1. How did Billy Graham scare David?
2. What feelings did David often have in response to conversations with classmates at his small Christian college?
3.What was David's reaction to listening to Julia Sweeney?
4. What struck David as ridiculous, barbaric, and petty?
5. What do some studies show about marital satisfaction among the religious?
6. What was more important to Ethan than finding an atheist partner?
7. What calculation led Ethan to consider his chances of finding love bleak?
8. Does Ethan say he was raised atheist?
9. What did Sen question about her brother's fate?
10. What was Ronnelle's mother reaction to his coming out?
Post yours...
DQ
- Have you ever been to an evangelical crusade? Was it scary?
- Have you had supportive conversations on matters of (un)belief with peers? How'd they make you feel?
- Have you seen/heard Letting Go of God? What was your favorite or most relatable part?
- Do you consider the universe "miraculous" (116) and natural?
- Can you generalize about couples you know and their religion or irreligion?
- What's the difference between your beliefs and your "worldview"?
- Was Ethan too rigid? 122
- Is atheism an effective form of "armor" against excessive piety? 125
- Are you surprised that some Russians consider atheism "physically impossible"?129
- Is it easier fort theists to remember to be grateful? 133
- Why do you think "very smart people believe such obvious untruths"? 134
- Is there a meaningful distinction between "magic" and divine "power"?
- Yours please
Quiz Feb 15, AA 16-20
1. By what early teachings did Kevin consider himself "infected"?
2. Who coined the term "atheophobia"?
3. How do most theists deal with distasteful bible verses?
4. What does Kevin consider his parental responsibility with regard to religion?
5. Which of Dan Barker's principles does Kevin prefer to the ten commandments?
6. What ultimately made Amy an atheist?
7. What saddens Adrienne about her sisters?
8. To what stage of a relationship is agnosticism analogous?
9. What language did Justus find "stilted"?
10. What podcast helped Justus become more comfortable with his loss of faith?
DQ
- What do you recall of your earliest religious instruction, and your earliest curiosity?
- Have you encountered atheophobia personally?
- Is it intellectually acceptable to cherry-pick bible verses, ignoring some and extolling others?
- Are the ten commandments admirable?
- If you're not now a parent, do you expect parenting to make you more conservative? 158
- How would you react to your family "praying in tongues for your godless marriage"?
- Does it bother you to have loved ones who are sure you're to hell? 166
- Is it honorable to be an atheist? 167
- How do you respond to people who consider evolution a dirty word? 168
- Have you attended a Unitarian or Sunday Assembly service?
- Does it feel like the Twilight Zone to you when you speak to theists who don't believe you're on the highway to hell?
Quiz AA 11-15
ReplyDeleteAlternative Question
10.What does the Russian Christian community call atheists? (p.130)
Quiz AS 11-15
ReplyDeleteAlt Questions
1.Were Ethan's parents apologetic for making dating more difficult for him?
2.What was Ethan's list of six important issues to be considered for a long-term relationship?
3.What did Ethan learn about relationships through Shauna's family?
4.Why does Ethan characterize himself as "rigid" when he first began dating?
5.How long did Kira live in Russia?
6.What motivation did Sen have for accepting Russian culture and religion?
7.What did Sen do that almost killed her faith?
8.What did Kira's father say would happen to him if people found out his son was atheist?
9.What deepened Matt's resolve that there was not a god in charge?
10.Why was Matt embarrassed by Lynn?
Discussion Question Responses:
ReplyDelete1. Are the ten commandments admirable?
Yes and no. In my church I was raised to look at the Ten Commandments as the first four being "sins against God" and the last six as "sings against man". In theory, the first four were the most important because God is more important than man. These commandments are not admirable to me. They are standard demands of someone wanting to be praised or worshiped. The last six do offer some redemption. It is, in theory, to honor your father and mother. While there are always exceptions, generally treating those who are raising you with respect is a positive thing. Not murdering, stealing, or having affairs makes for a better society. These commandments are ways to improve your life as an individual and to improve the quality of life within a society. While exceptions can be made to the commandments, the last six offer reasonable advice on how to live your life.
2.Is it intellectually acceptable to cherry-pick bible verses, ignoring some and extolling others?
It is not intellectually acceptable to cherry-pick bible verses or to use specific ones to extort individuals with while completely ignoring others. A researcher cannot (honorably) cherry pick data from a survey to suit their needs. While it happens, the individual who only acknowledges the information that helps their case is shown to be a poor researcher, and often their arguments are considered weak. The Bible is all "God inspired" and therefore each verse should be taken into consideration. When the Bible does negative things such as justifying slavery or genocide it should not be ignored. When the Bible advocates for loving your neighbor and welcoming foreigners into your lands, it should not be ignored.
3. How would you react to your family "praying in tongues for your godless marriage"?
I would NOPE out of that so fast. The idea of my family praying in tongues for my godless marriage terrifies me. While I cannot see my real family praying in tongues, my grandmother is very distraught that I am not with a Christian boyfriend. She swears that he is turning me against God and will lead me to Hell.
4. Does it bother you to have loved ones who are sure you're to hell?
Not really. Currently, my family doesn't really know what my religious status is. To everyone but my grandma we are on a "Don't ask, don't tell" basis. To my grandmother, I am the most devout Christian to ever walk the earth. However, after she passes away I will have no problem be 100% open about my Atheism, and I would not care if members thought that I was going to Hell.
Does it bother you to have loved ones who are sure you're to hell? 166
ReplyDeleteIt only bothers me to know that they are actually stressed about it because they truly believe their loved one is going to hell. I feel sympathy for how upset they are, but no anger. They can not help that they really think I'll end up in hell.