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| Some Intersting Letters I've Recieved |
| Just in case you've ever wondered what sort of mail I recieve concerning this site, I've included some of my more interesting e-mails below. I get an average of one e-mail per week (as opposed to 350 junk mails every day....gahhhh), and most of it is fan mail. "I love your page", "You kick ass", or "I can relate" sums up the typical e-mail I recieve, and I'm more than happy to get them. However, there is also a small amount of hate mail, criticisms, and such. These are e-mails of the latter type, simply because they're less personal and more interesting to readers of this site. The mails themselves are in silver text (all spelling and grammatical errors left as is), my replies are in turquoise. Some letters will be broken up with my replies included(it's easier), others will have my replies after the complete letter. Some of the lengthier letters may be shortened (because cut and paste doesn't work on Geocities, so I'm having to type all this out....arrrgh!). |
| From: JakeDccYAY Date: Monday, December 4, 2000 Subject: You moron.... In your little webpage you make a statement about how if you can't see or use any of your sense to see something that it doesn't exist. Have you ever seen your brain? Touched your brain? It appears no one has had any sensorty perception of your brain whatsoever. Well, according to the rules of the empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science, says you have no brain." |
| Thank you Jake, that's very interesting. And quite Christian of you to call me a moron. Of course, I do happen to know that other humans do in fact have brains (anyone with a severe head injury or has witnessed an autopsy can probably agree). Since these people are of the same species as me, and since I'm not a complete vegetable, one can only deduct that I also have a brain. If not a brain, what do you suggest? A hamster on a wheel? |
| From: JakeDccYAY Date: Wednesday, December 6, 2000 Subject: God Exists..... I'd like to talk about another topic....it's called basic human nature. When you see an animal clean itself or an animal mate you assume that it knows what it's doing from the day it was born. But HOW does it know these things? People have worshipped God for as long as they've been on Earth. No one teaches them it. People were taught Christianity and other religions, but they were not taught God. The truth is, you know nothing about why Animals know how to survive, and you know nothing about why we are even here. The Big Bang theory is just what it's called, a "theory". Humans have the basic instinct to believe in God (hmmm, I wonder how that happened?). Write back if you want to discuss this further with an educated Christian. |
| When I see an animal clean itself or mate, that's called instinct. It's the same reason you close your eyes when you sneeze...you can't stop yourself. But animals don't operate completely off of instinct...research has shown that primates raised without a mother will not breed. While I doubt the mother actually teaches this to her offspring, they apparently learn something from her. People have not worshipped God for as long as they've been on Earth. They have worshipped GODS. Plural. Before people could even dream of your Judeo-Christian deity, the Greeks had their own polytheistic religion going. Polytheism and Monotheism are very different....almost as different as theism and atheism. So were they going against their instinct? Did your god put this false instinct in their heads, or did their gods put a false instinct in the heads of the first Jews? And you? If humans have the basic instinct to believe in God, how come I don't? Feel free to answer, Mr. Educated Christian. |
| From: Gzus4Life33 Date: Monday, December 11, 2000 Subject: this is Chad...READ!!! lol hey yo... wuz up not much here juz that...... i am going to hell you sum of the reason why i don't go along with Atheism...i try to make it quick.... have you ever heard of the "Rampathecus Man?" it had sumtin to do with like we comin from Apes and we slowly formed ourselves to Humans....well..."Rampathecus Man" proved to just be an orangutan. "Austrolapithicis Man" was proven to just be an ape, and "Piltdown Man" was a hoax. Created by putting an orangtutan skullcap on a human jawbone. "Neanderthal Man", "Peking Man", and "Java Man" are all now considered to be homo-erectus. In other words Ordinary humans. Doug, there ain't no missing link because Genesis 1:27 says "God created humans in HIS image". You may ask about the primitive tools found in rocks Carbon Dated as 500,000 years old. Scientific dating methods are highly inaccurate. For instance, using Carbon 14 to date a newly killed seal will show that its been dead for 1,300 years! Still-living snail shells are shown to be 26,000 years old, and 200 year old Hawaiian rocks have been Potassium Argon dated to be at 22 million years old. So its not clear. In fact, there is only enough Carbon 14 around to prove the Earth is only around 10,000 years old. That is only 2 other reasons....the main one is that evolution is all "theorys", maybes, possible, the Bible is a "yes or No", not a maybe. I hope this helped you to see why i don't go along with evolution. See ya tomorrow.... much luv Chad |
| (Note...Chad was a friend of mine from high school. He wrote me this e-mail the night he first saw my page. He's pretty intelligent, and we used to get into interesting discussions frequently in school. I attribute his grammar and punctuation in this e-mail to the fact that he can't type worth a damn.) I have heard of the examples you mentioned, Chad, and all I can say is that science is not infallible. It can make mistakes, most of which are corrected (as in the examples you gave). There were also many charlatans years ago (such as with the infamous Piltdown man) who were more than eager to make a quick buck at the expense of science, much the way bastards like Robert Tilton and Jerry Falwell attempt to make money at the expense of Christianity. Science is hardly my religion, but I think that is a good comparison. Homo Erectus is NOT an ordinary human. Present day humans are in fact Homo Sapiens. Homo Erectus was further back in the evolutionary web. They were the first of man's ancestors to use tools, I believe. And you're right about there being no missing link....all the links are present and accounted for. And quoting the Bible to prove me wrong is like me quoting Carl Sagan to prove you wrong. The reason that carbon 14 doesn't work on newer objects is simple...it doesn't work on anything that isn't more than a couple of thousand years old. It's only at this point that the carbon in the object begins to break down. Trying to carbon date a newer object can produce some truly weird results. And you're right about the Bible. It is a "yes" or a "no." To you, it's a "yes". To me, it's a "no." See you tomorrow. |
| From: CatholicAdam Date: Monday, July 18, 2001 Subject: Christianity In your attack of Christianity, you say "not one of them can give proof of why they believe/do what they do". I challenge you to present me with one ideal of Catholicism that I can not give a rational answer for why I believe what I do. |
| I always loved a challenge...so here it goes. 1.Why do you feel it's necessary to relay a prayer through a priest? Why can't you speak directly to your god, yet another man can? 2. Why would your "loving" god send someone to hell for not believing in him, yet he's the one who never provided proof that he's there? 3. If your god is all-loving and all powerful, why is there "evil" in the world? |
| From: CatholicAdam Date: Tuesday, July 19, 2001 Subject: Re: Very well In reply to your question, these are my answers: 1. You asked, "Why do you feel its necessary to relay a prayer through a priest? Why can't you talk to god but another man can?" The answer: I suppose here you are speaking of the Sacrament of Confession. The answer is that we do not talk TO God, but we talk THROUGH the priest. From your last e-mail, I infer that you know Latin, so I will speak some: The priest is acting in persona Christi (in the person of Christ). We speak to Christ who acts throught he priest. This may seem strange and difficult to believe, but just remember: the God I know is an all-powerful and all-loving God who thinks of interesting ways to do things. 2. "Why would your 'loving' God send someone to hell for not believing in him, yet he's the one who didn't provide proof for his existence? The answer: I don't know where you got the idea that God would damn a soul for this belief. It's not written in stone in the Catholic Church. I answer that god, if He honestly did not bestow upon a soul the grace to accept and love him (after all, all faith in HIM comes from HIM), I don't think God would damn that soul. However, if God gives that soul just a pinch of grace or inclination to believe in His existence, and the soul refuses to accept it, my God is just a God, and will reward to each as his deeds deserve. 3. If your god is all-loving and all-powerful, why is there "evil" in the world? The answer: First of all, my God bestowed the gift of free-will upon the souls of humans. Therefore, wanting his creation to have complete freedom, he gave them the choice, if they desired, to sin. Our forefathers DID sin, and thus evil exists in the world because of the choices they have made. Now, God does not allow evil just for human suffering. God, however, being the loving creator that he is, allows evil to exist that good may come from it. This may seem difficult to grasp at first, but when you really think about it, it makes sense. Sometimes if someone dies, it can bring a community or family together. If a family is stricken by poverty, they find out that what really matters in life is not found in money. Some will not recieve their reward on earth, and, through evil that happened during the course of their life, they will recieve more blessings in the eternal life God has in store for them. There are the answers to your questions. I challenge you to attempt to stump me with some more of them. Can't wait to hear from you again! Pax Christi Adam |
| (Note: Adam's reference to my knowledge of Latin comes from my footer on my Yahoo mail account, which reads "Pax Atheistica" , or peace without gods.) 1. So you speak through another man to god? Why not shorten it and speak directly to God? 2. If that person who doesn't accept God's gift of grace goes to hell, wouldn't that be God's fault for making that person so stubborn? 3. How does this free will thing work? If God is omniscient, he stands above time and knows everything that has happened, everything that is happening, and everything that will happen. In which case he already knows who's going to hell and not. So why bother giving us free will? 4. Another question: Why do Catholics not believe in birth control? |
| From: CatholicAdam Date: Thursday, June 21, 2001 Subject: Re: Very well. Once again, in response to your questions, I give the following answers: 1. I did not decide upon the process of confession myself. Jesus Christ, did. As a servant of Jesus, I obey and follow what he has established and taught, that's why I confess to a priest who acts in persona Christi. 2. As I said, everything comes from God. If God gives that person a pinch of Grace and that person refuses to accept it, then that is that person's fault. However, if God gives that person a pinch of faith and that person does not recognize the faith, god will increase the faith. I don't believe that God would hold it against a person if he honestly, I mean honestly, not just saying he doesn't believe, does not have the gift of faith. 3. God, as a totally omniscient being, DOES know what our final state is. But yet, he still chooses to give us free will. What an intriguing thought! The answer to why God would give us free will, even though he knows some will refuse him, is because he loves us. God loves us, and desires our happiness. He, though he totally loves us, does not want to interfere with our decisions. He desires that we choose goodness and His will, but He gives us the freedom to choose otherwise if we wish. 4. We believe that God chooses life, and we should not take that role upon ourselves. The process of "controlling birth" is God's and not our own. Pax Christi, Adam. |
| 1. When did Jesus decide on the Sacrament of Confession? Can I get a Bible verse? Why do Protestants not follow this if it's written so clearly? 2. God increases the person's faith. Oh, I see. Like upping the morphine doseage on an injured person. But doesn't this contradict free will? Or can he only manipulate us directly SOMETIMES? In which case, how do we know when he's manipulating us and when he isn't? 3. My late grandmother (who was a Catholic at one time), went to church with a woman who had retarded children. Their priest told the woman birth control was a sin, so she kept having sex and ended up having six severely retarded children. These children are basically useless and contribute nothing to society. What possible reason would God have to control the lives and deaths of six children who were basically vegetables? 4. What exactly is the point of eating your god (Communion)? Personally, I think the idea of pretending a wafer and some wine a part of your god's body and then eating it is really bizarre. Perhaps you'd like to explain the concept of this ritual for me. |
| From: CatholicAdam Date: Friday, July 22, 2001 Subject: Re: Very Well.... 1. Jesus gave his apostles the power to forgive sins when he appeared to them and said "Recieve the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven and whose sings you retain are retained." (John 20: 22-23) 2. God CAN and DOES increase a person's faith because faith is a direct gift from God. This however, does not contradict our gift of free will, because although we may KNOW he exists, we still have the choice of whether to love him or not. 3. First of all, I'd like to object to your statement that these children are useless and contribute nothing to society. From a physical standpoint, yes, they are quite incapable, but in a HIGHER realm, they teach us compassion and love. That is why God blesses families with mentally retarded children. 4. First off, we do this as Jesus commanded his disciples to do. Secondly, we do not pretend the wafter and the wine are the body and blood of Christ, but we actually BELIEVE that they are. Yes, eating our God's body and soul does sound bizarre, and if you know the scriptures, it turned many of Jesus's followers away from him. But this bizarre idea is the GREATEST asset of the Cathlic Church. Pax Christi, Adam |
| Thanks for your comprehensive answers. But I still have a few more questions. 1. Why does the Pope not give up his riches? 2. Why does he ride around in the Popemobile? 3. If this man is closer to God than anyone else on Earth, why on Earth would he be assassinated? Why would God let it happen? By the way, really had a laugh at the line "That's why God blesses families with mentally retarted children". Maybe that'll be one of my new catchphrases.... |
| From: CatholicAdam Date: Sunday, July 24, 2001 Subject: Re: Very well.... 1. The money of the Vatican is not the Pope's. It's money that people have given to the church, almgiving, to God. The great churches of Rome were built better to give glory to the Sacred Sacrament inside. You may say that he doesn't give up money to poor people, but the Church has many charties to give aid to those who live in poverty. 2. Because in the 1980s a man attempted to assassinate him. The Vatican security, from that day on, insisted that he ride around in a bulletproof vehicle to prevent such a tragedy again. 3. Firstly, the Pope is not necessarily the closest person on Earth to God. I'm not denying the Pope's sanctity, for he is a VERY holy man, but I'm saying he's not necessarily the holiest man on Earth. Second, to answer your question about why God would allow him to be assassinated, it goes against our gift of free will that God gave us. If someone chooses to kill Christ's vicar on Earth, God would allow that person to act upon his will. You may question why God doesn't protect the Pope. But he does. In the 1980s, during the assassination attempt, the Pope was wearing the Miraculous Medal of Our Lady. The Pope has attributed his survival to the sacred Virgin. Further evidence that Mary interceded comes from Mary's apparition in Fatima, Portugal. |
| 1. Yes, I am aware that the Church has many programs to aid the poor. But why is it that they never set up more than a soup kitchen, while the Pope walks around wearing practically all the gold from a mine? 2 and 3. If God chooses birth (which is why you said you're against birth control), then he also chooses death. Whatever happened to "thy will be done"? And if God (or Mary) did in fact protect the Pope, what is the point of the Popemobile? And another question: Why is the Popemobile always a prestigious model of car, such as Lancia, Citroen, or Land Rover? Why not just any old junk heap? Jesus rejected riches, so why shouldn't his representatives? |
| From: roxy p Date: Friday, May 23, 2002 Subject: Thanks Hey--checked out your site this weekend. You have provided me with a lot of insight into what you believe, which is great. I am teaching a series of different worldviews to my youthgroup this weekend, and you have helped me understand atheism from a teen's perspective more than any other site I've been too.... not here to flame, argue, debate, or blast you for your beliefs, because that's just not right. But I do have some questions because I am genuinely interested in you comments. So I hope you can read this from a mature perspective, and not be tempted to flame me, because I am not doing this from any spiteful place, I assure you that. I am a 30 year old female living in Texas, a Christian since I was 8, and have been working full-time as a youth worship leader for about three years now. I have the coolest job: I basically have three rock bands made up of high school and college students, and we lead worship for around 700 teens every week in an alt/rock format. that's a little background for you. In your FAQ you say that one of the reasons that you don't believe in god is that you can't experience him....you don't see any of the facts about a god existing, so why believe in one....I completely understand that. So where is the proof? The proof is in my life. I know I'm a stranger to you, but that's proof nonetheless. I have a relationship with God that is more real than anything in my life. The thousands of prayers that have been answered, that no one but God knew about. I could list several here, but you'll probably feel it is a waste of your time. But if you're interested, I can list them. Things that have radically changed my life. Coincidences? I think not. I lead worship around 5 times a week. It's not just a job, but it's my whole life. And I have sacrificed others to lead worship of God, and he has blessed me for it. He has given me peace, joy, and even financial blessings as well. I have seen people healed and lives changed....I have felt the power of God coursing through me on that stage.... But according to what your saying, my whole life is a lie?.....you're saying my whole belief system, life, job, relationships, is all useless? And even if you do say "yes, it is useless.", why do I not believe you for a second? The fact that I'm still alive today is proof that there's a God. I have had too many supernatural incidents in my life to call them just random chance. God is the only thing I *am* sure of in this life.....you see, I *have* seen it, touched it, felt it, etc., and my life is the proof.....God is a fact whether you choose to believe it or not..... I know you'll consider this a jab, but I'll be praying for you, I really mean it. I even prayed for you this morning. Why would I do that if I didn't think God was real?.....it's because I know god, because I have a personal relationship with him. And it's never, ever too late for you. Just remember that God never sends anyone to hell, you choose to go..... ....thanks for your time, roxy. |
| Thank for writing roxy, I'm glad my site was useful to you. And rest assured, I do not flame unless I am first flamed. When asked if your life is useless, I say definitely not. If your religion brings you happiness, and it brings happiness to those 700 people your bands perform in front of, I really don't see what the problem is. Do I believe that the god you are worshipping is real? That's also a "definitely not". But as long as you're doing something to help somebody and aren't doing the typical fundamentalist plotting to get some fruitcake like James Dobson to take over the government, you're not wasting anything. But I really must disagree about your "God is fact" statement. No, God is opinion. Like it or not. If God was a fact, I'd waste no time worshipping him. But he's not. He's opinion, and he's an opinion that I do not hold. You have no reason to tell me you're praying for me. You can pray all you like, but when you tell me "I'm praying for you," it comes out as a glib little Christian comeback. I'm sure you don't intend for it to sound like that, but I happen to know that many do. As for choosing my fate....I really wish it was a simple decision. You say that I either choose god or not, but what about Allah? Vishnu? Shiva? Buddha? Zogfukus? Okay, I made that last one up, but you get the idea. There are a million and one different religions out there, each saying that I should follow them. Now put yourself in my place...which should I really follow? No matter what decision I choose, I could still be wrong. Thanks again, and have a nice day. |
| From: haber149 Date: Wednesday, July 3, 2002 Subject: Comments about www.oocities.org/skidmark_84/past.html This is NOT a hate mail.... "First of all, there's the inability for Christians to follow their own religion." This is because of sin So sins keeps you from following your own religion? Interesting. Please explain. "Next, the rituals they perform, many of them without understanding why they are performing them" I know you do the same thing. We behave like robots sometimes in life. As we age we gain more knowledge and understanding. You sound like you are young. This is quite typical. The old "I'm older than you so I know so much more." The old can learn from the young. "I got saved last night in church" Do you understand the whole concept? I recommend going to a Bible and learning more. In short, if you are wrong about this key point, you will burn in hell (imagining that is terrible!!!). If I am wrong, well, I guess I'll just get reincarnated. I've read the Bible twice, and I know all about the salvation thing. I love that little threat of hellfire you mixed in there. I find the concept of a hell very silly and stupid, so I'll take that lightly. And what if the Muslims are right? They believe in the same hell you do, but they think you'll go there for not following Mohammed. "What good is salvation if it only runs out every three days or so?" Unfortunately, we continue to sin. We are humans with free will. everything is our choice. Jesus came to pay the price for this (pretty nice! would you do that for someone you loved?). So then what good is salvation? If it doesn't last, it doesn't prevent you from sinning, what the hell is it good for? Accepting Jesus as your savior every few days doesn't seem to do you any good, now does it? "The Supreme Court is 'hostile to religion'" Keep watching the news. I watch it every day. I'd like to know what your idea of hostility is. Is hostility when somebody other than a Christian wins a court case? "....how anti-Christian the ACLU was." FYI, the guy who founded the ACLU was a pronounced communist. Communists don't like Jesus. Okay, that was the guy who founded it. The organization does not operate off the opinions of its founder. I know this because the ACLU does not spread communism. "If you have the freedom to worship the way you want, you also have the freedom not to." I'm glad this is the case because I love freedom and the rest of the world is mad because we have it and they don't. Agreed. "...a secular government...." A secular government will not have the protection of God. God is upset with the way we live (I'm no angle either), why do you think the Twin Towers came down? Can you concieve those evil people are jealous of us? Which god? We have freedom of religion in this country, but you want this country to be under your god? Freedom of religion, as long as Christians get special rights over everyone else? "Kick the non-Christians out if they don't like it." Who says this (or is this translation from a lack of understanding)? Haven't you ever heard this one: "This is a Christian nation. Anyone who disagrees will have to find another place to live"? I hear it all the time. "There should be a way to revise this religion, because fundamentalist Christianity has no place in our modern society." You subscribe to revisionism if the above comments are yours. How would you like it if they changed the ending of Star Wars and let Luke Skywalker be killed? Well, I honestly wouldn't care, since I don't like Star Wars. But let's face it: if you're a fundamentalist, you're a dinosaur. Many Christians have adapted to a modern environment, but there's still that select group that think that every word of the Bible is 100% true as written. There are a million different ways fundamentalist Christianity can be rewritten without changing the words of the Bible. "Much the same way that if it was proven that their god didn't exist." Actually the opposite of this is proven every day. How? I would really like to see some of this proof. Do tell me. "Fear that it's the devil trying to trick them." The Devil has used you to come up with the great idea to spend hundreds of hours on a web site. The skeletons in our closet are there because of the Devil. Ever wonder why things are bad? So now I'm of the Devil! Hot damn, I'm evil! Look, man, the fact of the matter is I don't work for free. Maybe if your devil sent a few million my way I'd consider doing his bidding. And now everything bad we do is THE DEVIL'S FAULT! THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT! Seriously, take some responsibility. That's pathetic. "I suppose the only thing to do is sit back and watch as fundamentalist Christianity loses faith with the American people....." Unfortuneately, you're probably right. What will you do if you live to see the Rapture? Would you change your mind if you witnessed this? That's like asking would I believe in aliens if a group of them abducted me. And the answer is probably so. FYI, the evidence for God and Jesus is overwhelming. Do some key word searching on the net one night and you will learn. Study and question how the information in the Bible was written when such information was not proven at that time....such as the medical law of Quarentene. What evidence? And the fact that they had Quarantine in the Bible proves God and Jesus? I think not. Obviously people thousands of years ago had a sense of perception, and could tell if diseases spread or not and how to prevent that. You would think God would just fix everything. But God lets us dig our own holes. You must understand this. It's like a parent saying, I trust you, just don't get in trouble. Something we all wanted to hear as teens. When parents don't say this, Kids hate them. Mmmm....okayyyy, no comment. I assume that when you put up the site you knew you would get e-mails.Thanks for the site, It helped me Strengthen my Faith even more and helped me think things out Good luck in life. Replay if you wish. I'm glad. Really. That's the thing....I don't care what kick you have, if I've helped you get closer to it in any way, that's cool. The problem is not personal beliefs, the problem is when this belief is imposed on others. This has happened to me my whole life, and this is what my crusade is against. |
| From: haber149 Date: Sunday, July 7, 2002 Subject: Comments about comments about www.oocities.org/skidmark_84/past.html I read your comments, and I was glad to see you took the time to see what I had to say. Thanks! You're quite welcome. I have come to the conclusion that you would like to see some real hard proof of God's existence. I'll include a link to a site that might include what you'd like to see. Please tell me it's not "Answers in Genesis". Every fundie I speak to gives me that site, and I've refuted many of its claims a gazzilion times. I know what it's like to wonder about all this. Everyone questions our existence and why. As a kid, I always believed that the world was perfect because of it's imperfections. I never thought that It was God's fault that humans sin so much. Remember that we don't always see everything. To prove this, go into a familiar room and take a look a round. Then go and write down all the things you saw in the room.Obviously you or I would miss tons of things ex. the colors in wallpaper the texture on the ceiling, the secondary colors in the rug fibers. My point is we miss so much during every second that we need to realize that there is often more than meets the eye. LOOK HARDER AT THE SMALL THINGS Pick up a bug and look at its small body and imagine what it would take for the worlds best engineer to make a working mechanical one work. Stare at your finger and picture the blood vessels and bones all put there and how everything all works. So if it looks designed, it is? You may look at something this complex and say "This can't happen naturally", but if the world was formed naturally, obviously everything else can. You look at everything in the world operating off the assumption that there is a god. So to you, seeing something complex, you automatically think "God made it", whereas I don't think about things like gods because I have no belief in them. Look up and watch a hawk soar on an invisible column of air called thermals. He will rise to the cloudbase it chooses. We cant see a thermal but it is there and a bird or glider can navigate it upwards all the way into a cloud. You can't SEE thermals, but you can FEEL them. Watch a baby being born and feel the (life) and observe the people and the joy. Huh? "God created a perfect world; the free choice of Adam to turn his back on Him is the ultimate cause of all the suffering. The efficient cause of specific suffering is the free evil choice of moral agents. However, Scriptures are clear that those who suffer the most are not necessarily the most sinful (e.g., John 9:1-3). I appreciate your comments and hope you keep searching. I hope you find the answers to all of your questions. I hope you understand my tone is not to force anything on you. You obviously have the right to believe what you will and that is fine with me. I do although get upset when those who oppose my beliefs also force them on me like the Christians you talk about. The main diffacere that I see is that the Christians that "force" there beliefs down your throat most likely do it because they care about not only you but also your soul (despite their not being sin free). The non believers that do the same thing to me don't seem to care about me at all, they care about a principle that they would like see spread despite its inability to help any one. Thanks. I hope you keep searching, as well. The Christians who force their religion on me don't care about me at all. Anyone who threatens to kill me is not concerned with me. They, too, have a principle that they would like to see spread....that is that everyone should be the same as them. I do not believe that everyone should be atheists, because I know some people can't handle it. Some people couldn't live with the notion that maybe they aren't special, that they aren't above other animals, and that the world wasn't created for them. If they need that sort of security, that's fine. I also know that what may be true for me isn't true in the mind of someone else (take yourself, for example). My page is not about convincing anyone to become atheists, it's about trying to expose religous oppression. At the same time, it's a resource site for those who think they might be atheists and are frightened by the concept. Concerning inability to help anyone...my atheism has helped me tremendously to cope with my life and to shed the notion that there's an invisible man watching everything I do. If a Christian dies and there is no heaven, there is no loss.(other than they had a boring life haha) Same for the Atheist (except they had lots of fun!!!!!!) But if there is a heaven and a God, the Atheist pays a big price but the Christian doesn't. ( if they have accept Jesus and asked for forgiveness). What if there is a heaven and a god, it's just not the Christian heaven or god? We're both up the creek then. Or suppose there's a god that judges you by how you live your life and not whether or not you believe he's there. I do have lots of fun, and little of it goes against the teachings of your god. Unless your god has a problem with a guy who stays at home and watches action movies on Saturday night, spends all his waking hours planning and building a hot-rod Camaro, and maintains a cynical (but not hateful) website. I'd think he'd have more of a problem with folks like Eric Rudolph, who plant bombs and kill people in the name of his god. enjoyed chatting with you! BTW, have you ever heard about the weight of people decreasing shortly after death? This has been stated it could be the existence of a sole leaving the body. Yes, I've heard of this, but I never can get a resource on it. All I've ever heard about it was that the experiment occured in the early 1900s. I can never get any details on it. http://www.answersingenesis.org/home/area/faq/God.asp Great. It IS Answers in Genesis. Have a good one. |
| From: haber149 Date: Monday, July 8, 2002 Subject: More comments.... just got your reply. its clear you dont have random beliefs, you obviously have put yourself where you r 4 a reason. I do admire that. I heard what you u sayed and dont think your crazy. actually you seem quite sane. we all end up following what makes sence to us. just 2 more questions. ok? Either are optional. That's fine. 1. I am curious what brought you to these beliefs. what type of situation did you grow up in. bad home? father a preacher? abuse? normal? You could call it normal. I've had a very happy home life (school life was another matter, lol), and I mention my parent in my site FAQ. 2. what type of Camaro you fixing up? sounds fun. Oh, yes, it certainly is. Cars are my life. My Camaro is an '84 Camaro Berlinetta with a Sport Coupe front clip (goof up by a body shop, but I think it looks better), Z/28 ground effects and wheels, and I'm currently saving up for a 300 hp build to the original 305 engine, along with a Ford 9 inch rear and some suspension re-hashing. ps u are kindof right about thermals, but you can see them now using the technology that they use to see missles. Helocopter pilots aparenty can see them and call them heat devils. (pretty cool) I used the themal example because I am a hg pilot and that is one of the experiences that has stengthened my faith. (just incase u r wondering) It was nice chatting. (hope my God bless' you) (that would be ok right? i don't think it will sting. haha) see ya dude! Ill let u know if i find outabout the 1900 experiment No, God Bless is just dandy. Much better than "I'll pray for you", lol. Thank you for your time. |
| From: Andy Armstrong Date: November 11, 2002 Subject: Sorry I am sorry I offended you when I came to share about my bike trip. I find it hard to separate my spiritual life from my daily life because they are one in the same. I do realize we all have the right to believe what we desire. Because I see a world so full of hate, sorrow and unhappiness, I just find it hard to contain what to me has made life full and happy. I probably was wrong to leave that personal testimony in your class. You read it and you made the decision whether it's worth the paper it was printed on. I just happened on the web site and was really shocked about the way you felt. I wish at the time you would have talked to me about it. I hope your life is going well.Let me hear from you. |
| Apology accepted. I in turn apologize if my page offended you (I'm sure it did, I was a bit embittered at the time that I wrote that journal entry, it was more over something else going on at the time). I never even thought that you might see the page. Just out of curiousity, how did you find it? My beliefs (and non-beliefs) shock a lot of people who've met me. I guess they expect me to have a forked tonque or something. And on the whole, aside from some of the things I had to put up with in school, my life has gone very well, so I don't attribute my atheism to that. |
| From: Andy Armstrong Date: November 12, 2002 Subject: Re: Sorry No I was not offended. After thirty years as a teacher and now doing teacher workshops I have had said about everything you can imagine about me. I do what I feel is right and move forward. You know the saying, if life gives you a lemon make lemonade. Well, life has been so good. Not many lemons. I found the site by typing in Andy Armstrong Bike Trip. I have done this Bike Talk to so many clubs and civic groups I just want to see if anyone had commented on the program. Needless to say, I never expected to have a response from EHS. I do not believe like you believe, but I will fight to the death for your right to believe or not believe in whatever you desire. I hope you feel the same about my right. I love life and I love people. I know many times Christians come on as Bible thumping ,stump preaching people. All I want to do is tell you about what it has done for me. I feel that if I don't share with those who will listen, I am not being true to what I believe. You listened that's all I ask. Your response is left to your free will. I hope your day has gone well. Oh, you should try the biking trip thing . It was and is a blast! My 16 year old Grandson and I biked across Europe this summer. Check it out in the Meridian Star |
| "I do not believe like you believe, but I will fight to the death for your right to believe or not believe in whatever you desire." I agree completely. This has been my attitude for many years now, or at least the one I strive to maintain. Thanks for not being offended, also. Glad I didn't hand you a lemon. :) As for biking: My current longest trip has been about 10 miles, so I don't know if I could tackle a few thousand. Maybe I should ride a moped across the country (HA!). |
| From: Michael Date: 1/5/03 Subject: JESUS CHRIST IS GOD! Lets take a look at life at absolute face value. We suddenly show up in this world (do you remember when you came to earth?) and we are one of many life forms. But you must notice that we humans are quite different then the natural world that surrounds us. Nature is without blemish, it abides by its laws and every plant and animal simply plays its role in the circle of life. Nature is not aware of good or evil, yet only the foolish man blinded by his own ignorance can deny these two oposing forces exist and that the human race is the only form of life on earth consious of this and capable of practicing either. I deny the existence of good and evil. Who determines what is good? Who determines what is evil? Morality is relative. The argument could be made that there is so called "good" and "evil" in all of us. So thats one major difference between us and nature. What are the other ones? Two, we wear clothing for the sake of decency. And three: we have to work for our nourishment, whether dirrectly or indirectly. I thought we wore clothing because we didn't evolve with hair and have to stay warm somehow? And we aren't the only organisms that work for our food: Does the word "predator" mean anything to you? These three undeniable differences between man and nature are key tools in understanding the truth. Funny how they're "undeniable", yet I deny them. If I were to search for the explanation of this logically I would look to history because obviously the present is a product of the past. History has provided us with many accounts and records of things past but none so regarded as the Bible. There are no historical accounts as regarded as the Bible? That's a new one on me. The Bible may be popular, but it's certainly not popular as a historical document. And I find it quite interesting that these differences between man and nature, of which every sane man is aware, are all clearly and simply explained in the opening pages if this great book. You sound like you're writing ad copy for the Bible. Face it: Man is a part of nature. To me this alone proves the existence of God and the authority of his word. How do you atheists explain this irony? The only irony I see is that "every sane man is aware" of this, yet I've never been aware of this nor have I ever met anyone else who's pointed it out to me. I see no irony in your actual claims, however, because I don't believe them. When and how did the ape suddenly discover evil? Around the time religion came to be. For the sake of your own souls I beg you to think about this with an open mind rather than just dismising my argument. Time is running short. Jesus is returning SOON. Your own souls? Do you think there's more than one of me? In His name I pray you may ask His forgiveness and turn from the wide road to hell to the narrow path to heaven through the Blood of our Savior. Think about it. Proof that prayers aren't answered. Eternity is a LONG TIME. Yeah, it is. Imagine all that time, sitting there in heaven. Wouldn't it get boring? |