Believe something we are told. A billboard touting religion, any religion, going by my slowing Honda, implied that the key to personal fulfillment and happiness is a belief in God. An idea that would have made Martin Luther’s head explode. Faith is good for ya’, like pilates or low fat yogurt. Modern media’s all inter-faith councils (those quirky clergymen, usually represented by a Rabbi, Priest, and Pastor, that appear on the morning shows to explain the spiritual vantage of world events) want us just to believe in God. Choosing a creed becomes as easy as a trip to the mall. Does having a spiritual life necessarily equal happiness?
So often I (and other long-suffering atheists) am asked why not be faithful in case there is a god and if there isn’t than you’ve lost nothing. To these people I say what if I pick the wrong one? What benefit is there to worshipping the wrong god? Of all of the world religions to choose, the risk I choose wrong is great. You get to Judgment Day and ah shit! it’s Allah, and he’s pissed.
Forcing a belief out of fear of Hell and Damnation seems like the dishonest way to convert new followers. Perhaps one should come of a belief through being inspired by the principles or example of your adherents. More likely you have been brain-washed by parents or recruited during a time of duress, like an illness or depression. I feel few have come to believe through reason and clear judgment.
Are they happier? Better false hope than a critical assessment of the situation. There is a study which suggests that the social connectedness of a religion keeps the flock happy. This makes sense because people who feel like they belong tend to be more secure. As ostracized as atheists are in many parts of the world, it is no wonder we feel uneasy. Another psychological study suggested that this phenomenon of the happier faithful is due to the environment in which those studied live. The religious appear be happier than their faithless neighbors only if the society to which they belong puts a high value on that religion.http://www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2012/04/are-religious-people-happier-atheists
But you’ve got to be able to swallow bullshit by the ladleful: papal infallibility, Tefillin, 144,000 who get to go to Heaven, magic underwear, men in the Bible lived for centuries (Methuselah being the longest living for 969 years!), and I could go on and on about each and many more for 969 years. This is why we have so many half-hearted worshipers, Christmas Christians and Hanukkah Jews, armchair believers of any faith. Too much of what is in their holy book is unpalatable and only by selective presentation can the clergy churn up the good feelings.
I often wonder about the first advocates to any faith. Without a support system, other follows or being brain washed by parents, they really had to make that leap of faith. When Joseph Smith said he had gold tablets which only he could see and interpret, most people’s reaction would be, “What happened now? Get the fuck out of here!”
Those of the interfaith council want you to pray more. But prayer must be nothing better than a fruitless, spiritual exercise given the concept of God’s will be done. He has the plan and knows better than me. If he’s all powerful, all-knowing, who am I to sway Him? I say He because the major religions have assigned Him a penis. For further evidence no woman creator would sit by and let these misogynistic pricks run women into the ground.
The standard prayer form:
Dear Lord,
Thank you, thank you, and thank you infinity!
Bless Aunt So&So and Uncle Such&Such.
Please! Please! Please!
Your will be done. Amen.
Perhaps He needs to be reminded because God obviously forgets to check in down here, and the results of prayer are spotty at best. Sometimes it works, sometimes does not. God always has an excuse, and his faithful are always ready to give him an out for we mere mortals have not been clued in on God’s plan. Horrific calamities, even those carried out by His earthly representatives, are beyond us to understand. I would still have to wonder what part of his plan was to allow Catholic priests to sexually abuse boys attending the Antonio Provolo Institute for the Deaf, in Verona, Italy for three decades. Was it a test of the boys’ faith to be repeatedly raped by His representatives while their attempts to get help went unanswered? Did all those boys forget to pray?
In one of many studies of this genre appeared in the American Heart Journal, people with heart conditions were prayed for by three groups of Christians. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/12082681/ns/health-heart_health/t/power-prayer-flunks-unusual-test/ Not only did the prayers do no good, but the people who knew they were being prayed for suffered a higher rate of complications from the surgery. Researchers were at a loss to explain the difference. If prayer truly worked, the test group would have recovered at a much faster rate than control heart patients who received no special missives.
Anything good that happens is God’s blessing or even a miracle; bad things constitute the hand of the Devil, God’s wrath or at the very least, His will be done. Faith opens a person up to fraud. With our eyes on heaven’s reward we are tapped of money, become fodder for tricksters and perverts, and tools for politician and military recruiters.
Believe something is the mantra of the new watered-down faith. The new generation picks and chooses the tenets of faith which are appealing, ignoring the others. When pressed about the conundrum of child in remotest Africa innocent who dies never hearing the word of Christ, my mother admitted to me that she believes there are other ways to get to Heaven. But I was apt to point out, “That’s not what your Bible says. You are only saved by Christ and Christ alone.”
Half-hearted armchair Christians better hope there is no God. They will be frying right next to me come Judgment Day.
Studies show a psychological need to believe in God, perhaps with a derived evolutionary benefit (take that you anti-Darwinists!) to drive the social connections which helped our ancestors to survive. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2010/12/believe.aspx This might also explain why ancient mankind developed a multitude of locally grown belief systems. Like Walmart and Target, the more adept religions conquered and swallowed up the competition and became bigger and bigger. Today we although the people of the same religion splinter and fight over dogma, we have relatively few religions for far more people.
I find people do more fashioning of their religion nowadays. This customization of belief seems to be a relatively new phenomenon resultant from the modern luxury of democracy and religious freedom. In the old days, even the way a person makes the sign of the cross could end a person’s life. The modern theist in most societies can pick their own morals, fashion sins to suit themselves and still have another set of standards for everyone else. I hope it’s a sign of fading dogma, but alas, I fear not.
It’s supposed to be all or nothing. Filled with their forthright pride, the flock seems quite ready to damn you for jay-walking while over-looking their own vehicular homicide. Forgiveness for the asking washes away their transgressions clean until the next time. These hypocrites forget that there are strict guidelines for the faithful. The Bible says even thinking the act constitutes the sin (2 Corinthians 10:5, Matthew 5:28).
Men travelled hundreds of miles, risking their lives to fight wars for the one true god. Even those adherents to Christ tore each other apart across centuries over the way He was worshipped. Do you think you can just ignore God’s word and allow everyone with a casual belief entry into Heaven? Blasphemer! When the extent of your belief only comprises the occasional watching of Joel Osteen, you are just as godless as me. So get out there and show us your adherence to the word. Stone disobedient children. Women keep quiet in church. Tithe 10% before taxes. Stop fantasizing about Maxim magazine models (cancel your subscription!).
Side note:
When I told my mother was an atheist she unexpectedly corrected me. “You still believe in God.” Basic belief in something was better than nothing. It’s a common modern belief whereas in the days of yore even holding one misaligned tenet of belief was enough to run a sword through what amounted to a heretic.
The new culture of acceptance by faith becomes a non-denominational multi-cultural truce which goes against almost every major religion’s (the Bible says you can only be saved through Christ by example). Perhaps this is progress, this watered-down creed which lends itself to wider social acceptance though it leads to an apathy concerning atrocities and evil deeds performed by any touting “faith”.
Not compelled to wear my disbelief on my sleeve, I do not shove my belief up noses and in faces. This being what I loathe in Christians which ultimately is about show than any earnest concern for another’s soul. I willingly identify myself as godless, when it is relevant, or someone starts hocking Jesus to me.
I am guilty of attending the Rally for Reason. I believe staunchly in my right not to practice a faith and to be treated equally. We visited congressional staffers to let them know we do exist in great numbers. Not that I feel entitled or especially victimized, despite being a member of the most hated community by a recent University of Minnesota survey – worse than homosexuals or Muslims. It has gotten so bad that fundamentalists have been using social media to call for the killing of atheists. It is understandable since many ministers in pulpits bombard their congregations with stories of scary nonbelievers out to get them. So much for that Christian love.
The specter of a giant godless organization out to destroy their belief is a great motivator, though not true. Squirrels are easier to herd than atheists. One voices an opinion and three others step up to tear it down.
So often I (and other long-suffering atheists) am asked why not be faithful in case there is a god and if there isn’t than you’ve lost nothing. To these people I say what if I pick the wrong one? What benefit is there to worshipping the wrong god? Of all of the world religions to choose, the risk I choose wrong is great. You get to Judgment Day and ah shit! it’s Allah, and he’s pissed.
Forcing a belief out of fear of Hell and Damnation seems like the dishonest way to convert new followers. Perhaps one should come of a belief through being inspired by the principles or example of your adherents. More likely you have been brain-washed by parents or recruited during a time of duress, like an illness or depression. I feel few have come to believe through reason and clear judgment.
Are they happier? Better false hope than a critical assessment of the situation. There is a study which suggests that the social connectedness of a religion keeps the flock happy. This makes sense because people who feel like they belong tend to be more secure. As ostracized as atheists are in many parts of the world, it is no wonder we feel uneasy. Another psychological study suggested that this phenomenon of the happier faithful is due to the environment in which those studied live. The religious appear be happier than their faithless neighbors only if the society to which they belong puts a high value on that religion.http://www.minnpost.com/second-opinion/2012/04/are-religious-people-happier-atheists
But you’ve got to be able to swallow bullshit by the ladleful: papal infallibility, Tefillin, 144,000 who get to go to Heaven, magic underwear, men in the Bible lived for centuries (Methuselah being the longest living for 969 years!), and I could go on and on about each and many more for 969 years. This is why we have so many half-hearted worshipers, Christmas Christians and Hanukkah Jews, armchair believers of any faith. Too much of what is in their holy book is unpalatable and only by selective presentation can the clergy churn up the good feelings.
I often wonder about the first advocates to any faith. Without a support system, other follows or being brain washed by parents, they really had to make that leap of faith. When Joseph Smith said he had gold tablets which only he could see and interpret, most people’s reaction would be, “What happened now? Get the fuck out of here!”
Those of the interfaith council want you to pray more. But prayer must be nothing better than a fruitless, spiritual exercise given the concept of God’s will be done. He has the plan and knows better than me. If he’s all powerful, all-knowing, who am I to sway Him? I say He because the major religions have assigned Him a penis. For further evidence no woman creator would sit by and let these misogynistic pricks run women into the ground.
The standard prayer form:
Dear Lord,
Thank you, thank you, and thank you infinity!
Bless Aunt So&So and Uncle Such&Such.
Please! Please! Please!
Your will be done. Amen.
Perhaps He needs to be reminded because God obviously forgets to check in down here, and the results of prayer are spotty at best. Sometimes it works, sometimes does not. God always has an excuse, and his faithful are always ready to give him an out for we mere mortals have not been clued in on God’s plan. Horrific calamities, even those carried out by His earthly representatives, are beyond us to understand. I would still have to wonder what part of his plan was to allow Catholic priests to sexually abuse boys attending the Antonio Provolo Institute for the Deaf, in Verona, Italy for three decades. Was it a test of the boys’ faith to be repeatedly raped by His representatives while their attempts to get help went unanswered? Did all those boys forget to pray?
In one of many studies of this genre appeared in the American Heart Journal, people with heart conditions were prayed for by three groups of Christians. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/12082681/ns/health-heart_health/t/power-prayer-flunks-unusual-test/ Not only did the prayers do no good, but the people who knew they were being prayed for suffered a higher rate of complications from the surgery. Researchers were at a loss to explain the difference. If prayer truly worked, the test group would have recovered at a much faster rate than control heart patients who received no special missives.
Anything good that happens is God’s blessing or even a miracle; bad things constitute the hand of the Devil, God’s wrath or at the very least, His will be done. Faith opens a person up to fraud. With our eyes on heaven’s reward we are tapped of money, become fodder for tricksters and perverts, and tools for politician and military recruiters.
Believe something is the mantra of the new watered-down faith. The new generation picks and chooses the tenets of faith which are appealing, ignoring the others. When pressed about the conundrum of child in remotest Africa innocent who dies never hearing the word of Christ, my mother admitted to me that she believes there are other ways to get to Heaven. But I was apt to point out, “That’s not what your Bible says. You are only saved by Christ and Christ alone.”
Half-hearted armchair Christians better hope there is no God. They will be frying right next to me come Judgment Day.
Studies show a psychological need to believe in God, perhaps with a derived evolutionary benefit (take that you anti-Darwinists!) to drive the social connections which helped our ancestors to survive. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2010/12/believe.aspx This might also explain why ancient mankind developed a multitude of locally grown belief systems. Like Walmart and Target, the more adept religions conquered and swallowed up the competition and became bigger and bigger. Today we although the people of the same religion splinter and fight over dogma, we have relatively few religions for far more people.
I find people do more fashioning of their religion nowadays. This customization of belief seems to be a relatively new phenomenon resultant from the modern luxury of democracy and religious freedom. In the old days, even the way a person makes the sign of the cross could end a person’s life. The modern theist in most societies can pick their own morals, fashion sins to suit themselves and still have another set of standards for everyone else. I hope it’s a sign of fading dogma, but alas, I fear not.
It’s supposed to be all or nothing. Filled with their forthright pride, the flock seems quite ready to damn you for jay-walking while over-looking their own vehicular homicide. Forgiveness for the asking washes away their transgressions clean until the next time. These hypocrites forget that there are strict guidelines for the faithful. The Bible says even thinking the act constitutes the sin (2 Corinthians 10:5, Matthew 5:28).
Men travelled hundreds of miles, risking their lives to fight wars for the one true god. Even those adherents to Christ tore each other apart across centuries over the way He was worshipped. Do you think you can just ignore God’s word and allow everyone with a casual belief entry into Heaven? Blasphemer! When the extent of your belief only comprises the occasional watching of Joel Osteen, you are just as godless as me. So get out there and show us your adherence to the word. Stone disobedient children. Women keep quiet in church. Tithe 10% before taxes. Stop fantasizing about Maxim magazine models (cancel your subscription!).
Side note:
When I told my mother was an atheist she unexpectedly corrected me. “You still believe in God.” Basic belief in something was better than nothing. It’s a common modern belief whereas in the days of yore even holding one misaligned tenet of belief was enough to run a sword through what amounted to a heretic.
The new culture of acceptance by faith becomes a non-denominational multi-cultural truce which goes against almost every major religion’s (the Bible says you can only be saved through Christ by example). Perhaps this is progress, this watered-down creed which lends itself to wider social acceptance though it leads to an apathy concerning atrocities and evil deeds performed by any touting “faith”.
Not compelled to wear my disbelief on my sleeve, I do not shove my belief up noses and in faces. This being what I loathe in Christians which ultimately is about show than any earnest concern for another’s soul. I willingly identify myself as godless, when it is relevant, or someone starts hocking Jesus to me.
I am guilty of attending the Rally for Reason. I believe staunchly in my right not to practice a faith and to be treated equally. We visited congressional staffers to let them know we do exist in great numbers. Not that I feel entitled or especially victimized, despite being a member of the most hated community by a recent University of Minnesota survey – worse than homosexuals or Muslims. It has gotten so bad that fundamentalists have been using social media to call for the killing of atheists. It is understandable since many ministers in pulpits bombard their congregations with stories of scary nonbelievers out to get them. So much for that Christian love.
The specter of a giant godless organization out to destroy their belief is a great motivator, though not true. Squirrels are easier to herd than atheists. One voices an opinion and three others step up to tear it down.