Why does God allow natural disasters?

[Feck]

As "Atheists" We do have a few problems mostly because the moderate "nice " religious people cannot see that they are doing anything but good . Why should we be so keen to tell other people what to believe in? What harm does moderate religion do ? Why are we such a noisy minority ? Isn't it just the latest thing ?
Telling the vast majority of people that their long held beliefs are fairy stories is never going to be popular is it ? What we are doing is taking the vague hopes and fears that most people have clung to for generations and holding them up to a cold rational light and saying "What you believe in is STUPID !

Most Believers are as appalled by the terrible things done in the name of God as we are, but we are just rocking the boat too much for their moderate mild views.

[klr]

As "Atheists" We do have a few problems mostly because the moderate "nice " religious people cannot see that they are doing anything but good . Why should we be so keen to tell other people what to believe in? What harm does moderate religion do ? Why are we such a noisy minority ? Isn't it just the latest thing ?
Telling the vast majority of people that their long held beliefs are fairy stories is never going to be popular is it ? What we are doing is taking the vague hopes and fears that most people have clung to for generations and holding them up to a cold rational light and saying "What you believe in is STUPID !

Most Believers are as appalled by the terrible things done in the name of God as we are, but we are just rocking the boat too much for their moderate mild views.

We didn't start the fire.TM

But when someone takes this opportunity to spout a load of crap to the world, we're entitled to call it out for what it is - and to emphasise to people that the only thing that matters is doing what we can to help the people of Haiti. Any attempt to find a higher "meaning" out of this disaster is misdirected at best, and cynically opportunistic at worst.

Religious people often get a free ride because we are not "supposed" to criticise their openly stated beliefs, for fear that it will upset them.

[Thinking Aloud]

What you believe in is STUPID !

And no-one wants to be told that, even if they know it. They're too far into it to pull out - I've seen it in the eyes of family members. It scares them that they'd have to admit they've been wrong - innocently so in their case - but wrong.

[klr]

What you believe in is STUPID !

And no-one wants to be told that, even if they know it. They're too far into it to pull out - I've seen it in the eyes of family members. It scares them that they'd have to admit they've been wrong - innocently so in their case - but wrong.

What I like to call an emotional investment. It doesn't just happen with religion and other woo, but it's most prevalent with religion. I don't think it's just a case of not wanting to admit that you're wrong either. Any sort of ideology or unfounded belief can be very hard to give up, because it might have underpinned so much of how you viewed the world and actually lived your life. Having to accept that homosexuality is actually natural, or that skin colour is irrelevant ... or that there is no God - it can be very hard to give up on these ideas.

[maiforpeace]

As "Atheists" We do have a few problems mostly because the moderate "nice " religious people cannot see that they are doing anything but good . Why should we be so keen to tell other people what to believe in? What harm does moderate religion do ? Why are we such a noisy minority ? Isn't it just the latest thing ?
Telling the vast majority of people that their long held beliefs are fairy stories is never going to be popular is it ? What we are doing is taking the vague hopes and fears that most people have clung to for generations and holding them up to a cold rational light and saying "What you believe in is STUPID !

Most Believers are as appalled by the terrible things done in the name of God as we are, but we are just rocking the boat too much for their moderate mild views.

It's not a believer thing though. It's a people thing.

For example - I have provided reasonable and solid reasons why people should consider reducing, if not eliminating their consumption of factory farmed meat when the debate of whether or not to eat meat comes up. The minute I show that I support this view I am immediately attacked as having radical views, being a PETA lover...(though I suggest the opposite - people who willingly support and consume meat produced by factory farm methods are a bit cuckoo)

I get just as much of this attitude from atheists as I do anyone. As long as the rest of the world thinks it's quite fine and natural to eat meat produced in this manner, all the logical arguments about global warming, eating hormone ridden unnatural creatures that bear no resemblance to the orginal barnyard animals we think we are eating, not to mention the ethical reasons for the suffering and torture we inflict on animals that produce our eggs, dairy and meat are meaningless.

People love their meat, even more than they love their religion. *sigh*

[Feck]

What you believe in is STUPID !

And no-one wants to be told that, even if they know it. They're too far into it to pull out - I've seen it in the eyes of family members. It scares them that they'd have to admit they've been wrong - innocently so in their case - but wrong.

You can try with a series of arguments If A is true then B is true and C is true then also it follows that D,E and F are true ........If you watch carefully then somewhere between D and E Reason looses to Faith (or hope or conditioning or fear or arrogance ) and those walls come crashing down behind their eyes and that that voice in their head is going "LALALALALA I'm not listening 'cos it's frightening me ."

[Hermit]

As "Atheists" We do have a few problems mostly because the moderate "nice " religious people cannot see that they are doing anything but good . Why should we be so keen to tell other people what to believe in? What harm does moderate religion do ? Why are we such a noisy minority ? Isn't it just the latest thing ?
Telling the vast majority of people that their long held beliefs are fairy stories is never going to be popular is it ? What we are doing is taking the vague hopes and fears that most people have clung to for generations and holding them up to a cold rational light and saying "What you believe in is STUPID !

Most Believers are as appalled by the terrible things done in the name of God as we are, but we are just rocking the boat too much for their moderate mild views.

It's not a believer thing though. It's a people thing.

For example - I have provided reasonable and solid reasons why people should consider reducing, if not eliminating their consumption of factory farmed meat when the debate of whether or not to eat meat comes up. The minute I show that I support this view I am immediately attacked as having radical views, being a PETA lover...(though I suggest the opposite - people who willingly support and consume meat produced by factory farm methods are a bit cuckoo)

I get just as much of this attitude from atheists as I do anyone. As long as the rest of the world thinks it's quite fine and natural to eat meat produced in this manner, all the logical arguments about global warming, eating hormone ridden unnatural creatures that bear no resemblance to the orginal barnyard animals we think we are eating, not to mention the ethical reasons for the suffering and torture we inflict on animals that produce our eggs, dairy and meat are meaningless.

People love their meat, even more than they love their religion. *sigh*

Good point. One does not need to be a theist to hold irrational views that we then attempt to prop up with a backfill of more or less irrational "evidence".

And, no, Pappa, I was not at all surprised by the reaction. If anything, I was surprised that only one of the three most likely suspect piped up with the "stop bashing religion already" sentiment, and I am not about to shut up. Religious nonsense is no more exempt from criticism than any other. The best way to shut me up was discovered by my fundamentalist brother and sister in law. Last time I saw them was for two or three days during a family reunion. They resolutely refused to react to any of my comments. After a while I felt mean for goading them and simply stopped.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

As "Atheists" We do have a few problems mostly because the moderate "nice " religious people cannot see that they are doing anything but good . Why should we be so keen to tell other people what to believe in? What harm does moderate religion do ? Why are we such a noisy minority ? Isn't it just the latest thing ?
Telling the vast majority of people that their long held beliefs are fairy stories is never going to be popular is it ? What we are doing is taking the vague hopes and fears that most people have clung to for generations and holding them up to a cold rational light and saying "What you believe in is STUPID !

Most Believers are as appalled by the terrible things done in the name of God as we are, but we are just rocking the boat too much for their moderate mild views.

It's not a believer thing though. It's a people thing.

For example - I have provided reasonable and solid reasons why people should consider reducing, if not eliminating their consumption of factory farmed meat when the debate of whether or not to eat meat comes up. The minute I show that I support this view I am immediately attacked as having radical views, being a PETA lover...(though I suggest the opposite - people who willingly support and consume meat produced by factory farm methods are a bit cuckoo)

I get just as much of this attitude from atheists as I do anyone. As long as the rest of the world thinks it's quite fine and natural to eat meat produced in this manner, all the logical arguments about global warming, eating hormone ridden unnatural creatures that bear no resemblance to the orginal barnyard animals we think we are eating, not to mention the ethical reasons for the suffering and torture we inflict on animals that produce our eggs, dairy and meat are meaningless.

People love their meat, even more than they love their religion. *sigh*

Good point. One does not need to be a theist to hold irrational views that we then attempt to prop up with a backfill of more or less irrational "evidence".

And, no, Pappa, I was not at all surprised by the reaction. If anything, I was surprised that only one of the three most likely suspect piped up with the "stop bashing religion already" sentiment, and I am not about to shut up. Religious nonsense is no more exempt from criticism than any other. The best way to shut me up was discovered by my fundamentalist brother and sister in law. Last time I saw them was for two or three days during a family reunion. They resolutely refused to react to any of my comments. After a while I felt mean for goading them and simply stopped.

Silly. That's the kind of situation that violence was invented for.