I very close to the same thing, but I was a person who once attended church regularly until it just ceased to make any sense. I got sick of to much, hypocrisy the least of which. Never so much as one single thing promised even came to be and I don't think one ever will..not one shred. But people are attracted to the thought of everlasting life in paradise.. I know sounds a bit far fetched, but I bought it once too. What's the downside to being a rotten jerk for years then suddenly seeing the light and getting eternal paradise? Or, what's the upside to being a wonderful person who gets eternal damnation? Sounds like damned if you do, damned if you don't to me.

I think people are attracted to it for many reasons, one of which that it makes you feel good when you work daily to become a better person. And really, who can fault something that motivates people to do that? It makes you give of yourself, your time and your effort to others. I don't know of anything any better than that.

It's quite normal for a human being to seek a basis for meaning and values -- some model of reality which gives individual existence a context more meaningful than "I'm an accidental byproduct of natural processes". That's at the heart of religion: it's an attempt to answer those needs. I think you can answer that quite satisfactorily without concocting supernatural explanations for life, but I recognize believer's desire for such a comforting solution.

You have to reject the misconception that the essence of faith is believing in the truth of a bunch of stuff you can't prove. That's a Sunday School notion of faith, which - regrettably - many religious people never get past themselves; and it's not accurate. Religious faith is essentially trust in the beneficent, personal power of creation. Some people look at the universe and find it incomprehensible that it simply "always existed," or that it happened "by chance." They see order and purpose, and attribute those to a transcendent being. They see this being as beneficent, loving, and want relationship with it. That is faith, for the spiritual person. People who approach God because they are terrified of hell are more superstitious than faithful. The difference between superstition and faith is that the former is based in fear, while the latter is based in love. Atheists - and this is not intended as an attack, but a clarification - claim not to exercise faith; but, again, that's using a Sunday School notion of what faith is. It isn't what a man claims to "believe" that defines his faith, but what he does; and every action we take, down to the most mundane, exercises trust in something. Simply getting out of bed in the morning and putting your feet on the floor is a proclamation of trust - in something - that the floor won't collapse beneath you. No, you don't "know for sure"; but neither does a religious person "know for sure," and the more thoughtful of them will admit it readily. Nobody "knows for sure"; faith is the trust exercised when we act in the face of uncertainty. And when an atheist puts his feet on the floor in the morning, he is performing an act that is every bit as mystical as prayer. Atheists opt not to "believe" in a transcendent-yet-personal, beneficent, creative power, for reasons of their own. People with positive faith - believing because they want to, not because they're scared not to - find this incomprehensible.

I think it is part of who we are as humans to desire a deeper understanding of who we are, why we're here, and what happens to us after we die. Religion and faith do that for the vast majority of people. Some folks are very satisfied with scientific information, some are not and need to connect with something that gives them deeper meaning.

Bear in mind that there are religions, such as Buddhism, that are not in conflict with modern science, that do not require belief, suspension of critical thinking or ascribing in ridiculous notions such as the existence of some sort of supreme being.

The mystery will never make logical sense until you have faith. I know, it sounds ridiculous. It is kind of like I can tell you water is wwet all day long, but until you have felt the water, you will not fully understand what wet is.

I can't figure out how an atheist CAN'T believe. Let's see, our God ordained 7 day week, our time based upon Jesus' birth, day and night, prophecies fulfilled (and still are being fulfilled). To me the evidence screams "Here am I"! To activate what Scripture says in our own life makes total sense, it IS the voice of reason, because it is good. The true reality is our brief existence here on earth is suspended between heaven and hell. More and more evidence is coming forth on the existence of hell. Though our intelligence has taken us far, there's a whole other side that we've neglected since the beginning, the side that reflects God back to Himself by simply obeying. The side that is willing to admit our wicked state and in need of a Savior. That we would have a positive impact on a lost and dying world by first denying ourselves and picking up our cross. Love is reasonable, admitting we are not the originators of it is a step forward. Our nature is just the opposite; selfish. The challenge that's before us right now is: Are we or are we not our own gods? Or is God...God? Asked differently, Are you your own highest authority, and if so are you without flaw in your leadership? We can choose to become better rebellers of God by working on this "becoming your own god" thing, or we can acknowledge He is who He says He is and that there needs to be changes within to get right with His will and not our own. From: A rollercoaster sinner.

Can you see the wind? No. But you can still feel it, right? It's always there. That's what faith is. Believing in something you can not see, but you just know is there. Much like the wind is always there, but you cant see it, God is there. I cant see him, but I can feel him. Faith gives us hope and security in believing something we know is real, whether or not people agree with us. Logic and reason, sure, can give us an understanding of how many things in our world work, but it's nothing compared to what faith gives us. Which is hope, guidance, peace, a sense of freedom somewhat, a solution, and many more things. Take it from somebody who's experienced faith and still has it ;) It's a good question and I hope I've answered it. But then again, not everyone will agree.

Just start asking God and Jesus Christ to help you and eventually you will believe.

well, first, its hard to explain the feeling of faith if you dont have it. It gives you a way of life. It makes you feel good and safe. It makes you happy when you are sad, and its just comforting.

I find it funny that atheist seem more wrapped up in God then most Christians....LOL....not everything runs on logic and reason....take love as an example.....I am not religious but am very spiritual

For me, logic dictates that their must be a higher power. Things don't have to be seen or felt to be real. Take a "thought", for instance. Is it real? Of course it is, but I challenge you to catch one and put it in a jar.......;)

First of all, thank you for asking nicely. I hate people who bait and bash. I see it the other way around. Everytime scientists get an answer to a question about nature, biology, the unerverse or whatever it raises 10 more questions. The complexity of even simple life forms is mind blowing. I could ask you how you look around and see what you see and knowing what you know and not say it was created. That just leaves the question of who created it. Were we created for a reason? Did our creator leave a record or owners manual on how to treat the world, others and ourselves and for what reason? I think He did.

I don't think your making fun of them all. What religion is to people varies greatly from person to person. For most, it gives them a reason. They will move on to the next life, gives them a reason to try in this one, they will go to heaven gives them a reason to try now so they will earn that reward. many people are born into it and it is all they know. Religion also gives many a feeling that some one, some where, cares about them (Jesus christ for example). Also, many people do find logic and reason in their religious beliefs. You would have to find somone who is an expert in their religion to find that out. A lot of people have felt that a higher being, etc. has in some way affected their lives (seen or heard some kind of being) and so they believe what they have experienced. It gives people something to believe in, and something to fight for a lot of the time. There is also a gene that causes people to believe in "something beyond this earth".