It’s irionic that AA and religion get branded as intolerant. I won’t tear your ideaology down not sure why you feel the need to attack mine. Just saying?
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Sorry. Didn’t mean to attack anyone’s ideas. AA is a wonderful fellowship, and I have a lot of respect for it. A lot of people would die without AA.
I find this to be a very offensive statement. Each person my have their own religious beliefs and express them in a respectful manner. But your comment was offensive. If you don’t agree with a religion just say I don’t believe instead of belittling someone else’s beliefs.
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Thanks for the support. Didn’t mean to offend anyone. I think I’m quite tolerant for an atheist, maybe too tolerant at times.
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Ditto I am way past this now…
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God - there are so many versions of God that I am unsure which one people refer to at times, but I respect your right to believe whatever you wish, just try to use it for good.
With regards to the creation of atheists, I feel we all have the same creator who gave us free will to believe what we want to believe. We can have our own ideas and thoughts etc. I just don’t know who did it but it was something higher than all of us. I believe in evolution etc but I am sure a higher power of some kind had an influence in it all.
I see many people in AA who are happy and satisfied with their life, no one tells me what I should believe, but the spiritual practices resonate with me. It helps me tune my inner thoughts and consequently my external actions and behaviours to become a better version of myself. If it’s magical mumbo jumbo then I will happily wear a wizards cape if I have to, as long as I am sober.
I often wonder if AA is rolled out differently in other places as here in Scotland it allows you to be who you want to be and I find it very free thinking.
I believe higher power does exist, it is all around us, it even exists within us and we are not meant to ever discover it fully. I don’t really want to either.
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“I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.”
― Stephen Roberts
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Hi there, per the almighty google this is the definition - a person who disbelieves or lacks belief in the existence of God or gods. So what I get from that is an atheist is someone who says “there is no way that there is a god”.
I grew up in a very strong Catholic / Christian upbringing… born in 1968, Portuguese in Massachusetts… there were more saint statues in my aunt’s house than in a church. I often questioned at times as a child how can one person / entity see and know everything that everyone is saying / thinking / doing all at once at the same time. The answer I usually got was “because he’s God. He can do that”. To me that’s the same as Santa Claus… he knows when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake, he knows if you’ve been bad or good… so be good for goodness sake.
My family is still very much with the faith. I however, am not. I don’t knock it nor do I push my views unless asked. Even at that I will not try to convert… I just give my opinion.
Steve
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Perfectly said! 
I agree with you 100%
Well… I guess it could be on how someone is reading it. He is saying that because someone only believes in ONE god… whether it be Christianity, Islam, Hinduism… that they too are an atheist.
Because if there are these other gods and that one person does not believe in any other god… then they too are an atheist.
Stephen Roberts is saying that he is just like that person… only that he doesn’t believe in their god as well… hence the “I believe in one fewer god than you”
Hmm interesting and I’ll make one comment and leave this alone. Nothing about my belief is atheist. Just because I believe in one benevolent power, doesn’t mean I am an atheist it is quite the opposite I am religious. I find no need to seek multiple gods. I have one and it serves me well. I will not try to convince you that you have to follow blindly in my path. But I do stand up for my faith. And in my faith for AA. I have not once told anyone that my way is the only way or the right way. But I tell people what has worked for me. If you can take something from it to help you I hope you have a great life. If my way doesn’t work for you I hope you find one that does! If I am wrong about my pushing statements then I will say I have never meant to insist that my way is best or the only. But I don’t try to define your beliefs so I’m not sure why you try to define mine. And the talk of understanding is all good but that is just like the person who says whatever they want and us just saying oh that’s just so and so. He means nothing by it. It doesn’t make it right it a justification.
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Rude and patronizing!
Welp… let’s try this one. Let’s say that you have 2 neighbors. The descriptions below were copied and pasted from Google.
One is a Christian and believes in Jesus.
Christians believe that Jesus was a human being who was also fully God. Christians believe that Jesus came into the world as the son of only one earthly parent, Mary. Christians believe that Jesus never sinned or did anything wrong.
The other neighbor is a Muslim and believes in Allah.
Allāh
In Islamic theology, God (Arabic: الله, translit. Allāh) is the all-powerful and all-knowing creator, sustainer, ordainer and judge of everything in existence. Islam emphasizes that God is strictly singular (tawḥīd ): unique (wāḥid ), inherently One (aḥad ), also all-merciful and omnipotent.
Both could say that the other’s belief is only that… a belief and not the truth.
So… which one of these 2 gods is the real god. And if you feel that the other god is false please give your explanation.
I guess the point of the “atheist” quote is that if you do not believe in a god that you are an atheist. So if you don’t believe in the other persons god then you too are an atheist to them.
This term “atheist” as far as this thread seems a bit confusing. Or rather I think my copied and pasted quote was confusing.
But hey, ain’t this fun!? Ha!
Hey @Chad_R , I just want to state first off that I am in no way, under any circumstance bashing anyone’s belief or lack thereof.
I truly believe that whatever makes anyone happy and whatever works for anyone is great and to continue on.
I was once / still am Catholic by baptism but changed my views / beliefs as years went by. With that being said I have done my fair amount of rosaries, novenas, confessions etc.
I just have a different point of view now. Not trying to sell it to anyone or step on a soapbox.
Ahh the power of social media.
In the immortal words of Frank Zappa -
One of my favorite philosophical tenets is that people will agree with you only if they already agree with you. You do not change people’s minds.
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For anyone that cares, you can block a thread so you never see it again. Click on the title of thread and block. I respect everyone and their ideas. It’s just this thread is in no way helping my sobriety. More power to you if it is helping yours
I reckon. 
Correction. Click tracking and hit mute.
Have fun pals:)
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There’s a few people in this thread that’ll be HOPING there’s some form of higher power when their time comes!
I’ve been near that ‘light’ on two occasions and thankfully had the ‘free will’ to end up back here (and that’s not just the car park in Morrisons). It’s massive and it’s mind-blowing and I hope we all get there a long-time from now, North Korea permitting, and sober.
YES! YES! YES! Indeed it is!