This is an excerpt taken from a post regarding child fatalities as a result of being left in a car alone. How could god, with his omnipotence, or angels sit by as a child slowly roasts to death, and the parent/guardian/anybody remains completely oblivious? Makes me sick.
Friday, August 10, 2012
Proof that Guardian Angels don't Exist (sort of)
Taken from Snopes.com
"More shocking than these accounts is the knowledge that this list represents only a tiny fraction of the infant and toddler deaths that regularly occur from kids being left in cars. In 2002, 30 children died in the United States after being left alone in cars, and in 2001 there were 34 such deaths. A parked car on a warm day can quickly become the last place you'll see your child alive. Some days, it takes only 30 to 45 minutes to kill a little one left inside. And cars heat up quickly — that it's the morning and the sun isn't yet properly heating up the air doesn't delay matters much. Neither will cracking the window a bit, as many a bereaved pet owner will tell."
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
A Problem with God's Omniscience
This is just a simple post, but profound when we're discussing a benevolent god. I really can't fathom how it never bothered me much when I was living as a Christian.
This issue has been dealt with many, many times, but it's nice to put it in my own words and express my own bewilderment and thoughts.
The crux of the issue lies in the omniscient god of the Bible creating life with the full foreknowledge that his creation will be destroyed and ultimately cast into an eternal inferno. If indeed Yahweh is omniscient, he could easily eliminate this issue by not creating those that will ultimately fail to obey and believe in him. Instead, in an incomprehensible fashion, he goes ahead and creates those who will ultimately inherit eternal punishment.
Let's just look at the world wide flood. Every single living being with the exclusion of Noah and his family is now roasting in hell, forever separated from god's love (or anyone else's for that matter). Is there any reason why a loving god would allow this? How about a just god? Would a just god create beings that he already knew would fail? Rhetorically speaking, is god not promulgating a greater injustice by setting people up for inevitable failure to begin with?
Perhaps, god isn't omniscient after all. This places problematic limitations on god and appears to contradict Biblical passages proclaiming his seeming omniscience: 1 John 3:19-20
By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.
Everything? He knows everything yet he creates those that he knows will betray him and inherit eternal punishment. I have a real problem with this and wonder how Christians reconcile it when made privy to it. I never paid much attention to the dilemma as a Christian, and I suspect many just avoid it altogether.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Just Wondering
Why did many people in the Bible purportedly get the opportunity to know Jesus firsthand, while I do not. Many of these people probably had the opportunity to change their mind from skeptic to believer directly as a result of witnessing many miracles of Christ, including the resurrection. Meanwhile, I get a book to read that may or may not have an accurate depiction of Christ. I mean just look at what's at stake. Heaven and hell are in the balance but not every man has even remotely the same opportunity to validate Christ as genuine. Isn't the main crux of the issue for most skeptics centered primarily on the supernatural claims of the Bible? It would of been nice to see these firsthand: Jesus multiplying fish and bread to feed thousands; zombies roaming Jerusalem; Jesus resurrecting from the dead; Jesus ascending into heaven,...etc.
I've never witnessed anything else remotely like the aforementioned events. Why aren't Christians doing the same kinds of miracles today? To me, it just makes the stories seem all the more implausible.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Prometheus
I just saw Prometheus the other day and really enjoyed it. There are some in the atheist community that are calling the movie "antiscientific" and downright embarrassing. I mean, the main character of the movie dons a cross necklace and seems to value her personal beliefs more dearly than science. I could just envision many atheists stampeding for the exit signs on that notion alone. I, on the other hand, wasn't basing the value of the movie on a particular characters beliefs but simply on the entertainment value, or fun factor if you will.
There are basically two ways you can view a movie like Prometheus, merely as entertainment or with a magnifying glass that is hellbent on criticizing every inaccuracy down to the most minuet scale. Indeed, there are noteworthy blunders in the movie, like Theron suggesting that they were 35 light years away from planet earth and equating it to half a billion miles; there are characters that act extremely foolishly and stretch credulity to its outer limits. For instance, one particularly stupid engineer decides to get way too close to a hissing snakelike creature that eventually breaks his arm and takes a dive down his throat. All the while, I'm thinking to myself that nobody would be so foolish, but it did made for a great scene.
I guess my point is that movies are rarely very accurate factually. They are generally quite contrived in many areas too. You can nitpick just about any historic or science fiction movie out there and find a litany of misinformation. If you want facts, you should probably stick to textbooks and research journals, but, if you want entertainment, you go to the cinema.
As an aside, it is unfortunate that the scientific minded are still generally depicted as dry, nerdy, unattractive and weak while those of faith have this seemingly greater inner strength that motivates them to survive and overcome insurmountable obstacles. Science is still denoted in the movies much like mainstream America perceives it, dull and lifeless.
There are basically two ways you can view a movie like Prometheus, merely as entertainment or with a magnifying glass that is hellbent on criticizing every inaccuracy down to the most minuet scale. Indeed, there are noteworthy blunders in the movie, like Theron suggesting that they were 35 light years away from planet earth and equating it to half a billion miles; there are characters that act extremely foolishly and stretch credulity to its outer limits. For instance, one particularly stupid engineer decides to get way too close to a hissing snakelike creature that eventually breaks his arm and takes a dive down his throat. All the while, I'm thinking to myself that nobody would be so foolish, but it did made for a great scene.
I guess my point is that movies are rarely very accurate factually. They are generally quite contrived in many areas too. You can nitpick just about any historic or science fiction movie out there and find a litany of misinformation. If you want facts, you should probably stick to textbooks and research journals, but, if you want entertainment, you go to the cinema.
As an aside, it is unfortunate that the scientific minded are still generally depicted as dry, nerdy, unattractive and weak while those of faith have this seemingly greater inner strength that motivates them to survive and overcome insurmountable obstacles. Science is still denoted in the movies much like mainstream America perceives it, dull and lifeless.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Making decisions based solely on religious belief
This is why I can't tolerate religion. We don't live in a vacuum and decisions of others affect the rest of us. When people don't mind polluting the environment and participating in wars, since the end of the world is coming anyway, we see a lack of motivation to make the world a better place based on spurious beliefs.
We find creationists demanding that we "teach the controversy", and children end up believing that the Bible holds the same evidential merit as hard scientific evidence. The physician you are seeing may have very little understanding of evolution and not believe in it. Medical schools generally do not teach evolutionary biology even though it is the very foundation of biology. One wonders how much of this has to do with religion.
Obviously, people that demand no separation of church and state don't realize what they are asking for, or don't care about the consequences. They want a theocracy, where people lose the very freedoms that America was founded upon. The separation of church and state actually protects the rights of a Christian more than hinders them.
Anyone else sick of hearing about Christians complaining that they are like some mistreated minority here in the U.S.? By far, atheists are the minority with a much smaller voice. Although, I do think we are kicking ass in places like YouTube; we are getting the message out at very little financial cost to us. But, I digress.
I'm not a big supporter of abortion but wanting it banned just because of religious conviction is not a good reason. You need to be able to make an argument based on evidence and sound judgment. I believe that abortions can have devastating effects on the mother and many other members of the family but so can having a child that you are not capable of providing for. In cases of rape and incest, albeit a minority of cases, should a woman really be forced to carry a fetus to term that was often violently and inappropriately forced upon her? Christian lawmakers would say an unequivocal, "yes" simply based on religious grounds.
We also make poor decisions in our personal relationships when we base them on religious belief. We stop taking personal responsibility for the way we treat others since we can always ask for God's forgiveness in the end. We fail to realize what little time we have on earth before it's all over.
Some people place their children in Christian schools simply because it's a Christian school. Millions attend religious events on a weekly basis, spending often multiple days of the week at a religious event; they spend hard earned money on tithes and Christian paraphernalia all because they have this baseless belief. I'm sure the world would be a much better place if we all devoted our time and efforts to real issues.
We find creationists demanding that we "teach the controversy", and children end up believing that the Bible holds the same evidential merit as hard scientific evidence. The physician you are seeing may have very little understanding of evolution and not believe in it. Medical schools generally do not teach evolutionary biology even though it is the very foundation of biology. One wonders how much of this has to do with religion.
Obviously, people that demand no separation of church and state don't realize what they are asking for, or don't care about the consequences. They want a theocracy, where people lose the very freedoms that America was founded upon. The separation of church and state actually protects the rights of a Christian more than hinders them.
Anyone else sick of hearing about Christians complaining that they are like some mistreated minority here in the U.S.? By far, atheists are the minority with a much smaller voice. Although, I do think we are kicking ass in places like YouTube; we are getting the message out at very little financial cost to us. But, I digress.
I'm not a big supporter of abortion but wanting it banned just because of religious conviction is not a good reason. You need to be able to make an argument based on evidence and sound judgment. I believe that abortions can have devastating effects on the mother and many other members of the family but so can having a child that you are not capable of providing for. In cases of rape and incest, albeit a minority of cases, should a woman really be forced to carry a fetus to term that was often violently and inappropriately forced upon her? Christian lawmakers would say an unequivocal, "yes" simply based on religious grounds.
We also make poor decisions in our personal relationships when we base them on religious belief. We stop taking personal responsibility for the way we treat others since we can always ask for God's forgiveness in the end. We fail to realize what little time we have on earth before it's all over.
Some people place their children in Christian schools simply because it's a Christian school. Millions attend religious events on a weekly basis, spending often multiple days of the week at a religious event; they spend hard earned money on tithes and Christian paraphernalia all because they have this baseless belief. I'm sure the world would be a much better place if we all devoted our time and efforts to real issues.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Geoge Carlin's religion is bullshit piece
This piece is still just as poignant and effective as ever. In our disobedience or disbelief, we send ourselves to hell where there is eternal suffering, but god loves us.
Saturday, February 18, 2012
My Story (pt. 4) Reflections
I believe that atheism frees a person to think independently without any sort of religious crutch to rely on. It can be a bit intimidating at first but is far more rewarding than trying to make heads or tails of the Bible and its ambiguity. As a budding atheist, I occasionally wanted to return to the delusional comfort of god, but the red pill had already been swallowed. I saw things without the religious filter and couldn’t go back. I was also scared because there was no life after death to provide solace when things were uncomfortable here on earth. There’s also the sense of losing a part of who you are as you no longer have the social network of the church to connect with.
Essentially, everyone in my immediate family and some extended family knows that I’m an atheist at this point. I don’t talk about it much to them; I’d prefer to do my talking on this blog and facebook. My mom didn’t berate me when she found out but was very disappointed. She still catches herself talking to me about the miracles of god and how I shouldn’t speak negativity into my life because words have power of their own. My wife refuses to read or listen to anything that would surely make her question her faith and give her a better understanding as to why I lack faith anymore; this is a pretty frustrating situation at times.
I know that my writing has made an impact on some. I don’t want to name names but there are those that were questioning their faith and have made the trip to the other side with some assistance from my blog and others. The advent of the internet has allowed sort of a chain reaction in the de-conversion process. I was de-converted primarily as the result of discussions I had with Mike D. which led me to creating this blog and ultimately others were aided in de-conversion from reading this blog. The wide dissemination of ideas, some quite anti-religious, which the internet provides have put a chink in religion’s armor. It’s imperative that more and more voices speak out so that others can free themselves of religious ideology.
Religion affects our government’s legislation; just days ago, our local senate passed the personhood bill that prevents mothers from seeking abortion even in the case of rape. It also prohibits certain forms of contraception. I have no doubt that this bill was profoundly influenced by the Christian faith that is ubiquitous here in Oklahoma. We must continue to fight for reason and what’s true and discard supersttions of the past.
It took some time, but I‘m now proud to be an atheist. I don’t go around advertising it, but we shouldn’t be ashamed despite the fact that many consider atheists about as trustworthy as rapists. I think it’s a misunderstanding that many have which can only be remedied by speaking out via writing or other forms of communication. We all have a story to tell regardless if we never were affiliated with a religious faith.
Essentially, everyone in my immediate family and some extended family knows that I’m an atheist at this point. I don’t talk about it much to them; I’d prefer to do my talking on this blog and facebook. My mom didn’t berate me when she found out but was very disappointed. She still catches herself talking to me about the miracles of god and how I shouldn’t speak negativity into my life because words have power of their own. My wife refuses to read or listen to anything that would surely make her question her faith and give her a better understanding as to why I lack faith anymore; this is a pretty frustrating situation at times.
I know that my writing has made an impact on some. I don’t want to name names but there are those that were questioning their faith and have made the trip to the other side with some assistance from my blog and others. The advent of the internet has allowed sort of a chain reaction in the de-conversion process. I was de-converted primarily as the result of discussions I had with Mike D. which led me to creating this blog and ultimately others were aided in de-conversion from reading this blog. The wide dissemination of ideas, some quite anti-religious, which the internet provides have put a chink in religion’s armor. It’s imperative that more and more voices speak out so that others can free themselves of religious ideology.
Religion affects our government’s legislation; just days ago, our local senate passed the personhood bill that prevents mothers from seeking abortion even in the case of rape. It also prohibits certain forms of contraception. I have no doubt that this bill was profoundly influenced by the Christian faith that is ubiquitous here in Oklahoma. We must continue to fight for reason and what’s true and discard supersttions of the past.
It took some time, but I‘m now proud to be an atheist. I don’t go around advertising it, but we shouldn’t be ashamed despite the fact that many consider atheists about as trustworthy as rapists. I think it’s a misunderstanding that many have which can only be remedied by speaking out via writing or other forms of communication. We all have a story to tell regardless if we never were affiliated with a religious faith.
Monday, December 5, 2011
My Story (pt. 3) The Baby Atheist
To summarize and perhaps clarify previous installments, I was raised in an ultra-charismatic household. Supernatural events and ideals seemed to define my early experiences as a Christian. My mother was a key component to my understanding of Christianity and world view. I was somewhat lackadaisical while growing up in my Christianity but later embraced it passionately as I tried to find answers to my suffering with OCD. I even bought the audio version of the Bible, so I was always trying to immerse myself in scripture. I was consistent with church attendance and reading up on some of the latest apologetic works of people like Norm Geisler. I understood that I was saved by grace, so this wasn't some attempt to earn salvation. I simply wanted to be a well-versed and knowledgable Christian. I wanted to also find some healing for my mental issues.
The A-Unicornist, who I became reacquainted with on Facebook, was initially someone I was trying to convert as Christ called the church to make disciples. My best arguments were no match for his well-reasoned counter-apologetics and science. I ended up de-converting in the process, and my journey as a baby atheist soon began.
I think it's very common for many baby atheists to immerse themselves in what science and other well-recognized atheists have to say. It's like getting a new toy. You just can't get enough of it, and I was no different. For someone who really didn't like to read, I sure was checking out a lot of library books and purchasing some must-haves. I may have read over 25 books that first year which probably doesn't seem like a lot to some of you bookworms, but it was quite a drastic change for me. This didn't include the time I devoted to my own blog that I started at the encouragement of the A-Unicornist nor did it include the time I spent reading other blogs, listening to atheist podcasts or checking out the latest YouTube clip by one of my favorite outspoken atheists.
As a bit of a digression, this learning process obviously continues to this day. I'm still watching videos, listening to lectures and tuning in to the weekly podcast, The Atheist Experience. I'm just pacing myself s bit more and recognize that I don't have to know everything now. As a baby atheist, most of us are so excited and exhilarated that we don't take the time to reflect. My next installment will cover the period of reflecting and reexamining my worldview. Atheism isn't a worldview in itself. End of digression
The four-horsemen became familiar to me for the first time. Dawkins, Dennett, Harris and Hitchens were all voicing many of the same things I had come to believe, especially Harris. I was becoming more knowledgeable in the subject of evolution and even began reading up on Stephen Hawking. I must confess that I'm still quite the novice and intimidated by cosmology and astrophysics. It's not something that I was formerly educated on or previously interested in. It was also something that I left to God to worry about since he designed everything anyway.
During this time, I was attempting to keep my blog a secret from family which was no small task since I was enjoying it so much. I didn't necessarily want anybody to know about my atheism. What would my father-in-law believe or my wife? As you may recall, my father-in-law is a baptist preacher and then there was my mom to worry about. It seemed like I was going to have to be a loner for the time which wasn't all that bad. I never was the most sociable person to begin with. In another sense, I was so convinced that the God of the O.T. was a moral monster that I really didn't care if people eventually found out anyway. I figured that they were the ones with the problem of defending this nefarious brute.
It's amazing how I never saw what was right before my eyes. As a Christian, I never even considered that God might not be real or that the god depicted in the Bible was evil. I always started with the presupposition that he was real and omnibenevolent and any evidence to the contrary was simply a misunderstanding of his nature on my part. But after having my eyes opened, it became clear that he probably wasn't real. I never took the stance that he certainly wasn't real as a strong atheist would say but probably not real. We aren't dealing with certainty here. I'm not certain that Bigfoot doesn't exist, but I think that he/she probably doesn't.
Initially, I just told my wife that I was playing the devils advocate. She would see a comment of mine on Facebook that was not very christlike shall we say, and I'd just play it off by saying that I just wanted to see what others thought. Or, I would be listening to an atheist podcast and make the excuse that I was just wanting to know more about my enemy so I would be better equipped to handle them. I wonder how many baby atheists do this as an attempt to mask their true identity from Christian family members while still immersing themselves in their newfound identity? I suspect that there are quite a few.
I hope that you come back for my final installment as I discuss the reaction of some of my family when they found out that I was indeed a follower of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and how atheism has changed me as a person. In many ways, I believe that I'm a more well-grounded and stable person now. This theme needs to be expanded upon in my next installment.
The A-Unicornist, who I became reacquainted with on Facebook, was initially someone I was trying to convert as Christ called the church to make disciples. My best arguments were no match for his well-reasoned counter-apologetics and science. I ended up de-converting in the process, and my journey as a baby atheist soon began.
I think it's very common for many baby atheists to immerse themselves in what science and other well-recognized atheists have to say. It's like getting a new toy. You just can't get enough of it, and I was no different. For someone who really didn't like to read, I sure was checking out a lot of library books and purchasing some must-haves. I may have read over 25 books that first year which probably doesn't seem like a lot to some of you bookworms, but it was quite a drastic change for me. This didn't include the time I devoted to my own blog that I started at the encouragement of the A-Unicornist nor did it include the time I spent reading other blogs, listening to atheist podcasts or checking out the latest YouTube clip by one of my favorite outspoken atheists.
As a bit of a digression, this learning process obviously continues to this day. I'm still watching videos, listening to lectures and tuning in to the weekly podcast, The Atheist Experience. I'm just pacing myself s bit more and recognize that I don't have to know everything now. As a baby atheist, most of us are so excited and exhilarated that we don't take the time to reflect. My next installment will cover the period of reflecting and reexamining my worldview. Atheism isn't a worldview in itself. End of digression
The four-horsemen became familiar to me for the first time. Dawkins, Dennett, Harris and Hitchens were all voicing many of the same things I had come to believe, especially Harris. I was becoming more knowledgeable in the subject of evolution and even began reading up on Stephen Hawking. I must confess that I'm still quite the novice and intimidated by cosmology and astrophysics. It's not something that I was formerly educated on or previously interested in. It was also something that I left to God to worry about since he designed everything anyway.
During this time, I was attempting to keep my blog a secret from family which was no small task since I was enjoying it so much. I didn't necessarily want anybody to know about my atheism. What would my father-in-law believe or my wife? As you may recall, my father-in-law is a baptist preacher and then there was my mom to worry about. It seemed like I was going to have to be a loner for the time which wasn't all that bad. I never was the most sociable person to begin with. In another sense, I was so convinced that the God of the O.T. was a moral monster that I really didn't care if people eventually found out anyway. I figured that they were the ones with the problem of defending this nefarious brute.
It's amazing how I never saw what was right before my eyes. As a Christian, I never even considered that God might not be real or that the god depicted in the Bible was evil. I always started with the presupposition that he was real and omnibenevolent and any evidence to the contrary was simply a misunderstanding of his nature on my part. But after having my eyes opened, it became clear that he probably wasn't real. I never took the stance that he certainly wasn't real as a strong atheist would say but probably not real. We aren't dealing with certainty here. I'm not certain that Bigfoot doesn't exist, but I think that he/she probably doesn't.
Initially, I just told my wife that I was playing the devils advocate. She would see a comment of mine on Facebook that was not very christlike shall we say, and I'd just play it off by saying that I just wanted to see what others thought. Or, I would be listening to an atheist podcast and make the excuse that I was just wanting to know more about my enemy so I would be better equipped to handle them. I wonder how many baby atheists do this as an attempt to mask their true identity from Christian family members while still immersing themselves in their newfound identity? I suspect that there are quite a few.
I hope that you come back for my final installment as I discuss the reaction of some of my family when they found out that I was indeed a follower of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and how atheism has changed me as a person. In many ways, I believe that I'm a more well-grounded and stable person now. This theme needs to be expanded upon in my next installment.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
My story (pt. 2) If You Can't Beat Em', Join Em'
It was about this time when I tried my hand in the stock market for the second time in my life. I had been unjustly fired from my previous employer and had already been studying the market before getting the boot. I spent the next year taking online course work in the stock market and losing my ass in online trading. I continued to seek God's wisdom and favor as I made trading decisions. My mother had told me about a woman who prayed before each stock trade and made a ton of money doing it. As usual, there seemed to be no divine intervention from the Lord. Yet, I never became bitter toward God for not helping; I just continued to try to be the best Christian I could be.
It was also about this time that my long held beliefs were really put to the test. I was searching Facebook for long lost pals and came across Mike Doolittle's profile. It was unmistakably the same fair skinned, blonde haired guy that I met some 19 years earlier. I asked for his hand in Facebook friendship, and he soon obliged. But there was something wrong with this Mike Doolittle. He kept making post after post and comment after comment of anti-Christian rhetoric or had the audacity to display scientific related materials discussing evidence that contradicted some of my most cherished beliefs. Just about anytime I put something up regarding my belief in Christ, he would challenge me in some way. For a time, I actually blocked this guy from my facebook. I can't remember exactly why I eventually unblocked him, but I think it was because I wanted to confront him. It wasn't long before I decided to go toe to toe with this non-conformist in a showdown at the virtual O.K. Corral. Armed with materials from my favorite apologists and theologians and wanting to be the best Christian possible, I vehemently argued my case against such topics as evolution and God's morality.
Speaking of evolution, as a bit of an aside, I never believed in it nor was I properly educated on the subject. Even in college, the subject just never came up. I never thought about it enough to even know what I thought about it. In short, I just believed whatever Hank Hannegraff or Norm Geisler said on the subject. It was just a lie and full of misinformation.
Needless to say, I soon realized that Mike was telling the honest to god's truth. There was a wealth of evidence confirming evolution as a fact. Scientists almost unanimously agree that evolution is the best explanation for the diversity of species and the progress of our own. It's awfully hard to continue to side with the fundamental Christianity I was used to when they are at odds with the scientific literature. Not being raised as a moderate or liberal Christian, I didn't have the convenience of accepting evolution while discarding the story of Genesis as a metaphor.
Mike pointed me to books and online articles discussing the latest research in evolution from--this is a shocker--real scientists. We also discussed some of the theories on astrophysics and origins of the universe. I quickly defined myself as a young earth creationist (YEC) as it aligned with the literal interpretation of Genesis. I honestly had never heard of the term before, but Mike laid it out for me. This was all well beyond me, but I sure just wanted to say that God took care of it all and leave it at that. Mike wouldn't let me get off that easy. Being far more advanced in the topic than I, he explained scientific theory and plausible hypotheses regarding the universe which don't necessitate a creator. We went over big bang theory, string theory, multiverse theory and many others. As the A-Unicornist often quips, the only thing worse than a god that doesn't exist is a god that might as well not exist.
But Mike really put the nail in the coffin when we started talking about God's moral behaviors. The O.T. had bothered me before but nothing that Lee Strobel couldn't fix. After all, God was doing neighboring nations a favor when he demanded the death of children. They got the automatic ticket to the greatest show on earth, heaven. We can't all be so lucky. As for the doctrine of hell, it was our own fault for going, and we chose hell over heaven by rejecting our savior. We were going exactly where we wanted and asked to go.
Needless to say, Mike opened my eyes to the brutality involved in all of that. We have a god, full of omnisicience, that still creates beings he knows with foresight will be eternally separated and punished for lacking belief and living apart from this taskmaster's own desires.
As far as the OT goes, Mike helped me realize that a secular morality was superior to God's. I vividly remember watching The Stoning of Soraya M. and that was the final straw. I could no longer worship a god with such a capricious and cruel nature. Even if he was real, I wanted little to do with such a beast. As the saying goes, if you can't beat em', join em'. I raised the white flag and surrendered to an insurmountable amount of evidence in favor of evolution, against YEC and impressive moral arguments confirming secular morality's superiority.
I humbly ask that you stay tuned for the next installment as I discuss what being a baby atheist is like. I say baby because it's quite similar. I found myself soaking up information like a sponge and voraciously reading everything I could get my hands on.
It was also about this time that my long held beliefs were really put to the test. I was searching Facebook for long lost pals and came across Mike Doolittle's profile. It was unmistakably the same fair skinned, blonde haired guy that I met some 19 years earlier. I asked for his hand in Facebook friendship, and he soon obliged. But there was something wrong with this Mike Doolittle. He kept making post after post and comment after comment of anti-Christian rhetoric or had the audacity to display scientific related materials discussing evidence that contradicted some of my most cherished beliefs. Just about anytime I put something up regarding my belief in Christ, he would challenge me in some way. For a time, I actually blocked this guy from my facebook. I can't remember exactly why I eventually unblocked him, but I think it was because I wanted to confront him. It wasn't long before I decided to go toe to toe with this non-conformist in a showdown at the virtual O.K. Corral. Armed with materials from my favorite apologists and theologians and wanting to be the best Christian possible, I vehemently argued my case against such topics as evolution and God's morality.
Speaking of evolution, as a bit of an aside, I never believed in it nor was I properly educated on the subject. Even in college, the subject just never came up. I never thought about it enough to even know what I thought about it. In short, I just believed whatever Hank Hannegraff or Norm Geisler said on the subject. It was just a lie and full of misinformation.
Needless to say, I soon realized that Mike was telling the honest to god's truth. There was a wealth of evidence confirming evolution as a fact. Scientists almost unanimously agree that evolution is the best explanation for the diversity of species and the progress of our own. It's awfully hard to continue to side with the fundamental Christianity I was used to when they are at odds with the scientific literature. Not being raised as a moderate or liberal Christian, I didn't have the convenience of accepting evolution while discarding the story of Genesis as a metaphor.
Mike pointed me to books and online articles discussing the latest research in evolution from--this is a shocker--real scientists. We also discussed some of the theories on astrophysics and origins of the universe. I quickly defined myself as a young earth creationist (YEC) as it aligned with the literal interpretation of Genesis. I honestly had never heard of the term before, but Mike laid it out for me. This was all well beyond me, but I sure just wanted to say that God took care of it all and leave it at that. Mike wouldn't let me get off that easy. Being far more advanced in the topic than I, he explained scientific theory and plausible hypotheses regarding the universe which don't necessitate a creator. We went over big bang theory, string theory, multiverse theory and many others. As the A-Unicornist often quips, the only thing worse than a god that doesn't exist is a god that might as well not exist.
But Mike really put the nail in the coffin when we started talking about God's moral behaviors. The O.T. had bothered me before but nothing that Lee Strobel couldn't fix. After all, God was doing neighboring nations a favor when he demanded the death of children. They got the automatic ticket to the greatest show on earth, heaven. We can't all be so lucky. As for the doctrine of hell, it was our own fault for going, and we chose hell over heaven by rejecting our savior. We were going exactly where we wanted and asked to go.
Needless to say, Mike opened my eyes to the brutality involved in all of that. We have a god, full of omnisicience, that still creates beings he knows with foresight will be eternally separated and punished for lacking belief and living apart from this taskmaster's own desires.
As far as the OT goes, Mike helped me realize that a secular morality was superior to God's. I vividly remember watching The Stoning of Soraya M. and that was the final straw. I could no longer worship a god with such a capricious and cruel nature. Even if he was real, I wanted little to do with such a beast. As the saying goes, if you can't beat em', join em'. I raised the white flag and surrendered to an insurmountable amount of evidence in favor of evolution, against YEC and impressive moral arguments confirming secular morality's superiority.
I humbly ask that you stay tuned for the next installment as I discuss what being a baby atheist is like. I say baby because it's quite similar. I found myself soaking up information like a sponge and voraciously reading everything I could get my hands on.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
My story (pt.1) Knee Deep in Supernaturalism
The wonderful Advocatus Atheist himself, Tristan Vick, has inspired me to tell the personal story of my own evolution into a rootin’ tootin’ atheist. I may have delved into portions of my story in the past so please bear with me if some of it sounds familiar. I was raised in a very fundamentalist household from day one. My mother is the main source of my religious upbringing. Although initially raised as Baptist, she later met a friend who would forever change her perspective as she began attending services that had a more charismatic leaning. These were the kind of services that you didn’t feel like you got your money’s worth unless you got spit on by the preacher in the process. People frequently spoke in tongues and flailed around aimlessly. Attracted by the supernaturalism, my mother continued to seek out churches such as these from that point onward.
I remember the dread of waking up on Sunday mornings and waiting for the bedroom door to open. I always crossed my fingers in hopes that my mom would let us stay home from church. This was seldom the case early in my life. As time went by, our church attendance seemed less consistent. Nevertheless, my mother continued to amass an impressive amount of books regarding the word of faith movement. You know, the whole just ask for whatever you want and you should get it unless you don’t have enough faith theology.
My mother suffered from a series of rashes when I was around the age of 7 or 8. Being wealthy at the time, my mom had flown around the world in search for a viable cure. She had seen many of the most famous dermatologists around but none could seem to fix her ailment. One night, she asked for my father, brother and me to pray for her. We got in a prayer circle and laid hands on her. Miraculously, by the next day or so, the rash had subsided substantially. I don’t think she’s had another outbreak since. It was moments like this where I first realized the apparent power of prayer.
My mother experienced bizarre, demonic visions of hell and torment as well. She told me that she had actually been dragged down the stairs by some force which just continued to utter the words, “If you don’t, if you don’t.” She said that there were demons all over the place, and even our cat seemed to have a devilish smile upon its face. The next day, she told me that her forearm was sore from where this spirit dragged her body. Stories like this were very common place in my family, and her childhood friend had even more creepy stories that kept me up in the wee hours of the night. On one night, I thought that I saw a demon myself. He had a monkey face and was standing beside my bed. I pulled the covers over my face frantically and waited it out. We lived over what was thought to be an old Indian burial ground. There were many reports of ghosts walking around at night and disturbing residents. It seemed like I was knee deep in supernatural occurrences. I think that these experiences certainly shaped my world view.
By 10th grade, I was attending a private Christian school and not particularly enjoying it. Like most Christians, I said that I was a Christian but lived outside of the teachings. Out of our graduating class, I could probably count one person who seemed genuine about their Christianity. It wasn’t until meeting my wife that I really began to establish a strong relationship with God.
Certain stressors began negatively impacting my life which seemed to coincide with my urge to get closer to God. I don’t fare well with change unless my back is against the wall and married life certainly seemed very different. My Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) became front and center in my life, and I was looking for answers. I really began to study the Word under the influence of my father-in-law, who happens to be a Baptist preacher. I was reading apologetic materials by the likes of Norman Geisler. I was regularly tuning in to the Bible Answer Man broadcast with Hank Hannegraff. I even tried my hand at being a youth teacher but that was fairly short-lived. Attending several services and study hours became common for me. In short, I wanted to be the best I could be at walking the Christian life. I wanted to conquer my OCD using God’s power, but there seemed to be a nagging problem. There was some cognitive dissonance brewing in my head regarding prayer. I couldn’t understand why God would heal me if he allows children to die. I felt like I was inevitably stuck with OCD because there was no reason to believe that God cared about mental illnesses when he didn’t care about starving, emaciated children. It wasn’t too long after this issue came to a climax when I became reacquainted with a long lost friend that was very instrumental in turning my life around. His name is Mike Doolittle AKA A-Unicornist. I encourage you to tune in to the next installment as I delve into the debates I had with Mike as he methodically destroyed my arguments and opened my eyes for the first time.
I remember the dread of waking up on Sunday mornings and waiting for the bedroom door to open. I always crossed my fingers in hopes that my mom would let us stay home from church. This was seldom the case early in my life. As time went by, our church attendance seemed less consistent. Nevertheless, my mother continued to amass an impressive amount of books regarding the word of faith movement. You know, the whole just ask for whatever you want and you should get it unless you don’t have enough faith theology.
My mother suffered from a series of rashes when I was around the age of 7 or 8. Being wealthy at the time, my mom had flown around the world in search for a viable cure. She had seen many of the most famous dermatologists around but none could seem to fix her ailment. One night, she asked for my father, brother and me to pray for her. We got in a prayer circle and laid hands on her. Miraculously, by the next day or so, the rash had subsided substantially. I don’t think she’s had another outbreak since. It was moments like this where I first realized the apparent power of prayer.
My mother experienced bizarre, demonic visions of hell and torment as well. She told me that she had actually been dragged down the stairs by some force which just continued to utter the words, “If you don’t, if you don’t.” She said that there were demons all over the place, and even our cat seemed to have a devilish smile upon its face. The next day, she told me that her forearm was sore from where this spirit dragged her body. Stories like this were very common place in my family, and her childhood friend had even more creepy stories that kept me up in the wee hours of the night. On one night, I thought that I saw a demon myself. He had a monkey face and was standing beside my bed. I pulled the covers over my face frantically and waited it out. We lived over what was thought to be an old Indian burial ground. There were many reports of ghosts walking around at night and disturbing residents. It seemed like I was knee deep in supernatural occurrences. I think that these experiences certainly shaped my world view.
By 10th grade, I was attending a private Christian school and not particularly enjoying it. Like most Christians, I said that I was a Christian but lived outside of the teachings. Out of our graduating class, I could probably count one person who seemed genuine about their Christianity. It wasn’t until meeting my wife that I really began to establish a strong relationship with God.
Certain stressors began negatively impacting my life which seemed to coincide with my urge to get closer to God. I don’t fare well with change unless my back is against the wall and married life certainly seemed very different. My Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) became front and center in my life, and I was looking for answers. I really began to study the Word under the influence of my father-in-law, who happens to be a Baptist preacher. I was reading apologetic materials by the likes of Norman Geisler. I was regularly tuning in to the Bible Answer Man broadcast with Hank Hannegraff. I even tried my hand at being a youth teacher but that was fairly short-lived. Attending several services and study hours became common for me. In short, I wanted to be the best I could be at walking the Christian life. I wanted to conquer my OCD using God’s power, but there seemed to be a nagging problem. There was some cognitive dissonance brewing in my head regarding prayer. I couldn’t understand why God would heal me if he allows children to die. I felt like I was inevitably stuck with OCD because there was no reason to believe that God cared about mental illnesses when he didn’t care about starving, emaciated children. It wasn’t too long after this issue came to a climax when I became reacquainted with a long lost friend that was very instrumental in turning my life around. His name is Mike Doolittle AKA A-Unicornist. I encourage you to tune in to the next installment as I delve into the debates I had with Mike as he methodically destroyed my arguments and opened my eyes for the first time.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Atheism is not dangerous
The beliefs in supernatural phenomenon, an afterlife and the infallibility of religious doctrine are dangerous. There are many reasons that they are dangerous. For one, books like the Bible are open to millions of interpretations because there's no objective standard to assess its content. Also, you end up having to believe that highly immoral actions are moral simply because the god of your religion has been defined as the source of objective morality by the scriptures themselves. Therefore, actions like genocide, infanticide, abusive slavery, sexism, racism, animal cruelty, stoning and many more wonderful ideologies and practices are moral when this imaginary being says so in his fictitious book.
Atheism has no dogma or creed. It doesn't make unsubstantiated claims. There's nothing taken on faith. It doesn't even mean that you automatically believe in evolution.
Arguably, the most destructive force against humanity has been the belief in religious doctrine. The 911 attacks, crusades, Spanish Inquisition, and Holocaust can be directly linked to religious doctrine. When has not believing in something merely on faith caused mass genocide or terrorist attacks? People become slaves to beliefs that have no evidence and find the motivation to kill others because of their interpretations of scripture. God's will supersedes humanities, and it makes killing more palatable.
In the case of the holocaust, we can thank Christianity for antisemitism and the killing of millions. The Jews are responsible for killing Jesus of the Bible, and Hitler took this ideology, inspired by Martin Luther, and enforced it systematically. The scriptures offered no foresight into the events of the Holocaust or stern warning against killing the "children of the devil." Perhaps Jesus was only addressing a certain group of Jews. Nevertheless, scriptures like these fueled hatred for Jews, and god, with all his wonderful foresight, did nothing to prevent the deaths and persecution of Jews.
Atheism has no dogma or creed. It doesn't make unsubstantiated claims. There's nothing taken on faith. It doesn't even mean that you automatically believe in evolution.
Arguably, the most destructive force against humanity has been the belief in religious doctrine. The 911 attacks, crusades, Spanish Inquisition, and Holocaust can be directly linked to religious doctrine. When has not believing in something merely on faith caused mass genocide or terrorist attacks? People become slaves to beliefs that have no evidence and find the motivation to kill others because of their interpretations of scripture. God's will supersedes humanities, and it makes killing more palatable.
In the case of the holocaust, we can thank Christianity for antisemitism and the killing of millions. The Jews are responsible for killing Jesus of the Bible, and Hitler took this ideology, inspired by Martin Luther, and enforced it systematically. The scriptures offered no foresight into the events of the Holocaust or stern warning against killing the "children of the devil." Perhaps Jesus was only addressing a certain group of Jews. Nevertheless, scriptures like these fueled hatred for Jews, and god, with all his wonderful foresight, did nothing to prevent the deaths and persecution of Jews.
Friday, October 21, 2011
There is no greater meaning
Most atheists recognize the fact that there just is no greater meaning, intrinsic value or purpose to our existence nor is there some ultimate goal or justice for that matter. Theists use this observation as some kind of argument for god. It goes something like this: “It’s really depressing to think that there is no meaning to this life, and we just die. Therefore, God exists because that sounds better, and it makes me happier.” They may not say it just like that but that’s generally what they are implying.
Truthfully, humans ascribe whatever meaning they want to this life. The fun thing about being an atheist is that we can tweak it and change the meaning we ascribe to it as we mature and life circumstances change. We aren’t stuck with the idea that we are solely meant to pronounce the love of god to the world and try to get to heaven, with all the cognitive dissonance to go along with it. Life is more sophisticated than that and far more adventurous.
Some of us find meaning in chasing the almighty dollar despite the ill-affects it has on health and relationships. Apparently, Steve Jobs took this route and ignored his children entirely, only explaining his intentions postmortem. Some of us find meaning in traveling the world and learning from different cultures. Some of us find meaning in providing for our family but spending quality time with them as well. It doesn’t mean that a person can’t change what is meaningful as life goes on. In the end, they may recognize that they put their career in front of their children and change what’s meaningful toward their relationship with their children. I personally find more meaning and fulfillment in relationships, enjoyable hobbies, writing, reading and playing than I do in working 80 hours a week but that’s just me. I've never had a materialistic obsession. I say you should do what makes you happy as long as you aren’t hurting others or yourself.
The point is that it’s your life to live. You don’t need or want a book to tell you how to live it, or what should be important to you. You can decide what matters the most, what makes you happiest and what you wish to avoid. I find that far more appealing then living under a dictator who threatens you with fire and brimstone if you fail to live as he commands. You're robbing yourself from what life has to offer when you allow someone else, fictitious or not, to tell you how to live it.
Truthfully, humans ascribe whatever meaning they want to this life. The fun thing about being an atheist is that we can tweak it and change the meaning we ascribe to it as we mature and life circumstances change. We aren’t stuck with the idea that we are solely meant to pronounce the love of god to the world and try to get to heaven, with all the cognitive dissonance to go along with it. Life is more sophisticated than that and far more adventurous.
Some of us find meaning in chasing the almighty dollar despite the ill-affects it has on health and relationships. Apparently, Steve Jobs took this route and ignored his children entirely, only explaining his intentions postmortem. Some of us find meaning in traveling the world and learning from different cultures. Some of us find meaning in providing for our family but spending quality time with them as well. It doesn’t mean that a person can’t change what is meaningful as life goes on. In the end, they may recognize that they put their career in front of their children and change what’s meaningful toward their relationship with their children. I personally find more meaning and fulfillment in relationships, enjoyable hobbies, writing, reading and playing than I do in working 80 hours a week but that’s just me. I've never had a materialistic obsession. I say you should do what makes you happy as long as you aren’t hurting others or yourself.
The point is that it’s your life to live. You don’t need or want a book to tell you how to live it, or what should be important to you. You can decide what matters the most, what makes you happiest and what you wish to avoid. I find that far more appealing then living under a dictator who threatens you with fire and brimstone if you fail to live as he commands. You're robbing yourself from what life has to offer when you allow someone else, fictitious or not, to tell you how to live it.
Friday, October 7, 2011
The moral lessons we can learn from a spider
If you’re like me, your skin is sure to start crawling whenever you see one of these creepy crawlers. Most of us are very quick to curb stomp one of these little bastards when they dare cross our path. It generally doesn’t matter what size they are either. We are gonna’ take them down, and we pray (to Dawkins?) that we don’t find one in our room before going to bed because it will be most difficult to fall asleep until they are eliminated. But, what happens if we see them from a different perspective? What happens when we ascribe value to them?
I happen to have a black and yellow garden spider making a nice home for herself in the backyard. I noticed the magnificent craftsmanship of her web and immediately changed my perspective. Had I seen her creeping around on the patio, I would probably run for some spider spray or just stomp her out. Instead, I recognized the value that she had and the reciprocal altruistic nature of our relationship. I provide living space and shade, and she provides a death trap for flying insects that like to sting or eat away plants. She’s not poisonous and will not likely bite unless provoked. This is what happens when we stop objectifying others, regardless of species. Problems emerge when we stop seeing any value in another sentient creature; the Holocaust immediately comes to mind. The anti-Semitism derived from the Bible and Martin Luther’s distain for the Jew’s created an atmosphere of hatred and objectification. Hitler latched on to this ideology and made it a main area of primary concern in his reign. He refused to see the value in the Jewish people, blinded by hatred and religious vitriol.
It’s imperative that we learn to see the value in others. I believe that living morally requires the often conscious effort to find value in those around you despite their apparent flaws. There is no one that doesn’t have something to offer. Even the most decrepit can often teach us lessons about ourselves. Indeed, even a spider can illustrate the mental transition we can make when we see them as more than adversaries or pests. Anyway, I thought I would provide a little food for thought.
Monday, September 19, 2011
I went to church!
I attended a church service with my best friend this past weekend. This church emphasizes how it should be a “fun” place to grow and be challenged. It’s been about a year since I attended church, aside from going to Vacation Bible School to watch my children in a program. We went to the contemporary service, as opposed to the earlier traditional service. This was a more progressive, high-energy service that usually repels many of the older folks. The music wasn’t bad but standing there gets rather tiresome after twenty minutes or so. I don’t understand why Christians think worshipping god for all eternity is something to look forward to. In the words of Christopher Hitchins, “I don’t want to live in a Celestial North Korea for all eternity.” At one point, the praise and worship leader shouted that god didn’t want us to suffer, but to live abundantly. He would be the supplier of all our needs. I couldn’t help but think of the way the disciples and Jesus Christ himself were brutally murdered for their faith, as legend has suggested. The message being that if you follow Jesus far enough, you will end up being a martyr for your faith too. I’m not sure how this ties into “living abundantly."
We watched a brief video/infomercial about how the church is accepting of everybody regardless of their past or current circumstances. Different actors in the video gave various apparent objections to going to church such as: All the church wants is your money (Well, this is at least part of the reason); I don’t believe all of the same things you do (They listed various outside denominations as examples, but the atheist was sadly left out); only wimps go to church; if you knew what I did, you wouldn’t want me in your church (this one was particularly creepy, think pedophile); they’ll never accept me for who I am. Of course, the overwhelming theme throughout the video was that the church accepts everybody. This is a nice change but merely a reflection of an evolving church that’s becoming more and more indistinguishable from the world in which we really live.
After the video, we were treated to more music and I couldn’t help but notice the dancing woman in the corner. She was holding two long poles with soft fabric hanging off the ends. I just referred to her as flag girl. I asked my friend if it would be possible for me to become a flag girl as well. He laughed and said facetiously that she used to do an act where she was suspended from two cables and floated across the room.
Eventually, the music slowed a bit and a member from the congregation began speaking in tongues. One of the worship leaders “interpreted” it and gave some generic word about how we must praise god with greater power and enthusiasm. I wondered what would happen if I fallaciously began speaking in tongues as well. Would I get an interpretation? I’m betting that I would but I refrained.
Finally, and I do mean finally, the pastor began his message on the prodigal son. This was probably the only part of the service that had much real world application. We all understand that our actions have consequences, and it’s great to have a second chance, especially from the ones we love. The son, as many of us know, went to a distant land inhabited by gentiles. He squandered all of his inheritance--that he demanded from his father-- early and foolishly, hence the usage of the word prodigal. After wrestling with pigs and eating pig slop, he comes back to his father with his tail between his legs. His father is more than accepting, lowering his noble standards to running in a field toward him with his skirt hiked up, exposing his ankles. The pastor discussed many of the violations regarding social mores and customs of the Middle Eastern societies. This was refreshing and painted a more vivid picture of the story.
Each of the main characters in the story lowered their standards. The son lowered his standards out of greed and eventual desperation. The father lowered his standards out of unconditional love for the son. It’s a wonderful story but devoid of any supernatural necessities. Of course, this is supposed to be a parable which compares an earthly father/son relationship with the relationship god has with each of his followers. We live a life of sin but are welcomed back with open arms. So, serial killers and rapists can always be assured another chance if they sincerely repent before capital punishment is carried out.
There is just one itty bitty problem however. We don’t have any evidence that the father is real or that we have anybody to “run home” to. There’s not much of a point in putting faith in something that is devoid of evidence. In the parable, the son had all the evidence that he needed to believe in the father, but most of us aren’t granted a shred of physical evidence.
Anyway, I may continue going with my friend a couple times a month just for the fun of it. We had a church lunch afterword that was really good. Many of the members are very friendly, and others would be easily diagnosed with a psychological disorder. I certainly can fit in to the Christian culture as well as anybody.
We watched a brief video/infomercial about how the church is accepting of everybody regardless of their past or current circumstances. Different actors in the video gave various apparent objections to going to church such as: All the church wants is your money (Well, this is at least part of the reason); I don’t believe all of the same things you do (They listed various outside denominations as examples, but the atheist was sadly left out); only wimps go to church; if you knew what I did, you wouldn’t want me in your church (this one was particularly creepy, think pedophile); they’ll never accept me for who I am. Of course, the overwhelming theme throughout the video was that the church accepts everybody. This is a nice change but merely a reflection of an evolving church that’s becoming more and more indistinguishable from the world in which we really live.
After the video, we were treated to more music and I couldn’t help but notice the dancing woman in the corner. She was holding two long poles with soft fabric hanging off the ends. I just referred to her as flag girl. I asked my friend if it would be possible for me to become a flag girl as well. He laughed and said facetiously that she used to do an act where she was suspended from two cables and floated across the room.
Eventually, the music slowed a bit and a member from the congregation began speaking in tongues. One of the worship leaders “interpreted” it and gave some generic word about how we must praise god with greater power and enthusiasm. I wondered what would happen if I fallaciously began speaking in tongues as well. Would I get an interpretation? I’m betting that I would but I refrained.
Finally, and I do mean finally, the pastor began his message on the prodigal son. This was probably the only part of the service that had much real world application. We all understand that our actions have consequences, and it’s great to have a second chance, especially from the ones we love. The son, as many of us know, went to a distant land inhabited by gentiles. He squandered all of his inheritance--that he demanded from his father-- early and foolishly, hence the usage of the word prodigal. After wrestling with pigs and eating pig slop, he comes back to his father with his tail between his legs. His father is more than accepting, lowering his noble standards to running in a field toward him with his skirt hiked up, exposing his ankles. The pastor discussed many of the violations regarding social mores and customs of the Middle Eastern societies. This was refreshing and painted a more vivid picture of the story.
Each of the main characters in the story lowered their standards. The son lowered his standards out of greed and eventual desperation. The father lowered his standards out of unconditional love for the son. It’s a wonderful story but devoid of any supernatural necessities. Of course, this is supposed to be a parable which compares an earthly father/son relationship with the relationship god has with each of his followers. We live a life of sin but are welcomed back with open arms. So, serial killers and rapists can always be assured another chance if they sincerely repent before capital punishment is carried out.
There is just one itty bitty problem however. We don’t have any evidence that the father is real or that we have anybody to “run home” to. There’s not much of a point in putting faith in something that is devoid of evidence. In the parable, the son had all the evidence that he needed to believe in the father, but most of us aren’t granted a shred of physical evidence.
Anyway, I may continue going with my friend a couple times a month just for the fun of it. We had a church lunch afterword that was really good. Many of the members are very friendly, and others would be easily diagnosed with a psychological disorder. I certainly can fit in to the Christian culture as well as anybody.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
It's hard to imagine
It’s hard to imagine how much wasted money goes to religion, including things like: books, videos, tithes, churches, sound systems, gas to get to these stupid events, etc. This isn’t including the investment of time that people put into this smorgasbord of folly. I can’t help but wonder how much further along we would be technologically, medically, and scientifically if just a third of this money/time was allocated toward more worthwhile endeavors, not to mention if the whole amount was allocated more wisely. We could be heavily researching life extension technologies so that people could enjoy the only life they have for a much longer time. We could invest more heavily in cancer treatment research or AIDS research. The Christian religion is a multi-billion dollar industry; these numbers don’t even include other religious faiths that suck up resources better used elsewhere. Humanity has spent so much wasted time and money on something that’s completely fictitious—it’s the ultimate facepalm!
I know many Christians who just take this life for granted. They are absolutely certain that a future one lies ahead. They take their health for granted, and they take their environment for granted. After all, Jesus will return and usher in a new age, with a new world. Instead of doing something constructive, they decide to pray for things, like rain. They often put a religious spin on every minute detail of their lives that consequently influences their day to day decisions.
The Bible is considered their “Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.” This is a template for disaster and misuse of resources. There’s nothing in the Bible of any benefit than can’t be found elsewhere, from the golden rule and onward. Yet, this book has sold over 6 billion copies. There are enough copies for every single living person on the planet. The book has been published in over 450 languages and is generally found in every country, aside from the ones most vehemently against religious freedoms.
We should consider the number of people who decide to go into ministry that could be doing something far more profound with their time. We should consider the number of dollars going to people like Benny Hinn that could be going into research. Instead of churches, we could have learning and research centers based on the sciences. How much more advanced would we be? It’s hard to imagine.
I know many Christians who just take this life for granted. They are absolutely certain that a future one lies ahead. They take their health for granted, and they take their environment for granted. After all, Jesus will return and usher in a new age, with a new world. Instead of doing something constructive, they decide to pray for things, like rain. They often put a religious spin on every minute detail of their lives that consequently influences their day to day decisions.
The Bible is considered their “Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.” This is a template for disaster and misuse of resources. There’s nothing in the Bible of any benefit than can’t be found elsewhere, from the golden rule and onward. Yet, this book has sold over 6 billion copies. There are enough copies for every single living person on the planet. The book has been published in over 450 languages and is generally found in every country, aside from the ones most vehemently against religious freedoms.
We should consider the number of people who decide to go into ministry that could be doing something far more profound with their time. We should consider the number of dollars going to people like Benny Hinn that could be going into research. Instead of churches, we could have learning and research centers based on the sciences. How much more advanced would we be? It’s hard to imagine.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Is it really that unreasonable?
Is it really that unreasonable and incomprehensible to believe that some people actually want evidence for claims before they will trust in them? This isn’t some revolutionary, radical idea that only the scummiest people on the planet, like atheists, should dare endorse. My problem is that many Christians frown upon atheists for the heinous offense of desiring some compelling evidence before wrapping their entire worldview around some epistemological stance. I personally would require extraordinary evidence before I swallowed what any religion proselytized. I know this is just a really shocking concept. Does this make me a criminal worthy of a thousand deaths? Yes, it does according to Christian dogma. I will go to my grave as a nonbeliever until I find evidence. I will change my mind in a heartbeat once that sound evidence is presented. This is what many believers fail to realize. They don't understand that most atheists would have no problem putting their trust in a religion if that religion had enough evidence to support it.
As John Loftus often quips, god knows exactly what I would require in order to believe. The Bible, in and of itself, isn’t convincing enough to believe in people walking on water or resurrecting from the dead. If it was, I would probably still be a Christian today (Although, god and I really need to talk about the stupid, nefarious shit he did to people in the Old Testament). And, as Jesus stated (John 14:12), we should be seeing even greater things today than before. Youtube or the local news could easily cover someone performing amazing feats that surpass--or at least equaled for fuck's sake--Christ’s purported miracles. Why were the disciples and Paul some of the few to get such an intimate glimpse of the supernatural? Where have these supernatural abilities gone to? If Jesus is in every believer, we can safely assume that he should be working mightily through his present-day disciples to continue the missionary work of converting the lost.
It certainly doesn’t help that every so-called faith healer has turned out to be nothing more than a counterfeit. This only further undermines my ability to believe. You have other Christians who believe that all the supernatural stuff just discontinued upon the closing of the canon of scripture. They put their trust in seemingly mundane “godly” interventions, like when god helps a surgeon perform well during a serious surgery. This seems to weaken the Christian message that was built almost exclusively on the miraculous. Indeed, nobody should have believed in this Christ back then if no miracles were presented and nobody would trust in Jesus today without such miracle stories.
My point is that there are plenty of opportunities for god to produce some sort of supernatural, miracle today that could be promulgated and demonstrated exclusively by Christians. This would eliminate the notion that some foreign god was responsible. The Bible frowns upon people requesting miracles (John 4:48). How much more important are such signs in the age of science? I suppose that the Bible threw this scripture in there because they knew that no such miracles occurred, and they needed to introduce their so-called trump card, faith.
Science makes faith an obsolete concept. In an age of scientific enlightenment, Christians and nonbelievers should demand more than stories to believe. We owe it to ourselves and the sciences to require that much. In nearly any other endeavor, most people would have no problem with you wanting evidence before devoting yourself to some cause. I would say that religion requires faith because it lacks any evidence. Faith, in the ANE, was held in the same high regard as science before we understood that real answers to seemingly impossible questions were attainable. Shouldn’t god understand that we are no longer living in such a primitive, pre-scientific state? It certainly doesn’t help that science has demolished the ability to believe in the majority of old testament stories--through biology, geology, and archaeology to name a few.
As John Loftus often quips, god knows exactly what I would require in order to believe. The Bible, in and of itself, isn’t convincing enough to believe in people walking on water or resurrecting from the dead. If it was, I would probably still be a Christian today (Although, god and I really need to talk about the stupid, nefarious shit he did to people in the Old Testament). And, as Jesus stated (John 14:12), we should be seeing even greater things today than before. Youtube or the local news could easily cover someone performing amazing feats that surpass--or at least equaled for fuck's sake--Christ’s purported miracles. Why were the disciples and Paul some of the few to get such an intimate glimpse of the supernatural? Where have these supernatural abilities gone to? If Jesus is in every believer, we can safely assume that he should be working mightily through his present-day disciples to continue the missionary work of converting the lost.
It certainly doesn’t help that every so-called faith healer has turned out to be nothing more than a counterfeit. This only further undermines my ability to believe. You have other Christians who believe that all the supernatural stuff just discontinued upon the closing of the canon of scripture. They put their trust in seemingly mundane “godly” interventions, like when god helps a surgeon perform well during a serious surgery. This seems to weaken the Christian message that was built almost exclusively on the miraculous. Indeed, nobody should have believed in this Christ back then if no miracles were presented and nobody would trust in Jesus today without such miracle stories.
My point is that there are plenty of opportunities for god to produce some sort of supernatural, miracle today that could be promulgated and demonstrated exclusively by Christians. This would eliminate the notion that some foreign god was responsible. The Bible frowns upon people requesting miracles (John 4:48). How much more important are such signs in the age of science? I suppose that the Bible threw this scripture in there because they knew that no such miracles occurred, and they needed to introduce their so-called trump card, faith.
Science makes faith an obsolete concept. In an age of scientific enlightenment, Christians and nonbelievers should demand more than stories to believe. We owe it to ourselves and the sciences to require that much. In nearly any other endeavor, most people would have no problem with you wanting evidence before devoting yourself to some cause. I would say that religion requires faith because it lacks any evidence. Faith, in the ANE, was held in the same high regard as science before we understood that real answers to seemingly impossible questions were attainable. Shouldn’t god understand that we are no longer living in such a primitive, pre-scientific state? It certainly doesn’t help that science has demolished the ability to believe in the majority of old testament stories--through biology, geology, and archaeology to name a few.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Sex, drugs and rock and roll
I’ve been listening to music coming out of the 60’s and 70’s more as of late. You know the whole “sex, drugs, and rock and roll” era. I think this is why I could never relate to it as a Christian. We were supposed to look upon that time with scorn and disgust. As an atheist, I have found some of the ideas coming out of this era particularly appealing. I really like some of the ideas that come from the song Imagine, by John Lennon. It talks about world unity, no religion and no greed. The unity brings everyone together, and there would be no border separation. I’m not sure how this would work exactly, but I appreciate the pacifism presented in the song. Anyway, it’s yet another barrier being brought down as a result of feeling enabled to open my mind to other ideas that were once restricted when living as a Christian.
Imagine, by John Lennon
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky
Imagine all the people Living for today...
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
Imagine, by John Lennon
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky
Imagine all the people Living for today...
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...
You may say I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
Monday, July 25, 2011
Christian: You are called to witness to the ends of the earth
This was the conundrum that I faced when I desired to take Christianity seriously. I wanted to be a great witness that had all the right answers. But, how can you be a great witness when you don’t have convincing evidence for what you believe in? For whatever reason, silly ole’ me tends to put more trust in evidence than in faith, and faith certainly isn’t evidence despite what Hebrews 11:1 suggests. The evidence that I was looking so desperately for was very poor.
I also don’t think there are very many good witnesses around, especially the kind that spread the message to the ends of the earth as instructed. Why is this? Sometimes I wonder if they are unconvinced as the rest of us but on a subconscious level. There may be a handful of missionaries out there, but the majority of Christians here in the states seem to live as “secret Christians”. This wasn’t what Jesus preached. In fact, many of the preachers that I have observed privately are really not much different. Jesus was vocal, putting on healing demonstrations. Jesus cast out demons. Where are the demons now? Did they just go home after Jesus left us? Most of us know that so-called demonic possession is really a case of psychiatric distress.
There seems to be this indifference amongst the Christian members. The preacher can stress the importance of witnessing, but most of them never change. Don’t actions/inactions speak louder than words? If they really believed in the demands of their Lord, why aren’t they voraciously spreading the word? I argue that there may be a disconnection between what they actually believe, and what they want to believe. It can’t just be a case of laziness. Perhaps, they just don’t understand the urgency because of their privileged circumstances. Many Christians may think that others will take care of the witnessing for them, but they are still saved since they proclaimed Christ as savior. I still think that they are living in disobedience, since Jesus made it clear that they are to witness to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This isn’t a suggestion, but Christians live according to their own needs and wants just like the rest of us. If this doesn’t speak volumes than I don’t know what does.
I also don’t think there are very many good witnesses around, especially the kind that spread the message to the ends of the earth as instructed. Why is this? Sometimes I wonder if they are unconvinced as the rest of us but on a subconscious level. There may be a handful of missionaries out there, but the majority of Christians here in the states seem to live as “secret Christians”. This wasn’t what Jesus preached. In fact, many of the preachers that I have observed privately are really not much different. Jesus was vocal, putting on healing demonstrations. Jesus cast out demons. Where are the demons now? Did they just go home after Jesus left us? Most of us know that so-called demonic possession is really a case of psychiatric distress.
There seems to be this indifference amongst the Christian members. The preacher can stress the importance of witnessing, but most of them never change. Don’t actions/inactions speak louder than words? If they really believed in the demands of their Lord, why aren’t they voraciously spreading the word? I argue that there may be a disconnection between what they actually believe, and what they want to believe. It can’t just be a case of laziness. Perhaps, they just don’t understand the urgency because of their privileged circumstances. Many Christians may think that others will take care of the witnessing for them, but they are still saved since they proclaimed Christ as savior. I still think that they are living in disobedience, since Jesus made it clear that they are to witness to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). This isn’t a suggestion, but Christians live according to their own needs and wants just like the rest of us. If this doesn’t speak volumes than I don’t know what does.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
God just isn't worth worshipping
It’s been well stated by the likes of The A-Unicornist that the only thing worse than a god that doesn’t exist is a god that might as well not exist. I would like to look at this from yet a different angle and suggest that god just isn’t worth worshipping regardless if he exists or not. I’m going to look at this from a human perspective because that happens to be the only perspective available to me. I can’t very well step into god’s shoes and look at it from his perspective. If he exists, he already knows that good and well. I’m simply going to use the brain that he supposedly gave me to assess his worthiness as a deity that deserves worship. To do this, I’m going to ask some simple questions.
First, I have to ask is a god that kills, or at least functions as an accomplice, my fellow humans worthy of my worship? I don’t think so. He lacks any respect for the species that I call my own. Throughout history, he has shown time and time again that he holds a total disregard for our species. We can look at natural disasters as a prime example. If he has omnipotence, he is capable of controlling the weather. Some Christians pray for rain, suggesting that he can turn the weather on and off as he so pleases. Yet, it goes without saying that untold numbers have died as the result of devastating tsunamis, tornados, earthquakes and many others natural disasters.
When looking at the Bible, assuming that it has any historical merit whatsoever, we find that god doesn’t hold any punches. Infants, children and women are subject to his unrestricted wrath. How can a god expect humans to respect him if he lacks any sort of respect for our species? If he is willing to destroy children, he is equally willing to destroy you at any given moment.
In many ways, god seems more like the devil than the devil. God is the one who controls everything; Satan just sits in the background and occasionally whispers diabolical thoughts into our ears. God has killed more people directly than Satan ever thought about. I can’t help but think that Satan is down there, wherever that is, eating a bag of popcorn and watching god wipe out entire civilizations. He has to be gods biggest fan. I mean just look at what god does to children. He allows African children to starve to death, he aborts babies via miscarriage, he gives children terminal cancer and the list goes on and on. God is certainly the source of unbridled suffering because he’s the one who holds all the power. The innocent depend on him to save them from the wrath of the wicked but help rarely comes. We could take the tornado that devastated Joplin, Missouri recently as a example.
The fact that god doesn’t take care of children was one of the main reasons I began my de-conversion process. There was no point in praying for others, or my own needs, when he refuses to prevent the suffering of children. It simply made no sense to pray for my petty problems when god allowed children to die of malnutrition, disease, devastation of war and natural disasters. I just do not find this god appealing or worthy of my worship. Prayer is the main way Christians communicate with god, and it became a frivolous undertaking.
First, I have to ask is a god that kills, or at least functions as an accomplice, my fellow humans worthy of my worship? I don’t think so. He lacks any respect for the species that I call my own. Throughout history, he has shown time and time again that he holds a total disregard for our species. We can look at natural disasters as a prime example. If he has omnipotence, he is capable of controlling the weather. Some Christians pray for rain, suggesting that he can turn the weather on and off as he so pleases. Yet, it goes without saying that untold numbers have died as the result of devastating tsunamis, tornados, earthquakes and many others natural disasters.
When looking at the Bible, assuming that it has any historical merit whatsoever, we find that god doesn’t hold any punches. Infants, children and women are subject to his unrestricted wrath. How can a god expect humans to respect him if he lacks any sort of respect for our species? If he is willing to destroy children, he is equally willing to destroy you at any given moment.
In many ways, god seems more like the devil than the devil. God is the one who controls everything; Satan just sits in the background and occasionally whispers diabolical thoughts into our ears. God has killed more people directly than Satan ever thought about. I can’t help but think that Satan is down there, wherever that is, eating a bag of popcorn and watching god wipe out entire civilizations. He has to be gods biggest fan. I mean just look at what god does to children. He allows African children to starve to death, he aborts babies via miscarriage, he gives children terminal cancer and the list goes on and on. God is certainly the source of unbridled suffering because he’s the one who holds all the power. The innocent depend on him to save them from the wrath of the wicked but help rarely comes. We could take the tornado that devastated Joplin, Missouri recently as a example.
The fact that god doesn’t take care of children was one of the main reasons I began my de-conversion process. There was no point in praying for others, or my own needs, when he refuses to prevent the suffering of children. It simply made no sense to pray for my petty problems when god allowed children to die of malnutrition, disease, devastation of war and natural disasters. I just do not find this god appealing or worthy of my worship. Prayer is the main way Christians communicate with god, and it became a frivolous undertaking.
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