nephili Posted May 9, 2017 #1 Share Posted May 9, 2017 Seems to me that the ideas would cancel each other out. So, if someone says they are Atheist, wouldn't that mean they don't believe in the afterlife anyways? And if someone tells you they have seen a ghost or believes they have had a paranormal experience, wouldn't that mean they can't be Atheist? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiXilver Posted May 9, 2017 #2 Share Posted May 9, 2017 (edited) interesting question. I think they can. All sorts of contradicting ideas are held by people every day. To me Atheism is a declaration of belief. One that states 'there is no god'. Simple, direct, very understandable. It doesn't cover anything else explicitly, regarding spirits or anything else, but it would seem easy to infer that it lends itself to projecting a lack of belief in spirits or souls, since god is often attributed to being the source of such things. But that's all in the realm of subjective projection and assumption of what others think and is of little use other than as entertainment. I've never come across proof of no god, or of god, or of spirits, so I consider myself a semi-functional agnostic in this dept. Yet I've experienced awareness free of the body, although I don't relate to it, or refer to my experience as being a spirit or soul... to me it was pure awareness... endless clarity and emptiness full of potential. My wifes experience was similar to my own, but her relationship to it differs from mine. All things of this nature are uniquely personal and subjective... due to our experiences being so rooted in our senses and minds. Edited May 9, 2017 by quiXilver delete a repeated phrase 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post ShadowSot Posted May 9, 2017 Popular Post #3 Share Posted May 9, 2017 Being am Atheist means you don't believe in a god. Doesn't mean you don't believe in the paranormal or an afterlife. 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldrover Posted May 9, 2017 #4 Share Posted May 9, 2017 1 hour ago, nephili said: Seems to me that the ideas would cancel each other out. So, if someone says they are Atheist, wouldn't that mean they don't believe in the afterlife anyways? And if someone tells you they have seen a ghost or believes they have had a paranormal experience, wouldn't that mean they can't be Atheist? Absolutely not. It sounds as though you're coming at this with the idea that the only explanation for ghosts is that they're spirits, and that's just not the case. There are many other explanations for what we call ghosts, hardly, if any, preclude an atheist from considering them. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rlyeh Posted May 9, 2017 #5 Share Posted May 9, 2017 Atheism is the rejection of deities, there are still plenty of other (silly) things they can believe in. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Commander Travis Posted May 9, 2017 #6 Share Posted May 9, 2017 (edited) I don't see why not, ghosts don't usually have a religious dimension, in fact I expect some Bishop somewhere has probably said that a christian shouldn't believe in ghosts (apart from the Holy one, of course). I suppose atheists might also claim that they're rational and unsuperstitious and so they probably wouldn't believe in ghosts anyway, of course. Edited May 9, 2017 by Manfred von Dreidecker 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Narcisse Posted May 9, 2017 #7 Share Posted May 9, 2017 If they believe that ghosts can be attributed to Biology or some other form of scientific explanation then yes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShadowSot Posted May 9, 2017 #8 Share Posted May 9, 2017 9 minutes ago, The Narcisse said: If they believe that ghosts can be attributed to Biology or some other form of scientific explanation then yes. Not really. That'd be skeptics. Atheists aren't necessarily skeptical. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rashore Posted May 9, 2017 #9 Share Posted May 9, 2017 1 hour ago, ShadowSot said: Being am Atheist means you don't believe in a god. Doesn't mean you don't believe in the paranormal or an afterlife. Yes, this has been my understanding with Atheists as well. Belief or not in a big guy(s) is something different that belief or not in the paranormal- and that includes belief or not in souls, afterlife, reincarnation, ect. From the Atheists I've known or chatted with, they like to talk about paranormal stuff too- it just that's there's no deity input on their behalf. I've chatted with Atheists that believe or not in the paranormal parts. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Essan Posted May 9, 2017 #10 Share Posted May 9, 2017 (edited) Obviously it all comes down to what you think ghosts are (I personally dont think they are spirits of the dead any more than they are adverts for dog food. But I do not deny that some people have seen/experienced things that are not explainable with current knowledge). And I have never seen one. But I am curious as to what Christians (or members of other religions) think they are,given that,on death,one goes to either heaven or hell? (or gets reincarnated) I am aware that in stories, for dramatic effect, they are often souls who are for some reason unable to "move on". But how does that fit in with mainstream religious teaching? Being a atheist doesnt affect my belief in ghosts any more than it affects my belief in UFOs Edited May 9, 2017 by Essan 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orphalesion Posted May 9, 2017 #11 Share Posted May 9, 2017 I could be completely wrong here, but aren't some forms of Buddhism atheistic, but believe in Reincarnation and restless spirits? Also some Ancient Greek Philosophies? And some streams within New Age? I once knew an Atheist who was very superstitious (she once yelled at me for unfolding an umbrella inside a building) I found that very perplexing. Then again I also find it perplexing when other Christians bring up their believes in Young Earth Creationism. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XenoFish Posted May 9, 2017 #12 Share Posted May 9, 2017 As of right now I have my beliefs and dis-beliefs. There's a bit of wiggle room in all things and until there is real evidence for anything ghostly I'll remain a skeptic, just too many mundane explanations for ghost in my opinion. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Only_ Posted May 9, 2017 #13 Share Posted May 9, 2017 (edited) Atheism shouldn't be confused with materialism. Although many ''new-atheists'' are, in fact, also materialists (denying any spiritual aspect to the Universe). Edited May 9, 2017 by TruthSeeker_ 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XenoFish Posted May 9, 2017 #14 Share Posted May 9, 2017 I often associate the word spirituality with emotion. As spirituality is aimed to satisfy some emotional need. There are a lot of immaterial things going on in my head caused by electrical and chemical reactions. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiXilver Posted May 9, 2017 #15 Share Posted May 9, 2017 2 minutes ago, XenoFish said: I often associate the word spirituality with emotion. As spirituality is aimed to satisfy some emotional need. There are a lot of immaterial things going on in my head caused by electrical and chemical reactions. I get you. Emotions are not directly observable, yet their effects are... it's similar for me with spirit, only it is one step removed and more subtleand related to awareness and breath. To me, spirit is associated with awareness and linked intimately to breath. The fastest way I know to rapidly manifest influence or change of consciousness and level of awareness is through my breath... altering the length, depth, intensity, frequency and quality of our breath can manifest many shifts in consciousness and awareness. My experiences in Pranayama breathing have been more intense than any entheogen or pharmaceutical drug I've ever taken... It's expressed so often, in many cultures ... that the spirit is carried on the breath... spirit leaves the body at death and what also leaves the body at death... the breath. I had the exquisite pain and the deep humbling gratitude, the pure, raw intimacy of holding a friend in my arms as she passed... as her breathing slowed and stopped. There was a moment some minutes after her breathing stopped and her body was completely still... there was a palpable realization, a vajra moment... sudden, unshakable awareness that whatever had been the essence of my friend, was no longer present. A few moments before I had been holding my friend in my arms... and now I was acutely, palpably aware that I was holding my friend's body in my arms, but she... the essence of my friend... was no longer present in that body in any fashion. it was palpable... like a silent internal 'woof' when the air is sucked out of a small space, it was... so palpable a realization it was almost a physical sensation... a foundational awareness of some subtle, deep shift. Sometimes when I'm sitting quietly focusing on my breath, just as I breath in... I quickly wonder what the odds are that i've inhaled a couple atoms that she exhaled with her body's last breath... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XenoFish Posted May 9, 2017 #16 Share Posted May 9, 2017 The easiest way to figure it out is to ask yourself how your spiritual beliefs make you feel. Warning Subjective Opinions Ahead! I feel that people believe in ghost because they are afraid not only of death but of being gone forever. In the case of ufo's I think it's partially about cosmic loneliness. The whole, "What if we're it?" dilemma. As for things like bigfoot and nessie, that might just be curiosity at play. When it comes to things like occultism and religion it's really people trying to fill a need in their lives. The need for control, security, etc. And it really depends on the individual as well. I would like for ghost to be real, but with so much fake and fraudulent claims I've given up. Plus years of occultism lead to some crazy trippy experiences that convinced me that ghost exist, but again I actually looked into what was going on in my head, it debunked itself. When it comes to the paranormal or supernatural I am still agnostic about it. I just need real and solid evidence before I jump on that bandwagon again. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nephili Posted May 10, 2017 Author #17 Share Posted May 10, 2017 These are some really good responses. I really only asked because most of the Atheist I know generally say you die, that's it. There is nothing else. But the same people can turn around and say some of the most fantastical stories of ghosts and other paranormal happenings. I guess I can see where someone could not believe in a god but still believe in something resembling a soul. Of course that is assuming that ghosts have anything to do with dead people at all. I have talked with people who believe they are everything from apparitions from other dimensions to cloaked humans from the future to glitches in the "matrix". I've heard some colorful ideas. I feel a forum like this is a great way to get points to take into a conversation about things like this. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blood_Sacrifice Posted May 10, 2017 #18 Share Posted May 10, 2017 They are less likely to, but nothing in the definition of 'atheist' say they can't. Atheism is a rejection of theism, not necessarily a rejection of any supernatural/paranormal claim. Atheists can definitely be superstitious too. On a separate but related note, theists, including deeply religious people, can also not believe in ghosts. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted May 10, 2017 #19 Share Posted May 10, 2017 I think there is some confusion in exactly what "atheist" means. A lot of people in this forum who call themselves atheists are really antitheists, instead. These people are open to a wide range of alternate beliefs. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winter Summer Posted May 11, 2017 #20 Share Posted May 11, 2017 Here's the deal, atheists can believe in anything they want, except for deities. The belief in deities (or a deity), invalidates an atheist label. Simple. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XenoFish Posted May 11, 2017 #21 Share Posted May 11, 2017 a·the·ist ˈāTHēəst/ noun a person who disbelieves or lacks belief in the existence of God or gods. "he is a committed atheist" http://www.dictionary.com/browse/atheist 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Silver Thong Posted May 12, 2017 #22 Share Posted May 12, 2017 If I could actualy see a ghost then maybe my mind might change, I do have a mouse in my house and it`s bold. Hundreds of millions of dead people and how many see ghosts hmmm almost none. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kartikg Posted May 12, 2017 #23 Share Posted May 12, 2017 believing in ghosts and not believing in God is choosing the greater of two evils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Merton Posted May 12, 2017 #24 Share Posted May 12, 2017 32 minutes ago, The Silver Thong said: If I could actualy see a ghost then maybe my mind might change, I do have a mouse in my house and it`s bold. Hundreds of millions of dead people and how many see ghosts hmmm almost none. Well ghosts are like God -- what exactly you think they are is cultural -- in some places they are frightening horrors, in other places they are mysterious but basically harmless, in others they are funny. My opinion is there is almost certainly no such thing, based on absence of convincing evidence. The default should always be skepticism, but not disbelief as such -- affirmative assertion such a thing is impossible. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XenoFish Posted May 12, 2017 #25 Share Posted May 12, 2017 The only ghost I know to be real are the memories of lost loved ones. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now