I have a friend whom I've been talking about atheism and religion with for a while now. She is not an atheist, by the way, but was almost convinced to leave her faith behind. She decided to start dating atheist online and see how it works. There was this guy who seemed very nice to her at the beginning. But then one day, she was complaining about the same guy. She said she was not able to check and respond to her messages for 2 days as she was very busy with work. Then this guy was sending her messages all the time and getting angry about why she was not responding soon. By the time she responded, he told her he wanted to smack her face to the ground. She was horrified! She told me she's not going to date an atheist anymore. I told her it's not about him being an atheist. It's just the way he is as a person, and that we can find these types of people from atheists to religious groups.
Subscription Note:
Choosing to subscribe to this topic will automatically register you for email notifications for comments and updates on this thread.
Email notifications will be sent out daily by default unless specified otherwise on your account which you can edit by going to your userpage here and clicking on the subscriptions tab.
Will your friend never date a religionist again if she has a bad experience with a believer?
From Today's Christian Woman, 2009....
"..I met Tom at the Christian liberal arts college we both attended. He was handsome, intelligent, and interesting—always looking for adventure and fun. His father was a pastor, so we'd been raised in similar Christian cultures. Tom often discussed theology and doctrine, and he cared genuinely about people's salvation. Our wedding was a large, elaborate, God-centered event. I envisioned our marriage to be a shared life of service and impact for God's kingdom.."
Source: http://www.todayschristianwoman.com/articles/2009/january/myabusivechris...
(I often quote sources for evidence but no need to follow the links).
One figure I came across is: "6.6 million people are stalked in one year in the United States." Are all those stalkers atheists? I thought we were so few?
As your post implies, Lily, morality has nothing to do with atheism. Nor is it relevant to religion (or any other superstition). We are all products of nature & nurture, genes and environment. Stalking, controlling and abusive behaviors are down to character and mental health, not whether or not one believes in god(s).
I suggest that your friend is prejudiced against atheists as she seems more ready to believe non-believers are guilty of bad behavior than religionists. Religionists raise their children to allocate all that's good to religion and conversely what's bad is due to disbelief or some anti-deity (devil). It can be difficult for some of them to see their bias.
There's a lot of anti-athiest prejudice about, especially in the USA perhaps. Religionists there seem to feel threatened by people voicing disbelief.
Religion may not have anything to do with morality, but it certainly makes people do bad things such as religiously motivated child genital mutilation (circumcision of boys and girls). And it can induce serious prejudices, such as Newt Gingrich, "How can I trust you with power if you don't pray?"! Source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2Xke_AYffY
And Bush41's "atheists neither citizens or patriots", for which he hasn't apologized or retracted.
What is the result of such prejudice? Should believers and non-believers not trust each other?
That's exactly what I tried to explain to her. I'm not sure if she understands. But then again, it's hard to convince people who have already made up their minds about something.
I don't see it that way. I see it as someone else having made up their mind for them, and they just went along with it never questioning a single bit of it.
The first problem as I see it is that she wanted to date an "atheist", as if atheist are somehow any different than any other demographic.
Well, I suppose we're unlikely to be superstitious or to assume everything happens for "a reason". That might save time.
"Specialized dating websites are ideal for people with specific dating preferences. These services can be exclusive to a specific religion, age range, race, nationality, or just about anything else."
http://www.bestdatingwebsites.net/guide/choosing/
(but I'm not agony uncle or critic :-)
Seriously lacking depth and reality, anyone who portends to seek out a relationship on line is no doubt a product of technology rather than life itself. Both parties availing themselves to the digital vastness of nothingness choose to remove themselves from reality and host upon themselves the false hopes of whatever their imaginations conjure up. This is deeply odd, considering the supposed purpose, and humorous at the same time.
Anyway, your "friend" is a bit whacked thinking she can hide behind a keyboard, as will her developed online relationships, and develop meaningful hook-ups that will be successful in the flesh. The idea of "testing the waters" is a waste of time and certainly ill advised.
None of the foregoing speaks to any religious aspect of the relationship. It's irrelevant.
Navigating dating sites as an atheist can be a unique experience, especially considering the diversity of beliefs among potential matches. It's important to be upfront about your atheism in your profile to avoid misunderstandings later on. While some may prefer to connect with individuals who share their beliefs, others are open to dating across religious lines. I recommend giving sophia dates online dating a try, regardless of your beliefs. Personally, I've had positive experiences using dating sites to meet like-minded individuals and forge meaningful connections. Being honest about who you are and what you're looking for can lead to fulfilling relationships, regardless of religious differences.
Ain't you charismatic enough after all, people love not only their looks, but also their actions. But don't be upset my friend. There is a good solution and you can find a lot of interesting people here at Swingers hangouts. They also want to get to know each other because they don't have a boyfriend. Be brave and get what you want.