TRANSGENDERinternet atheism ruined an entire generation

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[–]Objecting_Sphere 18 insightful - 1 fun18 insightful - 0 fun19 insightful - 1 fun -  (17 children)

Exactly. It seems many unintelligent people are unable to exist without some guiding dogmatism in their life. So when they were deprived of traditional religion, they adopted a new dogmatism. I'm afraid true free thought is only possible for a minority who are destined to be persecuted by the sheeplike masses.

[–]Q-Continuum-kin 12 insightful - 1 fun12 insightful - 0 fun13 insightful - 1 fun -  (16 children)

The big issue is that these people have the same persecution complex but it gets viewed as a civil rights issue instead of whiney religious people trying to proselytize.

It's as if the end times preacher who stood on a soap box in the middle of campus and was scoffed at was given a classroom to teach and every HR department is bowing down to him.

Edit - also btw i believe it's in our DNA to be predisposed to religion. It's part of natural selection to have a sense that "everything happens for a reason." If you hear a bush rustle it's better to assume it might be a lion stalking you than to ignore it as random. When culture evolved we had less to worry about but the sense transfers over to say... the sun comes up every day, must be the sun god. Or now some man is like "I'm not masculine enough to be a man... must be a woman."

[–]Objecting_Sphere 9 insightful - 1 fun9 insightful - 0 fun10 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

It's not so different from how religion was treated a few generations ago. Opposing religion used to be seen as a sign of a morally degenerate person. And I agree, there is a certain instinct to attach yourself to a popular belief system and power-wielding orthodox group. Only those with superior commitment to truth will buck the trend.

[–]GrilledTofuIdentifying as a block of tofu 6 insightful - 1 fun6 insightful - 0 fun7 insightful - 1 fun -  (14 children)

i believe it's in our DNA to be predisposed to religion

Part of the reason why most thinkers nowadays think a true atheist is very rare. Many people who claim to be so wind up joining another form of religion either as the woke, partisan politics, or the satanic church. I'm not kidding about the satanic church part.

[–]Q-Continuum-kin 7 insightful - 1 fun7 insightful - 0 fun8 insightful - 1 fun -  (13 children)

The satanic church is there to troll religious people.

[–]ClassroomPast6178 8 insightful - 1 fun8 insightful - 0 fun9 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

Pretty much. It exists solely to bring or provoke court cases with regards to the separation of church and state in the US. Very much a reaction to the early 2000s trend of Christians wanting to put the Ten Commandments on monuments in front of courthouses, teaching creationism in school and instituting mandatory prayer in schools.

[–]Vulptexghost fox girl ^w^ 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

Why are most Christians acting like this now? This kind of behavior has always existed on the (loud) fringes, but for the past few years it's become mainstream (prior to that the majority valued religious freedom and other American values similar to many of the founding fathers). This new trend seems to originate from the megachurch pastors like John MacArthur, who have been pushing it for a lot longer. The same group also caused massive shifts in mainstream theology, most notably the move from free grace to lordship salvation.

[–]Alienhunter糞大名 4 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 0 fun5 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

I'm not really sure it's a new trend at all it's just more visible again. Society has gone through a kind of woke --> revival ---> woke generational cycle for the last century at least. I suspect it's much longer.

Everyone seems to think each new cycle is unique and the cycle to end all cycles but really I say all is vanity and there is nothing new under the sun. We just forget about it and it comes back looking different and dressed in different language but it's really the same human struggles and conflicts getting played out time and time again.

The Church is by it's nature a political entity and it plays into the larger political landscape and it's power falls and wanes as well. I suspect we'll see a kind of populist christian revival similar to the pentacostalist awakening in the coming years. Though frankly I'm nowhere near as tuned into the Christian mainstream mindset as I was in the past.

Granted we might see something really bizzare take form, I feel like the current party dynamics are shifting and we might see the evangelical side take a far more economically left-wing position and their marriage to the republican party might see that shift play out where the parties shift again as they did in the past. It's hard to say with any certainty.

[–]Vulptexghost fox girl ^w^ 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

I've never seen anything like this. Even if a fringe group obtains most of the power, it's still a fringe group. This time everyday irl people are affected, and almost all of them. And the very strange part is their sudden 180 degree turn of their beliefs in multiple core areas.

[–]Alienhunter糞大名 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

It's not strange at all really. It's happened many times throughout history. Need I remind you that Christians were a fringe persecuted group often killed by the Romans until Constantine decided to pull a 180, embrace the then at the time growing cult and reverse centuries of precedent.

Once a fringe group obtains power those who seek power for powers sake will join the fringe group and it will slowly cease to be a fringe group. Many people, hell many devoutly religious people are prone to sudden conversions of ideology. How many people have changed religions throughout history to match with social or regional changes. I've known some immigrants to just up and convert to Christianity when moving to the US because why not? Do they actually believe it? We don't ask those questions.

I also really hate to invoke Godwin's law but that's another prime example of ideological shift over a short period of time. 9/11 was another if you can still remember that through the noise.

[–]r2d2_21 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (7 children)

You'd think so. But I got into a discussion with their Twitter account a while back, and they seem as religious as actual Christians.

I guess if you want to root for the bad guy you still have to believe in the whole system to begin with.

[–]Q-Continuum-kin 5 insightful - 2 fun5 insightful - 1 fun6 insightful - 2 fun -  (5 children)

I guess there can be people who are still believers and choose Satan over "God" which honestly is not a tough sell if you've actually read the bible.

I am an atheist but grew up Catholic and went through all the catechism bs. I actually used to argue with the catechism teachers because religious people will read a story then tell you the conclusion somehow proves how great God is but the story clearly makes God look like the piece of shit so if you could prove abrahamic religions were real then I could be convinced that God was the bad guy. The book of Job is a funny example. The devil here seems more like a Loki character. He casually walks into heaven and makes a bet with God. God then tortures his most loyal servant resulting in Satan winning the bet. God then throws a fit and goes on a 100 page tirade about how great he is then somehow religious people tell you that the story proves God actually won the bet because he is great and perfect etc... It's like... hello?!?! Are you reading the same pages as I am?

[–]Vulptexghost fox girl ^w^ 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

The problem is the idea of inerrancy, which is completely invented by the church. Most "scripture" is the deceitful work of people with an agenda; and the same pattern happens again and again throughout history, a "radical cult" forms, and then an orthodoxy forms a religion out of it in attempt to assimilate them back into society. Even in the New Testament, much of it was actually written by Polycarp and other early "church fathers" who were concerned about the threat Christians posed to society. They always blamed "Marcion" (who seems to have been their main scapegoat for everything) for supposedly cutting out material, so that people wouldn't immediately call them out for what really happened, that they had added it to "prove" the doctrines they wanted Christians to have. Josiah did something similar, claiming he "found" a "lost book of law" when it's obvious that he wrote it.

[–]Q-Continuum-kin 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

The problem is the idea of inerrancy

Yeah some of the stuff Christians promote is completely wild. Stuff which is just objectively awful and they celebrate it. In either the late 90s or early 00s I knew a guy who used a signature quote "drive like jehu" when he posted on message boards. It was meaningless to me but I got curious and asked him about it. All he said was it was a biblical quote. So I looked into it and read the corresponding story.

It's basically a glorification of the extermination of people for following another religion. The guy basically encircles Jericho then rides in circles until God magically drops the walls then they go in and kill everything man woman child baby chicken goat etc... So i went back and confronted him about how awful Joshua was and all I got was "you don't understand" etc...

[–]Alienhunter糞大名 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Yes we should never completely dismiss the role that real world politics play in church organization and the formation of canon.

We know that our Bible is the only true Bible because it says that it is. Unlike every other religion that lies about being the one true way and final revelation from God.

Final Fantasy IX is the Final Final Fantasy, there are no others after save the heretical apocrypha of Tidus and that unquestionably horrendous Ivalice Heresy. For without Uematsu Final Fantasy is soulless.

[–]Vulptexghost fox girl ^w^ 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

The Christian Bible never does say it is, and in fact says it's not in Jeremiah 8:8. Every "proof text" that always gets cited requires reading "the Bible" into it, when read in context it's clearly referring to something else; or it's merely praising a scripture and not calling it perfect. And even if it did, that itself may be a forgery. And assuming it's not, then which books does it consist of?

[–]Alienhunter糞大名 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Since when does what the Biblical text say have anything to do with church dogma. Make a statement pick a verse that agrees with you, ignore larger context.

Just like how the US constitution says thou shalt not buy alcohol.

[–]Alienhunter糞大名 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

It's very much like flat earth. You take an idea that's more or less existed forever but is albeit rediculous and not well received. Some people ironically start using it for satirical or other purely philosophical purposes such as forcing an introspective look into dogma. In the case of flat earth the whole point was to draw attention to bad scientific practices and force a more thorough vetting of theory and debate surrounding it since if I can argue that the world is flat and you can't manage to make a compelling argument against that lie and defend the truth, then your position is unstable and open to bad ideas and opportunistic grifters.

Naturally once you start doing this it causes attention, a bunch of numbskulls you are trying to satirize freak the fuck out and it's hilarious. This draws in the the trolls that just want to antagonize and that in turn draws in more idiots and eventually you've got the stupid people drawn to it and who unironically believe it.

While the concept of the "Church of Satan" is indeed quite funny as a satire of the church itself, the larping idiots that actually want to live it take things way too far.

It's much like with any kind of marginalized counter-cultural group in a way. You could say the same thing about furries. Sure you've got some who just like to dress up as animals and buy plushies and it's not a sex thing, but for all their complaints that it's not a sex thing, there's so many of them out there where it's very very very clearly a sex thing that it basically paints the whole group with the same brush.

In the same vein satanists have basically passed the point where it was a funny troll to actually being the thing they claim to be and the Christians take it very very seriously. At this point it wouldn't actually surprise me if some utter edgelord type in the church of Satan does something truly retarded like vandalize a church with aborted fetus remains or some such and claim it's a protected religious expression.