Are you a Christian? Let's assume you are. What does that mean to you? What is it that you think that means? Is it merely a mild faith in Jesus and the Bible? Or does it encompass your life, your very fabric of your existence? These questions are very important to me, as they give me insight to the thinking of a religious person. Can one become simply a culturally passive religious person? Do you attend church only to see your family and friends? Why is it that one can take scripture and apply to our lives, say we believe in Jesus, and not think about it?
I truly wonder how many Christians, or any faithheads, have actually studied other viewpoints. One wouldn't label him/herself a Democrat without knowledge of their opinions and beliefs. So why would you label yourself a Christian without a knowledge of your backgrounds? We can discuss the horrible texts of the Old Testament, or the millions of lives lost in the name of Christ, but I think that misses the point. I am much more curious about your experience with your beliefs.
Supernatural deities that have the ability to perform any task at any time would surely provide His followers with some sort of insight or knowledge, wouldn't he? If you gain nothing from the belief, then I truly wonder what the point of it all is. Is what you feel real in every sense of the word? Are these 'religious experiences' merely delusions of the mind? How does a Christian explain the 'feelings' that Muslims get? Or Jews? How about the Greek people? Why can you dismiss their encounters with their Gods so easily and then expect me to subscribe to your claims? It is easy to show you that you're dismissing the same exact thing you expect others to respect.
Supernatural beings could hypothetically come in and change our lives at any moment. I understand the rationalizations for why this doesn't constantly occur, but is that fair to you? I would consider myself to be extremely fortunate. I know of thousands, perhaps millions of people that aren't as fortunate as you and I. However, as much as I feel lucky, I don't attribute that good luck to God. Just as there are thousands that aren't as fortunate as myself, I'm not as fortunate as many others. When a football star catches a touchdown pass, he kneels down and praises God. But sitting on that other bench, there is another man who probably has an equal faith in God. Why didn't he drop the pass? Both men are pulling God in opposite directions, so how does he pick who deserves it? It cannot possibly be based upon past moral decisions, as immoral people often succeed more than moral ones. It cannot be their faith, as both are equal. You can now come up with an irrational excuse for God and his actions; but that is merely a rationalization. The truth is that you cannot explain it; so you dismiss or rationalize. But both these options are not helpful to understanding, are they?
But that cultural attraction is still there; that desire to worship. I don't believe that desire is pre-programmed into us, software that God installs. I think it is simply a culture that is massively appealing. Let us all attend Church, see Jimmy and Suzy, and be forgiven for the atrocities committed during the week. That sort of delusional is massively appealing. There is so much that religion offers but so very little that it delivers. Religious people create beliefs in their head to explain the world around them; but these beliefs are not facts or even theories with any evidence. The texts offered to us from ‘divine beings’ are nothing more than a collection of first century writings slapped together with gold-leaf paper.
Ignorance will provide us with happiness. Humans desire happiness, and if turning a blind eye to rationally and science is what you call happiness, then good for you. Keep on calling the atheists idiots, attend your church, and pray to God. But if you want to know what the truth is; you need to dive headfirst into knowledge. I'm not saying that all people who study evolution, the Old Testament and atheist viewpoints will become atheists. But a dip into the pool of knowledge will help you on your one path to the truth.
After all, isn’t the truth so much more beautiful and wonderful than persisting in delusional beliefs? Isn't it enough for you to see or do something truly incredible and just appreciate it? I’ll leave this blog with a quote from Richard Dawkins:
“If we are to ever unweave the rainbow, it will not be any less majestic.”
December 20, 2008
November 30, 2008
God... insecure?
Why is God so insecure? This all-knowing, all-powerful can do anything to his Universe at any time. He could create a new galaxy or end suffering. Why does he require you that you worship him?
The Bible speaks endlessly of worship. In fact, God places worship at the top of the commandments. Obviously, he sees your worship of him as absolutely necessary. It's imperative that you worship God. But why does he need this? Why does God need his little creations spending their lives to building churches, saying prayers, and reading the Bible? It seems as if God is VERY insecure about his worthiness. I mean if I created the Universe in 6 days, I'd be pretty proud of myself. I'd merely sit back and watch the planet grow and sip a cold drink. But that is not good enough for God. He's massively insecure. Of all people to have such a big ego problem, God shouldn't be it. He is supposed to be the answer to life. I am sure there is nothing that a mere human could provide to a being like God, so what does the worship actually do for God? Does he keep a list of positive comments so that he can read them if he's ever feeling down in the dumps?
To top this off, God has an odd way to admit people into Heaven. He will let you into Heaven for a belief in Him, and damn you to Hell for non-belief. Really? Are those actions the type of a just and loving God? Perhaps the most perverted doctrine of Christianity are the requirements for entering Heaven. You need to have believed in God, asked for forgiveness, and not denied Him.
That is all.
You could have killed six million Jews, been a convicted rapist, or even a child molester. But he'll throw you the keys to Heaven as long as you ask for forgiveness as long as you mean it. Is that really all there is to it? He would let an immoral Christian into Heaven and then deny the same rights to a moral atheist. Sorry Christians, but that is just fucked up. This sort of behavior isn't a good thing to add to a resume for a just and caring God, is it? You provide no evidence for your existence, give us a book full of errors, and then have the nerve to murder thousands of your 'children' everyday. There is so much in this world we cannot change. Religion wants to take your free will and ability to think critically too.
The Bible speaks endlessly of worship. In fact, God places worship at the top of the commandments. Obviously, he sees your worship of him as absolutely necessary. It's imperative that you worship God. But why does he need this? Why does God need his little creations spending their lives to building churches, saying prayers, and reading the Bible? It seems as if God is VERY insecure about his worthiness. I mean if I created the Universe in 6 days, I'd be pretty proud of myself. I'd merely sit back and watch the planet grow and sip a cold drink. But that is not good enough for God. He's massively insecure. Of all people to have such a big ego problem, God shouldn't be it. He is supposed to be the answer to life. I am sure there is nothing that a mere human could provide to a being like God, so what does the worship actually do for God? Does he keep a list of positive comments so that he can read them if he's ever feeling down in the dumps?
To top this off, God has an odd way to admit people into Heaven. He will let you into Heaven for a belief in Him, and damn you to Hell for non-belief. Really? Are those actions the type of a just and loving God? Perhaps the most perverted doctrine of Christianity are the requirements for entering Heaven. You need to have believed in God, asked for forgiveness, and not denied Him.
That is all.
You could have killed six million Jews, been a convicted rapist, or even a child molester. But he'll throw you the keys to Heaven as long as you ask for forgiveness as long as you mean it. Is that really all there is to it? He would let an immoral Christian into Heaven and then deny the same rights to a moral atheist. Sorry Christians, but that is just fucked up. This sort of behavior isn't a good thing to add to a resume for a just and caring God, is it? You provide no evidence for your existence, give us a book full of errors, and then have the nerve to murder thousands of your 'children' everyday. There is so much in this world we cannot change. Religion wants to take your free will and ability to think critically too.
Free Will
After debating with many theists I have heard tons of arguments. Many theists bring excellent points to the cultural affects of religion and one main concept; free will. I never had a solid response for the concept of free will. I'm an atheist, and all the theists tell me that it's a personal choice to do so. But to me the concept of free will is perverted in the Biblical sense. I'd like to address a few points. Please keep in mind that all these ideas are under the basis that the Christian God is real and the concept of Hell is real. (Note: nearly all religions have this same belief system. One wonders how many Hells exist. Is there a Hindu hell, a Muslim hell, a Christian hell?)
What is free will? I looked it up. Free will is the ability to exercise control over your actions and decisions. In other words, you have the free will to scream a curse word in public. Nobody could stop you from doing that. The punishment for those actions and the silliness of it would probably prevent you from doing it however. But that is the idea that free will exists. At any time, you can make a decision with regards to everything you control. You can intentionally cut your hand, drop a box on your foot or even crash your car. Of course these decisions are irrational and pointless. They would be painful and serve no purpose at all. But free will extends beyond just physical actions. I can choose to believe that Jesus was born a virgin. I can choose to believe that the world is 6,000 years old. These decisions would not be judged at all. In fact, they would be accepted in our culture. But the ideas presented in the Bible about free will are perverted. In terms of the Bible, there is not free will, but rather 'conditional will'.
The punishments for non-belief that are presented in the Bible are clear. If you don't believe, in blind faith, that Jesus died for your sins, you go to Hell. There is no way around that. One might wonder why a just, loving, caring entity would send his children to Hell for such a belief. Certainly he doesn't send us to Hell for trivial matters. I mean, you have to mess up pretty bad to be sent for eternal suffering. Forever, I think, is a long time. So if you don't believe that Jesus died for your sins, I'm sent to Hell forever. In this sense, free will is very perverted. How can one make a rational decision when the consequences are so clear? If I were to tell you that you can either believe in pink unicorns or I'm going to burn your flesh off your body, what you would you tell me? Would you rationally think there are no pink unicorns and stand up to me? I'm going to burn your body. Most would TELL me that pink unicorns are real, but actually believe something different. God has given us the same option. You either believe in Jesus and the Bible or he's going to send you to Hell forever. What kind of option is that? That's not faith, that is torture. Just as you don't really have faith in the pink unicorns, your faith in God is merely on the condition that you're going to Heaven.
How selfish and petty is that?
How is it possible that Christians tell me I have free will? There is nothing free about the decision. You have two options. Believe, in a harmless sense, that Jesus died for you. Or, you can deny all of this and be damned to Hell. I cannot comprehend what kind of sick entity God is. Any human that presented this choice to another would be seen as sick, cruel, and unfair.
Why is it that you have no problem believing in God? I will tell you why. It has been made so easy! Our entire culture is based upon Christianity. You can attend a Church on Sunday, be forgiven for your sins and then believe that you're going to live forever in Heaven. That is amazingly comforting. If I believed, I have no doubt that is where my thoughts would end. There is no need to believe anything else. God is going to save me, I'm going to Heaven. Awesome. Most people don't want to believe in anything else. They turn their eyes from the truth and deny science. I honestly believe that they want to believe all this based on their selfish ambitions, not true faith.
But it's not about the comfort, is it? It doesn't end there. To me, the truth matters. I can understand that many people don't care. They have a mental list of things to do, and the worship of God is simply a box to check on my path to eternal bliss in Heaven. I cannot make any sense of this perversion.
Aren't you interested in the truth? Doesn't it bother you that you may be wrong? Can one live the fact that God isn't real? Would it ruin your life? Or simply your selfish ambitions of eternal life?
What is free will? I looked it up. Free will is the ability to exercise control over your actions and decisions. In other words, you have the free will to scream a curse word in public. Nobody could stop you from doing that. The punishment for those actions and the silliness of it would probably prevent you from doing it however. But that is the idea that free will exists. At any time, you can make a decision with regards to everything you control. You can intentionally cut your hand, drop a box on your foot or even crash your car. Of course these decisions are irrational and pointless. They would be painful and serve no purpose at all. But free will extends beyond just physical actions. I can choose to believe that Jesus was born a virgin. I can choose to believe that the world is 6,000 years old. These decisions would not be judged at all. In fact, they would be accepted in our culture. But the ideas presented in the Bible about free will are perverted. In terms of the Bible, there is not free will, but rather 'conditional will'.
The punishments for non-belief that are presented in the Bible are clear. If you don't believe, in blind faith, that Jesus died for your sins, you go to Hell. There is no way around that. One might wonder why a just, loving, caring entity would send his children to Hell for such a belief. Certainly he doesn't send us to Hell for trivial matters. I mean, you have to mess up pretty bad to be sent for eternal suffering. Forever, I think, is a long time. So if you don't believe that Jesus died for your sins, I'm sent to Hell forever. In this sense, free will is very perverted. How can one make a rational decision when the consequences are so clear? If I were to tell you that you can either believe in pink unicorns or I'm going to burn your flesh off your body, what you would you tell me? Would you rationally think there are no pink unicorns and stand up to me? I'm going to burn your body. Most would TELL me that pink unicorns are real, but actually believe something different. God has given us the same option. You either believe in Jesus and the Bible or he's going to send you to Hell forever. What kind of option is that? That's not faith, that is torture. Just as you don't really have faith in the pink unicorns, your faith in God is merely on the condition that you're going to Heaven.
How selfish and petty is that?
How is it possible that Christians tell me I have free will? There is nothing free about the decision. You have two options. Believe, in a harmless sense, that Jesus died for you. Or, you can deny all of this and be damned to Hell. I cannot comprehend what kind of sick entity God is. Any human that presented this choice to another would be seen as sick, cruel, and unfair.
Why is it that you have no problem believing in God? I will tell you why. It has been made so easy! Our entire culture is based upon Christianity. You can attend a Church on Sunday, be forgiven for your sins and then believe that you're going to live forever in Heaven. That is amazingly comforting. If I believed, I have no doubt that is where my thoughts would end. There is no need to believe anything else. God is going to save me, I'm going to Heaven. Awesome. Most people don't want to believe in anything else. They turn their eyes from the truth and deny science. I honestly believe that they want to believe all this based on their selfish ambitions, not true faith.
But it's not about the comfort, is it? It doesn't end there. To me, the truth matters. I can understand that many people don't care. They have a mental list of things to do, and the worship of God is simply a box to check on my path to eternal bliss in Heaven. I cannot make any sense of this perversion.
Aren't you interested in the truth? Doesn't it bother you that you may be wrong? Can one live the fact that God isn't real? Would it ruin your life? Or simply your selfish ambitions of eternal life?
What is God?
God. It's such a powerful word. It can evoke many visualizations for different people. The Greek saw God in a polytheistic light; many entities controlling their world. The Abrahamic religions see God as only one; the almighty. Deists see God as a force that is separate from this planet.
With all these definitions for the same word, how does one nail down one definition? It's not a simple task. Often theists and atheists have debates about the existence of God and fail to come to a understanding about the definition in the beginning. These debates never end in any sort of agreement, as one debates about Sharpies and the other speaks of pencils. All of my blogs come with a similar definition. I define God as an all-powerful, all-knowing creator. God is actively engaged in our universe and posses a physical location. Any entity that doesn't fit into that definition can still be discussed, but not with the word God. Other definitions should include words like 'celestial being' 'supreme being'. These beings, real or not, do not require worship nor a discussion. If that sort of creator is real, then the points discussed are irrelevant. They don't interfere with our universe, don't answer prayers, care about us, or perform miracles. If you believe that this type of creator is the one then good for you. But I won't discuss this entity in my blogs. It's simply pointless to discuss something that will not control or change our planet. We might as well discuss the weather conditions on Pluto.
With this definition in mind, I will speak about one version of God in particular; the Christian God. I might dive into Judaism or Islam, but in general I will discuss the Christian God. Now that I've laid out a definition, I don't expect comments about the divine nature of anything other than this God in mind. Other beings don't warrant a discussion, real or not.
With all these definitions for the same word, how does one nail down one definition? It's not a simple task. Often theists and atheists have debates about the existence of God and fail to come to a understanding about the definition in the beginning. These debates never end in any sort of agreement, as one debates about Sharpies and the other speaks of pencils. All of my blogs come with a similar definition. I define God as an all-powerful, all-knowing creator. God is actively engaged in our universe and posses a physical location. Any entity that doesn't fit into that definition can still be discussed, but not with the word God. Other definitions should include words like 'celestial being' 'supreme being'. These beings, real or not, do not require worship nor a discussion. If that sort of creator is real, then the points discussed are irrelevant. They don't interfere with our universe, don't answer prayers, care about us, or perform miracles. If you believe that this type of creator is the one then good for you. But I won't discuss this entity in my blogs. It's simply pointless to discuss something that will not control or change our planet. We might as well discuss the weather conditions on Pluto.
With this definition in mind, I will speak about one version of God in particular; the Christian God. I might dive into Judaism or Islam, but in general I will discuss the Christian God. Now that I've laid out a definition, I don't expect comments about the divine nature of anything other than this God in mind. Other beings don't warrant a discussion, real or not.
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