Obviously weed makes you realize things, and I've always been a believer in god up until recently. I was raised in a Catholic church and family, and was baptized, went through communion, and was confirmed in the church. Throughout all my classes and everything I've been through I was never interested in religion but still believed. It was around a couple years from the last time I've even been to church, but still believed throughout the time. I then started smoking weed after high school, and a few months later I started to really question my belief when I was high and when I was sober. I also started getting really interested in space and astronomy. I also began to think about the world and all the bad things that have happened in my life and all over. This was over several months of smoking daily, and I eventually just stopped believing all together. So do you think weed turned me into an atheist, or do you think I've always been one, and weed just made me realize it?
You might just be at that age where you're prone to start questioning things. You said you started questioning your beliefs both when high and sober, I wouldn't blame it on the weed. You've clearly not "always been" an atheist if you did believe at some point.
[quote name='"ddoublevision"']Being an atheist is like being gay, you have to be born that way.[/quote] I don't think so, about the atheist thing and the gay thing. Nobody gets to pick their religion, it's just how you are raised and finding out what you believe in. And the gay thing, I don't agree with either. I think that every human/animals instinct is procreation. Its just in your brain naturally to procreate. And people that think they are born that way, probably have some sort of underlying mental condition or anxiety that makes them use that as a cover up for something bigger. Just my opinion but to each is own.
I think he was implying that everyone is born an atheist when they're born because they're too young to believe in anything, but that's in iffy subject to me. I'm not even going to discuss your comments about being gay because I'm sure you don't want this to turn into a gay discussion thread.
I don't think it was weed. I think it was your own curiosity and logic (I don't mean to start a debate about religion here, but let's be honest - religion is illogical and very easy to see through). I think too many people accept what they are taught early on without ever questioning it. People should question everything, it's how discoveries are made. I was born into a Catholic family, raised Catholic, confirmed and baptized all the same as you. I decided I was an atheist in 8th grade after being agnostic for awhile. I've stuck to it since and can't believe I ever believed in any god. I didn't start smoking until late in high school.
Agreed. I was raised Christian and stopped believing when I was 12. Didn't start smoking weed until about 17.
Weed opened you up to the world. Ive seen many go through the same road as you with and without weed. I almost convinced my super religious cousins that the Easter bunny was more believable than Jesus at the age of 5. I never fell for that society control
It could be a phase. I considered myself an atheist while I was in high school and the first year or two in college. Maybe it's because you've mostly only been exposed to one sect of Christianity that practices organized religion and is totally devoid of mysticism. Look up Gnosticism - if I practiced Christianity I would follow their philosophy or maybe even Quakerism. Or expand your exposure to other religions and mythologies of the planet. But to answer your question, at the very least pot has expanded your point of view of the world.
[quote name='But to answer your question, at the very least pot has expanded your point of view of the world.[/QUOTE'] Very true I guess, I guess I'm just sort of looking at it from both sides. I also don't exactly hate any religion, no matter how brain washed some people are, like Muslims blowing themselves and others up just as an act of god. I believe everybody should be able to believe what they want.
It isn't necessary to define yourself at all. Believe - don't believe. Atheist - agnostic, whatever. Either defining yourself in any form creates obstacles in word misunderstanding that will need to be overcome at some point, or will limit you as you attempt to 'fit in' to how you see that word defining you. The longer we identify with some concept of who we are, the more we'll define ourselves in that mind constructed way. Nobody is an anything. Defining yourself is convenient at best, but very limiting. We are always changing, or should be, and at the very least open to it. As soon as we pin a label on, we are almost concluding something that is meant to be a work in progress. No need.
Perhaps he means that you have to be an atheist from the beginning to be a true one, in the same way being gay is there from the beginning rather than chosen?
Then I don't get it. How is it sarcastic? We are neither atheist or theist, that comes later once we're able to make a decision. Can't see any sarcasm in it. It is just wrong.
I skimmed the comment before his so I thought perhaps his comment was in some way sarcastic and made sense in context of the previous post. I should read it I guess...lol just high and lazy right now. I disagree with you though on a few things. Atheism is not believing in deities and all of us are born without any beliefs. Therefore, technically when we are born we are atheists. It isn't a label, it's a discriptive term to define lack of belief. If one remains atheist then they make a decision to reject claims by theists when introduced to it later on, but that is the only decision being made. Belief in general is not a decision, it's a conviction that one feels based upon indoctrination, trust, experience, influences, etc..