calling those out that called him out, but dang that old GAF anyway.
As soon as Santa came along, that was the end of a religious day. Santa is the only figure prayed to on that day by most anybody.
But anyway, people can believe what they want. I mostly get annoyed with the "stop saying happy holidays" people that don't celebrate Christmas correctly anyway.
Brawly Likes to Brawl
Member
I don't understand why people still do this.
Yup, this is what I think he meant/means.
MarkMclovin
Member
His answer is pretty good.
Ahhh yes, I expected GAF to be extremely defensive about this and you guys didn't disappoint.
Great for tabata.
Airola
Member
I think the only ambiguous thing in that was which religion he is leaning towards.
Him not being an atheist anymore seems to be very clear:
"Aren't you an atheist?"
"No."
If he'd still be an atheist and would try to take steps around it and sound ambiguous, he would've just said "I think religion is important" without the "no" part.
Also, there are people who don't feel they follow any religion but they still believe in a metaphysical creator.
True, an outward atheist has about a good a chance of winning the US presidency as I do of getting a date with Emilia Clarke, but it will still be hard if he identifies as Jewish. People tried to demonize JFK cause he was Catholic saying he was going to take offers from the Pope. There are also large sections of the US where just like they won't vote for a black man, and they won't vote for a woman, they won't vote for a Jewish man of background or faith.
Bounceounce
Member
I didn't question my religion because I was interested in distancing myself from authority, I was incredibly non rebellious as a middle and highschooler, it was the logical conclusion of me questioning concepts/beliefs from the moment I convinced the other boys in my class that cooties weren't real in first grade, all the way to when I questioned Santa's authenticity and broke the news he wasn't real to a friend and polled my class to see who believed in him still and not.
It was the result of trying to convince my friend to come to my Baptist church with me in 6th grade while my Jehovah's Witness tried to convince him to go to his and realizing that there was truly no greater reason for him to go to mine or any reason why my church was the proper one.
It was the result of reading my Bible and questioning it, asking questions, seeing my church friends deciding to get baptized and become official members of the church and feeling like they didn't really grasp what was going on and that they just felt like they needed to do it culturally, of reading religious debates online, and hearing the pastor and reverend speak blatantly false stuff.
Utimately by 8th grade I fully checked out of religious belief despite not having an issue with the people at my church (they're kind folks) as it just didn't make sense or coincide with my morals, but there was no rebellion, only thing I did is refuse to set foot in the church again.
Plenty of young people fall out of religious belief through simple questioning and not as an act of rebellion, and I don't see how those two are mutually exclusive.
How's that effect your opinion on the millions of people who stick to one religion?
Why is that worse than people that convert?
Maybe I don't understand, because my op stated specifically religions and adults, not children and something else.
Critical thinking indeed.
CrocMother
Banned
Sounds like he is gearing up for a political run. Why else would anyone care what Mark Zuckerberg's religious beliefs are.
It is such a weird holiday to be so polarizing. It is a religious holiday full of different ethnic traditions that originally usurped another "religion's" holiday and that has become a secular/cultural/marketing holiday. It is this weird conglomerate holiday that disparate groups of people can be offended about for different reasons.
Adam_Vania
Banned
good for Zuck.
it shouldn't even be an on/off thing. people are not computers. imo it's best when everyone tried to educate themselves and leaves tribalism at the door.
fwiw i don't see how anyone can pretend to be scientifically minded and then ignore the predominant world culture of the past 2000 years.
it shouldn't even be an on/off thing. people are not computers. imo it's best when everyone tried to educate themselves and leaves tribalism at the door.
fwiw i don't see how anyone can pretend to be scientifically minded and then ignore the predominant world culture of the past 2000 years.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
Who ignores anything? Angry atheists spend more time thinking about religion than virtually all religious practitioners.
Sunster
Member
and feminism. idk why but youtube has showed me that angry atheists really hate feminism.
Heavy's Sandvich
Member
do i have to take my poster down of him for being an atheist icon? he was between Harris and Gervais, the mount rushmore of enlightened people.
MrS
Banned
Same
A smart guy want for nothing? Yes.
But I don't see that he does it for a political career. An atheist RINO sleazeball was just elected for office and the conservative Christians were ecstatic. Nobody cares for religion anymore as long as you sling dirt at your group's opponent.
Melkezadek
Member
Generalizing is fine as long as you don't do it with religious people it seems.
Adam_Vania
Banned
you need to realize that asking questions of religion is not something invented by atheists, it is a long part of religion itself. we are talking thousands of years worth of commentary, debate, philosophy, etc. angry atheists probably convinced themselves they spend more time thinking about it but this ironically wouldn't be the first time they believed something that doesn't exist.
Hmm, well personally I don't care one way or the other honestly, but, I think that it's just as easy to see how somebody saying Merry Christmas or even denying atheism doesn't mean that they found religion which I think is the point many of these people are making. If he did, then he did. But its a vague statement without much meaning.
Spartancarver
Member
Not nearly as much as angry Christians and Muslims, trust me ^_^
Count Dookkake
Member
I have just a teensy bit of doubt regarding a claim that the percentage of misogynists is higher among atheists than among the religious.
I mean, lol. Check your history books, religious texts, or newspapers.
I mean, lol. Check your history books, religious texts, or newspapers.
RoadHazard
Gold Member
Hmmmmmmmm what?
Yes, everyone should educate themselves, absolutely! The more educated and the less ignorant people we have, the more rational and enlightened and the less superstitious the world will become. Sounds great!
And who's ignoring what? Many atheists probably know more about religion X than most who practice it. It's important to know what you're talking about.
There's also the fact people celebrate Christmas from a secular standpoint (we always did) and Hanukkah might be a tradition and celebrating heritage.
Sunster
Member
I know you are correct but their videos are not thrown in my face like Sargon of Akkad and Amazing Atheist.
More Fun To Compute
Member
The more you research about religion the more angry you get. The scientologists have it right, almost none of their followers are told what their whole religious underpinning is. Everyone would love Lost way more if they just cancelled it at it's peak instead of trying to finish it. Ignorance is bliss, as everyone knows.
Brawly Likes to Brawl
Member
hm?
Atheists don't "ignore" religion. It's impossible to do that unless you live as a hermit and never communicate with people. A lot Atheists make such a transition after going through introspection of whatever faith they were raised on by their family.
Polioliolio
Member
What? The concept of not stealing probably came from one dude having his shit stolen and saying "wow, this sucks, we really shouldn't do that" and anyone with empathy agrees.
Brawly Likes to Brawl
Member
When I read claims like that I have to wonder how many people out there think Atheists have no moral compass.
Melkezadek
Member
I've been told that morality has been written on my heart by god. Even if I don't believe in it.
Ironically, I decided to dump religion entirely when I found out I was having my first child. I didn't/don't want him to go through the same trauma as I did growing up, fearing Hell for himself and for the ones he loves.
The idea of finding religion as an adult is very foreign to me. I get how people remain religious after being indoctrinated into it since childhood. It kinda becomes a part of you if you were raised that way. I guess I can also understand how the desperate and downtrodden are turned to religion. It makes sense how a prisoner can find religion while incarcerated. Desperation can cause people to look for new answers like that. For others, is it mainly about dealing with your eventual death?
It's like the "Obama is really atheist he just plays along" stuff from yrs back. Which is about as asinine as "Obama is really Muslim."
Good for Zuck I suppose, non-news imo.
As a kid grow up following religious orders from your parents. See religion as a bunch of tasks and chores and things to do
As a teen and young adult question those orders and gravitate towards atheism, freeing yourself from all those duties previously imposed
As an adult with a family and a new sense of your own mortality, return somewhat to religion for the warmth it provides
That somewhat describes me. I am certainly not religious now, never go to church or do any of the work associated with a religion. But atheism is often cold as shit, and anyone talking about it usually sounds angry and frigid. While religious people (not interested in converting anyone) seem much warmer and nicer and I wouldn't be surprised if I embraced that more as I get older. Especially as your health starts to go and you start thinking about what's next
When you got kids, mortgage, job.... ya just got enough shit to deal with that you just don't have the energy to be mad at religion anymore. Especially when the desired result of it is a happy sense of community and passing of life. Wouldn't be surprised if many others go through a similar path
As a teen and young adult question those orders and gravitate towards atheism, freeing yourself from all those duties previously imposed
As an adult with a family and a new sense of your own mortality, return somewhat to religion for the warmth it provides
That somewhat describes me. I am certainly not religious now, never go to church or do any of the work associated with a religion. But atheism is often cold as shit, and anyone talking about it usually sounds angry and frigid. While religious people (not interested in converting anyone) seem much warmer and nicer and I wouldn't be surprised if I embraced that more as I get older. Especially as your health starts to go and you start thinking about what's next
When you got kids, mortgage, job.... ya just got enough shit to deal with that you just don't have the energy to be mad at religion anymore. Especially when the desired result of it is a happy sense of community and passing of life. Wouldn't be surprised if many others go through a similar path
DontBeThatGuy
Member
It makes me wonder what their moral compass is actually, the people making those claims, considering they apparently need to be told not to be an insane dick.
BocoDragon
or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
I'd believe in God too if I found myself sitting on top of a world dominating technology in my early 20s.
More Fun To Compute
Member
Feminists are angry atheists so they hate themselves? You want to find the angry people who don't think that abortion should be legal or that they should be more restricted in what they can do in public than men?
My favorite is the ol' "you're not really an atheist; you believe in God, you're just lying to yourself".
RoadHazard
Gold Member
I hear and read about more hatred and intolerance spewed by religious people on a weekly basis than I think I have from atheists my entire life.
And there's nothing "cold" about being an atheist. There's all the warmth and wonder of life, the universe, etc, without any need to bring superstitions into it.
RoadHazard
Gold Member
Utter nonsense. The social contracts governing how we (should) treat each other were created by people, and initially sprang from an evolutionary need to get along and survive together as a group. There's a pretty obvious evolutionary advantage to the idea that you should not kill your neighbor, for example. Religion is not necessary to explain anything at all.
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
He can weasel very easily out of that hole by identifying as agnostic, or believing in mother nature or whatever.
Milly Osworth
Member
Its a phase that superrich go through, he will get sane again eventually.
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