Why smug atheists are wrong

[Dreamy]

I don't recall saying that only atheists are smug, or that atheists could not be humble and have a sense of wonder, or even that all atheists are smug. All I am pointing out is the lack I see in smug atheists, yet a number of people chose to take this as a personal attack.

Interesting.

You are the one who decided to isolate this to atheists. If you meant all smug people, you should have just said "smug people" and left it at that. Don't blame others if they see an agenda in what you wrote. It is almost impossible not to. So if that was not your intention, then you phrased it badly.

^^^This.

By the way QW, nothing said here is taken personally, at least by myself, since most of us are faceless strangers who have never met nor do we even known each other. I simply commented on your viewpoint.

 

[Dreamy]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

In my experience atheists wonder a lot. They continue to look for answers while ignoring the Truth.
To be humble is to wise...knowing our existence is meaningless to the world but important to God.

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

No, that too would be wrong imo. I wonder all the time. I am full of wonder especially when I am traveling or out exploring nature.

I also wonder why people feel this need to classify people so rigidly and within certain parameters because of their faith or lack of it. QW and now you.

 

[PratchettFan]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

In my experience atheists wonder a lot. They continue to look for answers while ignoring the Truth.
To be humble is to wise...knowing our existence is meaningless to the world but important to God.

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

Just flat not true.

 

[rightwinger]

In my experience atheists wonder a lot. They continue to look for answers while ignoring the Truth.
To be humble is to wise...knowing our existence is meaningless to the world but important to God.

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

Just flat not true.

Then why the OP?

 

[amrchaos]

I thought people were smug in their deductions, wondered about problems.

At some point, you have to wonder before you can become smug in your own beliefs. I am talking about humans in general, not any particular group like atheists or believers or fence riders....

 

[PratchettFan]

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

Just flat not true.

Then why the OP?

"The religious" did not post it. One person did. Now, if you wish to draw conclusions about that person, you have something to go on. But what you are doing is taking a comment from one person and applying it across the board to, quite literally, billions of people you don't know.

I personally know quite a few deeply religious people and I have found no lack of wonder in them. I also know several atheists, some of them quite enthusiastic, and have found no lack of wonder in them either.

So whether one is attempting to paint this group or that group with the same brush, it is flat not true.

 

[PratchettFan]

I thought people were smug in their deductions, wondered about problems.

At some point, you have to wonder before you can become smug in your own beliefs. I am talking about humans in general, not any particular group like atheists or believers or fence riders....

Absolutely. I expect we are all smug at some point. I know I certainly am. It may not be my most attractive trait, but it is unquestionably a human one.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

I've never heard an atheist comment about wonder.

Probably because most people that are smart enough to wonder when looking at creation are also smart enough to know they cannot be sure about anything.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

I don't recall saying that only atheists are smug, or that atheists could not be humble and have a sense of wonder, or even that all atheists are smug. All I am pointing out is the lack I see in smug atheists, yet a number of people chose to take this as a personal attack.

Interesting.

You are the one who decided to isolate this to atheists. If you meant all smug people, you should have just said "smug people" and left it at that. Don't blame others if they see an agenda in what you wrote. It is almost impossible not to. So if that was not your intention, then you phrased it badly.

Smug atheists are a subset of atheists, not the entire group. The only reason I see for anyone to get upset about this is if they self identify as smug atheists.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

I've never heard an atheist comment about wonder.

Carl Sagan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sagan enthralled Americans with his wonder of "billions upon billions" of stars

Carl Sagan did not consider himself an atheist.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

In my experience atheists wonder a lot. They continue to look for answers while ignoring the Truth.
To be humble is to wise...knowing our existence is meaningless to the world but important to God.

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

It is the idiots that do not wonder, whether they believe in God or not.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

I don't recall saying that only atheists are smug, or that atheists could not be humble and have a sense of wonder, or even that all atheists are smug. All I am pointing out is the lack I see in smug atheists, yet a number of people chose to take this as a personal attack.

Interesting.

You are the one who decided to isolate this to atheists. If you meant all smug people, you should have just said "smug people" and left it at that. Don't blame others if they see an agenda in what you wrote. It is almost impossible not to. So if that was not your intention, then you phrased it badly.

^^^This.

By the way QW, nothing said here is taken personally, at least by myself, since most of us are faceless strangers who have never met nor do we even known each other. I simply commented on your viewpoint.

Once again, smug is an adjective that modifies the word atheist. I apologize for assuming that people understand how adjectives work. Next time I will explain it for the people that went to public schools in the United States.

 

[rightwinger]

I've never heard an atheist comment about wonder.

Carl Sagan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sagan enthralled Americans with his wonder of "billions upon billions" of stars

Carl Sagan did not consider himself an atheist.

Sagan wrote frequently about religion and the relationship between religion and science, expressing his skepticism about the conventional conceptualization of God as a sapient being. For example:

"Some people think God is an outsized, light-skinned male with a long white beard, sitting on a throne somewhere up there in the sky, busily tallying the fall of every sparrow. Others—for example Baruch Spinoza and Albert Einstein—considered God to be essentially the sum total of the physical laws which describe the universe. I do not know of any compelling evidence for anthropomorphic patriarchs controlling human destiny from some hidden celestial vantage point, but it would be madness to deny the existence of physical laws

 

[rightwinger]

In my experience atheists wonder a lot. They continue to look for answers while ignoring the Truth.
To be humble is to wise...knowing our existence is meaningless to the world but important to God.

It is the religious who do not wonder....they just accept "God did it" as an explanation for the world around us

It is the idiots that do not wonder, whether they believe in God or not.

It might not be that they don't wonder.....just that they don't give a shit how the world was made

 

[dblack]

Carl Sagan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sagan enthralled Americans with his wonder of "billions upon billions" of stars

Carl Sagan did not consider himself an atheist.

Sagan wrote frequently about religion and the relationship between religion and science, expressing his skepticism about the conventional conceptualization of God as a sapient being. For example:

"Some people think God is an outsized, light-skinned male with a long white beard, sitting on a throne somewhere up there in the sky, busily tallying the fall of every sparrow. Others—for example Baruch Spinoza and Albert Einstein—considered God to be essentially the sum total of the physical laws which describe the universe. I do not know of any compelling evidence for anthropomorphic patriarchs controlling human destiny from some hidden celestial vantage point, but it would be madness to deny the existence of physical laws

The physical laws conception of god is a common 'out' for intellectuals. With that tact, they can casually claim they believe in God and avoid provoking insecurities unnecessarily. Lest they be deemed "smug".

 

[HUGGY]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

Why pick on atheists? Aren't ALL smug people wrong?

 

[Quantum Windbag]

Carl Sagan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sagan enthralled Americans with his wonder of "billions upon billions" of stars

Carl Sagan did not consider himself an atheist.

Sagan wrote frequently about religion and the relationship between religion and science, expressing his skepticism about the conventional conceptualization of God as a sapient being. For example:

"Some people think God is an outsized, light-skinned male with a long white beard, sitting on a throne somewhere up there in the sky, busily tallying the fall of every sparrow. Others—for example Baruch Spinoza and Albert Einstein—considered God to be essentially the sum total of the physical laws which describe the universe. I do not know of any compelling evidence for anthropomorphic patriarchs controlling human destiny from some hidden celestial vantage point, but it would be madness to deny the existence of physical laws

Yes, he also said "An atheist has to know a lot more than I know. An atheist is someone who knows there is no god. By some definitions atheism is very stupid."

What was your point again?

 

[Quantum Windbag]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

Why pick on atheists? Aren't ALL smug people wrong?

Yes, they are, but one particularly smug atheist on this board is more wrong than most.

 

[Capstone]

It basically comes down to one word, wonder. Smug atheists insist there is no room for wonder in the universe, and that their experience is the only valid one. The simple fact is that, a sense of wonder makes us humble, and anyone that approaches the universe without wonder and humility is crazier than the guy who thinks he is in charge.

I can't help but wonder: ...WTF?

 

[Luissa]

I've never heard an atheist comment about wonder.

Probably because most people that are smart enough to wonder when looking at creation are also smart enough to know they cannot be sure about anything.

If you are not sure about anything, doesn't that make you agnostic?
I thought as a Christian you were suppose to have faith that you are sure about the universe and what the Bible tells you is true?
Are you unsure about how things were created QW and what will happen to us all?