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.
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