An open letter to atheists.

[Guest]

oops...double post...see below

[_stemelbow]

If there is one certainty in the universe, it is our mortality. We will all die. Your grandparents -- gone; your parents -- buried and breathless; your brothers, sisters, and friends -- forever asleep; you and everything you have worked for, all of the service you have done for others, the building of a life for you and your family, your education and career, your hopes and dreams -- liquidated.

Yes, you tell yourself, live in the now. Make every moment count, enjoy life while you have it. But to what end? Why earn an advanced degree when there won't be a you to participate in the privileges that come with it? Why advance in your career if there won't be a you to reap the rewards? Why raise a family if they will all simply cease to exist?

Sure, you say to yourself again, but the people who survive you may enjoy the benefits of your education of career. But why does that matter? You will be dead, and you will not have the opportunity to see your child's smiling face as he or she has enough to eat and lives comfortably because of your success. In fact, your child will cease to exist as well.

This is not a letter speaking out against atheism, this is a letter asking this one, simple question:

Atheists, with the above scenario of looming truth, how do you find happiness?

While I can see purpose in the living for the now and finding joy in the things we can do, I also find an atheist position less hopefull and less purposeful in the end. No big deal though.

In the end, its because of Christ that all people have hope anyone. Without Christ there would be no hope and joy found within the atheist. Its a shame that so often atheists mock Christ, but such is the territory--they know not what they do. Luckily there is Christ or their purposes and lives would be much less than they are. I find joy in Christ for them.

love ya tons,
stem

[_Spurven Ten Sing]

Luckily it all makes sense to me...Christ is the very hope of all mankind. Even atheists have hope within them, all because of Christ. They simply don't know it. Thus, their hope and joys are all because of Christ. Too often they mock the very cause of their purpose, and they don't realize it. Too bad.

This is the silliest thing written on this board since light cotton.

[_stemelbow]

This is the silliest thing written on this board since light cotton.

welll...duh...critics are going to mock LDS belief.

what makes writing light cotton silly? ah well I'll attribute it to your lack of humor I guess (smile with a wink as to ensure a playful air).

love ya tons,
stem

[_EAllusion]

In the end, its because of Christ that all people have hope anyone. Without Christ there would be no hope and joy found within the atheist. Its a shame that so often atheists mock Christ, but such is the territory--they know not what they do. Luckily there is Christ or their purposes and lives would be much less than they are. I find joy in Christ for them.

love ya tons,
stem

I don't know why you are focused on atheists when your comments indicate your issue is with non-Christians. There's a few more of those than just atheists.

You're the most amazing, bestest person ever,
EA

[_stemelbow]

I don't know why you are focused on atheists when your comments indicate your issue is with non-Christians. There's a few more of those than just atheists.

You're the most amazing, bestest person ever,
EA

Lets not get silly...of course atheists are non-Christians. They are only part of my focus. I don't have sole focus for you guys...don't flatter yourselves.

love ya tons,
stem

[_EAllusion]

Lets not get silly...of course atheists are non-Christians. They are only part of my focus. I don't have sole focus for you guys...don't flatter yourselves.

Belief that life has less meaning for the atheist because your typical American atheist doesn't believe in an afterlife, while dumb, is several orders of magnitude less provocative than asserting that life is only meaningful because of Jesus Christ. If you were a normative Christian, the argument would be a simple matter of claiming that since Jesus created everyone, they have Jesus to thank for any joy or hope they might have. But presumably you're a Mormon, in which case that argument doesn't quite work. Instead, it would rest on the Mormons more unusual creation-story/cosmology. In which case, you are saying that it is only because of [insert weird Mormon cosmology] that people can have any hope or joy. (Purpose wouldn't work). Which is an awesome contribution to a thread that is just focused on how atheists can find happiness given that they're gonna die at some point.

I want to have your baby,
EA

[_stemelbow]

Belief that life has less meaning for the atheist because your typical American atheist doesn't believe in an afterlife, while dumb, is several orders of magnitude less provocative than asserting that life is only meaningful because of Jesus Christ. If you were a normative Christian, the argument would be a simple matter of claiming that since Jesus created everyone, they have Jesus to thank for any joy or hope they might have. But presumably you're a Mormon, in which case that argument doesn't quite work. Instead, it would rest on the Mormons more unusual creation-story/cosmology. In which case, you are saying that it is only because of [insert weird Mormon cosmology] that people can have any hope or purpose or joy. Which is an awesome contribution to a thread that is just focused on how atheists can find happiness given that they're gonna die at some point.

I want to have your baby,
EA

I readily agree that atheists can find joy, happiness, purpose, and hope all in one. Its just too bad they don't realize the very source of each of those. Without Christ we wouldn't have hope. He provided us hope. Simply put atheists simply don't realize where their source of hope is from. Thus, I rejoince in Christ all the more for them.

you don't like my beliefs? So. I'll still share my thoughts as I deem necessary or appropriate.

by the way its not so much reliant upon the creation-story/cosmology I hold as it is reliant upon the belief that Christ is the very source of hope, light of the world, and the very means by which we can have anything to hope for.

love ya tons,
stem

[_Buffalo]

Without Christ we wouldn't have hope.

Since there is no such person, this claim is manifestly false.

[_truth dancer]

I readily agree that atheists can find joy, happiness, purpose, and hope all in one. Its just too bad they don't realize the very source of each of those. Without Christ we wouldn't have hope. He provided us hope. Simply put atheists simply don't realize where their source of hope is from. Thus, I rejoince in Christ all the more for them.

For what do you think atheists have hope?

I'm not following you on this.

As far as I know, atheists do not have hope in an afterlife, or the believe that they can live with God, or that they get a reward for good behavior, or that there is something more ahead.

So how does Christ offer hope if one does not believe in Christ and does not hope for that which believers in Christ offer?

Again, for what do you think atheists have hope?

~td~