Hello. I am new here and a new Athesist

[prostock69]

A brief history: I'm 39 w/m/female with 3 kids. I was a Christian but haven't been to church in 20 years due to various reasons. My rejection of the Bible and of the notion of "God" became complete this past week after 3 months of research via reading the books and watching the videos on Google Video and YouTube of Dawkins, Harris and Hitchens. I am currently reading "The End of Faith" and will read the follow-up book "A Letter to a Christian Nation". I also bought and will read Thomas Paine's "The Age of Reason". I just recently watched "The History of God" by Karen Armstrong which totally sealed the deal for me and my husband. I have numerous other books on order from Amazon.com. The one person I give credit to for opening my eyes and flipping the switch inside my brain is Sarah Palin. She is the reason why I started the research that led me to where I am today. The discovery of the Christian Right and their agenda has scared the hell out of me. You are probably wondering where I have been the past 8 years during the Bush Administration. Well, I have no explanation other than my head was firmly up my ass. I never cared for politics and thought all politicians were the same. I thought religion was harmless and saw no need to investigate it further, until now. Below is my post regarding my newest revelation:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4516859

Now that I am aware of this knowledge, I am not sleeping at night. I am having a hard time functioning at all. I am devastated at the condition our country is in and worried to death about our future. I am very angry too. I am angry at the ignorance that religious people display when they claim to know God exists and Jesus is going to save them. I am angry that our DUMB ASS PRESIDENT got us into a holy war that has done lasting damage that has resulted in even more unstable Middle East. So is my husband. Our country is filled with religious nut jobs void of any rational thinking who could be duped into believing anything as long as you attach God or Jesus to it. I can't and will not show any respect to people's religious beliefs now or in the future. If someone tells me they are a Christian, then I will tell them I'm sorry to hear that. If they ask why, then I will tell them they need to do research on how and why their religion was REALLY created and not just question what their preacher is teaching them. I will point them in the direction I took in order to come to my conclusion that God does not exist and is and always have been a creation of Man to fill in gaps of knowledge about how our universe works. I am angry at the Religious Right's attack on Science. I am angry at Bush's appointment of a person with a non-scientific background to run the Government's science department. I am pissed off terribly right now and I don't know how to overcome this anger I now have at the religious people in the world.

If any of you have any suggestions on how to overcome my anger and get on with living, I would greatly appreciate it.

[phantom power]

1. Welcome to DU! I cope with my anger through laughter.

[progressoid]

2. From personal experience...

Heavy drinking doesn't really work out all that well. :eyes:

Watching Monty Python's Life of Brian helps a bunch!

Mostly I've been trying to "accentuate the positive". I think the religious right has had their day in the sun. I'm under no illusion that they will go away, but I'm optimistic that their influence will continue to wane.

[awoke_in_2003]

6. Try heavy drinking...

while watching Life of Brian :)

[tbyg52]

3. The debilitating part of the anger kinda wears off after a while, I think.

I'm sure mad at them also.

Don't know what else to say except "welcome to DU!" :hi:

[Warpy]

4. The only way out is through.

You're going to have to acknowledge your anger and realize it's mostly at yourself for not bothering to question. Mixed up in that will be a little nostalgia for the illusion of belonging to a greater whole.

It's not easy being a goat in a nation of sheep.

However, most of us here were able to work through the anger and are able to cope with most situations by realizing who has the problem and what our own job is or isn't.

You'll get your sense of humor back. BT,DT.

[prostock69]

5. Thanks! I guess some of my anger is at myself. I feel stupid

And feeling stupid is very hard to deal with.

[progressoid]

8. "Sheep go to heaven. Goats go to hell."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0mx5ERj1eI

Or live:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5InG-VVggAo


:)

[prostock69]

12. Thanks :) Those made me feel much better.

[awoke_in_2003]

7. Welcome...

ritual kitten sacrifices take place on wednesday. Please bring cookies :)

[prostock69]

16. Ohh, my 3 cats would be extremely upset with me. Can we make it puppies instead?

:evilgrin:

[awoke_in_2003]

17. okay, we won't sacrifice them...

we'll just try to give them baths :)

[ihavenobias]

18. Hilarious.

:)

[immoderate]

9. Welcome to DU and the Atheist/Agnostic Group.

I wish I had some good advice about your feelings. Maybe you should do the things that make you happy.

I belong to a couple of local atheist groups that have activities that are fun and rewarding. We have a weekly meetup at a pub, drink some beer and gab. We're affiliated with local Center for Inquiry (CFI) and they hold lectures and other events, including our monthly First Supper, held at a Chinese buffet, and monthly Astronomy Night.

We have picnics for the equinox and the solstices, and we have a big event for Darwins's Birthday that is educational and open to the public. We work with the ACLU and the James Randi Educational Foundation on some events. It depends on what's available to you where you are. Try meetup.com, and you might find a local support group.

The folks in this forum are really good too. Stick around. :)

--IMM

[prostock69]

13. Thank you. I have found an Atheist group near where

I live. I plan on writing a letter to them to see what type of "events" they hold. They don't have a website.

[trotsky]

10. Welcome! It's great to have you here.

I know it's hard, but you have to relax. Realize that many things are just out of your control. The important thing is, you've figured things out, and with awareness comes great joy as well as great pain.

[prostock69]

14. This is so true. However, I am feeling better today than yesterday

[YankeyMCC]

11. Welcome

and boy do I sympathize with your feelings, I went through that also. All I can say is perhaps it's a bit like grieving and you just have to find your way through it.

I would recommend adding "Philosophers Without Gods: Meditations on Atheism and the Secular Life" edited by Louise M. Antony (with essays by: Stewart Shapiro, Joseph Levine, Daniel Garber, Daniel M. Farrell, Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, Edwin Curley, Marvin Belzer, James Tappenden, Daniel C. Dennett, Anthony Sim)

The first half of the book focuses mostly on how these well known philosophers dealt with coming to terms with their lives without a belief in gods.

What has helped me is to focus on the positive. I don't mean "look on the bright side" I mean make what you are going through about you and not others. You are improving yourself and you really don't have control over others and all you can and should do is live your life in the best way you know how and you should be proud that you are actively tiring to improve. That's already more than most.

[prostock69]

15. Thank you so much for your book suggestions

I will add them to my ever growing list.

[sarcasmo]

19. Having never in my life believed in a creator, I can't imagine the issues you are dealing with.

If you need to get something off your chest about Religion this is a good forum, Good Luck.

[prostock69]

20. Thanks. I appreciate it.

[tiddlywinks]

21. hi there

sorry about your anger i know mine comes and goes because i'm in the closet. I agree with what Dawkins said, we're the last group still 'in the closet'.
I would just love to have a great big coming out party for all of us, as he also suggested. I joined meetups but unfortunatley, i work so much and live so far a way in such a tiny small-minded town... ( there's my story! haha)
anyway, it helps for me to come visit this place--to see i am not alone-the X files!! haha
to see that there ARE other thinking people in the world who refuse to let themselves be deluded into believing CRAP!! haha!!!
So many times i have to bite my tongue in my workplace-my dentist yesterday told me to have a Blessed Day. I just said thanks...
I guess we can't really blame people, can we? I don't know. Religions are a safe place and a community for the masses, IMO. But there is also the narrowmindedness of we're right and you're wrong and going to burn in hell you must be satan!!!! aspect of religion. what a turn-off. The turnoff: If you're not FOR Jebus you're agin him! o lawl.
I am very much a loner. I only have one or two very close friends and my parents who support me. Sometimes i feel like the ENTIRE rest of the world just wants an easy answer! So, there ya go. Perhaps maybe we should embrace our anger, huh? I know I feel better now!!!
O there is an organization my dad is a member of called FFR or somesuch. I'd join it if I wasn't paycheck to paycheck!
Good luck to you and congratulations for your bravery and for not inducting your innocent children into that barbarism.
Hope i havent rattled your ear off!
tiddly

[prostock69]

22. Hi Tiddly, Thanks for responding

I'm from a small town too. I think we have a lot in common. I am having a very hard time biting my tongue too. I'm a posting monster right now, especially on Huffington Post regarding the terrorist attacks in India. There are a lot of people who have posted who think like we do. It brings great comfort to know that there are many of us non-believers out there.

[Deep13]

23. Well, Bush will be leaving soon.

:shrug: