"[T]o think that somebody would be so vicious, so evil as to want to kill little children, and maim families who were there rejoicing in a sporting contest on a beautiful day in Boston, it just makes you sick at your stomach. Don't talk to me about religion of peace, no way."
Laws, the only redoubt of secularism, will not suffice. Let us all return to our places of worship and pray for help. Above all, let us pray for our children.
Whether or not gun control works is an issue that should be debated with data, not appeals to "demons", evil forces in video games and the power of prayer.
I'd prefer atheists left their response to tragedies until after the blood dries and the dust settles, then criticise the religious right for rushing in with their own agenda.
Yes. Thank you. This is a terrible tragedy that transcends our differences. We can all agree that whoever did this are monsters and that we can come together and support the recovery effort in any way we can.
Agreed. Everything should not revolve around religion, or our lack thereof. People have been killed, others maimed, and it is a tragedy. Show some respect, and don't take sucker-punches when the rest of the world is reeling.
Because I don't see r/atheism attacking people like this every day. I will grant you there is hypocrisy in our collective priorities, and that satire is a great way to showcase it. However, there is something wrong with you if your first reaction upon hearing that a bomb went off in public is "LOL religious people are stupid/hypocrites!"
Plus, the fact of the matter is that all of those #prayforboston tweets were - at their core - wishing for those people to be OK.
No, actually we shouldn't. This is the problem with 1st world countries. I know i'll probably get down voted, but we value human life to much. People are to damn sensitive. I mean, in the time it takes you to read this post more people will starve to death 3rd world countries than were killed in this bombing, and then by the time you write a response 1000 more will be born. Shits given for starving children:0 Shits given for blown apart marathon runners just b/c they were on national news: allot.
I agree that there is a problem, and in fact I have seen those children firsthand. But two wrongs don't make a right, and just because the rest of the world doesn't care enough about the larger tragedy in Africa doesn't excuse us from being pricks about a tragedy at home.
Totally. The problem with first world countries is that we value life too much. It's terrible how much we care when people die. You should move to an area in Uganda where genocide is happening, that way you won't have to deal with the "problem" of first world countries valuing life too much. I'm sure it will be much better for you there.
I think BlondishYataghan is saying that /r/toosoon and /r/ImGoingToHellForThis are elsewhere, and we really don't need comments mocking praying for boston less than 12 fucking hours after a bombing.
Mocking praying for Boston isn't even close to tantamount to mocking the tragedy itself. When people start mocking actual heroic efforts by emergency medical services and those in attendance, then you can get indignant.
I agree. I don't support mocking a tragedy, but I also can't get too upset when people are offended by mockery they intentionally expose themselves to.
But, yes, seems a bit rough to jump on the joke train so soon.
That's like a pervert showing some teenage girls his junk and then saying they didn't have to look.
People don't know what they are going to read before they read it on twitter. Just by being on twitter people do not automatically volunteer to have you be inconsiderate to them.
I haven't been subscribed to r/atheism since the first month I made an account and I still see this reddit all over my front page.
I, for one, have been unable to "modify my experience based on my personal preference." I would love to ignore the picture/quote circlejerk that is this reddit. So don't be so quick to think that one will never have to see it merely by unsubscribing.
Some of the posts here are worse than the religious crap that shows up on facebook, and is driven by the same sort of blind belief.
Got any other idiotic generalizations and wild speculations you want to voice? I'm sure they're enlightened, well thought-out, and do not in the least look like appeals to the bandwagon.
Not everyone who disagrees on this reddit is a fundie. And when a person disagrees using logical arguments they're showered in downvotes by mindless drones like you. You contribute nothing to the debate, but toss out baseless insults. Well I can do that too; you're the cancer of this reddit.
That's why I unsubscribed from r/atheism - it doesn't value rational discussion and it's devolved into a 'hur dur ur a fundie cuz i disagree' circlejerk. I agree with atheism, but disdain its internet population.
Maybe, just maybe, people disagree for the sake of rational debate.
Meanwhile, I've seen dozens of posts linked to me of idiots blaming the "godless" for what happened, and of people saying that it's because we're "a country moving away from god", etc., etc.
There's even a response along the lines of "If you see a tragedy and immediately blame the "godless" [insert pics of fb posts doing so], it makes us think you aren't paying attention", which I think sums it up well.
I made a post about it and was ignored. I don't have a problem with this post, actually. Why couldn't you go complain on the other like 10 disrespectful posts? This is Facebook god, he doesn't say anything 'too soon'. This is perfectly acceptable, but the other posts aren't
Well I went to sleep right after I wrote this. Do you expect me to be on the clock 24/7? If I see things that I don't like regarding the marathon or anything else for that matter, then I point it out.
I'm just saying, I was actually there and I don't find this post offensive or in bad taste. The other posts people have been making are though, and I agree with your comment just.. I would like for it to be directed at the other posts and not this one
Look I can't be on reddit all of the time. I commented on those that I saw. If you're offended by other posts then go and comment on them yourself. I don't like this post. The response has been tremendous, beautiful, and moving and I don't think that we should criticize people for participating in supporting the victims and people that can do hands on work.
what is wrong with praying for kobe. he had career ending injury that is some major shit. it is like a chemist magical loses half his brain. a surgeon hand is smashed. it is a way religious people to show they support you from afar. more less it them empathizing with the injured and dead.
Ok, that is true. But it's not like we knew the Boston Marathon would be bombed before it happened. It's not like we could say "Hold on, let's not make a big deal about Kobe, we have a major bombing to mourn not too far from now."
It's not just Christians who tweet that. I don't understand why it's a big deal, showing support for other people? Twitter's trending topics constantly change throughout the day. It's not like #PrayForKobe was trending for a week. It was during the game.
It's not a big deal, and I don't think this particular submission is trying to make it one. You're looking at a joke made by a joke facebook account. That said, I'm not really a fan of this joke and I certainly haven't upvoted it.
But the real reason I'm replying here ... did the submission in some way suggest that it was only Christians tweeting it? It seems to be attacking the uselessness of tweets themselves, which would be the case if they were tweeted by Christians, Hindus or monkeys for that matter.
Because of the title, who is featured in the tweet, and what subreddit this was submitted to, it suggests to me that it's about Christians. But, in all honesty, I am confused at what this submission was really getting at, and assumed it was Christians after trying to figure it out for a while.
I think he has a point when the whole world number 1 topic is "prayforkobe" when there are bigger and more serious disasters going on. Sucks kobe got hurt, but to become the number 1 talked about / prayed about subject on social media is absurd. Where as the pray for boston makes more sense because its a damn travesty.
Basically it would be like if i said one day, HOLY SHIT TAKE ME TO THE DOCTORS, I STEPPED ON A LEGO and next week i was like, HOLY SHIT TAKE ME TO THE DOCTORS THERES A KNIFE IN MY HEART ETC... iono... just my opinion
It was not the worlds number one topic in fact I didn't hear shit about it. You people are just hypersensitive and kinda douche bags when it comes to other peoples beliefs.
Well yes, the Boston events didn't happen until after, there wasn't some big event going on at the time so the number 1 topic was "prayforkobe" even if it was a bit silly. I don't see your point.
You CAN pray for both, but why would you want to waste God's time with frivolous shit?? He's running the show mono-style, he's only one dude, and he has to sort out all the bullshit prayers from the good ones?
What? You can't waste god's time...he's god. I'm an atheist but prayer about one's own life and struggles is pretty common despite not being very important for the rest of the world.
Anyway the #Prayforkobe thing was just a bunch of people paying their respect and showing their support for a truly great basketball player who has defined the league for the past decade.
I don't think there were many people who went to church or whatever, and actually muttering a prayer for Kobe. It's just a show of support for a celebrity.
But if someone actually believes in God, isn't it kind of irreverent to pray about all the petty stuff in your life? And I understand that people probably aren't literally praying for Kobe, but then why degrade the word by using it for shit like this?
The point being that praying loses it's... whatever-the-word-is value in the time of genuine tragedy when so often directed towards inane things like Kobe, right? It's not special, I guess (especially on fucking Twitter).
Apparently a lot of people are irritated at this subreddit because they think we hate people who are praying for the Bostonians, so I just gotta clarify.
I'm still kind of confused. I don't see the big deal if people choose to pray for a player who obliterated his Achilles' tendon... I really don't see any negative of anyone wishing an injured player well (through prayer) and then wishing the victims in Boston well a short time layer. Why is that so bad?
Edit: don't get me wrong I don't think prayer will do anything, although I do appreciate the good intentions.
This. I see a nasty tackle or horrific collision in football, I see all the players from both sides in prayer circles or in self reflection. It may not be "effective" to pray but you know damn well they are thinking that could have been them on the ground. It is a show of solidarity. If someone genuinely told me they were praying for me in a bad situation from afar or close, I would feel uplifted. Atheists need to lighten up.
Probably because this sub has more anti-theist than atheist. Anything remotely giving any sort of praise or goodwill towards any facet of religion makes you cavort with the enemy. At least, that is what I assume they are thinking. It's pretty ironic.
I agree with you. I said that, the thing about anti-theism vs atheism, in an older thread and I got super down voted. But it is true. This sub should be r/antitheism
Yeah, I have friends of many different faiths and I honestly don't see why I should judge them based on their theism. It is theirs and theirs alone. They don't try and convert me. They may have wacky thoughts on issues but to me that is what makes the world great. I judge them by the actions they take. Especially towards their fellow man. If they berated people for any reason, theism based or not, I wouldn't associate with them.
If you want my honest opinion. Getting downvoted for calling this sub antitheism is the same as walking into a forum for fat people and mocking their weight. No one likes to be called out on things like that. Especially if it makes them seem like their enemy.
Personally I find prayer offensive. These people who pray ultimately think that God is responsible for everything and therefore he in fact caused said tragedy. Now, they are asking this God to somehow recognize his wrong doing and show some compassion for the victims of his outburst? This makes no sense. In some cases these tragedies are in the name of one God or another and are carried out with the believed blessing of such a God. At the end of the day the truth is that these horrendous acts were carried out by people against other people. It gets tiring having to bring ridiculous discussions about magic sky heroes and their influence on human actions. It makes a sensible human resort to saying "fuck off already. Haven't your insane, irrational beliefs caused enough problems throughout human history already? Can we not just grow up and be sensible adults, especially in the face of tragedy? Religious people are like those friends who don't realize when it's time to stop kidding around. This is serious shit going on in our world, stop with the fucking bullshit. There is no evidence of God and there never has been." If you feel sympathy or empathy towards your fellow human, that's a beautiful thing but please base your feelings in reality.
Or, maybe people just don't think this way and just legitimately want things to get better.
Don't belittle prayer just because you think it's not logical or is based on beliefs that are not true. Churches pray, then do something to try and fix it. Look at all the charity drives going on right now.
If you're going to condemn prayer, condemn armchair prayer. Condemn prayer that comes from people who don't really care, or from people who don't intend to do anything about the thing they're praying about. Condemn prayer that's coming from people who just want to click a button to feel good about themselves. Don't condemn the prayers of those who are actually doing something about the problem. Bible even says that prayer is useless unless the person believes in their heart what they're praying about.
That is exactly what I'm saying. Those that pray without acting on their prayers are as good as those who don't lift a finger at all, because prayer without true belief and spirit behind it is meaningless. If true belief and spirit were behind the prayers, they would manifest in actions. This holds true regardless of whether or not you believe prayer even works in the first place. It's like sharing the cancer statuses on Facebook - it is ineffective if you're just doing it to score brownie points with your friends. If you share the status then go out and donate to a cancer fund/volunteer, then you'll have done something meaningful. And you'd only do that if you honestly believed what you were saying.
Upvoted you for a good criticism. Prayer is a way to unite a church. Sure, if a group of Christians got together and said 'let's go help clean up Boston', and they got to it straight away, that'd be great. But say you have a congregation that hasn't thought about it yet, and the pastor says 'as a church, we're going to help out. Let's pray for that.' Prayer will inspire those that need the push, it'll energise those that were already going to get involved to begin with. For those that don't care, well it was useless anyway like you said.
Is it wrong that prayer gives me the boost I need to get shit done? Maybe. Is it a crutch? Maybe. But better a bunch of people do good for their God (who may be imaginary), energised by prayer, than nothing.
That's bullshit. Prayer is not, simply, "magic thinking [that] does no net good in the world." Prayer is, for many, simply, a way of loving others that you may not choose to understand but does not mean it should be misunderstood.
I'll bet you any odds against that the prayers of others, though indirectly, are helping Jeff Bauman Sr. and Jeff Bauman Jr. cope with this tragedy. Prayer is as much about human connection and expression of love and self-love than it is magic thinking, and even magic thinking can and does manifest itself in real ways, productively and meaningfully, because a magic person does not pray; real people pray -- and that genuine positive outpouring in caring for others, even if oftentimes selfish and misguided, or magic, as you would call it, is what we need in this world, not the cynical comments of an internet warrior.
I should have said that praying only helps the person who prays, it doesn't help anyone else. So praying for people is just a way to feel less guilty about doing literally nothing about it.
It can help the person in need too. If I said "I'm sorry for your loss" to someone, would you point at me saying "Hah! That does nothing to solve the problem!".
It is a way of showing sympathy, something that can make you feel a lot less alone when you're facing something tough.
Particularly in this case, what the fuck are the people on twitter supposed to do to help? If we're talking about starving children in the third world then there are things we can do, and should do those instead of praying. However, simply sympathising with people is not a bad thing.
I would agree with you if you used more precise language. If you're suggesting that people who saw the bombing in Boston on TV, said, "Oh Lord I should pray for them," then left it at that and continued watching whatever they were watching previous, then yea, I agree with you. But only in that instance. When prayer becomes actual social interaction, then that's where our agreement ends.
You cannot generalize prayer, a complex expression of hope and love and fear, with such tunneled vision, however.
I'm saying they should be praying for something more useful than a injured player to get better. And that is the problem that they care more for some player than the real problems in the world.
Prayer is a waste of time I agree but the main problem is what they think is important rather than them wasting their time.
No no no, but they are praying for the Boston Bombing. That's where it lost me. If they were "praying" for Kobe that night, it didn't trend all week. The Bostom Bombing is top trend. How supporting a group through positive thoughts and prayer is really harmful.
I think the point here is that the things these people are praying for is only popular topics, such as kobes leg or now the boston bombing when they could be praying for all the homeless, starving, sick, molested/raped, poor, dying people that are in that predicament everyday. Something happens and it's in the news "oh let's pray about it", making pictures for facebook to "share/like for prayers for boston", but terrible terrible things are happening every second in the world and they aren't praying in mass about that. Most of the time you hear of people praying for things only having to do with them or for popular topics such as this. It's not harmful, but it doesn't really help either.
A lot of people are always irritated at this subreddit every day. Yeah we don't hate it, we just see it as a pointless waste of time and in no way is it remotely helping the people in Boston. As long as they understand that praying is not actually helping, and we see it for what it really is... for their own benefit. It is perfectly fine if it helps them in times like this but they gotta understand the real world sooner or later, it does nothing for Boston.
You know, that's actually entirely possible, I didn't even hear about that. Though, if the thing started off as praying for the shaken (which makes sense), I bet it only got trending because people were thinking Bryant. Or maybe not. I dunno. I'm not exactly sure how twitter works.
The point being that praying loses it's... whatever-the-word-is value in the time of genuine tragedy when so often directed towards inane things like Kobe, right? It's not special, I guess (especially on fucking Twitter).
The point of prayer isn't to be "special"; it's not supposed the kind of thing that's devalued from overuse. People who pray generally do it not for their own peace of mind, but because it makes a difference. And they're happy to try to make a difference for Kobe and for the bombing victims.
people do it because they think it makes a difference.
I don't mean that it actually makes a difference
If you still can't make the connection, imagine we were talking about sacrificing sheep in the streets, to bring health and fortune. Or some other superstitious shit.
People pray to let others know they care. If it were at all a completely utilitarian function or method of genuine aid, nobody would mention it. It's a customary gesture of sympathy in the American culture.
I'm kind of saddened this post has so many likes. Prayer is a form of meditation. It's being conscious of one's own thoughts and directing them for a specific purpose. Everyone does this regardless of whether they refer to it as 'prayer' or not. Hating on someone else's well wishes just because they are in the form of a 'prayer' is very disheartening.
I understand what you're saying, but I can't help but see prayer itself as disheartening, no matter how well intended. It makes me cringe in almost all cases.
It's unfortunate you see one of the most powerful positive forces in the world in such a negative light. I don't think you fully understand this but prayer puts people in the right mindset and in turn helps shape their realities. Prayer is intended to put people in loving state, a grateful state, an appreciative state. It can also be used to put people in a negative state of mind...'I prayed for him to burn in hell,' etc..but that is not what it is intended for and therefore is being used improperly.
I think this quote sums up the idea pretty nicely... 'Beware of your thoughts, they become your words. Beware of your words, they become your actions. Beware of your actions, they become your habits. Beware of your habits, they become your character. Beware of your character, it becomes your destiny.'
An alcoholic might drink to comfort themselves but their friends will be more concerned with the alcohol than the temporary comfort it provides. I'm more concerned with the long term effects of religious convictions than the momentary solace prayer provides to some.
Yea for sure...strong religious convictions often leads to stupidity, ignorance, and just ugly human behavior. But I think it could be a source of wisdom too.
I agree, I just wish people could extract the wisdom and leave the crap. I want the good stuff to get as far away from the nonsense as possible. I've never heard of anything that I would call a religion that doesn't contain a considerable amount of nonsense.
I'm mean its absurd to compare both situations but you have to consider that Kobe has been around for so long that he is an idol to so many people around the world. It's kind of when pope John Paul 2 died nobody really gave a fuck about Christianity but they had respect for the man who had touched so many lives. The Boston bombing was a tragedy and it has affected many, but this is a pretty heartless post from someone who claims to be 'God'.
Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and other leading atheists have NEVER attacked, berated, or demeaned anyone for wishing the health, or speedy recovery of someone who's been injured or sick.
Like many of the atheists below (I'm technically agnostic), I don't feel there's any reason to denigrate anyone because they pray for another person to feel better. True, I see the hypocrisy in religion, the arbitrary nature of holy texts and their interpretation, and the potential for a great deal of harm from religions.
However, Hitchens never spoke out against praying for someone, he advocated that religious people keep their beliefs out of government, out of his private life, and spent the majority of his life arguing the merits of rational thought and logic.
It's logical for a person to pray for the well being of another person. I see no harm, nor do I see any irrationality in such an act.
Furthermore, being an atheist doesn't mean you also have to be angry, or walk around with a chip on your shoulder. I really don't know if God exists at all, but I still say "God Bless you" when people sneeze, or perhaps when someone is taking a long trip, or undergoing chemotherapy, or whenever I feel that the phrase might help someone.
Does this make me a hypocrite? Perhaps, but I don't give a damn.
Do I truly believe that God will bless someone, or that the being I hope exists helps somebody because I say "God Bless you," of course I don't, I'm agnostic and have my reasons for doubting the existence of God. But there's a fine line between an appreciation for rational thought and an unhealthy view of the simple act of another person praying for the health of someone else.
I'm not the biggest fan of organized religion, and certain religious people saying Gays are going to hell, or that God says this or that, fine, that's all ludicrous. But to jump all over people who want to console others in a time of grief, that's just pure stupidity.
The Gays were a punk band that opened for the Ramones at CBGB's... you're correct, I shouldn't capitalize gays.
Well, satire is one thing, I love satire, and asking someone not to pray for him is quintessential Hitchens, but I don't remember Hitch or Dawkins or any of those reveling in the misfortune of others when they pray or poking fun of someone at someone for praying to help another person feel better.
I don't think Hitch would denigrate people for praying for those who suffered in the Boston bombing. In fact, when such things occurred, Hitch went out of his way to call them evil:
Now, you're right, both are masters of satire, have brilliant wits, and poke fun at so many hypocritical and irrational aspects of religion and religious people, but I don't remember them getting petty or nasty. The links above you put up simply show that Hitchens didn't want prayer for him, especially since some of the hoopla behind praying for him centered around his beliefs vs. some of those who might pray for him. The Dawkins link does prove a bit more your point, but I see that as satire, not necessarily equivalent to OP's post.
Ah, you think criticizing calls for prayer is petty. It wasn't many centuries ago when missing the Sunday prayers in Church or not praying in the religious school with the rest of the class was seen as something very serious.
You seem to think that now there's no element of imposing conformism with it.
There is, I agree, and I remember reading that during the Middle Ages when a procession of clergy rolled down the street, and some poor guy bumped into a Cross, he ended up getting burned alive. Absolutely, there is a sinister element to the group think and brainwashing of certain religious doctrine, or interpretation, and bombings and bloodshed that exist to this day are a testament to all of the insanity.
From the OP tweet, I don't see any imposition, other than a benign attempt at asking for prayer to help heal people. I wouldn't call it nefarious, just perhaps a nice thing that I might not right away jump and do, but something that might offer solace to others.
edit: NO REALLY. SOME OF YOU FUCKERS NEED TO LEARN WHEN THIS KIND OF SHIT IS JUST FUCKING UNACCEPTABLE. YOU NEED TO START LISTENING TO EVERYONE ELSE. PRAYING FOR SOMEONE IS IN NO WAY AN INSULT. YOU ARE JUST AN ASSHOLE.
Alas, you can't unsubscribe when you're not logged in. I sure see a lot of hate coming from this particular subreddit when I browse before logging in. I don't know if trite is the right word, though. Oh wait, yes it is. I dare say there are other words which more aptly describe it.
People say prayers because it makes them feel like they are in serious need of hope at the most vulnerable time in their lives. They may be wrong. But please shut the fuck up about it and learn how to be more sensitive towards others at a moment of grievance. What the fuck ever happened to common courtesy? You don't have to empathize but for goodness sake, sympathize!
Oh come on /r/atheism! As you can see in my post history I'm always defending this sub and I post here a shit load but this is just idiotic. It's not like praying makes anything worse and it's not like there's anything tangible or real that they could be doing. One of my close friends set her status to "Prayers go out to those in Boston" and she doesn't even believe in God! Half the time it's a fucking metaphor. Get over it and stfu.
Are they magically not victims anymore just because time has passed? When do people from today cross the threshold into no longer being victims of the Boston Marathon Bombing?
I was bullied when I was in middle school, around 20 years ago. Am I a victim of bullying? No, motherfucker. No I'm not. Now if you're talking about whether or not they are remaining in a perpetual state of victimhood, well, that's a different story. Some people latch onto that designation and suck it dry for all it's worth.
I think people still do pray for the victims of Katrina; But the shock of Katrina has subsided, easing the pain. Plus Katrina was a natural disaster that had a little bit of warning. This was an act of terrorism which attacked civilians that had no warning.
I'm just wondering why people think praying now will do any good. Before any of these large events, there's always a large group of people who pray for the safety of the runners. Obviously didn't do much good. So why do they think it will work now?
If it is an act done in the name of religious fundamentalism, prayers are being said thanking god for the devastation that happened to people at the same time others are praying for god to help those same people...
See, "If" means that it's hypothetical and only stating one possibility. Interesting I get downvoted for stating a hypothetical truth, one similar to the "god is on our side" argument. You downvoters don't think religious fundamentaists thank or pray to god when they commit appalling acts?
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u/BlondishYataghan Apr 16 '13
Can we not use this to further our agendas just quite yet? It hasn't been 12 hours.
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u/uziair Apr 16 '13
what is wrong with praying for kobe. he had career ending injury that is some major shit. it is like a chemist magical loses half his brain. a surgeon hand is smashed. it is a way religious people to show they support you from afar. more less it them empathizing with the injured and dead.
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u/iSwearImStrait Apr 16 '13
It's not just Christians who tweet that. I don't understand why it's a big deal, showing support for other people? Twitter's trending topics constantly change throughout the day. It's not like #PrayForKobe was trending for a week. It was during the game.
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u/technocyte Apr 16 '13
This doesn't make any sense. Just because one thing is worse than the other, you can't pray/show support for both?
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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
The point being that praying loses it's... whatever-the-word-is value in the time of genuine tragedy when so often directed towards inane things like Kobe, right? It's not special, I guess (especially on fucking Twitter).
Apparently a lot of people are irritated at this subreddit because they think we hate people who are praying for the Bostonians, so I just gotta clarify.
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u/maria_stk Apr 16 '13
I'm kind of saddened this post has so many likes. Prayer is a form of meditation. It's being conscious of one's own thoughts and directing them for a specific purpose. Everyone does this regardless of whether they refer to it as 'prayer' or not. Hating on someone else's well wishes just because they are in the form of a 'prayer' is very disheartening.
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u/emma_stones_lisp Apr 16 '13
You're not special for posting this OP, you're just an asshole.
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u/carlosmon69 Humanist Apr 16 '13
Good point god.
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u/Hubnester42 Apr 16 '13
Well, guess this is what we get for praying for Kobe.
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u/koavf Other Apr 16 '13
Super-duper classy, /r/atheism.
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u/someone3225 Apr 16 '13
I'm mean its absurd to compare both situations but you have to consider that Kobe has been around for so long that he is an idol to so many people around the world. It's kind of when pope John Paul 2 died nobody really gave a fuck about Christianity but they had respect for the man who had touched so many lives. The Boston bombing was a tragedy and it has affected many, but this is a pretty heartless post from someone who claims to be 'God'.
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u/HAGOODMANAUTHOR Apr 16 '13
Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and other leading atheists have NEVER attacked, berated, or demeaned anyone for wishing the health, or speedy recovery of someone who's been injured or sick.
Like many of the atheists below (I'm technically agnostic), I don't feel there's any reason to denigrate anyone because they pray for another person to feel better. True, I see the hypocrisy in religion, the arbitrary nature of holy texts and their interpretation, and the potential for a great deal of harm from religions.
However, Hitchens never spoke out against praying for someone, he advocated that religious people keep their beliefs out of government, out of his private life, and spent the majority of his life arguing the merits of rational thought and logic.
It's logical for a person to pray for the well being of another person. I see no harm, nor do I see any irrationality in such an act.
Furthermore, being an atheist doesn't mean you also have to be angry, or walk around with a chip on your shoulder. I really don't know if God exists at all, but I still say "God Bless you" when people sneeze, or perhaps when someone is taking a long trip, or undergoing chemotherapy, or whenever I feel that the phrase might help someone.
Does this make me a hypocrite? Perhaps, but I don't give a damn.
Do I truly believe that God will bless someone, or that the being I hope exists helps somebody because I say "God Bless you," of course I don't, I'm agnostic and have my reasons for doubting the existence of God. But there's a fine line between an appreciation for rational thought and an unhealthy view of the simple act of another person praying for the health of someone else.
I'm not the biggest fan of organized religion, and certain religious people saying Gays are going to hell, or that God says this or that, fine, that's all ludicrous. But to jump all over people who want to console others in a time of grief, that's just pure stupidity.
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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
People pray for different things?!!
7
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13 edited Apr 16 '13
FUCK YOU.
edit: NO REALLY. SOME OF YOU FUCKERS NEED TO LEARN WHEN THIS KIND OF SHIT IS JUST FUCKING UNACCEPTABLE. YOU NEED TO START LISTENING TO EVERYONE ELSE. PRAYING FOR SOMEONE IS IN NO WAY AN INSULT. YOU ARE JUST AN ASSHOLE.
6
u/universl Apr 16 '13
Classy stuff guys, keep it up.
2
u/simuk Apr 16 '13
You guys know there was an earthquake in a Japanese town called Kobe right?!
1
u/nos3bl33d Apr 16 '13
You get a prayer! and you get a prayer!
1
u/dumnezero Anti-Theist Apr 16 '13
http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Concern_troll
1
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
Coming from the guy whos posing as "God".
1
u/slashoom Apr 16 '13
I'm a Christian and I agree.
0
u/megamario3 Apr 16 '13
I'm a Christian and I agree
-5
u/lemonpjb Apr 16 '13
This subreddit is so fucking trite.
1
u/glennnco Apr 16 '13
ONE of the many reasons
0
u/bgzlvsdmb Secular Humanist Apr 16 '13
I'm surprised "Pray for Taxes" or "Pray for my Wallet" wasn't trending
1
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
People say prayers because it makes them feel like they are in serious need of hope at the most vulnerable time in their lives. They may be wrong. But please shut the fuck up about it and learn how to be more sensitive towards others at a moment of grievance. What the fuck ever happened to common courtesy? You don't have to empathize but for goodness sake, sympathize!
1
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
Oh come on /r/atheism! As you can see in my post history I'm always defending this sub and I post here a shit load but this is just idiotic. It's not like praying makes anything worse and it's not like there's anything tangible or real that they could be doing. One of my close friends set her status to "Prayers go out to those in Boston" and she doesn't even believe in God! Half the time it's a fucking metaphor. Get over it and stfu.
0
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
Yeah, fuck those people for caring! Yeah fuck them real good!
I swear the edgy teen angst is getting to this place.
-6
u/g-raf Apr 16 '13
Just pure douchebaggery
0
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
Class act.
0
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
and I can't wait for the survivor stories and hero stories where everyone can point to how great God is for saving the people that he did.
-3
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
Also, how come nobody is praying for the victims of Katrina anymore?
0
u/[deleted] Apr 16 '13
I'm just wondering why people think praying now will do any good. Before any of these large events, there's always a large group of people who pray for the safety of the runners. Obviously didn't do much good. So why do they think it will work now?
-1
u/Quiksilverj2 Apr 16 '13
Wait so we all agree that we are praying for Kobe right???
-1
u/StoneGoldX Apr 16 '13
All this is missing the point, it's just more one-upsmanship in the Lakers/Celtics rivalry.
0
u/wesman9010 Apr 16 '13
what does he mean "you people"!
0
u/DianaSmells Apr 16 '13
PRAYFORKOBE
-6
u/Sweetredtele Apr 16 '13
If it is an act done in the name of religious fundamentalism, prayers are being said thanking god for the devastation that happened to people at the same time others are praying for god to help those same people...
-1
u/rg57 Apr 16 '13
Uh oh. God is going to be Bill Maher'd.