No really, I don't believe in him either.

[Alareth]

There is something I've tried to understand for a long time, but I've not been able to.

Time and time again I've run across people who, while they object to me being an atheist, understand the idea that I don't believe in God.

It's when they come to the realization that I also don't believe in the existence of Satan than they get confused looks and cannot cope with with the concept. I've rendered a believer speechless on at least one occasion because of this.

Am I the only one who has run across this seeming logical disconnect? From my viewpoint it would be impossible to believe in one and not the other. They are two sides of a coin, and you cannot have a one sided coin.

 

[Minarvia]

I haven't. They stop at the "god" part and accept that I don't believe any of it, including Satan. Now there are a different group people I've run into - the new-agey types. They don't say "Satan," but they tell me that they believe that even if there are no gods that all the evil and bad thoughts and energy people put out into the world coalesces (sp?) into something evil or dangerous that religious people call "Satan."

 

[Mister Agenda]

I've run into someone who assumed that as an atheist, I must worship Satan. She was genuinely misinformed, and a good sport about being corrected. It was probably something she heard from her pastor.

 

[Spindrift]

I've run into someone who assumed that as an atheist, I must worship Satan. She was genuinely misinformed, and a good sport about being corrected. It was probably something she heard from her pastor.

If you worshiped Satan, you'd say the same thing.

 

[Agatha]

Only on here (or on IIDB), where theists have tried to insist that atheists must worship Satan. Off the top of my head I can think of two three regular-ish posters who don't seem to grasp that atheism means lacking belief in Satan/a Devil as well as lacking belief in all gods, not just their particular flavour of god.

I live in the UK where atheism is the norm rather than theism, and the association of atheist with devil-worshipper is not a widespread belief as far as I'm aware.

It seems to me obvious that lacking belief in gods must mean one also lacks belief in the adversaries of those gods, but it seems some people really can't grasp that.

 

[Magic 9-Ball]

It seems to me obvious that lacking belief in gods must mean one also lacks belief in the adversaries of those gods, but it seems some people really can't grasp that.

Yes, I agree. And I hope it's not OT, but I've had to clarify what I say sometimes as well. If I say "I don't believe in Satan". I've gotten "In Satan? Or the Devil? Really?". This seems to imply there is a difference in the "evil one" as least as far as they believe. And I could believe in Satan but not the Devil?

I always thought the words refer to the same concept. I asked "Is there a difference?" and was told "Can be." I was (and am) at a loss at what to say to that.

Anyone else deal with persons who think this way?

 

[Craig4]

I deal with people who I know to be reasonably intelligent who can't get past the idea that I don't worship or believe in Satan. It's a bit baffling really.

 

[Minarvia]

I deal with people who I know to be reasonably intelligent who can't get past the idea that I don't worship or believe in Satan. It's a bit baffling really.

When my nephews were younger their "understanding" of atheism was that an atheist is angry with god and turned away from him, not that an atheist lacks a belief in said god. But that was when they were in grammar school. Maybe that sort of thinking, or the worship of Satan thinking, is more of a childhood understanding that has carried over into some people's adulthood?

 

[Resume]

No, but I've been told that I am Satan. How the hell (so to speak) do you live up to that rep?

 

[Alareth]

No, but I've been told that I am Satan. How the hell (so to speak) do you live up to that rep?

I had an ex-coworker who insisted I was the Antichrist. You and I should hang out some time.

 

[Joecool]

There is something I've tried to understand for a long time, but I've not been able to.

Time and time again I've run across people who, while they object to me being an atheist, understand the idea that I don't believe in God.

It's when they come to the realization that I also don't believe in the existence of Satan than they get confused looks and cannot cope with with the concept. I've rendered a believer speechless on at least one occasion because of this.

Am I the only one who has run across this seeming logical disconnect? From my viewpoint it would be impossible to believe in one and not the other. They are two sides of a coin, and you cannot have a one sided coin.

It could be because of this scripture in the Bible:

Whoever Is Not Against Us Is for Us

38 “Teacher,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”

39 “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, 40 for whoever is not against us is for us. 41 Truly I tell you, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to the Messiah will certainly not lose their reward.

 

[Orphia Nay]

There is something I've tried to understand for a long time, but I've not been able to.

Time and time again I've run across people who, while they object to me being an atheist, understand the idea that I don't believe in God.

It's when they come to the realization that I also don't believe in the existence of Satan than they get confused looks and cannot cope with with the concept. I've rendered a believer speechless on at least one occasion because of this.

Am I the only one who has run across this seeming logical disconnect? From my viewpoint it would be impossible to believe in one and not the other. They are two sides of a coin, and you cannot have a one sided coin.

It's a false dichotomy. You don't have to believe in either God or Satan, there are multiple other gods you can believe in, or none.

 

[smartcooky]

Yep,

I've run into the odd one or two who believe that there are only two "sides" and you have to choose one or other, you cannot be neutral. If you don't believe in God, you must automatically side with Satan. Its the "if you're not for us you're against us" mentaility.

I think it stems from literal interpretation of biblical scripture, such as....

"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth-not shall be damned." Mark 16:16

 

[Pup]

I had a similar odd experience. A stranger and I were looking at a historic display. Can't remember how the first question came up, but it was natural in the conversation for him to ask what religion I was. Maybe we were talking about pictures of historic churches or something. Anyway, I answered that I was atheist. He reacted neutrally, just with "oh," or something, no different than if I'd named any demographically rare religion. He said he was some Christian denomination, don't remember.

Then almost immediately afterwards we were looking at a picture and local legend about a supposedly haunted house. He asked if I thought it was true, and I said, "Naw, I don't believe in ghosts."

He looked at me, shocked, and said, "Really?"

Huh? Are atheists supposed to believe in ghosts?

 

[Miss_Kitt]

Wow. I haven't run into that response, but then I don't generally know fundamentalists. It seems to me the "God or Satan, but no other options" would be a Fundie thing.

I have encountered folks who wanted to know what I was "Angry at God about" that made me an atheist? And when I said, I wasn't angry, I just found an insufficiency of evidence, they were truly stumped as to how that could be a reason.

This might be related to the worldview of a friend who, when I said I wasn't going to send my preschooler to a religious school because I was an atheist, asked, "Aren't you going to let her choose for herself?" and didn't think that spoonfeeding Christianity to a child was in any way incompatible with atheism. I said, "I certainly will. When she gets to be a teenager, if she wants to go to church I'll let her" and my friend was stunned. To her, not raising a child with religion was somehow unfair or unreasonable; but raising a child with a belief set I did not share, was perfectly fine.

For the record, it's hard on the friendship to answer that with, "Are you okay with sending your kids to the mosque for the next 10 years for teaching?" She insisted that was not the same thing at all!

 

[Loss Leader]

I live in one of the most Jewish areas of the US. Jews don't really have a concept of hell or the devil. So, I've not run into anything like the OP describes. However, I get a lot of people who tell me that, while they don't necessarily believe in God, they believe organized religion itself is a moral and pro-social institution. I just nod my head.

 

[Pope130]

I have gotten that response, but rarely. Perhaps because my usual response to the question is: "That's a very personal question." If that doesn't work I scale up to: "None of your **** business."

 

[Quinn]

Aren't there a fair number of self-professed Christians who don't believe in Satan or Hell? I was under the impression that that was not an uncommon stance among modern day "liberal" Christians. So I'm surprised that an atheist not believing in Satan would come as a shock to anyone

 

[fuelair]

I haven't. They stop at the "god" part and accept that I don't believe any of it, including Satan. Now there are a different group people I've run into - the new-agey types. They don't say "Satan," but they tell me that they believe that even if there are no gods that all the evil and bad thoughts and energy people put out into the world coalesces (sp?) into something evil or dangerous that religious people call "Satan."

These persons need some serious spoofing.

 

[Andy_Ross]

I live in the UK where atheism is the norm rather than theism,
.

Are you sure? I know that most people don't go to church or pray and may have put 'No religion' on the Census Form but I would bet most of them would profess some kind of vague belief in a God.