Can a Christian and an atheist be friends? (rrs mailbag)
Offline > Hope sent a message using the contact form at
> http://www.rationalresponders.com/contact.
>
> I am sorry on behalf of my Christian brothers and sisters if we have
> offended or hurt you. My desire is that the motivation of our hearts would
> be love and peace. I know that is not what happens all the time and I am
> sorry for any pain that was or has been caused. I will confess I am hurt
> and feel very attacked by the words I have heard on this website. I hope
> that one day we can live in peace and love each other. I quess my qeustion
> is - can a Christain and an Atheist be friends? Do you believe that that is
> possible for us to just love each other and appreciate the differnces in
> each other? Sent with much love and tears.
Yes of course Christians and atheists can be friends, it happens all the time.
If you got to know us you'd find that everything we do is because we care about humanity and our survival. We feel religion is dangerous and harmful, and it's our moral obligation to help end it. While we may be wrong (we don't think there is any chance we are wrong), we don't do this to hurt others, we do it because we think we're helping. The point is... our heart is in the right place, just like yours, I can see that. Hopefully you can understand it the other way around.
I personally feel that any tears you shed over our site are because you were brainwashed into Christ belief, not because we were mean to you. That frustrates me, and it's why I seek to end religion, on your behalf, even though you likely don't agree nor would you want me to.
I wish you the best.
In Rationality,
Brian Sapient
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Of course.the vast majority of my friends are christians.(In fact i think i have one atheist friend) There is no reason we can't get along, and frankly, I believe that you would even ask tht is an indication of the severe brainwashing we try to end.
Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God"-From a 1763 misprinted edition of the bible
Argument from Sadism: Theist presents argument in a wall of text with no punctuation and wrong spelling. Atheist cannot read and is forced to concede.
Practically all Americans I have ever met were Christians, and they were good people, it was fun with them, and they were very...Americanish. (you know, playful, always in a challenge, crazy, maybe too much enthusiastic for everything)
I'm not a christian, (in fact I'm a walking parallel version of RRS radio interviews with christians, you know the style) but it wasn't a problem to get along with them. Before they started teaching us pagans a gospel singing and dancing. (God, Jesus, whatever, but I won't sing!)
I'm wondering what people the American atheists are. According to the local chat, they think about a food all the time, but I think it's an internet habit, it says nothing about a real life.
Beings who deserve worship don't demand it. Beings who demand worship don't deserve it.
Nearly all of my friends are Christian or religious. Some are even involved in ministries, one is a nationally known evangelical singer. I'm tolerant of them as I have a sister that is religious and a niece that does overseas missions. So I had practice in dealing with it. This is not to say they don't try to evangelize me, they do. If so, all is fair. I owned a retail business and would be reading a history book, atheist books, or books critical of religion. People would comment what are you reading. If asked I would tell them what I was reading and why. I will explain and listen to them in detail as well. As I had a very Christian background I know what they know. Quoting scripture doesn't work on me, as I'll quote back to them why not this way. I have reached a few people that way. Perhaps it will help them develop understanding of us and hopefully more tolerance.
As an American living in Colorado for years and now Florida for almost as many I find plenty to do other than eat. Skiing snow or water, going to the beach, and the occasional theme park (Orlando). Food is not a priority for me.
____________________________________________________________
"I guess it's time to ask if you live under high voltage power transmission lines which have been shown to cause stimulation of the fantasy centers of the brain due to electromagnetic waves?" - Me
"God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent, - it says so right here on the label. If you have a mind capable of believing all three of these divine attributes simultaneously, I have a wonderful bargain for you. No checks please. Cash and in small bills." - Robert A Heinlein.
Well, if you think that religious indoctrination is child abuse, one should have a difficult time maintaining a relationship with Christians or Theist that condones this practice.
I've told Theist/Christians friends that I consider it abuse to tell a young child that Hell is fact, and use this fear to control their behavior. If they teach it to children as "this is what I believe, but you don't have to believe", this is OK. If they teach it as absolute fact and put the fear of Hell into them, I would have a hard time being friends them. I think in the long run you're better of spending your time with freethinkers.
And why would you want to be friends with someone that believes you it's OK for a God to send you to Hell and torture you for all eternity just for following your conscience and being honest with yourself?
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen
Yes Christians and atheists can be friends...as long as they live on opposite sides of the planet.
Just kidding. My girlfriend is a Southern Baptist while I am an atheist. We get along fine.
You asked whether Christians and atheists can be friends. I think we can at least get along. I'm an atheist, but I've been playing the piano in many Gospel groups, so you can imagine that many of my friends are Christians.
While it's vital for me to spend time with my atheist friends, I'm just as happy when I'm with my theist ones. I have this friend who is getting heavily involved in her church, and of course we talk about that a lot, amongst other things. Even though both of us hold different convictions we try to do the intelligent thing and avoid being self-righteous jerks.
I live in France, and whether you believe it or not, very few of the theists I know have a holier-than-thou attitude and are easy to get along with. Many of them don't even believe in hell. If their religion gives them self-confidence and makes them nicer people, I sure won't complain.
I think life should be simple.
On the other hand, it hasn't been very long since I outed myself as an atheist to my believing friends. Perhaps the worst is yet to come? I'll let you know in a few years.
Cheers
Jan
http://www.myspace.com/jandark
Email back from Hope...
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Its like asking can you be friends with someone who has a drug addiction or has a mental illness (which is what christians basically have) and of course you can . May cause a few strains at time but thats life
I don't get it. Why did she feel "unseen and abused" ?
As for atheists and christians being friends, of course they can.
People shouldn't let trivial things get in the way of friendship.
The great equalizer to all humans now and future and all of past history is death, no one can escape it. We do not think we are better than any other human, we will not live forever.
So when people come here and read our blunt criticisms and blasphemy and even ridicule, it is not out of hate. It is because there is no way to sugar coat reality. If you had a 45 year old friend who litteraly believed that Thor made lighting, you might not disown them as a friend, but if you didn't tell them their claim was absurd, you would be being dishonest with them and you wouldn't be helping them. At least when you are honest with them you are giving them the oportunity to consider it.
Of course atheists can be friends with Christians or any other label. There are 6 billion people on the planet and it would be impossible for anyone of any label to try and completely isolate themselves from the rest of the world around them.
We are not facists, we are not bigots or hatemongers. We simply want to see humanity grow out of thinking they need magical fictional friends in the sky, by any name.
"We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers."Obama
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there are two possibilities... Either there is a god and we're wrong, or there is not, and YOU are wrong. And untill we have the abitlity to converse socially and change one another's minds, we'll still be seperated by our differences.
There is one important ingredient to any christian-atheist friendship: A sense of humor. You must be willing to let one another pick fun at your own beliefs, and accept rational critizicism.
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Two hands working can do more than a thousand clasped in prayer.
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The atheist must believe the Christian doesn't really believe. It's just their drug of delusion. Seriously, could you be friends with some that loves and worships someone(God) who is ready to torture us for eternity just for not believing without evidence? If the theist is right, they are going to love and worship the all powerful being that finds it necessary to torture you in hell. Some friend.
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen