I don't believe in an afterlife, I just believe in me.

"Ask yourself whether the dream of heaven and greatness should be waiting for us in our graves – or whether it should be ours here and now and on this earth." Ayn Rand

"You will notice though that the kind of people who turn to Jesus tend to be the sort of people who haven't done that well with everybody else."  Dylan Moran

There are two subjects which should never be brought up at the dinner table or in polite conversation, politics and religion. I've never been a big supporter of social rules or forced politeness, so I quite enjoy engaging in these conversations with people. It's more stimulating than talking about work or other dull topics, the weather being by far the worst. If you're stuck in a conversation with someone about the weather, bail. Either your partner is obviously dull or you're the bore, either way you should leg it. 

Religion has always been an interest of mine, not because I support it in anyway, but I don't dismiss it either. I'm always fascinated to learn new things and you can learn a lot about someone by knowing their take on certain topics. The majority of my friends are staunch atheists, which is telling, but I do have quite a few friends who are still quite religious and reverent and I have absolutely no problem with that. 

My problem with religion (I'm thinking you knew this was coming) is not so much about the nature of religion itself (to an extent), I can completely understand and rationalise people needing to believe in something (even if I disagree), that's not the issue. My issues are quite particular, certain doctrines and practices which I think are restrictive or using faith as a justification for acts of cruelty. My absolute pet peeve with religion though is when it interferes with my own life, the running of my Government or goes beyond individual belief to converting people. As long as people keep their beliefs to themselves, I'm quite happy. If people want to impose their beliefs on myself or my friends, or say homophobic things in the name their 'God' (their God, not mine they should note) that makes me angry, that I will have a problem with. Luckily for me, in my life I've been surrounded by followers of all different religions, who understand personal boundaries. This is no longer an age where forced conversion is appropriate and for that I am entirely thankful.

I should probably identify my own religious affiliation and it's probably not what you expected. I call myself a CA, a Catholic Atheist. It sounds ridiculous, but it fits perfectly in my life and it does make sense in my head (that doesn't mean much though), but I'll explain myself anyway. I was raised in a Roman Catholic family, going back generations for centuries, so I did all the things I was expected to do like going to Sunday Mass, reading scripture in Church and attending a Catholic Primary School. My morals today and the ethical code I live by were no doubt influenced by the religion I was brought up with, even though I do think my morals are more based on being a good person and should perhaps not be considered intrinsically Christian. These values though, are why I still define myself as a Catholic. No one has the right to tell me I'm not a Catholic just because I don't believe in every aspect, just as I don't bother people about their own religious beliefs. I'm quite safe in labelling myself. As for the Atheist part, that is pretty self explanatory, read the quote by Ayn Rand (brilliant author).

I would rather rest my faith in humanity, with our extensive capabilities to create utter chaos but also be such wonderfully compassionate and inspiring creatures, than to believe in something so intangible and incredible. I don't believe in supernatural conceptions of Heaven and Hell, these are just terms which create barriers on our minds and intelligence (sociology calls it social control), depending on how you conceive them. If you are one of the few who actually believe there is a man in the sky, in this 'Heaven,' and down below us is 'Hell,' than all I can say is good luck to you, Darwinism has obviously failed. Ayn Rand had the right idea I think, all this belief in an afterlife, in being rewarded for doing good deeds on Earth is just limiting. Wouldn't you rather just be a compassionate and moral person while alive because you can be, instead of thinking that you had to be because you will be rewarded for it? That's slightly fraudulent. Why should someone be rewarded for just being a good person? People should spend less time worrying about what happens after they're dead and worry about what kind of a life they are leading now, while they're alive. 

I can't speak for other people, but I'd rather be a good person and know that when I die, at least I made someone happy or did something good in the world. I don't want to believe I will be rewarded after it's all over, I'd much rather live and enjoy the benefits of being alive right now, knowing I was a good person not for the benefits, just because I was.