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DPChallenge Forums >> Rant >> Belief in God, higher power, or neither
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08/21/2008 11:44:37 AM · #1
I found these stats interesting so thought I'd share. I figure this would probably end up in rant so I started it here. Let me know what you think.

//www.gallup.com/video/109111/Majority-Americans-Believe-God.aspx

08/21/2008 11:47:35 AM · #2
"A large majority of Americans (78%) say they believe in God and 15% say they don’t believe in God, but do believe in a higher power."

Strange stats, especially considering all the heathen scientists I hang out with. I hardly know anybody who is religious. I'm going straight to Hell.
08/21/2008 11:56:30 AM · #3
Originally posted by Strikeslip:

Strange stats, especially considering all the heathen scientists I hang out with. I hardly know anybody who is religious. I'm going straight to Hell.


Interesting oxymoron.

"I believe that I am going to Hell because I do not believe in God."
08/21/2008 12:07:13 PM · #4
This article, though the writing style and the basic understanding is largely insipid, points out that in Canada, atheists comprise the second-largest "belief group" in the country at 16.3 percent, behind Catholicism at 43.2 percent. Now that's a statistic I find interesting.
08/21/2008 12:19:49 PM · #5
Originally posted by Matthew:

Originally posted by Strikeslip:

Strange stats, especially considering all the heathen scientists I hang out with. I hardly know anybody who is religious. I'm going straight to Hell.


Interesting oxymoron.

"I believe that I am going to Hell because I do not believe in God."


lol that's what I was thinking when I read it too lol.
08/21/2008 12:26:50 PM · #6
Originally posted by dponlyme:

Let me know what you think.

I think most Americans lie to the pollsters on questions like this.
08/21/2008 12:32:20 PM · #7
Originally posted by sabphoto:

Originally posted by Matthew:

Originally posted by Strikeslip:

Strange stats, especially considering all the heathen scientists I hang out with. I hardly know anybody who is religious. I'm going straight to Hell.


Interesting oxymoron.

"I believe that I am going to Hell because I do not believe in God."


lol that's what I was thinking when I read it too lol.

My humour is just that sublime. ;-)
08/21/2008 12:46:05 PM · #8
Originally posted by Louis:

This article, though the writing style and the basic understanding is largely insipid, points out that in Canada, atheists comprise the second-largest "belief group" in the country at 16.3 percent, behind Catholicism at 43.2 percent. Now that's a statistic I find interesting.

It goes to show what social beings people are. If you don't believe in a god(s), you have to belong to some other group called atheists or humanists. Can't I just continue to belong to no group at all? I don't need to go to the humanist or atheist meetings to discuss not worshipping anything, what silliness. Why do people always have to belong to groups? And if you don't belong to a group, you're an outcast. This is why I'd be the first one voted out of the Big Brother House or kicked off the island.
:-(
Heck, I'm not even in a DPC Clique.

Message edited by author 2008-08-21 12:47:20.
08/21/2008 12:49:26 PM · #9
Originally posted by Strikeslip:

Heck, I'm not even in a DPC Clique.


You're a Clique all your own! Heck I will join your Clique if you start one!
08/21/2008 12:57:26 PM · #10
Originally posted by Strikeslip:

I don't need to go to the humanist or atheist meetings to discuss not worshipping anything, what silliness. Why do people always have to belong to groups?

In this case, only as a way to identify the number of people who don't believe. You can continue to non-groupify yourself at will. (By the way, I guess your invitation to the last meeting got lost in the mail.)
08/21/2008 01:00:08 PM · #11
Originally posted by david_c:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

Let me know what you think.

I think most Americans lie to the pollsters on questions like this.

During the 1970's energy crisis, an American poll included a question asking people if they had installed a thermidor on their cars to save gas. A significant percentage (I don't remember the exact number) said they had. Thermidor is a way of cooking lobster. People have a tendency to say anything for approval, especially on hot button topics like religion or racism. A recent Newsweek poll found that 40% of atheists and agnostics believe God either created humans as-is or actively guided their evolution. Oh yeah, THAT sounds legit. :-/
08/21/2008 01:01:04 PM · #12
Originally posted by Louis:

Originally posted by Strikeslip:

I don't need to go to the humanist or atheist meetings to discuss not worshipping anything, what silliness. Why do people always have to belong to groups?

In this case, only as a way to identify the number of people who don't believe. You can continue to non-groupify yourself at will. (By the way, I guess your invitation to the last meeting got lost in the mail.)

If there were an "Antisocial Club", I'd join it, but I'd never go to the meetings.
08/21/2008 01:07:05 PM · #13
Originally posted by Strikeslip:

If there were an "Antisocial Club", I'd join it, but I'd never go to the meetings.

They'd be held in secret locations decided on by a different member each week who'd refuse to tell the others where it is.
08/21/2008 01:08:16 PM · #14
Originally posted by Louis:

This article, though the writing style and the basic understanding is largely insipid, points out that in Canada, atheists comprise the second-largest "belief group" in the country at 16.3 percent, behind Catholicism at 43.2 percent. Now that's a statistic I find interesting.


Canada, America - same thing aren't they?
08/21/2008 01:09:14 PM · #15
Originally posted by Simms:

Originally posted by Louis:

This article, though the writing style and the basic understanding is largely insipid, points out that in Canada, atheists comprise the second-largest "belief group" in the country at 16.3 percent, behind Catholicism at 43.2 percent. Now that's a statistic I find interesting.


Canada, America - same thing aren't they?

Yeah, about the same as England and Jamaica, or Germany and Austria, or Holland and South Africa. :-P
08/21/2008 01:18:27 PM · #16
Originally posted by scalvert:

Originally posted by david_c:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

Let me know what you think.

I think most Americans lie to the pollsters on questions like this.

During the 1970's energy crisis, an American poll included a question asking people if they had installed a thermidor on their cars to save gas. A significant percentage (I don't remember the exact number) said they had. Thermidor is a way of cooking lobster. People have a tendency to say anything for approval, especially on hot button topics like religion or racism. A recent Newsweek poll found that 40% of atheists and agnostics believe God either created humans as-is or actively guided their evolution. Oh yeah, THAT sounds legit. :-/


From my point of view I tend to agree that this poll doesn't reflect reality.. assuming that the respondents did answer truthfully and continued to and were asked if they worshiped God or lived their lives in a Godly way the numbers would plummet. Believing in God doesn't necessarily mean that they behave accordingly or make their decision by seeking God's will for their lives. Even Satan believes in God. Satanists believe in God. I think it also shows that on the west coast there is less inhibition against diversity of opinion and more acceptance of differing opinions. I don't think most are necessarily lieing but simply giving a default answer because most haven't even considered the question in any depth.
08/21/2008 01:30:51 PM · #17
Originally posted by Louis:

This article, though the writing style and the basic understanding is largely insipid, points out that in Canada, atheists comprise the second-largest "belief group" in the country at 16.3 percent, behind Catholicism at 43.2 percent. Now that's a statistic I find interesting.


Is it me or does it seem like that a LOT of (former Christian) atheists were brought up Catholic? My only religious affiliation would have to be Catholic (as a child) but I never went to church much except for Sunday school when I was very young. I decided that there was no God after attending a Catholic Mass because I just thought it was ridiculous the way it was conducted. Stand, Sit, Kneel, responsive prayers. It just seemed so artificial and ceremonious that I thought this can't be what God wants from us: this is just a bunch of made up crap. It wasn't until years and years later that I was saved. I realized that just because some people worshiped God this way didn't mean that God didn't exist but just that they (the people) had it wrong what God wanted from them.
08/21/2008 01:33:36 PM · #18
i believe god made me an atheiest...;)
08/21/2008 01:42:21 PM · #19
Originally posted by jonnienye:

i believe god made me an atheiest...;)


Could be he gave you free will to choose to be an atheist.
08/21/2008 01:43:20 PM · #20
Originally posted by dponlyme:

Is it me or does it seem like that a LOT of (former Christian) atheists were brought up Catholic?

Is it just me, or does it seem that most fundamentalist Christians are routinely anti-Catholic?
08/21/2008 01:52:37 PM · #21
Originally posted by dponlyme:

I realized that just because some people worshiped God this way didn't mean that God didn't exist but just that they (the people) had it wrong what God wanted from them.


Are you sure they have it wrong? That's the problem with religion in general. Every sect or demnomitation thinks they're the only ones that "get it".

Anytime you declare a religion, you can't get 2 sentences into a discussion without a generous dose of selfrightousness. It is completely unavoidable.

08/21/2008 01:57:02 PM · #22
Originally posted by scarbrd:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

I realized that just because some people worshiped God this way didn't mean that God didn't exist but just that they (the people) had it wrong what God wanted from them.


Are you sure they have it wrong? That's the problem with religion in general. Every sect or demnomitation thinks they're the only ones that "get it".

Anytime you declare a religion, you can't get 2 sentences into a discussion without a generous dose of selfrightousness. It is completely unavoidable.

I thought God was speaking to me once, telling me to "Stand clear of the doors. The doors are closing." But then I realized it was just the GO Train intercom.
08/21/2008 02:03:34 PM · #23
Originally posted by Louis:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

Is it me or does it seem like that a LOT of (former Christian) atheists were brought up Catholic?

Is it just me, or does it seem that most fundamentalist Christians are routinely anti-Catholic?


I am not anti-catholic. Most of my family are catholic. I just don't think that the way they worship is really what God wants from them. That's my opinion. I also don't believe in the Baptist 'floor show' mentality of church or the Pentecostal dancing in the aisles view of worship or the Church of Christ insistence on baptism and not going to even talk about the snake handling. I guess I don't agree with any church I've ever attended. Maybe I'm just anti-social. Somehow when humans get together and form a group for worship they can never seem to get themselves (their traditions) out of the way long enough to see what the true point of it should be. The closest thing I have ever found to what I would consider closest to what God wants is an AA meeting. People there aren't fake or hypocritical or think they've got it all figured out. Kind of like NikonJeb's church no one has to believe exactly as you do either, leaving people to talk and make their own judgements as to what to believe not arguing about disputable matters but focusing on fellowship. Granted they are all alcoholics and that is the focus and not necessarily worship but my idea of a good church would be one where all of the people would actually TALK about their lives and share their struggles and triumphs instead of showing up for an hour maybe two watching a floor show or going through some kind of religious ceremony and heading home without really ever connecting with the people they were there with.

Message edited by author 2008-08-21 14:10:48.
08/21/2008 02:04:01 PM · #24
Originally posted by Louis:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

Is it me or does it seem like that a LOT of (former Christian) atheists were brought up Catholic?

Is it just me, or does it seem that most fundamentalist Christians are routinely anti-Catholic?

I know a lot of self-proclaimed "former Catholics." I've also heard many fundamentalist Christians refer to Catholicism as a "Mary cult."
08/21/2008 02:06:47 PM · #25
Originally posted by Strikeslip:

Originally posted by scarbrd:

Originally posted by dponlyme:

I realized that just because some people worshiped God this way didn't mean that God didn't exist but just that they (the people) had it wrong what God wanted from them.


Are you sure they have it wrong? That's the problem with religion in general. Every sect or demnomitation thinks they're the only ones that "get it".

Anytime you declare a religion, you can't get 2 sentences into a discussion without a generous dose of selfrightousness. It is completely unavoidable.

I thought God was speaking to me once, telling me to "Stand clear of the doors. The doors are closing." But then I realized it was just the GO Train intercom.


hahahahah! Cute!
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