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I wrote a book 'The Objective Perspective: a look at God, Religion & Reality (amazon.com kindle)
It is amazing how Christians react to facts. To them faith is fact

Greetings

I'm Neel Ingman aka kneelingman.

My blog, "Oi, God! Are you having a laugh?" is at www.neelingman.com

My new book is available as a limited time Kindle offer

FREE June 14, 15, 16



https://www.amazon.com/Not-Very-Intel...

"Tremendously funny, insightful and wickedly un PC... Absolutely brilliant" - Amazon 5 stars

"...worthwhile reading for Richard Dawkins..." - Amazon 5 stars

" A great read." Recommended - BookBub 5 stars

"If you like Bill Bryson this is the book for you." - Amazon 5 stars

https://www.amazon.com/Not-Very-Intel...

@neelingman
www.neelingman.com

I was a fundamentalist Christian in my early years. When I reached my mid-twenties, though, I finally woke up and realized that it just wasn't working. I did spend a couple more years "searching", but by the time I hit 30 religion had gone completely out the window. I have never considered myself an avid atheist, and for many years after that would not have even wanted to use the word to describe myself, perhaps just due to the negative connotation associated with that word from my youth. Even today I would rather not use a word that tells you what I am not (atheist = not theistic); I prefer to describe myself for what I am or what I do believe in. I would use the word "scientist" to describe myself, not meaning a scientist by vocation, but just that I believe the way to gain knowledge and understanding is by rational investigation, rather than by some sort of outside revelation. I have on occasion been referred to in a denigrating manner as an atheist by some, as if it is some sort of insult. (People who have the same sort of worldview as I had in my younger days, obviously.)

I have read a few books by Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, etc. about atheism, but it hasn't been particularly a focus of mine until just lately, when I finally actualized my dream of writing a book. I wanted to read a parody of the Bible just for the fun of it but couldn't find one, so I took that as my opportunity to write that book I had dreamed of writing, and I produced one. In the process of writing it I also wrote two other books related to religion: one parody and one straightforward and serious. I don't intend to write more on the subject. There are more important things to write about. I hope, though, that what I have written may help others not to go down the religious path that did so much damage in my own life.

Hi
I am atheist from Scotland. Obviously my hero is therefore David Hume.
I have been an atheist since I was old enough to think for myself. The reason was that I realised god doesn’t exist. Not just the Judeo-Christian god but the other 2-3000 gods people around the world worship. It is perplexing and frustrating to me that people believe mutually exclusive theories but “respect“ them but then exclude atheism as a viable alternative.
Religion is toxic. It is intellectually dishonest, discriminatory and cruel.
There are still barbaric and mediaeval practices carried out across the world in the name of religion and receive insufficient scrutiny or admonishment because of the preposterous protected status religion receives.
How a thinking person can look at religion and think the world is a better place because of it, I find flabbergasting.

I am more agnostic than atheist I think. While religions fascinate me, they usually lack any grounding in reality which prohibits me from indulging in them. To each his own, but I do wish that they would keep religions out of politics as it has caused countless, needless losses of life and limb. Then again, the planet is super overpopulated so maybe a religious war is what we need to cull the herd????? (maybe it's natures way of eliminating sheep?) just sayin.

I mqxdk#.

I'm in the process of deconverting from very traditional, orthodox Catholicism, and haven't decided yet whether to go full-on atheist, or play around for a while with a kinder, gentler form of religiosity.

At first I thought Zen Buddhism might be it. It sounds cool and laid-back, right? But I've encountered some Zen Buddhists who are absolutely rigid in demanding that sitting in a chair does NOT count as the "right" way to meditate -- no, gotta be lotus or nothin'! And that ain't happenin' with me!

Maybe the truth is some human beings just naturally gravitate towards authoritarianism unless they really, really fight it -- and religion just gives them one more tool to use to boss people around!

Anyway, here I am!

Why not start from the Christopher Hitchens position?

“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”

If you can find a religion with solid evidence to support its assertions, go with it. Please let us know if you succeed in finding one.

In the absence of such evidence, atheism (which makes no assertions) is the default position. As it should be for all, if we were living in a rational world.

Welcome Christine. One thing you may already be aware of is the freedom and joy from coming out from under the overbearing nature of religion and the demands of an invisible God and being regarded as a sinner and undeserving from birth... Not the kind of "father" one needs, for sure.

You do not "need" to chose a religion to replace what you are deconverting from.. Take your time to just enjoy the here and now and exercise a clear eye and appreciation of nature and being alive.

My name is Tommy Williford, an atheist navigating the religious midwest... the heart of Kentucky.

I was raised in a Pentecostal family, steeped in blind faith. In college I started reading all the book I wasn't supposed to read, and found that religion not only didn't make sense but was an impediment to my daily life. I made the leap.

Through the years I have tried to find fiction that not just included atheist characters but investigate atheist beyond the dichotomous nature of belief/non-belief. Not finding it I wrote my own book (shameless plug).

I wrote THE LAST TESTAMENT (search my name or find it on my page) to explore faith and friendship, exploring the beauties and the horror of faith without belief. Whether I succeeded in doing so is an open question.

I'm here for like minded people, book recommendations and conversation. I would also love to get involved in the atheist community.

I'm new to this group and also to Goodreads. My name is John, but I also go by Jack, and I'm a professor and anthropologist. I would describe myself as an agnostic with strong atheistic leanings. I'm also a Buddhist, which does not necessarily imply belief in any sort of deity. I've spent much of my life thinking about the question of the existence of gods and even just published a book that tangentially deals with the question, called Embracing Uncertainty: Future Jazz, That 13th Century Buddhist Monk, and the Invention of Cultures.

I'm Tim, I'm the Director of Libraries at the Center for Inquiry. Joined here to see what everyone is reading, add some book ideas for the libraries, and look for some ideas for my personal reading. I am a Kindle Unlimited member right now, so I am reading a whole bunch of Urban Fantasy (which I have been writing) lately. I am not necessarily looking at books about atheism, humanism, philosophy, skepticism, etc., but looking at all books and seeing what messages about those topics are in mainstream books about any particular topic.

Hi, guys! I'm not sure why I never thought to look up atheist groups on goodreads before, I'm glad to see there is one that is active.
I grew up as a Seventh Day Adventist, and was on track to be a good pastor's wife till I was about 11. I was way too smart and Adventists are way too focused on Bible study, so it was only a matter of time before I hit on the problem of the circular logic that the only proof of the Bible's divine origins is the Bible itself. Most of my family is still Adventist, but my younger siblings took my lead and are all also atheist. Hearing other people's stories, I am grateful that I reached the deconstruction process into atheism as a preteen, before religion had a chance to land me in a marriage with kids and more constraints to complicate leaving religion.
I run a small local atheist group on facebook, and do what I can to support friends and family who are questioning their beliefs or who have become atheist or agnostic recently enough to not be at ease with their new mindset. Since I have to deal with my increasingly fundamentalist mother regularly, I have been making a habit of watching atheist videos or listening to atheist audiobooks weekly to help balance my mom's annoying evangelical efforts to save my soul.
When I have had to name a religion for myself (Boy Scouts of America includes religion on their membership applications) I chose Buddhist, and I do really like some of the Buddhist ideas, including the notion of enlightenment, but from a decidedly atheist perspective. I've read The Book of Mormon, the Koran, the Baghavad Gita, 7 different English translations of the Bible, and lots of other religious books, and in my teens I visited a variety of Protestant and Catholic churches, just out of curiosity.
This week I've been exploring Phil Drysdale's youtube videos, which I wish had existed when I was in college and trying to help new, young atheists in our LIFT chapter. It is amazing how many great resources are available now online and otherwise for people going through what I was doing on my own as a kid.
I look forward to getting to know everybody in this group, and having some excellent conversations. :)

Hello all! I'm just starting to actively explore Goodreads (after belonging passively for many years) and found this group.

My novel "Shaken Loose" will be published next summer by Hypatia Press, whose tagline is "quality irreligious publishing." :-) It's dystopic fantasy set in Hell that challenges many of the Christian tenets of the afterlife and the idea of a just God. I'd be happy to post more info here as we get closer to the pub date.

I'm a former newspaper reporter (SF Chronicle and Sacramento Bee), grew up in New York, and have lived all my adult life in northern California and the Bay Area. I was raised basically secular -- our family was Jewish by heritage but didn't belong to a synagogue. As an adult, I have connected strongly with Judaism and am active in our local congregation but do so with a firm belief that it's possible to get inspiration, wisdom, and community from Judaism without believing in God. Many of my thoughts on this can be found in old posts on my blog, http://midlifebatmitzvah.wordpress.com.

It seems like this group is not currently very active, but I hope folks are still following it! Would love to take part in discussions.

Ilana

Hi there, My name is Freddie Von Heisenberg and I have just published a book on atheism. I am totally new to this type of forum or discussion group, so be gentle. I do not do Facebook or any of the other social media forums so I am totally a fish out of water. As you can appreciate I am looking to get some reviews on my book to boost sales a small bit and I don't honestly know how to go about doing this. If someone could point me in the correct direction I would greatly appreciate it.

Hey I’m Allan Penn. Well at least that’s my pen name, pun intended. I grew up in a conservative Christian bubble of the Canadian rural west. My dreams of being a famous writer were rudely interrupted when, at 20 years of age, I dropped out of my English Lit studies to go on tour with a band. Many subsequent things happened in my life, etc. now I live in a quiet suburb of Saint Paul MN. I just finished writing my first novel, finally. It’s called The Black Spire. Kind of a genre blender of an adventure story, with some controversial religious themes. Might be a bit polarizing. Not for the faint of heart, necessarily, but I highly recommend it!

Hi, I'm Stella. Secular Humanist. Used to be a United Methodist (Protestant Christian) and even went to a school of theology to study religion...which led to my losing the faith. Now a proud mom of two secular kids and wife to an agnostic. I enjoy reading and celebrating secular holidays.

I just created a Goodreads Listopia list for Thomas Paine, if anyone here would like to add to the list or vote up your favorites:
https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...

Hello,

I'm 25 from Texas, and I've been an Atheist for 8yrs. I am an Ex-Catholic that considered the priesthood. I had thought to myself, 'if it (Catholicism) really is the truth, it should be able to stand up to critique. Who's the most famous, serious anti-Christian? Nietzsche! And that let me down a rabbit-hole to here. Glad to be here.

One recommendation that I would give everyone is to find/create your local Atheist groups.

Hi, My name is Ramesh Kushwaha and am researcher at the University of Michigan hospital. I had a passion to know the truth about God and after 50 years of my search and more than 35 years of research on mind/brain/consciousness, I have written a book title, 'Physical Universe -Virtual God' in which I have attempted to give a new perspective on God that is useful for both theists and atheists, agnostics, scientists. It is rather a ground which applies for all. I have explained.

"Whether you are a theist, atheist, or seeker of truth, Dr. Kushwaha's perspectives will revolutionize how you view God, the universe, and yourself."

Ramesh Kushwaha,
The above quote is from your letter regarding "advertising your books" in another section of The Atheist Book Club discussion.

With respect, you are mistaken as far as the quote is concerned.
As an educated person, you must be aware that "atheists" do not have a "view of God", other than that they do not believe in the existence of God or any gods, and therefore atheists have no further "view" about something they say does not exist.

When Theology Meets Blade and Blood—Hello from a Fellow Heretic


Hi everyone! I'm a programmer by trade, dark fiction addict by nature, and spiritual rebel by design. I just dropped a 4-star review of The Darkness That Comes Before—a book so steeped in blasphemy, determinism, and grim philosophy, it practically whispered “join the atheist group” to me mid-paragraph.

I’m always looking to connect with folks who love fiction that tears down dogma, pokes holes in divinity, and leaves you thinking “wow, that was depressing… I loved it.” Feel free to check the review out, and I’m open to adding fellow lovers of godless, grim, and glorious storytelling!

Haii everyone! My name is Vincent.

I would like to introduce myself a little.
I was raised a catholic and was baptized and had my first communion. I was very devoted. Eventually I grew up, found out about my sexuality and gender (trans masc) and grew away from the church.

I like to talk about history a lot and I want to read more books about Atheism in general. English isn't my first language so my wording might be bad.

Hi! My name'as Tim Rees and I'm an atheist... Isn't that the way they put it at an AA group? :)