Atheist 'Mega-Churches' Take Root Across US, World

[Freewill]

I guess those who said atheism is a religion we right all along.

Atheist 'Mega-Churches' Take Root Across US, World - ABC News

It looked like a typical Sunday morning at any mega-church. Several hundred people, including families with small children, packed in for more than an hour of rousing music, an inspirational talk and some quiet reflection. The only thing missing was God.

Nearly three dozen gatherings dubbed "atheist mega-churches" by supporters and detractors have sprung up around the U.S. and Australia — with more to come — after finding success in Great Britain earlier this year. The movement fueled by social media and spearheaded by two prominent British comedians is no joke.

 

[hjmick]

Seems counterintuitive if ask me...


I'll pass.

 

[novasteve]

Libs realize they need so etching like that to keep the children from murdering them. Some values are needed

 

[lakeview]

Those aren't mega churches, they're social clubs. Some Atheists, not all but some, seem to want Atheism to be seen as the same thing as religion. Why? If you really don't believe in God why would you want any group you belong to to even be associated with religion and why would you want any group you are part of to be referred to as a church? Methinks they doth protest too much.

 

[Freewill]

Those aren't mega churches, they're social clubs. Some Atheists, not all but some, seem to want Atheism to be seen as the same thing as religion. Why? If you really don't believe in God why would you want any group you belong to to even be associated with religion and why would you want any group you are part of to be referred to as a church? Methinks they doth protest too much.

The reason is that regardless of what people say it is ingrained in our being a belief in God/god. It is just a matter of whom one chooses to be that God/god. There are actually two options, God or oneself.

 

[hjmick]

Libs realize they need so etching like that to keep the children from murdering them. Some values are needed

Have you been drinking? Because although you have used actual words from the English language, this is, for the most part, giberrish...

 

[lakeview]

Those aren't mega churches, they're social clubs. Some Atheists, not all but some, seem to want Atheism to be seen as the same thing as religion. Why? If you really don't believe in God why would you want any group you belong to to even be associated with religion and why would you want any group you are part of to be referred to as a church? Methinks they doth protest too much.

The reason is that regardless of what people say it is ingrained in our being a belief in God/god. It is just a matter of whom one chooses to be that God/god. There are actually two options, God or oneself.

If it's ingrained then doesn't that mean that it's true or at the very least there's a grain of truth which should be considered?

Why does it have to be God or oneself? Why not both? People who think the choice is one or the other don't understand the nature of faith.

If you do believe this choice is binary and you choose man over God then why not move on? Notice the comedians are encouraging these gatherings to be called churches and the Santa Monica Atheist didn't make his own display which would stand or fall on it's own merits, he placed it in the middle of a popular Christian display. These are not the actions of people who are comfortable with the strength of their beliefs. This isn't about enhancing their belief system, it's about diluting the beliefs of others and it's childish.

 

[Katzndogz]

This was started by a couple of COMEDIANS. It was started as a joke.

 

[Freewill]

Those aren't mega churches, they're social clubs. Some Atheists, not all but some, seem to want Atheism to be seen as the same thing as religion. Why? If you really don't believe in God why would you want any group you belong to to even be associated with religion and why would you want any group you are part of to be referred to as a church? Methinks they doth protest too much.

The reason is that regardless of what people say it is ingrained in our being a belief in God/god. It is just a matter of whom one chooses to be that God/god. There are actually two options, God or oneself.

If it's ingrained then doesn't that mean that it's true or at the very least there's a grain of truth which should be considered?

Why does it have to be God or oneself? Why not both? People who think the choice is one or the other don't understand the nature of faith.

If you do believe this choice is binary and you choose man over God then why not move on? Notice the comedians are encouraging these gatherings to be called churches and the Santa Monica Atheist didn't make his own display which would stand or fall on it's own merits, he placed it in the middle of a popular Christian display. These are not the actions of people who are comfortable with the strength of their beliefs. This isn't about enhancing their belief system, it's about diluting the beliefs of others and it's childish.

I fully agree with what you are saying especially the last sentence.

In such a discussion I think we need to define who is God. You first.

 

[Katzndogz]

The minute you start trying to determine WHO is God, you have lost the debate.

 

[lakeview]

We can't definitively define God, if we could we wouldn't be human and this discussion wouldn't be happening. If we could define God there wouldn't be beliefs revolving around God, only fact.

This isn't about God, it's about humans behaving badly.

 

[Katzndogz]

We can't definitively define God, if we could we wouldn't be human and this discussion wouldn't be happening. If we could define God there wouldn't be beliefs revolving around God, only fact.

This isn't about God, it's about humans behaving badly.

And creating a social club to justify bad behavior.

 

[bodecea]

We can't definitively define God, if we could we wouldn't be human and this discussion wouldn't be happening. If we could define God there wouldn't be beliefs revolving around God, only fact.

This isn't about God, it's about humans behaving badly.

And creating a social club to justify bad behavior.

You mean Fraternities?

 

[Freewill]

We can't definitively define God, if we could we wouldn't be human and this discussion wouldn't be happening. If we could define God there wouldn't be beliefs revolving around God, only fact.

This isn't about God, it's about humans behaving badly.

I think we can define who God is without understanding who God is.

God/god has some if not all of these attributes:

Perfect.
All powerful
Creator
Ruler of the Universe, set down the rules, scientific laws, and defines truth, moral.

My contention is that those who deny a God that is above all of use that is greater then ourselves has decided that they are at least 3 of the above. But mostly the fourth and the fourth is what matters most to humans.

 

[Freewill]

The minute you start trying to determine WHO is God, you have lost the debate.

Who verses what?

To use the watch analogy, you find a watch trying to figure out who made the watch is less important then the wonderment of the creator who made the watch work.

 

[martybegan]

Those aren't mega churches, they're social clubs. Some Atheists, not all but some, seem to want Atheism to be seen as the same thing as religion. Why? If you really don't believe in God why would you want any group you belong to to even be associated with religion and why would you want any group you are part of to be referred to as a church? Methinks they doth protest too much.

They are social clubs, yes, but they are trying to mimic the more community based gathering you see in Religous circles. Up to now most gatherings of Atheists are among the "freethinker" types, and most of those meetings to me seem to revolve around pompous assholes yammering about how critical and skeptical they are, and how dumb everyone else is.

Not the type of meeting that lends itself to a pot-luck dinner or bingo.

 

[Katzndogz]

The minute you start trying to determine WHO is God, you have lost the debate.

Who verses what?

To use the watch analogy, you find a watch trying to figure out who made the watch is less important then the wonderment of the creator who made the watch work.

For many thousands of years, the "watch" was the movement of the sun. You ponder the wonderment of the creator who made that watch work.

 

[lakeview]

We can't definitively define God, if we could we wouldn't be human and this discussion wouldn't be happening. If we could define God there wouldn't be beliefs revolving around God, only fact.

This isn't about God, it's about humans behaving badly.

I think we can define who God is without understanding who God is.

God/god has some if not all of these attributes:

Perfect.
All powerful
Creator
Ruler of the Universe, set down the rules, scientific laws, and defines truth, moral.

My contention is that those who deny a God that is above all of use that is greater then ourselves has decided that they are at least 3 of the above. But mostly the fourth and the fourth is what matters most to humans.

Trying to draw me into a discussion where we attempt to define God is futile. Your thread is about atheists. I find it amusing that people who reject God are shadowing people who don't and can't seem to survive without them. The nature of God isn't the issue at hand, the mental infirmities of the atheists in your OP is the issue.

 

[Mr Natural]

Can't be a church unless there's an imaginary being involved.

 

[BDBoop]

Libs realize they need so etching like that to keep the children from murdering them. Some values are needed

Have you been drinking? Because although you have used actual words from the English language, this is, for the most part, giberrish...

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