Atheist Inspirations

What I Believe As An Atheist

• My beliefs are based on the best available evidence, logic and reason.  I care more about the truth than being satisfied and not being anxious.  A scientific theory is a framework of well supported facts which have been tested, not mere conjecture.  Faith is the acceptance of a conclusion without evidence.  I have no faith.  Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence to be believed and it is the responsibility of those who make a claim to provide the evidence for the claim.  There is no reliable evidence of the supernatural.  I do not believe in God.
• Humans are fallible.  Our senses are limited relative to the total spectrum available.  Our brains often misinterpret our senses and can create hallucinations.  People lie intentionally and because they believe their fallible brains.  Personal experience without external validation and corroboration is unreliable.  Although authorities may help determine and interpret evidence, my beliefs are not based on the number of other people who believe them and do not depend on any particular authority to confirm them.
• I don’t know everything.  I don’t know how the Big Bang happened and life started. No one knows everything.  That something is unknown does not mean that a consciousness explains what is not known.  The unknown is not currently known, but may be discovered or explained in the future.  I may change my mind.  Current conclusions may be modified based on new evidence or the discovery of flawed reasoning.
• I am a single being, produced through the process of evolution, on a planet circling a star among billions of stars in a galaxy among billions of galaxies which began from the Big Bang and have a reality outside my mind.  I am extremely lucky to be alive at this time in this place.  I don’t celebrate holy days.  Every day in my short life is precious.  My purpose is whatever I make it to be.
• There are consequences to my actions in this life.  My impact on the world is primarily through interaction with others. If I hurt others, I will not be respected and will be more likely to be hurt by others.  Hurting others intentionally when it can be avoided is evil.  If I help and enjoy myself with others, I can develop a circle of friends who will enrich my life and help me when I am in need.  Living my life in a way that develops me mentally and physically and helps others is good.
• I cannot leave this planet and it and my ability to live on it may be destroyed in many ways.  The Earth will be destroyed in the death of the Sun.  The Universe is expanding and heading towards a heat death. I will die.  When I die, my consciousness will end and my body will disintegrate.  My intellectual products, physical creations, and the impact that I have had on others are the only things that will survive me.  Humans must continue to explore space and understand science to survive or avert  the end of the Earth and the Universe.