Do Atheists have Faith?

Question

If science cannot find a bonafide theory for how life first formed on Earth, then how much FAITH do they expect the population to have in them saying "aliens may have seeded life on earth," or "a protein might have piggy-backed on a mystic-crystal." (I summarize of course).

If Intelligent Design is thrown out of any consideration, then do atheists have/demand FAITH in 'any' other possibility, no matter how bizarre or thoughtless so long as God is never mentioned?

For instance, to seriously consider...
- So who created the 'aliens' before us?
- Why is Darwin's short-term observations applied infinitely retrospective to a smaller and smaller gene-pool starting with a single cell surviving billions of accidents which are mathematically impossible?

Rather than sledging off with stupid trolling, isn't it better to pursue the allusive 'proof' so that one can answer with conviction without regurgitation of someone else's 'faith'.

Answer 1

There are so many people who simply believe what they want to believe and many of them don’t want there to be a God. You see, if God created us, then He also owns us. If He owns us, then He has a right to set the rules by which we must live. If He has set the rules by which we must live, then we are accountable to Him. They don’t want to be accountable to God—they don’t want to be controlled. And so, it is their desire to explain the origin of everything without a Creator at all costs; they MUST believe in the big bang from nothing, abiogenesis, and neo-Darwinian evolution (or whatever the current naturalistic explanation is).



Believing in atheistic evolution, like believing in creation, requires acceptance of a certain presuppositional dogma and it requires placing one’s faith in a story about the unrepeatable past. To accept that worldview, you must have faith in a professor or textbook—or yet another secondhand source and that secondhand source’s interpretation. After all, not a single person was alive to see how the universe began (Big Bang) or how life began (Abiogenesis) or the supposed evolution of life on earth (Darwinism). Any argument or idea that makes claims about the unrepeatable past requires belief. We may have reasons (right or wrong) to believe what we believe, but we cannot go back in time to see if that belief is right.



What is more absurd—to believe this is a result of God’s design, or that given enough time, hydrogen turns into humans? Are we the ones with blind faith? Where you there when something popped into existence from nothing and exploded or expanded? No, well do you see something popping into existence from nothing today? Were you there when non-living matter gave rise to life? No, well do you see non-living matter giving rise to life today? Where you there when single-celled organisms gave rise to true multicellular organisms, when invertebrates gave rise to vertebrates, etc. No, well do you see it happening today? Sounds like faith to me. You have to believe that matter came into existence by itself and then arranged itself into information systems—that is what goes against real science.



The problem is, no bit of evidence (no argument or scientific discovery) is going to make the atheists change their minds. There are plenty of unanswered questions in secular science that require divine intervention (e.g., the origin of the universe, the origin of life, the origin of genetic information, the origin of language and consciousness and morality, etc.), but atheists have their just-so stories and hold on to their faith that science will eventually provide them with a way around the God conclusion. Well, good luck to them, but I think they are foolish.



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Atheists either believe in abiogenesis on earth or panspermia of some kind and this question mentions both ("aliens may have seeded life on earth," or "a protein might have piggy-backed on a mystic-crystal").



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Who designed the designer?

http://www.discovery.org/v/19

Answer 2

What you don't seem to understand is that these various alternatives are not atheism. Atheism has no specific story of origin like exists in the abrahamic faiths. There are no beliefs which are actually part of atheism.



The word atheist means nothing more than "someone who does not believe in any God". There is nothing else that is common to all atheists, so you are making a false attribution.



Yes the Raelians are a sect who are basically atheistic but who believe in aliens and stuff - but that is why they are called Raelians not atheists. Similarly there are the Theravada Buddhists who are basically atheistic - having no belief in a God - but who do believe in a rich and complex spirituality.



OK I suspect you are really just trolling because you make rude remarks in your "Additional Details" like the "fart out comments".



Never mind there is no point talking to you if you are just going to be an ASSHAT...

Answer 3

Not really. Atheists find the theory of evolution plausible, which isn't quite the same thing as faith -- particularly not the same thing as religious faith.



//- So who created the 'aliens' before us?

- Why is Darwin's short-term observations applied infinitely retrospective to a smaller and smaller gene-pool starting with a single cell surviving billions of accidents which are mathematically impossible?//



Let's turn this around, shall we?



- So, who created "God" before us?

- Why is the Christian's myth of one man and one woman (the smallest gene pool you can possibly arrange) applied to the start of the human race which would clearly be mathematically impossible?





Edit - You are wrong to claim that atheist say "aliens did it". SOME atheists might but I don't personally know any that do. That would be like saying religionists believe the center of the Earth is hollow and the lost tribes of Israel are hanging out there. Some might but hardly all.

Answer 4

I don't have faith in any origin theory. I believe that one day we'll figure out how we came into existence, but not now. The problem with some creation believers is that they want a definitive answer right now, something they can wrap their heads around... Something comforting, but they don't understand that science/scientists cannot yet explain the origin of life because our knowledge of the universe is limited to our technology (Including our own understanding).

So instead of wondering and contemplating, they accept the creation story because it's simple enough that you don't have to put forth any effort to prove it (Not that they would entertain the thought).

Answer 5

I personally think Atheists are people of great faith.



They believe the entire wonderful universe came into being at the Big Bang all by itself from the smallest subatomic particle to the most immense galaxy and from the amazing complexity of the human mind to the love between a mother and child.



I find it much easier to believe that an all powerful and all loving God is behind it all.



"To be an atheist requires an indefinitely greater measure of faith than to receive all the great truths which atheism would deny." (Joseph Addison)



I do not have enough faith to be an Atheist.



By the way, you might want to read Robert Sptizer's new book "New Proofs for the Existence of God: Contributions of Contemporary Physics and Philosophy"



For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 2123-2126: http://www.nccbuscc.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt1.shtml#2122



With love in Christ.

Answer 6

I know an atheist. While he does not believe in God, who is the resource of faith for Christians, he does have faith. I am not sure what that is based on since he professes to not believe in anything. I also know many people who don't believe there is a God but claim to have faith. It is kind of a tricky question--everybody has their source of higher power, but we usually tend to connect faith with God.

Answer 7

Let's put it this way. Panspermia is just one possible explanation. Life originating right here on earth is another. Life does not need magical people in the sky saying let there be this and let there be that for it to become real.

Do I have faith? I have faith that scientists will attempt to find the origin of life on this planet.



Edit: Sorry to burst your bubble but faith in humans being curious is not the same as faith in fantasies. Human curiosity is how the human mind has evolved and allowed humanity to progess. What I have faith in is demonstrably real and observable.

Answer 8

This atheist does not have faith.

Faith is certainty without a need for supporting evidence or a rational argument.



Science is a skeptical method to test human ideas against reality. It never proves any idea to be correct, but can only show that measurably reality contradicts ideas or is consistent with them. If reality contradicts an idea, it must be discarded or modified to eliminate the contradiction.



There are lots of questions I don't have satisfying answers for, but that is fine. I don't have to have an answer to every question.



My atheism is not based on any ideas that have been tested, scientifically. It is a response to how unbelievably silly are human concepts of hypothetical deities, all by themselves.



--

Regards,



John Popelish

Answer 9

Do you really not understand the difference between blind faith based completely on hope and the lack of evidence with faith based on the ability to think for oneself and challenge one's assumptions? Apparently so.

Answer 10

Of course they do. They just have lack of faith in gods and/or deities just like a person might lack that extra few dollars needed to pay cash for a new car.

Answer 11

Making a logical decision based on a timeline of events is in no way, shape or form the same as having blind hope.







"@Quix. That is true, but the point is that Atheists say aliensdidit"



Actually, no. No we do not say that..

Answer 12

I do believe in evolution and all that, but quite honestly if it was scientifically proven wrong, I could care less. I still would not believe in God. If God however is scientifically proven to exist, that would change things.



Edit: Not all atheists think aliens did it... If you don't know what you're talking about the GTFO.

Answer 13

“Evolution is a religion. This was true of evolution in the beginning, and it is true of evolution still today” (Dr. Michael Ruse, professor of philosophy and zoology at the University of Guelph.

www.omniology.com/HowEvolutionBecameReligion).



“Evolution is unproved and unprovable, we believe it only because the only alternative is special creation, and that is unthinkable” (Sir Arthur Keith, he wrote the forward to the 100th anniversary edition of Darwin’s book, Origin of Species in 1959).



Evolution is a fairy tale for grownups my dear friend. “The theory has helped nothing in the progress of science. It is useless” (Professor Louis Bounoure Director of the Strasbourg Zoological museum).

Answer 14

"mathematically impossible" you sir, fail to understand the concept of infinity.



a 0 / 100 chance is mathematically impossible. A 1 / infinity chance means there is still theoretically a chance, even if it is incredibly small. Sorry, I couldn't find the infinity symbol on my keyboard.

Answer 15

Nope. Not knowing something is better than making up an answer....and it doesn't require faith.





How dumb do you have to be to think that not knowing something equals a magical guy living in the sky had to have done it?



Seriously....that's what you are saying. I'm pretty sure my cat would pick up the hole in that logic.

Answer 16

Faith: Ignoring and discarding evidence to uphold your own beliefs.

Answer 17

Atheists have Faith in their Science, which has been wrong more times than most Religions.

Answer 18

Faith by definition is believing in something without evidence.

Atheists only believe in things backed up by evidence.

Answer 19

So you would rather believe in creationism? A few magic words and poof! Everything came into existence?

Answer 20

It is far more logical to say I don't know than to simply bleat that goddidit.



EDIT: I have never said that aliens did it.

Answer 21

They have faith that they are right. Wrong kind of faith that is going to fail miserably.

Answer 22

have you heard of abiogenesis and evolution. science is perfectly capable of explaining life on earth

Answer 23

Naahhh... I KNOW lotsa stuff.

I KNOW Pixie is imaginary.

I used the same rationale to work out gods and goblins are too.



Thanks for playing ;)

~

Answer 24

no, If aliens are so real and so smart why are they so scared to show themselves

Answer 25

I have faith in plenty of things. God(s) are just not one of them.

Answer 26

Nope. You seem very confused - atheists just don't believe in your imaginary friend, that's all.

Answer 27

I have faith in myself.

Answer 28

Look at the christian with their facts it almost like they think for themselves how cute.

Answer 29

No.