Believer? "NON" Believer? whats the deal...

I've always thought the "nonbeliever" thing was pretty funny, especially when the label was applied to me. I've been known to say "I have beliefs, they just aren't yours." or "By that logic, couldn't I also call you a nonbeliever because you don't follow MY Gods?" :P I agree with you that in one way or another we are all believers.

I have never understood the whole "nonbeliever" issue either. I think Christians like to believe that they are the only correct ones and that is why they use such terms. The only non-believers, in my opinion, are atheist.

Your expecting a christian to give anything serious thought? LMAO I did, now I'm not a christian.

Christians in my area used to call non-Christians as 'unfaithful". Somehow, it has now come down to 'non-believers', which is slightly less absurd than 'unfaithful'. Sure, I do agree with you that it is absurd. Everybody has his/her own set of beliefs, and we ought to respect each other. I dislike the typical Christian attitude that says that only they, the Christians are the blessed ones and will go to heaven, and the rest of us will rot in hell. ;)

I saw you post in that other thread and mentally agreed with you. We are all believers, no matter what that belief is. I've been labeled as a non-believer even though I claim to be a Christian but only because I don't believe in everything everybody else does. I have my own thoughts and beliefs along with some of the Christian beliefs if that makes any sense. LOL

I went to a Baptist Church with my mom when I was at home. Now a days, you hear, you need to go to church (not!), people pressuring you to go to church (which gets on my nerves) I believe you can stay home, not go to church and still believe. That is all that really matters. As long as you believe, do as much good as you can, we will all make it to the other side. Of course, the way my mom was brought up along with many other people thinks this is not enough. I'm sorry, but I have done a lot of reading, research and the more I read (Sylvia Browne) the more I begin thinking that maybe there is more to this then what the churches are preaching. This is just my belief and feelings and How I feel. I could go on and on about this, but I won't. I just think a lot of Christians (so called) are somewhat brainwashed by what is preached. AND if you are a true Christian.... You wouldn't be judging or putting people down by not going to church, or by not doing what you think they should be doing or what they wear...etc. Sorry, just rambling , but I totally understand about the NON believer label

That is very true. If one does not believe in ANYthing then that person must be completely without hope. I remember my ex-husband telling me how in AA you believe in a higher power and said a lampshade(??!!)was used as an example.

You are right...what I can't understand is why we all have to have labels in the first place, people who study the bibke, it even says to pray behind closed dorrs, meaning to keep it between you and God, not you and man...I think that people just tend to do what makes them sleep better at night.Calling me a non-believer may make them feel better about believing what they believe in other words, if I am wrong then they would have to be right [in their eyes of course] who knows for sure who's right and who's wrong anyway??sorry thats another discussion in itself!!

You are totally correct that the term is not used correctly. We "non christians" are not NON believers or unbelievers or faithless or unfaithfuls or whatever name that sounds like an insult to be grouped as. Then people wonder why some non Christians get upset with some Christians who use this term. Well labeling someone with an insult isn't starting out on the right foot now is it. I also don't understand why the need for it. I don't get called a nonjew or nonbuddist or nonatheist or nonmuslim or nonpagan. The term is an insult and people know it,use it and whine when people get upset about it.

Non-Christians are called non-believers because they do not believe in Jesus Christ as Lord. Of course you are right that a Bhuddhist believes and so on, everyone believes in something. However for Christians a non-Christian is someone who doesn't follow the same God, and is therefore not a believer in Jesus, and so is not a believer. Complicated, but that's just how it is. Check out my blog! http://seekingtheking.blogspot.com/

Hi Ravenladyj, You are so right in saying this. We are all believers in something. Some people just think that they are superior to others. Blessings.

I have argued that even an atheist has faith...faith in nothing, but still faith... It really upset people...so I haven't really pressed the issue much since then... but yes, all people have belief in something...no matter what it may or may not be...:)

"Believer" and "non-believer" is referred to supernatural beliefs, not other kind of beliefs. So, non-believers is a definition for those who don't believe in any (or in a particular) supernatural (divine, religious, spiritual) belief. For more reference, see also www.the-brights.net/

Well, there is "miscreated" or "infidel" but those will certainly sound as offensive. I generally prefer to define me as a BRIGHT. It is descriptive and accurate into telling exactly WHAT I DON'T believe :)

Ravenladyj, You know that my belief system is akin to yours but I just can't help but defend the Christians that do the labeling. We know in our hearts that it is not right, but the reason we know that is because we have stepped outside of the Christian box and explored other religions and paths. The Christians that I have had contact with that would say the things you have mentioned are those that either have been newly converted and are on a mission to convert others, or the ones that were brought up in their faith and truly believe what they were taught. Either way, it is their belief. With that being said, even though on a personal level, it hurts me to be called a non-believer, it is their right to use that term. On the other hand, I am truly blessed to know many Christians with very open and liberated minds who are supportive of all faiths. Most of these Christians are members of the Unitarian church that I attend. It almost makes me giggle to read this discussion tonight because my daughter and I were talking earlier about how silly it is to see a man in a hospital performing the duties of a nurse and having someone come and tell you that he is a "male nurse". What would have been wrong with just introducing him as a nurse? ~Donna

I suppose it is easier to refer to non-Christians as non-believers rather than saying they are not Christians or anti-Christians. And a whole lot easier than saying they are not Christians, but Buddhists, Muslims, Wiccans, Pagans,or Atheists all the time. Or we could say these are non-believes in God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. I guess it would be best to say not-Christians. I hope that is grammatically correct.

I've realized this before. It is rather silly, when you think about it...but it's a tradition that goes back a bit, non-believers, as a term. And mostly bigots use it the most, some others do as well, but as a rule I do not hear it often from christians...enough, not not as often as I hear other things.

I so agree with you.Everyone is in the end a believer.Just i know that non christians are more spiritual because they're open for the spiritual world. I htink it's foolish too and it makes me angry when they do that,well not all of them do that. We all believe in things and we all believe there's more than life on earth.We jsut don't understand the way of life and the hows and so much other things.But we all believe in something.

Words can have several meaning: it's called semantics. Most theorists refer to the relation between a word and its objects as its denotation. Some theorists refer to the relation between a sign and the signs that serve in its practical interpretation as its connotation. So when one talk about Believer the connotation is believer in a REVEALED Religion. Your connotation is not the same and that's your right and that's what you mean. Even Science is a belief but a RATIONAL BELIEF based on REPEATABLE EXPERIENCES + a THEORY that FORECAST FACTS whereas Religion is a belief mostly not based on MIRACLES and a THEORY which forecast nothing tangible. True scientists mostly should be agnostic: they don't say that God exists or that God doesn't exist because they don't really know. What they can say is that many Religions are pure human inventions. That doesn't mean we weren't created by some superior intelligence.

When I was young, I was an atheist - full of arrogance and never doubting that I am God and there is no other God. When I am old now, I am still not a believer as I am not that naive to believe in God. I am now an agnostic - a happy mean between naivity and arrogamce.