Hi DivineMercy,
I'm finally over the oxymoronic nature of your UN, or have I missed something and it's intentional?
Anyway, down to business: it would be even more interesting to know whether Atheism might in fact be fastest growing
persuasion (I won't call it 'belief'). Anybody out there know anything I don't?
Hi Sojourn, and you're not in introductions, so am not sure how to approach you. Oxymorons, perhaps, but actually that is all fact I stated in the above based on my personal experience with Islam, and other religions (including Christians) who love to brag of converts.
IMHO since I do keep up on religious news is, there are more people either becoming athiests, or agnostic. More of a spirtual awakening in the past 10 years. I am not biased either, I am a practicing Catholic.
Questions?
Hi Divine, (and everyone else who took the trouble to answer since I've been on holiday-- oops vacation!)
Intros are in order now that I've had a chance to see that this is a serious forum: I'm a Brit. of Greek , Sicilian, English origin. I'm a qualified Engineer, Zooligist, Fisheries Biologist, coastal manager and have worked in all fields. I like to keep life interesting since I won't pass this way, or any other, again.
Lately I've become a qualified ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) teacher have been teaching fascinating people from the proverbial 4 corners for the past 3 years. I don't push an Atheist agendum since that would set up barriers, but if anyone tries to force their own on a class, it's a gentle thing to do to urge moderation in the pursuit of a post-prandial nap for the rest of us.
It's a real challenge trying to teach pronunciation to anyone wearing a full veil of any kind when you can't see what shapes their mouths are making. Makes for some interesting and occasionally amusing outcomes.
Science has opened up the world to us in leaps and bounds in the last 40 years or so and of particular importance is not just Plate Tektonics or Genetics but the way in which they link up with Natural Selection to give us an integrated view of the natural processes that drive everything that happens on the globe.
Unfortunately, for anyone starting on the rocky road to disbelief, it takes at least, say, 10 years of self education to get a good grasp of it all.
So I can understand how, for someone who is casting around for an alternative explanation to Life, The Universe and All That, how it might be easier to try a seemingly different belief system. It''s beguiling to seek authority if that's what you're used to but kind of scary to set off on a voyage of discovery on your own, unaided. The younger you start the better but the references I've given earlier will certainly help to shorten that voyage.
you might try Googling 'Journey of Mankind- The peopling of the world' as well as Aubrey Manning's 'Earth Story' which I keep mentioning because it makes Earth History so accessible.
So, I've been an Atheist and Humanist for nigh on 47 years, give or take, but I'm married to a spiritualist, have a Hindu brother, Anglican other siblings and a Catholic mother.
Hope that answers some of your questions.
Topic: International conference challenging Islam and political Islam