Are atheists afraid of God?

[Paul of Tarsus]

In response to Stephen Hawking's quip, "Religion is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark," apologist John Lennox said, "And atheism is a fairy story for those afraid of the light."

Do atheists fear that light aka God? I would answer no assuming I knew atheists to be completely sensible and rational in their rejection of theism, but they very often aren't sensible and rational in their unbelief. In this forum, for example, an atheist said he lost his belief in God when he realized that there are different religions. When I tried to explain to him that those conflicting faiths can be explained as some of them getting a real God wrong, well, it did me no good! It's simply illogical to conclude that God doesn't exist because some people disagree about him. His atheism is obviously based on faulty logic. What's odd about these cases involving atheists using poor reasoning to reject God is that those atheists seem quite reasonable otherwise. My guess is that they fear God and wish that he doesn't exist. Atheism is for them a sanctuary from theism and a hope that reality harbors no scary God.

[Tcg]

Atheists might have similar experiences their theism coming to the fore when they are desperate for help.

Here's a perfect example of the absurdity of your claim. Atheists have no "theism" to come to the fore. Once again you are describing a theist to support your claim that atheists fear God. The reason for its failure is obvious. Your claim once again remains unsupported.


Tcg

[Tcg]

Could there be a bit of theistic belief in the recesses of an atheist's psyche?

If a person harbors any theistic belief, they are a theist. Atheism isn't - for the most part, a little bit of, sorta but not completely lacking belief in god/gods. It is the lack of belief in god/gods. If an individual has "a bit of theistic belief", they are not an atheist.

It's like asking, "How many rounds of golf can a person play before they are considered a non-golfer?" Zero.

How much belief in god/gods can a person have and still be an atheist? Same answer, zero.


Tcg

[Paul of Tarsus]

Could there be a bit of theistic belief in the recesses of an atheist's psyche?

If a person harbors any theistic belief, they are a theist. Atheism isn't - for the most part, a little bit of, sorta but not completely lacking belief in god/gods. It is the lack of belief in god/gods. If an individual has "a bit of theistic belief", they are not an atheist.

It's like asking, "How many rounds of golf can a person play before they are considered a non-golfer?" Zero.

How much belief in god/gods can a person have and still be an atheist? Same answer, zero.

If we accept your conclusion that an atheist cannot harbor the least bit of theism, then many people who have concluded logically that God doesn't exist are not atheists. Or to put it another way, some theists think that God doesn't exist. Since your argumentation results in such absurdities, it is not valid.

[Tcg]

Could there be a bit of theistic belief in the recesses of an atheist's psyche?

If a person harbors any theistic belief, they are a theist. Atheism isn't - for the most part, a little bit of, sorta but not completely lacking belief in god/gods. It is the lack of belief in god/gods. If an individual has "a bit of theistic belief", they are not an atheist.

It's like asking, "How many rounds of golf can a person play before they are considered a non-golfer?" Zero.

How much belief in god/gods can a person have and still be an atheist? Same answer, zero.

If we accept your conclusion that an atheist cannot harbor the least bit of theism, then many people who have concluded logically that God doesn't exist are not atheists. Or to put it another way, some theists think that God doesn't exist. Since your argumentation results in such absurdities, it is not valid.

Atheist are those who lack belief in god/gods. Anyone who lacks this belief is an atheist for whatever reason they do so. Those who "harbor the least bit of theism" do not lack belief in god/gods and quite clearly aren't atheists.

I'm not sure how you came to assigning me with the idea that "some theists think that God doesn't exist" given that I've not stated anything like that. Fighting a strawman does not address the facts presented.




Tcg

[Kylie]

[Replying to Paul of Tarsus in post #1]

I do not fear God, nor has any atheists I personally know acted in a way that indicates that they fear God.

How do you explain the atheists who apparently do fear God at least under some circumstances? Could there be a bit of theistic belief in the recesses of an atheist's psyche?

Could you give an example of such a case?

Yes. Back on post 134 I posted:

...I know of...an atheist who attempted to take his own life by downing an overdose of sleeping pills. When he began to lose consciousness he thought he was dying and became terrified of that prospect. He began calling out to God to save him, and he survived his suicide attempt. While the role that God took in these events is debatable, this atheist clearly feared God.

So do we have here at least one atheist who feared God?

Perhaps, but by your own information, he had spent most of his life as a believer. If there was a bit of a believer left in him, then the same can't be said to apply to me.

[Paul of Tarsus]

Atheist are those who lack belief in god/gods. Anyone who lacks this belief is an atheist for whatever reason they do so.

I think where you're going wrong is based in your inability or your refusal to see that what we think and what we feel are very often different and can even be contradictory as I've explained throughout this thread. So a person may lack a belief yet still think it's true because they may refuse to accept it as a result of fear. It's a common psychological phenomenon called "denial." Some atheists then can be sensibly described as persons who logically think there is no God yet who deny their feeling that God exists.

Those who "harbor the least bit of theism" do not lack belief in god/gods and quite clearly aren't atheists.

I'm not seeing any reason anybody should accept this assertion. Is your logic: because I say so? Or do you just find this slogan to be useful for rhetorical impact?

I'm not sure how you came to assigning me with the idea that "some theists think that God doesn't exist" given that I've not stated anything like that.

You didn't need to state it; it is a logical consequence of your assertions about atheists not being able to harbor any theism. A person is very able to use sound logic to deny God's existence yet still maintain some belief in God. In such a case, that person who thinks God doesn't exist is nevertheless a theist!

So why does the idea of atheists fearing God bother you so much?

[Tcg]

You didn't need to state it; it is a logical consequence of your assertions about atheists not being able to harbor any theism.

Nice try. But your strawman is still a strawman.




Tcg

[William]

The same logic applies to atheists who call out to God. Calling out to God doesn't disqualify a person as an atheist.

Atheists expect absolutely nothing from god/gods. Anyone who does so is not an atheist.

Tcg

I have seen atheists claiming that they would change their mind if only a God would do something which would prove the God was real. I have never seen any of these atheists explain what they might consider as evidence for a God being real, [since they appear to be implying that they will know it if they saw it]...so I have wondered if these atheists are afraid of naming these things they would accept as evidence in case they might happen and the Atheist has to become a theist. - Perhaps that is the fear that atheists can have. The fear of becoming a theist...The fear of there actually being a Creator. The added fear that The Creator might be a God like the one of the bible?

I do think that there is a difference between being 'Atheist' and transitioning between being a theist to being an atheist. Perhaps therein is the confusion that has a Christian starting a thread called "Are atheists afraid of God?"

Certainly it is evident that Paul of Tarsus has placed the position of "Atheist" as a straw-premise in order to argue from a false perception and seems unlikely at this stage [having ignored posters who have tried to explain his error] to change his perception...might as well go talk to that scarecrow in the field...for the same result will occur. One will remain unheard.

[Paul of Tarsus]

Perhaps, but by your own information, he had spent most of his life as a believer. If there was a bit of a believer left in him, then the same can't be said to apply to me.

That's correct. Everybody's different, and there may be some atheists who are doubters to the core. I am arguing that it's entirely possible that some atheists may nevertheless fear God.

[Paul of Tarsus]

Certainly it is evident that Paul of Tarsus has placed the position of "Atheist" as a straw-premise in order to argue from a false perception and seems unlikely at this stage [having ignored posters who have tried to explain his error] to change his perception...might as well go talk to that scarecrow in the field...for the same result will occur. One will remain unheard.

What posters did I ignore? I do not recall ignoring any challenges to my position on this issue, and I have rebutted all other posted arguments against my position in detail explaining to the best of my ability why I disagree. If anything, I think it is my opposition who are ignoring my arguments. Tcg, for example, keeps asserting that atheists cannot believe in God with little or no evidence to back up that assertion. I do not recall his posting one word about my citing cognitive dissonance as a possible explanation for an atheist fearing God.

So here's your chance to demonstrate how not to ignore arguments: How does cognitive dissonance fail to substantiate the possibility of an atheist fearing God?