Is it better to live a fulfilling life of virtue or to pursue only happiness and pleasure?

jacpod comments on Feb 1, 2018:

I don't think its an either or question they are all helpful options and to enjoy a full life exploring all options is helpful I think if you look out for new experiences of any kind and consider the impact on yourself you may get a sense of what it is you want more of and what it is you want less of. You don't have to linit yourself you are allowed to have anything that is on offer.

Were you the popular type in high school or more the keep to yourself type?

jacpod comments on Feb 1, 2018:

I think I was seen by classmates and teachers, as the peculiar one. I was pretty much cue blind as I had a weird backstory and my parents were mad as a poked hornets nest. I didn't actually have the option to do anything more than be in the out group but strangely it was the making of me and I decided to kick hard against all the conventions of school life and become "the outsider' for some inner strength.

Do you find learning new things exhilarating or do you feel like learning is a tedious chore?

jacpod comments on Feb 1, 2018:

Depends! On what it is I am learning - I cannot juggle with numbers or money to save my life. But creative expressive work would be great I would love to write a book.

Have you ever burned a bible?

jacpod comments on Feb 1, 2018:

No - I wouldn't want to. Horses for Courses as they say. Besides it would contribute in an infinitesimal way to global warming.

A lot of angry and/or uneducated atheists around here...

jacpod comments on Feb 1, 2018:

I havent found this to be the case -, I am reading thoughtful submissions havent met any bitterness yet - maybe I am not reading the same posts as you? And I wonder if you need the idea of a lot of angry uneducated atheists to validate your sense of having got over this particular hurdle.

What do you have faith in?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

My bed - my chairs - my talents - my sense of self and sense of what is real and what is not.

What is the best way to broach Atheism in a religious conversation?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

I am not in the business of destroying any one elses belief systems - it's cruel and unnecessary- I avoid people who are likely to proseletyse but if I love them I smile and say any other news today / if we start going down that slippery slope - I have no inhibitions about coming out as atheist and most people i know -know that and can joke about it with me so seems easy peasy but i ma living in sheltered accommodation so not meeting that many different people.

Where have all the good men gone?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

I know one but if I tell you where he is I might have to move him to a safe house.

Illegitimi non carborundum. Thoughts?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

Yes good motto - (I learnt it as bastardos nolite carborundorum)

Other than John Lennon's "Imagine," is there another atheist/agnostic song.

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

I don't know how to get them up here from 'you tube' but look up Leon Rosselson, Ewan Mccoll and Billy Bragg.

What do I say?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

Hereabouts we say" I am so sorry for your loss" - and then maybe, would you like to talk about her?

Do you take after anyone in your family?

jacpod comments on Jan 31, 2018:

No the only thing I have in common with either of them, is my fathers gift to me of opposable thumbs which are enormously fat and short changed at the top joint - I ma expecting arthritis to get into the bottom knuckle very soon as its already started - so apart from hideous woefully unfit for purpose thumbs I am fine, Just fine.

Do you have to pretend to be religious to fit in?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I don't really fit in that well anywhere, I put it down to hard early life lessons- I have certain mental health problems so I come across as both naiive and quirky _ I can't imagine how I would do that pretence. I have very little grounding in religion. I seem to be accepted though, even by people who are religious I think thats because I am no threat to them - Their faith is easily strong enough to withstand an atheist in the mix, and I fit in very well with my friends and family who are unbelievers.

What is the non-theist replacement for "I'll pray for you?"

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I don't think its always words that are helpful light touch on the shoulder to reassure that you are still there and listening - and a suggestion that you are capable of staying for a while - Its helpful of they cry because then you know where you are - also I think the last line the guy said to you was him giving himself the comfort he needed and we can probably be big enough to allow him that - It seems to me that we people have our no-go areas, as if it will pollute our being if we don't hold the line - But he said it for himself,he didnt need you to say it, so you don't have to be good with the mushy stuff just hang on in there whilst its going down.

Would You Be Ok With Your Child Choosing To Be a Believer?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

Oh! oh! I never really thought of this as its hypothetical and my children are 49 and 50y.o and havent had a god yet. If it ever had happened 'hypothetically', I hope that I would have the courage to, not appease, nor stay away! I don't think anyone religious needs to proseletyse constantly, so hopefully we could still do all the same walking and canal journeys etc.

I was told by a Christian that atheist stay stressed cause they always doing research on everything.

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I personally don't engage in these sort of conversations, as they always lead to the same end , and its rarely pretty. I just make an excuse and get off as there is nothing to be gained by a -lose /lose head banging conversation, on either side.

Should I attend a wedding at church as an atheist?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I don't think its hypocritical to go to a wedding, its kind, you don't have to join in the service, you can sit at the back and enjoy someone else's pageantry with their beliefs, without sullying your own beliefs. If it would make someone else happy seems like a humanist thing to do as I see it and I guess its really down to you to make that call or not.

Boyfriend is agnostic, I'm an atheist. How to cope with disagreements?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

Why on earth don't you chill out and do simple things together , walks in the park etc. and have this as a no go area rather than a ping pong match - this scenario seems to me a recipe for meaningless discussion - which doesnt help your bonding process- Why would it matter? let him be and stop giving yourself a hard time - there must be films you can watch together. Leave this stuff in the closet if you love love him and quit the conversations

Atheism Definition

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I am atheist. I don't claim no gods exist - I just don't happen to have one or want one; life is enough for me.

How many folks here know who this is, and/or remember his presidency?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I was at home about 13 y.o and my brother came rushing in the door shouting, "Kennedys been shot!" and "turn on the television now!" It was awful and it played all day adn somehow we were stuck to the screen .

When you say "I love you", what does that mean? I am not referring to romantic love.

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I say it often to my partner , and find that just those three words can be said in a variety of ways with different emphases, and it actually tells me more about myself listening to how I have said it. Sometimes playfully sometimes deeply meaningful and loving sometimes in a perfunctory way if I am for instance getting ready to go out. My partner and I don't live together and we are both retired person centred therapists - we don't often have to find ourselves in the place of protesting a love that isn't quite there yet.

Why do we need feminism?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

Well said secure Sir!

Seems like as safe a place as any to ask this! Many men say they like a strong woman.

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I think that at present we are living in really weird times regarding relationships and gender identities, I am too old for any of that game playing and think that given the access to technology we are in reality living in a Post Truth Society and that isnt easily handled unless you are a 'born again gamer'. The Russians have been there longer than us and a listlessness is upon many of them - without some sense of truth you drown in a swampy soup of 'whatever!' I refuse to own a mobile phone they are more addictive than anything I have ever seen. So this is my attempt to think about how people are so conflicted about their roles , and how to be in the world and how to be with each other.

Emotional responses.

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

Walking away!?

I was told by a Christian that atheist stay stressed cause they always doing research on everything.

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

I think that basically it is too difficult for someone of faith to even put themselves in an empathic situation with someone of no faith or even with someone of a different faith as the storyline is almost always 'we alone have the right faith ' That is a difficult position to hold because it means that you have to resist and sometimes battle against losing your own faith - I htink it must takea lot of energy to keep yourself always in top dog position as you can't rest for a minute with all those 'others' out there 'against' you.

What are your views on polygamy?

jacpod comments on Jan 30, 2018:

Agree - I don't have a problem with it for anyone else not my business but seems rather time consuming one partner is more than enough for me.

How comfortable are you with the word "Atheist" ?

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

Totally in latin it just means without a god -just descriptive nothing else to be said -

Is your state you live in a super religious state?

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

Yes Northern Ireland is full of contradictory beliefs which is surprising since there is only one bone of contention in the whole ceremony. They have 99.9% in common and much more in common as citizens yet it must be one of the most divided countries we have.

Let's discuss the conflict between individual rights and the greater good.

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

Abortion on demand for rape victims and anyone who seriously cannot cope - Not sure of vaccines being mandatory as some people die from having them and we don't seem to know yet how or why that happens so if not foolproof I'd say parents had the last say. I always thought a libertarian position was that property is theft - quite willing to pay my taxes but would like to see the upper class scroungers in my country do away with tax havens etc. I feel upset about the Plymouth Bretheren as my nephew nearly died from being denied hospital care. But I think life is always a risky business and no one can get it right for all of us all the time.

Whether or not you play video games on your own time, do you find or think playing video games with ...

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

No I'd rather play real board games with a group of people I love/like.

Cheese is the Answer

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

Love it especially as its a pig! wonderful animals! highly intelligent.

A lot of angry and/or uneducated atheists around here...

jacpod comments on Jan 29, 2018:

I haven't encountered these people on here unless its me, but I doubt it. I dont need to do all that research to prove a point or write a book because its a personal issue and I have never been angry or upset with believers - most people out there are good folk and its not a sin in my book (A sin in its original meaning of 'without love' ) for them to worship whoever they wish it isnt hurting me.

There is no agnostic vs. atheist! The peeve I have...

jacpod comments on Jan 28, 2018:

I don't really see the difference myself , at any one time in my life - ,simply put, I don't have a god. It doesn't worry me that people use different words and give them different meanings - the bottom line is "in this moment I have no god for me it is the 'A" at the beginning of the tqo words that is the important this A in latin is -'without' so 'a'-theist ' is 'without' a god and 'a'gnostic is - without knowing; but at this moment without a god.So we are both in the same place without a god until someone gets gnosis = knowingness.

Have you ever had a partner succumb to mental health problems?

jacpod comments on Jan 28, 2018:

My mother was bi -polar /mainly manic; my father clinically depressed after his war experiences, both were abusive verbally physically and sexually - I have a diagnosis of D.I.D. I have been taken into mental hospital many times. My partner of many years has chronic O.C.D. We seem to manage quite well in the circumstances and are living in sheltered accommodation. The things I can do well are cooking cleaning etc and creative thinking and craftwork , He is great with money numbers and logic . We live in separate flats and it s nice having someone else who is real about expectations. I don't think it would work so well if we were unbalanced in our inter-independecy

Do any of you have earnestly religious friends?

jacpod comments on Jan 28, 2018:

I do but we don't discuss anything like that and we just basically talk soft stuff or gossip.

Is being an atheist important?

jacpod comments on Jan 28, 2018:

Not to me, but then I have been fortunate in my upbringing even with two mentally unwell abusive parents. I also have a diagnosis of weird mental unwellness Dissociative Identity Disorder which strangely some people dont believe in either but it is real for me and actually helps me to cope with the strangeness of my experience with the world

So, based on my question about what political affiliation you most connect with, I notice that most ...

jacpod comments on Jan 27, 2018:

I think that they came from the context of being a baby boomer, born 1948 post war - people hopeful and easy - given that bombs weren't on the menu - Also my parents both had mental health problems - father from being in the air force in the war mother a welder on the docks in the freezing cold - And suddenly, a prosperity! Everyone totally loving 'new ' new fashions new food coming in exciting times, children having such capacity to roam as we pleased parents not scared to let us out- plus I went to a Free school we had to work ta something, but we could follow our own inclinations about what we learned.New freedoms were on the menu. I joined C.N.D with my friends and went on the Aldermaston marches rallied against Verwoerdt on the steps of South Africa House. it was an exciting time to feel that you had some sort of power - So I think my political beliefs, Co-operation Mutual Aid, Equality were all formed at that point in History. My parents were not political in that sort of sense but they never stopped us and my older brother went to stop the blackshirts from marching in the East End. I think that the war had brought people together and until the Maggie Thatcher era we were still together.

One thing I was told very often when I was younger was "You'll get more right wing as you get ...

jacpod comments on Jan 27, 2018:

70 this year and still an anarchist, if I had the health for it I'd be marching with the gang, been on more U.k. demo's than I can count (or remember these days) - loved it all!

RIP Ursula K Le Guin [bbc.co.uk] (What's the atheist equivalent of RIP...?)

jacpod comments on Jan 27, 2018:

My son is a great fan of Mark E Smith, lead singer of the Fall who died round about the same time as Ursula le Guin my favourite author so joint commiserations all round

Are you an open or closet agnostic/atheist, and why?

jacpod comments on Jan 27, 2018:

Open atheist mainly because I am not bothered to talk about it to 'anyone of any religion or none' if they want me to. I actually don't think its a very interesting subject I'd far rather talk about everyday things. I was brought up in a small suburb of London & religion was never really talked about - because it was personal. I now live in Northern Ireland where its a great topic of interest and seems to define people - as in 'I'm this not that' I find it difficult given that there is only one specific difference between the two ways of praising the same god and I sometimes think it isnt about the religion at all but a bit like a need for difference to maintain a sense of self.

If you could go back in time and undo something in your past, would you?

jacpod comments on Jan 27, 2018:

No I don't think so because even my unwise ,unhelpful, decisions helped me to learn and grow, without making mistakes I wouldnt have had that opportunity - It also allowed others to set me straight and give me choices. So I am ok with my past - I leave it where it belongs; in the past.

I'm so glad I found this site.

jacpod comments on Jan 26, 2018:

I came for the same time period as you ,but never clicked with church at all . It was an insipid experience for me and I stopped going pretty early on. I read a lot and was always inspired by the books on offer at the library - free. I rather think it might have something to do with what part of the planet you live at because, England, London, where I grew up was pretty much a 'do as you please' in religion, at that time.

Can you guys give me some feedback on athiest churches?

jacpod comments on Jan 26, 2018:

I like the U.U's I don't go but I like that they are there they celebrate every chuches days in hteir own way and you can go and sing there and sing your own words to anything there is also Bahai which is similarly tolerant - I also admire Quakers who sit in silence until moved to speak (if at all) All of these come some way towards what I imagine is love - religion at teh soft end of hte spectrum allowing difference.

How often do you pay attention to your neighbors?

jacpod comments on Jan 26, 2018:

I also live in an over 55 independent living community and earlier in my life I was part of the communes and worker co-operative movement so I have always really paid attention to those around me - However I was attacked in own community recently the police were called and gave the person a police order and crime number and I find myself to be less tolerant now than I was before.

If attempting to convert others to a religion became illegal tomorrow, how would you feel about it?

jacpod comments on Jan 26, 2018:

I would personally love it because 'converting' is really 'subverting' someones life process because they then don't get the chance to work it out for themselves what they want spiritually .

Unpopular Opinion 1: When I hear that the military is protecting our freedoms with the Forever ...

jacpod comments on Jan 23, 2018:

I have an unsubstantiated feeling that the way we are living our lives (often with a lot of chaotic opinions about others ) comes to a head sometimes and war is needed to bring the future survivors together for a while till it all builds up again - I think we are really not that nice or confident of ourselves to stop this happening.

If you could teach everyone in the world one concept, what concept would have the biggest positive ...

jacpod comments on Jan 23, 2018:

Being Love and ditching fear - being unafraid to be love/loved.

Why do you reject the idea of religion?

jacpod comments on Jan 19, 2018:

It isnt so defined for me as rejection, just 'not an embracing'.I have never ever felt in any way religously inclined, it doesn't cut the mustard for me - As a young teen I really tried but it wasnt working - I think maybe I am just resistant to religion as some people are to the flu.

How do you deal with Door-knockers?

jacpod comments on Jan 19, 2018:

Depends how much time I have, my grandmother used to make 'J.W,s ' tea and biscuits and sit down with them and let them do their spiel, took their leaflets and when they left said, thats my good deed for the day I let some other poor person in peace for a bit longer. I am capable of this but now live in sheltered accommodation and they wouldn't get in to the place.

I find this news very disturbing.

jacpod comments on Jan 19, 2018:

I know many 'christians' who are intolerant of other races and other religions who say to me "Oh but I don't mean you - you're different' I don't quite know how this much divisiveness gets into any society, but I think it might stem from fear of 'other'; no matter what we are told or brought up to believe (or not). As a child I was brought up to be acceptant of other & to treat people as equals . On the whole I find that pretty easy.

Are atheist as racist as religious people?

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I don't know really, I don't know why I am commenting as I know of no polls about this - I know that I was taught not to be racist by my parents who lived in the East end of London where most of the first immigrants came as a starting off place. My father was not a believer and my mother had a personal god who could whop anybody elses' god,I was taught at an early age that we are all equal citizens regardless of any differences and my mother would tell me whoever knocks at the door to let them in, But this was the 1950's and we were dependent upon nurses coming over from the Carribean to work in the understaffed NHS. Our population was depleted due to the war and I was one of the baby boomers

What moral code do you follow now that you are non-religious?

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

(I have never been religious) 1) If it harms no-one, follow your inclinations. 2) Cherish every freedom that comes your way. 3) Lovingkindnessing with no regrets. 4) Treat others with respect until they disrespect you - then let them go their own way

Why is it the Catholic funerals have to be so damn depressing, I don't want to see my loved one dead...

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I am atheist but I actually liked the 3 wakes that I have been to , my friend Mandy was the first and she organised along with her deaconess all the details of her funeral that would get us to laugh grieve and get over any unhappiness, so that at the end of the service we were all smiling and laughing at the little touches she had made, to get us to laugh and cry. Next was a man who literally had a massive heart attack and died at our feet whilst on a short break holiday he was in our small party who had taken a break and a holiday flat in the Lake district, and when he was taken away we didnt really know what to do with ourselves and twiddled our thumbs until we actually started to talk about him and his life and ended up laughing. He had a funeral in Liverpool when we got back but it wasn't great and we ended up in his favourite corner in the snug of his favourite pub- I think that the funeral is an opportunity to celebrate the persons life and to remember that they are really-seriously not there with us any more.The last one was my partners father and he had the most ornate coffin and so many people came to the wake it was standing room only, everywhere - and just like a party with the deceased man lying down enjoying it immensely (it seemed) I think that the wake is for the living and again to be reminded of a significant family member's life.

Temptation of Faith

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I sort of wanted to - when I was at grammar school we had a teacher whose face would shine when she talked of 'god'; & crudely put, I wanted a bit of that - but never had a religious bone in my body; was kicked out of brownies when I didnt go to church parade and was asked to go to a youth club that was also christian and found myself a square peg in a round hole. I don't think I have ever been afraid of death or of other people dying - I think that I have had good experiences of people dying where all the friends of that person come together and celebrate their life spontaneously and joyfully. Not saying I haven thad poor funeral experience but on the whole not much.

What are peoples thoughts on death and does it scare you?

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I don't fear death I fear hurting, or being a burden, by hanging around too long- I am old and I have done enough in my life to feel fulfilled, so, just coasting at the moment; as I said somewhere else -old enough to take life easy, fiddle around with my artwork and enjoy the view.

I've been thinking a lot about death recently and what I would like to happen with my remains when I...

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

My children since they were teenagers, have been fascinated by this one - as a family we updated our funeral list of songs constantly but in a jolly excited way. I don't really know about remains. I'd like to do the best thing for the environment. My parents were both cremated and are in a garden of remembrance with a rose marking their spot. I am afraid that even though I am in the age bracket to start thinking about it I don't have a lot of energy for it . Yes donation to science would be good.

Making Life Meaningful Without Religion

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

Life is always full of meaning it presents you with challenges daily that you can learn and grow from ,you don't have to work at it. If you mean, how do you sort out what is real for you rather than taking what other people tell you how to think feel or act - then its just getting into a practise of looking at your options and deciding what feels the right way for you. If you want to balance yourself around love, for example, then its important to sort out what is 'not love' and make choices for yourself and not depend too much upon the opinions of 'other's.

If you received enough money to never need to work again, what would you spend your time doing?

jacpod comments on Jan 16, 2018:

I am 70 y.o. (pension age ) so I never need to work again. I spend a lot of my time doing washing and ironing mending and shopping for others for any donation to charity they wish to give me - When I reach £100.00 I ask someone what charity they want it to go to and send it off. I don't seem to have very many needs, I have a degree in fine and applied arts so I am often just playing with that creativity, often coming up with weird designs, I write - take photographs with a camera, walk and enjoy coffee and scones in nice teahouses. I don't really seem to 'get' other people so a fair bit of my head space is taken up with wondering what responses to make to them. I live pretty simply and have some enjoyment about having lived a varied and funny life up to now - Now being just easy time.

What irritating song do you hear in stores- that makes you want to leave?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

I dont really mind what is playing but I have hyperacusis - sensitivity to loud noise and as long as its quietish I dont really mind what is playing - I am old enough to remember most music and had wide ranging taste - wouldnt mind if it were religious either as long as it wasnt cutting the ears off me.

Religious people attracted to agnostics/atheists? Why?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

I have good friends who are religious and they never ever try to change me in any way although I have had experiences of being 'converted' my worst was getting on the wrong train -non stop to sevenoaks from London croded so we were squashed into the corridor with a holy man preaching at me non stop and telling me he would pray for me . Basically I think they like the idea/job of converting souls. I was a lecturer in person centred counselling I did my initial training with two priests, a vicar ,two nuns and a deaconess and they were pretty good fun

Besides religion, what's an example of magical thinking?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

Its hard to say because so often fact becomes fiction and what was fiction sometimes becomes a fact - I think that ,for myself, I try to separate it out as best I can in the moment when faced with a quandary especially where politicians and religious dogma is involved but am ready to change my mind in a twinkle if new evidence comes along - I remember an episode of QI where Fry said "Half of everything we think we know will turn out to be untrue in a given time but we don't know which half!"

Incest: Immoral or Moral?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

I think its not a moral issue at all its one of genetics you haven't such a wide gene pool between you so it just makes sense to have children with non-close relatives

What do you tell very young children when they ask if you believe in God?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

I didn't ever have to have that conversation with either of my children as I never talked about a god, because it was of no importance to me , and I was cool with the idea that they might want to be religious as they were exposed to it at school.

What kind of New Year's Resolutions did you make?

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

None, I never do - I think if I want to live in the moment, forward planning isn't really an option -I am old though and seem to remember all my earlier New Years resolutions were to be kinder. These days I would rather have my real feelings as they come and sort them out as they come. I am often angry about the state of my society and the casual cruelty of some of the people I meet and I constantly try to see and understand their limitations (and fail) 6 Months ago, I was beaten up by someone who lives in the same housing scheme as me. I have stopped recognising them and that helps me so I am thinking that change in oneself comes as a result of a learning situation. Just being adaptive to what you get .

What We All Have in Common

jacpod comments on Jan 15, 2018:

Staying alive?

What I learned in 2017:

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

i am a slow learner I think because I seem to get something under my belt about relationships and then I lose it . relationships confound me . This last year I was twice attacked by a man who lives in the same sheltered accommodation as me. My H.A. seems to have it down as six of one an half a dozen of the other even though the police gave him a community order - So I have learned that I have to make my own sense of 'justice' an dI havent learned how.Yet!

I’ve Never Believed Finding myself in a different space than most atheists and agnostics in ...

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

pretty much the same experiences as mine .I read a lot as a child wildly exciting books with all the fanfare of life in them.. Sunday school classes were stories with no good hooks or storylines so they never involved me and it was a poor story compared to Black Beauty etc. My parents were sceptics but didnt talk about it - I opted for the personal growth, counselling, creative expressive therapy, route which is about as free and real as it gets these days I am old and just go my own way.

are you afraid of death?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

not yet I may be when the time comes - I am pretty afraid of life (it was difficult - much better now) but I suppose teh short answer is no and i hope it stays that way. I think I might be more afraid of losing faculties.

What has the atheist "community" done for anyone lately?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

I dont really think of atheists as a community . I live in sheltered accomodation with 26 flats (only two are inhabited by atheists). I do washing ironing and mending for the local charities I get paid a small sum for this and when it adds up to £100.00 I take it to a charity, The christmas one was for the local foodbank and I made up a hamper and we all bought extra tins for a hamper in the run up to christmas. So my idea but 24 religious people joining in - I might have nothing in common with another atheist except our unbelief and think its a story to imagine that there are communities that could be bound together by this one trait.

What is the non-theist replacement for "I'll pray for you?"

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

If it was someone I was comfortable around, I'd hug them and maybe say I''ll keep you in my thoughts and I hope your grandson takes a turn for the better soon.

Why are some atheists angry?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

Without anger there would be no change fear doesn't get anyone to move if they are in your face and standing on your foot .Sadness doesn't work 'happiness doesn't work the only way to get them out of your face and off your foot is anger.

Fellow agnostics, how do you feel about believers joining?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

no thanks I live in a very religious often proseletysing wee town this is a nice getaway for me a breath of fresh air.

Do we have a purpose in life?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

I don't think there is a collective -'we' some of us just float around willy-nilly doing the best we can to be human - very many of us are damaged by our experiences that we cannot understand. Some know that here is a god - some don't, we are a strange collective of individuals and I like that idea everyone is different we meet learning opportunities all the time

My dads entire life he was an Atheist.

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

There really are no straight down the line 'should's' or 'oughts,' we do what we do often from a very straight place within ourselves . Feel your anger and sometime you might be able to let it go - just carry on doing whatever you need to do for yourself - Many times I have been in a situation where someone with good intentions has 'blessed' me - I try to find the way to make it work for me and then let it go; like the man said "whilst your'e bearing a grudge the grudgee is out dancing!" it seems it is ourselves who give ourselves pain - Let it go if your husband was atheist its not going to harm him now.

If atheists had a holiday, what would that holiday look like?

jacpod comments on Dec 31, 2017:

just a quiet day, which is what I was doing when all were rushing around 'doing/buying /rejoicing' in Chrimble. If a longer holiday , this atheist woul choose Scandiwegia.

What are your thoughts about euthanasia?

jacpod comments on Dec 29, 2017:

I think its crazy that I could be jailed for wanting to end my own life - It seems that people in power think they have a right to own my personal - life and death . I dont want to be a drain on my societies resources if I am no longer functional.

What event in your life made you turn your back on religion?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

I didnt turn my back on it I never turned my front to it - Religion was never a problem to me because I never took to it. I was never made to engage with it - When I was of an age for talking or seeing what was going on in my own family; a bipolar mainly manic mother who had worked as a welder on the docks in the war and a depressed father who barely existed any more, due to wartime experiences as an RAF officer pilot then radio officer on the ground responsible for a troop of men - there was no room for anything in our house except madness. I am glad of my experiences because they shaped me into something I recognise as more real than 'story'

Is life meaningful without religion?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

My life is meaningful to me I am learning all the time. People talk about god and heaven but I see a lot of hellish stuff going on around me and am determined not to add to that mess.

Should an atheist study world religions or not?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

I don't accept should's and ought's in my life if I ever in the future, feel like persuing a study in world religions I will, but my being an atheist doesn't mean to me that I have to prove anything to myself or others by having facts and figures all sorted out - I don't intend to get into any intellectual arguments about god or no god. I just dont have a god.

How do you make life meaningful without the help of religion?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

My life is meaningful - I am enough, I have enough, I do enough. I don't have to 'MAKE' life meaningful it just is. All of life is meaningful.

WHAT'S YOUR POSITION ON ABORTION ?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

I was forced to have a sterilisation in 1972 when I wanted an abortion, I had two children and was using birth control a coil - I was treated like muck by all the staff at the hospital so I am up for a womans' right to choose!

When did you first doubt religion?

jacpod comments on Dec 27, 2017:

yes I went to a free school when I was four and there was no religious education in that learning space and we were free as long as we worked to work on whatever interested us. I opted for reading as I was reading from a really young age - so I escaped all the indoctrination that I heard went on in state schools.

How comfortable are you with the word "Atheist" ?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

Comfortable, it translates to - 'without a god'

Do you celebrate religious holidays?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

Every day is ok for me I used to pretend and send cards etc but stopped when I got older and thought that i'd look after myself better.

How do you tell religious people that you're an atheist?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

I live in sheltered accommodation North Coast of northern Ireland and most people here are religious. I try not to rattle any ones cage at all because I am different enough anyway but if I trust someone and they know I dont disrespect their choices I just say that I am an atheist. No one has ever questioned me about it or tried to change me in any way and I keep a neighbours statue of 'our lady' clean and tidy.

What is the main reason why you are not religious?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

when I was small my parents never made me go to sunday school whereas every other child in our small town went to one of the local ten churches. Because the streets would be deserted with no one to play with (1953 we played in the street -very few cars or the local bomb-site). So I went to sunday school with different friends a different church each time - methodist, congregationalist, baptist high anglican etc. Because I was an avid reader of any book I could get my hands on I had got through most of the minor classic childrens books and I found the teachings somehow incomplete - not really enough information in the story and a bit dry - I sometimes liked the people who told the stories their faces all aglow and I wondered if mine would ever glow like that - I could see that they were getting something out of it that I wasn't. And still it was better than kicking my heels alone on an empty street.So somehow I never got the connectedness that others had. Also I had a bi polar mother and a depressed, war hero, father neither of whom could cope with me - So my retreat was into books till I left home at 15 y.o. Nothing in the bible spoke to me at all and it all seemed pretty lame compared to the reality of my life and the books I read from the library.

Do you think some people are luckier?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

I think 'Not really'. Luck is something we seem to evaluate backwards in time - something happens a near shave and we might think 'boysadearie!' that was a 'lucky' escape when in reality it was an escape pure and simple and we just perceived it as lucky. Other times we perceive ourselves as unlucky when its just random and we might say "I never have any luck!" But in that moment we arent looking inside of ourselves for a more real explanation its simpler to say I am always unlucky/lucky it would be really hard ot do a complete analysis so we use the term luck (I think) in a lazy sort of way as it 'sort of' explains something to us that lets us off the hook. It wasnt anything to do with me it was lucky/unlucky.

How comfortable are you with the word "Atheist" ?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

I think that every act we make every word we speak defines us and that is possible that it is no shock to anyone to admit to being an atheist. I am with you totally about the state of non believing - I think it might be quite uninteresting because it doesn't really register as a 'doing' verb just passive and uninteresting except if someone is up for a fight to reclaim your soul for you. I suppose I would take issue with 'insanity' - I think people who genuinely believe and are comfortable with that belief and dont proseletyse have found a good way to ensure that they have positive mental health albeit one I wouldn't choose.

Are atheist as racist as religious people?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

I think to be atheist is maybe to be a freer thinker, possibly more acceptant of other belief systems because they dont threaten us - I would never ever put down someone else's defence system against a cruel world - if it helps to believe in something that eases the pain of humanity - I'm all for it - sometimes I wish I had that simplicity myself & yes I share your last sentiment - and I was brought up to make my own mind up freely about what my spirituality would be.

Boyfriend is agnostic, I'm an atheist. How to cope with disagreements?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

why do you have to go there at all - I mean the place where you both choose to knock your heads on the same old, same old .I'd make a pact not to talk about religion or lack of it and make a relationship based on all the things that you have in common and strengthen that. if oyu love him stay with him if you dont, leave. But it sounds like you're making a relationship based completely on a negative . If any of my friends believes in a sky god I let them, and pass myself it isn't my business. I have many religious friends and as long as we dont have boring conversations about our positions - what odds.

How do you deal with Door-knockers?

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

I dont take them on - I just sit and listen and let them do their spiel my granny taught me a long time ago that whilst they are staying with you they are leaving someone else alone. Mind , I have never had a heavy preacher at my door they seem mostly weak people who have been caught in someones net to carry the word .

If you had to describe yourself in 3 fictional characters, what would they be??

jacpod comments on Dec 26, 2017:

outsider forrest gump minnie mouse