A noted newspaper columnist said “This age of science has no natural limits we know of, and what is dawning on us now is that it is also uncontrollable. Science simply does not know what it is doing or where it is going, in any universal sense; and if the good it does is fundamental, the damage it does is absolutely unrepairable.”

one author acidly said: “If the present condition of international hatred, mass murder, violated treaties, forgotten honor, and civilian extermination in the holy name of war are the best that evolution can accomplish, we should hand the whole mess back to the monkeys and ask them to stir up another batch!”

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Harold Urey,c who said that the intellectual ideas of the scientific revolution have eroded morality and religion. He stated that the skepticism of the scientific community already has spread into the general population, and he predicted that it will spread ever more widely in the future, adding that this may even be indirectly responsible for the rise of social evils such as delinquency


Those predictions are what we are seeing
Religion has failed to erase delinquency, promote love, good morals, honesty, peace and unity. It's foolish to think that atheism will do better

Aemmyjah:
A noted newspaper columnist said “This age of science has no natural limits we know of, and what is dawning on us now is that it is also uncontrollable. Science simply does not know what it is doing or where it is going, in any universal sense; and if the good it does is fundamental, the damage it does is absolutely unrepairable.”

one author acidly said: “If the present condition of international hatred, mass murder, violated treaties, forgotten honor, and civilian extermination in the holy name of war are the best that evolution can accomplish, we should hand the whole mess back to the monkeys and ask them to stir up another batch!”

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Harold Urey,c who said that the intellectual ideas of the scientific revolution have eroded morality and religion. He stated that the skepticism of the scientific community already has spread into the general population, and he predicted that it will spread ever more widely in the future, adding that this may even be indirectly responsible for the rise of social evils such as delinquency


Those predictions are what we are seeing
Religion has failed to erase delinquency, promote love, good morals, honesty, peace and unity. It's foolish to think that atheism will do better.

To me the introduction of atheism to mankind could be likened to the withdraw of oxygen from a living organism just to experiment if it can survive without a steady supply of fresh air to breathe!

MaxInDHouse:


To me the introduction of atheism to mankind could be likened to the withdraw of oxygen from a living organism just to experiment if it can survive without a steady supply of fresh air to breathe!

Fitting illustration

Aemmyjah:


What feeds humanism? Philosophy?
Even most of our secular principles for conduct are things already taught by religious groups but people don't even apply it. Some do it out of a driving force - godly fear... If that fear, so powerful is gone, which philosophy will want me to pursue any moral ethics... It's just to live life as one pleases

One atheist here on Nairaland says and I'll mention him, that his purpose of life as an atheist is to be selfish. His name is Jaephoenix

Morality is subjective, subjective to what?
Remember that there is good morals amd bad morals
For example, there's dispute concerning homosexuality and some lands allow for bestiality... Do the authorities punish people for extramarital affair extramarital affair ; honesty... Everyone is just pursuing any philosophy that pleases him (religious and atheists)

1. Can you show me where I stated my aim in life is to be selfish? Please I need a screenshot. And if you don't provide it, that means you are damned eternally(according to your fairy tales)
2. Morality is relative. During the times the bible was copied, people were cool with slavery and misogynism. But these days, they aren't. That is relative morality. In fact contemporary morality can be relative. Example, homosexual marriage is illegal in Nigeria, but not so in South Africa

Aemmyjah:
Increase in lawlessness

It it obvious your head is stuck in the sand.
Illiterate, do you know that relatively religious countries are more criminal than irreligious ones. Examples is African countries like Nigeria. On Sundays, you would see traffic on roads. Why? People trooping to church. But guess what, you can't leave your stall open, you can't build your house without tall fences, even infrastructures like railway tracks are stolen.
Compare it to Scandinavians like Norway, Sweden etc. On Sundays you can almost play football on their roads. But they have low crime rates. Netherlands are less religious than Nigeria with more atheists but their jails are almost empty.
Latin America is a Catholic stronghold. But where do we have big drug cartels? Yeah. Same Latin America. Pablo Escobar was a devout Catholic .
So take your ignorance and stuff it where the sun don't shine

Aemmyjah:



With all the religious and traditional and cultural beliefs and practices, see what Nigeria is turning into out of greed and hypocrisy. What happens when everyone believes that they are only accountable to self?
Many of us don't do certain things or give in to some fleshly desires cos it's against our beliefs and out of godly fear which is fueled by knowledge of God. When that fear is no longer there, everyone do as they like without caring

It is even a damning evidence on your morality that you need threats of eternal damnation to be good in life. Not that that deters many of you cos christians and Muslims still do all sorts of crimes.
Atheists aren't bound by any threats or any holy books, yet we turn out good citizens. I guess you don't know many philanthropists are atheists or agnostics , from Bill Gates to Warren Buffett. On my own part, I donate blood to my own patients despite the bad reps doctors get from people like you. I do free online consults (as long as you don't disturb me in the middle of the night) etc.
So shut that trap of yours

Botragelad:

I disagree with your statement. You seem to imply that without religious and traditional and cultural beliefs and practices, Nigeria would be worse off. You also seem to suggest that the only reason people do good things or avoid bad things is because of their fear of God or their belief in accountability to a higher power. This is a flawed and insulting view of human nature and morality.

Nigeria is not a homogeneous country. It has a diverse population with different ethnicities, languages, religions, cultures, and traditions. There are many Nigerians who do not follow any religion or who have different beliefs and values than you do. They are not necessarily less moral or more corrupt than you are.

Plus, religion is not the only source of morality or ethics. There are many secular and humanistic philosophies that provide rational and universal principles for human conduct and well-being. These philosophies do not rely on the existence of God or any supernatural authority, but on the use of reason, evidence, empathy, and compassion.

To say the least, fear is not even a good motivator for morality or ethics.
A better motivator for morality or ethics should be love.

What happens when everyone believes that they are only accountable to self? Nothing bad, as long as they also believe that they are accountable to others. That is the essence of humanism: the belief that humans are capable of being moral and ethical without God or religion.
Simple sense!

The bolded statement is what I have been telling these numbskulls called Christians but they can't get it into their thick skulls.
Even the Bible morals were copied from ancient books like Hammurabi Code, Epic of Gilgamesh etc. Stone Age folks had morals before christianity or any religion came. And even with the advent of religion, morality didn't get better. In fact religion fueled more wars and killed more people. The Great Crusades, Huguenot Wars, Salem Witch Trials were all murderous and bloody acts foisted by Christianity alone

Aemmyjah:


I'm talking about morals
Now morals are subjective giving you limits to what you can do in relation to others as well
Even with Nigeria being deeply religious, it is just a delusion or formality and the nation is getting worse
How will atheism help?
Remember that the problems of Nigeria is moral not political

Common sense!

Lemme tell how atheism would help Nigeria.
They tell you in Christianity that fasting and praying for days, weeks etc would make Yahweh give you wealth, health etc. Well if this works, obviously Nigeria would have been one of the most prosperous nations. But it doesn't work and Nigeria is stuck in the doldrums, getting worse as the years go by, and as more and more christians and Muslims are born everyday. The obvious truth: no skydaddy anywhere.
Atheism teaches you to use your logical reasoning and scientific knowledge to broaden perspectives and utilize them in your day to day transactions. You won't rely on a non existent sky daddy to get work done. You actually use the time you would have used to do ineffective prayers to do useful stuff like educate yourself on scientific phenomena like Koro syndrome. Talking of Koro, if Nigerians are mostly atheists, you won't see anyone getting lynched for allegedly stealing someone's genitals. Thieves even use the opportunity offered by the 'stolen genital' commotion to steal
So tell me one advantage religion offers. Just one

Botragelad:

You seem to have a very narrow and biased view of humanism and philosophy. You also seem to have a very distorted and selective view of morality and ethics.

Humanism is not just a philosophy, but a worldview that affirms the dignity and worth of every human being, regardless of their beliefs or backgrounds. It does not depend on any supernatural authority or revelation, but on the natural and social sciences, as well as the arts and humanities. This is not even a new or modern invention.

Dude, philosophy is not just a subject, but a method of inquiry that seeks to understand the fundamental nature of reality, knowledge, values, and existence. Philosophy does not provide ready-made answers or dogmas, but encourages critical thinking, creativity, and curiosity.

Again, atheism is not a belief system, but a lack of belief in God or gods. It does not imply anything else about one's worldview or values. Atheism does not mean that one has no purpose or meaning in life or that one has no morals or ethics. Understood?

Dude I like you already. Just reading two of your posts and I wanna like all your comments.
So on point

jaephoenix:

Dude I like you already. Just reading two of your posts and I wanna like all your comments.
So on point

Thanks buddy!

Aemmyjah:


Explain your last sentence on atheism let everyone here
You've not addressed the OP either
Note that I'm talking from both sides

Religious leaders in Nigeria are enriching themselves and burdening the people and playing politics
No one can convincingly say that Nigeria will get better if all were atheists... Atheists is not synonymous with humanism
Everyone has their own personal philosophy
There's a religion that it's name in English is translated as Peace but people link it with extremism, terrorism and social vices...
We cannot predict things accurately but an atheist Nigeria does not sound good... If everyone becomes an atheist, what force will push them to become more humanists? How will it sold the problem of greed, selfishness, egotism, etc that is so deeply entrenched in man that they preach in their religion but do not practice? These are questions
Already, Nigeria is something else

You have already determined that an atheistic Nigeria would not be good, so no amount of explanations would work. But lemme explain to those that can think.
I can't categorically say Nigeria would be better with atheism but I can draw my inferences to buttress my premises and conclusions. One of them is the fact from history. It is replete with data where lack of believe in certain religions lead to death. Example is religious wars like the Great Crusades, Huguenot Wars etc, and inquisitions like Witch Trials in both US and Europe. Imagine if all those people were atheists and humanists, do you think they'll go about murdering people for not believing in their favorite ice cream flavor?
Another inference, contemporary history. Relatively irreligious countries like Iceland, Eastern Europe, Scandinavians erc have relatively lower crime rates than the more religious countries which include Nigeria.
Also the inference of scientific integration. Atheists tend to be more scientifically grounded than theists. All these lynchings of suspected penis thieves won't happen in relatively atheistic countries because they know its not possible. Also belief in ritual money is absent in these nations. So you won't see people slaughtering themselves because they believe someone's head, breasts etc have some money minting properties.
Putting all these into consideration, Nigeria should be better irreligious

Aemmyjah:


Morality is subjective?
Subjective to who or what?
Why be moral?

Where do we get altruism from?
Why is greed, injustice, hatred, crime, infidelity and war not accepted as a normal thing

How will atheism promote humanism?

I have explained how morality is relative. Check my previous posts. In addition to those, your own Bible is replete in relative morality. Yahweh was busy slaughtering folks that didn't believe him in the Old Testament. Working on Sabbath, beating and killing slaves, wearing clothes made of different materials, eating pork, all led to loss of heads. Remember he killed more people than Satan. In the New Testament, he deemed all the stuff he did in the Old Testament as bad, turned a new leaf, sent himself as his son to die so as to appease himself(which is still a bloodthirsty action). Thus some of those actions became forgivable (even though there is the unforgivable sin which no christian seems to know about )
That is relative morality

Waylex21:
More cases of suicide and mental breakdown

So far, 100% of those we heard committed suicide are either Christians or Muslims, yet we have atheists around already with no record of suicide. So what are you saying?

Aemmyjah:



With all the religious and traditional and cultural beliefs and practices, see what Nigeria is turning into out of greed and hypocrisy. What happens when everyone believes that they are only accountable to self?
Many of us don't do certain things or give in to some fleshly desires cos it's against our beliefs and out of godly fear which is fueled by knowledge of God. When that fear is no longer there, everyone do as they like without caring

Japanese don't have the knowledge of that your god and they are more orderly than us. Care to explain.

Aemmyjah:



With all the religious and traditional and cultural beliefs and practices, see what Nigeria is turning into out of greed and hypocrisy. What happens when everyone believes that they are only accountable to self?
Many of us don't do certain things or give in to some fleshly desires cos it's against our beliefs and out of godly fear which is fueled by knowledge of God. When that fear is no longer there, everyone do as they like without caring

Have you read about Tai Solarin, the first famous Nigerian Atheist? He is far more moral than Kumuyi and Adeboye combined. He is the founder of a school called Mayflower or so. Care to find out about him?

Aemmyjah:
A noted newspaper columnist said “This age of science has no natural limits we know of, and what is dawning on us now is that it is also uncontrollable. Science simply does not know what it is doing or where it is going, in any universal sense; and if the good it does is fundamental, the damage it does is absolutely unrepairable.”

one author acidly said: “If the present condition of international hatred, mass murder, violated treaties, forgotten honor, and civilian extermination in the holy name of war are the best that evolution can accomplish, we should hand the whole mess back to the monkeys and ask them to stir up another batch!”

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Harold Urey,c who said that the intellectual ideas of the scientific revolution have eroded morality and religion. He stated that the skepticism of the scientific community already has spread into the general population, and he predicted that it will spread ever more widely in the future, adding that this may even be indirectly responsible for the rise of social evils such as delinquency


Those predictions are what we are seeing
Religion has failed to erase delinquency, promote love, good morals, honesty, peace and unity. It's foolish to think that atheism will do better

Are you sure you would believe everything scientists tell you?

jaephoenix:

Are you sure you would believe everything scientists tell you?

As if they believe everything they have said and been saying
I accept proven fact

geoworldedu:


Have you read about Tai Solarin, the first famous Nigerian Atheist? He is far more moral than Kumuyi and Adeboye combined. He is the founder of a school called Mayflower or so. Care to find out about him?

I'm not talking about the individual person... Tai had a good moral background... I heard the death of his twin made him doubt God and be an atheist
Thousands who were grossly immoral and criminal accept Bible message and became peaceable

geoworldedu:
Japanese don't have the knowledge of that your god and they are more orderly than us. Care to explain.

De play
Keep fooling around

jaephoenix:

I have explained how morality is relative. Check my previous posts. In addition to those, your own Bible is replete in relative morality. Yahweh was busy slaughtering folks that didn't believe him in the Old Testament. Working on Sabbath, beating and killing slaves, wearing clothes made of different materials, eating pork, all led to loss of heads. Remember he killed more people than Satan. In the New Testament, he deemed all the stuff he did in the Old Testament as bad, turned a new leaf, sent himself as his son to die so as to appease himself(which is still a bloodthirsty action). Thus some of those actions became forgivable (even though there is the unforgivable sin which no christian seems to know about )
That is relative morality

Murder
Incest
Stealing
... Relative?

jaephoenix:

You have already determined that an atheistic Nigeria would not be good, so no amount of explanations would work. But lemme explain to those that can think.
I can't categorically say Nigeria would be better with atheism but I can draw my inferences to buttress my premises and conclusions. One of them is the fact from history. It is replete with data where lack of believe in certain religions lead to death. Example is religious wars like the Great Crusades, Huguenot Wars etc, and inquisitions like Witch Trials in both US and Europe. Imagine if all those people were atheists and humanists, do you think they'll go about murdering people for not believing in their favorite ice cream flavor?
Another inference, contemporary history. Relatively irreligious countries like Iceland, Eastern Europe, Scandinavians erc have relatively lower crime rates than the more religious countries which include Nigeria.
Also the inference of scientific integration. Atheists tend to be more scientifically grounded than theists. All these lynchings of suspected penis thieves won't happen in relatively atheistic countries because they know its not possible. Also belief in ritual money is absent in these nations. So you won't see people slaughtering themselves because they believe someone's head, breasts etc have some money minting properties.
Putting all these into consideration, Nigeria should be better irreligious

Atheism will end greed, tribalism, abuse of power in Nigeria right?

Aemmyjah:


De play
Keep fooling around

Counter me na
Stupid person

Aemmyjah:


I'm not talking about the individual person... Tai had a good moral background... I heard the death of his twin made him doubt God and be an atheist
Thousands who were grossly immoral and criminal accept Bible message and became peaceable

So now Tai is different from the rest of the atheists. Jokerboy.

geoworldedu:


Counter me na
Stupid person

Your examples are not fitting and won't fit for any African country
What means will atheism use to reduce crime in Nigeria?

Aemmyjah:


Your examples are not fitting and won't fit for any African country
What means will atheism use to reduce crime in Nigeria?

Did you ever see any of my post say that Atheism will reduce crime in Nigeria? What I have done so far is to counter you guys assertion that atheism will increase crime, dats all. I am not an atheist, but I can't make them my enemies because they are more logical than you religious people.

geoworldedu:


Did you ever see any of my post say that Atheism will reduce crime in Nigeria? What I have done so far is to counter you guys assertion that atheism will increase crime, dats all. I am not an atheist, but I can't make them my enemies because they are more logical than you religious people.

According to you
If you read conversations on atheists here, they have met people they cannot beat
It makes sense to you that people who believe that life has no meaning or Purpose, hope or future or direction... That is the kind of people you say are logical to you... I can already conclude the kind of person you are

Aemmyjah:


According to you
If you read conversations on atheists here, they have met people they cannot beat
It makes sense to you that people who believe that life has no meaning or Purpose, hope or future or direction... That is the kind of people you say are logical to you... I can already conclude the kind of person you are

You who know the purpose of life, can you kindly tell me? And I have not seen atheism being defined as a belief system that asserts that life has no purpose. Pls can you show me a link to such end? Thanks I'm waiting for the link.

geoworldedu:


You who know the purpose of life, can you kindly tell me? And I have not seen atheism being defined as a belief system that asserts that life has no purpose. Pls can you show me a link to such end? Thanks I'm waiting for the link.

Tag anyone of them and ask sir

Aemmyjah:


Tag anyone of them and ask sir

I deal with Atheism, not an individual. It's like asking me to tag a Jehovah Witness who said there is no hell fire. If I tag him and he asserts that there is no hell fire, does that mean that Christians generally believe that he'll doesn't exist?

jaephoenix:

I have explained how morality is relative. Check my previous posts. In addition to those, your own Bible is replete in relative morality. Yahweh was busy slaughtering folks that didn't believe him in the Old Testament. Working on Sabbath, beating and killing slaves, wearing clothes made of different materials, eating pork, all led to loss of heads. Remember he killed more people than Satan. In the New Testament, he deemed all the stuff he did in the Old Testament as bad, turned a new leaf, sent himself as his son to die so as to appease himself(which is still a bloodthirsty action). Thus some of those actions became forgivable (even though there is the unforgivable sin which no christian seems to know about )
That is relative morality

God killed far more people than Satan.
In the book of Job documents Satan killed ten people: Job’s three daughters and seven sons, who he kills only with God’s direct explicit permission (Job 1:12–19).
Meanwhile God killed millions and is poised to kill billions more in his end time.

geoworldedu:

I deal with Atheism, not an individual. It's like asking me to tag a Jehovah Witness who said there is no hell fire. If I tag him and he asserts that there is no hell fire, does that mean that Christians generally believe that he'll doesn't exist?

Life is either a product of a Creator or by Chance... Which one is logical to you?

If life came from a Creator, it must have a purpose. If it came by chance, it is meaningless and purposeless... The people you call logical accept the latter

Aemmyjah:


Life is either a product of a Creator or by Chance... Which one is logical to you?

If life came from a Creator, it must have a purpose. If it came by chance, it is meaningless and purposeless... The people you call logical accept the latter

False premise leading to false conclusion.
If life must have a purpose because life came from a creator, then what's the purpose of the creator?
Life happening by chance does not render it meaningless and purposeless.