I have been a very left leaning liberal atheist for my entire life. But recently my atheistic views have become very frustrating and unfulfilling as the atheist view seems to simply be "we don't know" which is extremely frustrating to me, as I have a great desire to know the truth, the problem here being that we can never know the answer. Given that we can never know the answer, and that an acceptance of this frustrates me, I have found myself increasingly drawn to organised religion in search of an answer I fear it doesn't hold. Islam is the religion I have thought about in most detail, and am seriously considering converting. However, there are particular but significant aspects of every major world religion that I disagree with and feel it would be somewhat hypocritical to convert to a religion and then start to pick and choose the parts I like.

Given this dilemma, between atheism and religion, many of you may be thinking agnostic, however I feel being agnostic is worse than being atheist, for it combines the worst aspects of atheism - unfulfillment and unknowing - with the worst aspects of religion - blind faith and cultural irrelevant rhetoric.

Based on my thoughts over the past few weeks have led me to some kind of middle ground. It involves an acceptance that the answers will never be known and also the view that ones religion is simply ones personal philosophy on the universe.

 

 

 

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Is Atheism Unfulfilling?
Is Atheism Unfulfilling?

Dear Mr.Dangerdan,

Atheism is unfulfilling because it pursues the path of science which deals with only objective truths. Human beings are not just objects. They have a subjective part in them which needs to be addressed. A glimpse of this is what is drawing you towards religion. I think you are looking for a subjective personnal identity. No religion can help you in this matter, unless otherwise you stumble on to a good teacher. Meditate upon yourselves. Try to find the I in you. You can start by questioning. When you are enjoying your dinner, just ask who is the one who is enjoying? Just make an attempt to find the enjoyer in you. Simply ask to who this Atheism is unfulfilling? In the begining it will look a little silly. But then you would have made the first steptowards your spiritual progress. It is said that you take one step towards God , and God will take ten steps towards you.

ASHOK

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there is a simple way to know the truth (the math) in the world there is 6 milliard people
how many of theme are faithfuls well, i think it's about 5 milliard ,so the theory of god existence is doing well until now so i accept it as a fact ..other thing is the similarities between the three religions (christianity,islam,jewish )Is it a coincidence

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Personally I think it comes down to how you feel about yourself. Religion is more than just believing in a higher plain of existence, it is so much more. It is a comfort to you and is something that gives you a purpose. I am myself an atheist, I do not believe in a higher existence, however there are many aspects of the buddhist that appeal to me, and so I embrace many of their practices in to my own life to give me comfort and peace of mind. You really need to think about life and how you perceive it, only then can you start looking in to a religion that is suited to you (if any). Joining a religion for the sake of learning is not recommended, you can study the religions without converting.

What I suggest you do is create an area of peace somewhere where you feel safe, maybe dim the lights and light a few candles and maybe some scents. Just sit in a position that is comfortable to you but not where you are slouching, close your eyes and mull everything over. It can take an hour, it can take days or weeks, but eventually with time and study of both religion and yourself you will eventually find the answers you are looking for.

Remember, it's not about everyone else, it's all about you!

 

 

 

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8ennett I think you've hit the nail on the head there. It's all about a personal religious philosophy that should be tailored to each individuals beliefs and cultural expectations. And semontana you are very right about the overlap of the three major Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) and it is the common ground between them - the good messages of peace and harmony - that I really connect with. What I can not connect with is the seeming rhetoric employed about how we should live our lives, it comes back to my previous point about individualism.
On the other hand semontana there was once a time when everyone in the world thought the world was the centre of the universe, that it was flat, that there was nothing smaller than an atom....etc my point being popular opinion is just that - opinion. Even science only ever claims to be our best understanding thus far, and so saying that 5billion believe something doesn't add any weight of truth, only social acceptability.

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Just to add, there may be 5 billion followers of religion out there, but that does not mean that all 5 billion follow the same religion. Many diverse paths are followed and thus cannot truly be categorised under the same mathematical calculation. Also, a large portion of those follow either cults or silly religions based on fiction such as the order of the jedi etc. Religious followers can't really be segmented up and used as a statistic to prove or disprove their religion. Demographics are not the way to deal with this. Study and time, the best way to make any kind of decision.

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To me, personally, atheism is a very fulfilling thing. I believe in science and what it can show, and if I don't have the proof to back it up, well then that is that. That being said, to let my beliefs rely on non-proven faith is not for me, though I respect those who go that route.

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