Dan Gilbert
I’ve been an atheist since my early teen years in the late 1970’s. Raised in a moderate Methodist family, I don’t remember ever having a true connection to “faith” but began to question its relevance when I noticed church prayers taking humility to the point of self-debasement. When a congregational prayer read, “We are not worthy to eat the crumbs under your table,” it nudged me over the edge to begin examining Christian theology, religion, and the supernatural from a rational perspective. Critical examination led me inevitably to the conclusions that religion was simply another mythology and the chances of a god existing were so astronomically small that the concept could be categorically dismissed.
I continue to explore rationality, science, reason, and philosophy and delight in philosophical (and sometimes dogmatic) discussions and debates with his friends, some religious and some not. I have led and continue to lead a wonderfully fulfilling life accompanied by my lovely wife and daughter and innumerable friends, all of whom provide my existence with joyful meaning and value.
You can contact Dan via email at dan@rationalitynow.com.
Craig Woods
I have been a devout non-believer since my early childhood. Raised in the Mormon faith, I quickly lost touch with divinity when I began to tithe. I was getting an allowance of two whole dollars a week and was not happy with the mandatory weekly donation of ten percent (or more if the spirit moved me). My curiosity became economically driven at that point. At the ripe age of ten, I really began to loathe the sight of my Mormon-temple-inspired cardboard tithing bank. While my religious skepticism was originally driven by greed, I quickly began to grasp its more insidious qualities and incessant hypocrisies in my teens.
I do wholeheartily agree with the Mormon philosophy of spending dedicated family time together in order to create a close knit family unit. While some people do this because they “know” it is what God wants, I do it because I know it is what I want. Early on, I felt I had a firm grasp on moral behavior and did not need the church’s further assistance in that department.
I believe in the exchange of rational ideas. I enjoy a spirited debate with friends and family. I have been influenced greatly by writings of Carl Sagan, Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins. I have been “blessed” with a wonderful wife and two awesome boys.
My six-year-old once asked, “Dad, do you believe God is real?”
I said, “I don’t know. What do you think?”
He replied, “I don’t think he is real. How could somebody come back from being dead?”
I was very proud. If a six year old can get it, there is hope for all of us.