Is anyone else an atheist with BC besides me?

DivineMrsM

parakeet, that's always a frustrating discussion to have. I feel like many people don't want to grapple with matters in a more in-depth kind of way.

I was reading something today that talked about Make A Wish religion, meaning there are people who assume prayer is something like sitting on Santa's lap with a wish list for Christmas. If you're good enough or have enough faith, your wish will be granted and you'll avoid the grief and suffering the rest of the world experiences. This kind of religion hopes for a magical way to bypass grief or resolve it quickly and painlessly. It wants short, simple answers to complex problems for which there are no simple answers.

I see a whole lot of this kind of religion around me. It seems to go hand in hand with what I call a la carte religion, where people pick and choose only the parts of religion that they want and leave the rest. Sure, they want to feel good giving gifts to their loved ones at Christmas but they are okay with hating their neighbor. They want to fight for the unborn yet turn their back on meeting the needs of children once they are born.

Miriandra

Make-a-Wish religion is like those who survive a natural disaster like a tornado and say, "God protected us. We thank him for keeping us safe." While at the same time, dozens of their neighbors were killed in the same event. I guess they just weren't faithful enough.

As for abortion, it just shows that they can't be bothered to read or believe their own holy book. The bible clearly states that god "breaths life" into man. So life, according to the bible, begins with the first breath.

ParakeetsRule

That drives me CRAZY. God protected them from the tornado but killed their neighbors? Do they understand how they sound?? (obviously, they don't, lol)

AliceBastable

parakeetsrule, WTF is "healed in heaven?" That's the most batshit thing I've ever heard! I got the pitchfork and torch treatment on a FB cancer group, too, when, after seeing all the "JEEEsus will see us through" posts, I asked if it was a group for Christians only. Whoo-ee, you'd have thought I re-crucified their fave fantasy figure!

Elderberry

Healed in Heaven? Yeah --- that is really helpful and uplifting. Maybe women will get their boobs back too. The mind boggles.

Alice: should they have not been proud to be Christians...and yeah - loving you.

moth

It is so weird when someone posts about their scans being good & tacks on "god is good!" and it's sandwiched in between posts of people whose scans are awful or are moving to hospice etc. So god is good? or not good? Good for some? only sometimes? only you? not her because she did something wrong years ago?? ... it's all so weird

Elderberry

I think it is Calvinist thought that there is a lottery and you either have a ticket to Heaven or you don't. Not by your good works shall ye be known

So I guess those posters have their "special in" with God. Personally, I believe there is just a huge universal crap shot game out there and we just blow on the dice then roll them.

LI77

Just popping in to say hi. I think I found my people here! I'm an atheist, liberal, feminist, queer with a dark sense of humor. Oh, and I live in Texas. I need to read more of this thread.

MinusTwo

OH oh, oh --- we get our boobs back in heaven? I'll need to re-write my last will & testament to make sure the fake ones are removed after I die. But hmmm - I'm going to be cremated... So I should have the fake boobs removed anyway so when my ashes are dumped in the ocean, there isn't any pesky plastic pollution???

liZZ - I'm often embarrassed to say I live in Texas too.

AliceBastable

Aw, I pictured the removed boobs (and other removed body parts) floating around in heaven with their own little pairs of wings. "Look, Maybella, there's Uncle Ezekiel's leg! And great-aunt Myrtle's gall bladder!" "Aw, here's the boobies section. They say it's good luck in heaven if you see a pair of them flying together." "Hey, there's my kidney! I wonder if it still fits? Hey St. Peter, who do we see about getting our parts back?"

Welcome, li77! Hanging around here will keep you from posting "God took my tit and I'm having a fit!" on one of the religious threads, although it's still tempting.

AliceBastable

And speaking of disembodied parts ...

https://laughingsquid.com/robotic-mouth-sings-ai-generated-prayers/

DivineMrsM

Pretty funny, Alice!

Welcome, li77.

Miriandra

(And this was from Disney!)

AliceBastable

My idea of Hell is dying and finding out there's really a Heaven and I'm stuck there for eternity.

I love this, from Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman (it sounds very Pratchetty to me): "if you stopped tellin' people it's all sorted out after they're dead, they might try sorting it all out while they're alive."

LI77

This made me laugh.

AliceBastable

😂😂😂😂😂 So glad I pee'd before seeing that!

DivineMrsM

The latest religious scandal involves clergy sex abuse and cover up in the Southern Baptist denomination. This is a lengthy article, I will post some of it then provide a link if you want to reas the rest.

Top Southern Baptists stonewalled and denigrated sex abuse victims, report says

The Associated Press Updated May 22, 20229:59 PM ET

Mark Humphrey/AP

Leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention, America's largest Protestant denomination, stonewalled and denigrated survivors of clergy sex abuse over almost two decades while seeking to protect their own reputations, according to a scathing 288-page investigative report issued Sunday.

These survivors, and other concerned Southern Baptists, repeatedly shared allegations with the SBC's Executive Committee, "only to be met, time and time again, with resistance, stonewalling, and even outright hostility from some within the EC," said the report.

The seven-month investigation was conducted by Guidepost Solutions, an independent firm contracted by the Executive Committee after delegates to last year's national meeting pressed for a probe by outsiders.

"Our investigation revealed that, for many years, a few senior EC leaders, along with outside counsel, largely controlled the EC's response to these reports of abuse ... and were singularly focused on avoiding liability for the SBC," the report said.

"In service of this goal, survivors and others who reported abuse were ignored, disbelieved, or met with the constant refrain that the SBC could take no action due to its polity regarding church autonomy – even if it meant that convicted molesters continued in ministry with no notice or warning to their current church or congregation," the report added.

The report asserts that an Executive Committee staffer maintained a list of Baptist ministers accused of abuse, but there is no indication anyone "took any action to ensure that the accused ministers were no longer in positions of power at SBC churches."

The most recent list includes the names of hundreds of abusers thought to be affiliated at some point with the SBC. Survivors and advocates have long called for a public database of abusers.

SBC President Ed Litton, in a statement Sunday, said he is "grieved to my core" for the victims and thanked God for their work propelling the SBC to this moment. He called on Southern Baptists to lament and prepare to change the denomination's culture and implement reforms.

"I pray Southern Baptists will begin preparing today to take deliberate action to address these failures and chart a new course when we meet together in Anaheim," Litton said, referring to the California city that will host the SBC's national meeting on June 14-15.

Among the report's key recommendations:

— Form an independent commission and later establish a permanent administrative entity to oversee comprehensive long-term reforms concerning sexual abuse and related misconduct within the SBC.

—Create and maintain an Offender Information System to alert the community to known offenders.

— Provide a comprehensive Resource Toolbox including protocols, training, education, and practical information.

—Restrict the use of nondisclosure agreements and civil settlements which bind survivors to confidentiality in sexual abuse matters, unless requested by the survivor.

The interim leaders of the Executive Committee, Willie McLaurin and Rolland Slade, welcomed the recommendations, and pledged an all-out effort to eliminate sex abuse within the SBC.

"We recognize there are no shortcuts," they said. "We must all meet this challenge through prudent and prayerful application, and we must do so with Christ-like compassion."

More reading: https://www.npr.org/2022/05/22/1100616952/southern-baptists-sex-abuse

KIDI919

Surprised? Nope. Sexual predators are every where.

Wren44

A pastor in a church called 'Life Church' told his congregation that he committed adultery 20 years ago and wanted their forgiveness. They clapped their support. Then a woman went up and grabbed the mike and said "I was 16yo when you took my virginity on your office floor". The congregation didn't go for that. They were livid that she was so young. He has now left the church. They can't get him legally because 16 is the age the woman can have sex in that state.

Spookiesmom

Hope she doesn’t mind me posting this here.

AliceBastable

Excellent!

Wren44

I was diagnosed Stage IV last month and it has not created a desire to pray to anybody. I would like to spend some time in the woods, or a very woody park and do more painting.

MinusTwo

Oh Wrenn - I didn't know. l'm so sorry. All the reading & posting I used to do to try to pay back the support I got is gone with the site mess. But you'll be in my thoughts.

jo6359

I was an atheist prior to my breast cancer diagnosis, an atheist during my cancer treatment and four and a half years later I remain an atheist. It became tiresome hearing friends and healthcare professionals telling me that God will get me through this. Fortunately I had good friends, very good doctors and this forum to help me through this process. The process sucks but the support was wonderful. Not once did I think about turning to a god I never believed in. I'm still doing wonderful and remain a very happy person. Happy other than I'm pissed off at our political system.

jo6359

Wren: I'm so sorry to hear of your recents stage 4 diagnosis. I can understand your desire to just be a part of nature.

jo6359

I've been pretty much absent from breast cancer.org for approximately 2 years. I've checked in one or two times and that has been it. What's happening ? I noticed many individuals have deleted their diagnosis and treatment information.

AliceBastable

jo6359, the leaders at BCO decided to "upgrade" the site, I think in early March, and it's been a disaster for the forum side of the site. The tech team they hired really screwed up, which caused a lot of problems with how our information is displayed. Then, a few tech-savvy members did some digging and found there'd been a pretty serious data breach that BCO never told members about, which led many of us to delete the information we could - but the site is so effed up that we can't delete it all. Many members have left because of these issues, and a lot of the ones who stayed, like me, don't check in as frequently or post as much. There's a thread about tech issues and glitches that's pretty active; you might read some of it starting about four months or so back to see what's been going on.

MinusTwo

jo - good to see you. Alice is right. The site is such a mess & a hassle, many have dropped out entirely. And others of us don't check in very often - just enough to see if our friends are still alive. Hope you are doing OK.

jo6359

I'm doing great. A little neuropathy from the chemo but other than that no complaints. The neuropathy does not impede function. I'm still working and exercising. I will check out the tech site. I'm interested in seeing how they're trying to reconcile these privacy breaches.

LI77

I have an amusing story. A group of four Mormon missionaries came to my door, and I was wearing a t-shirt that says “hell is other people." They all looked around awkwardly, then one girl said “so, obviously we're Mormons," and I looked at her and said “yeah, I don't want to hear anything you have to say," and shut the door. 😂