On Atheism
The last time I posted on the question of a god, I was extremely undecided as to my own stance. Since then, however, I've come down much more solidly on the atheist side of things, often quite strongly and verbally so -- witness me calling the existence of a sentient, all-powerful deity "little short of ludicrous".
There are a few reasons for this change. The obvious one is that, since I cannot agree with the existence of a god as most commonly expressed, I am effectively an atheist. There is, however, a more philosophical reason why I've deliberately made this change.
Whatever my beliefs, I am confident at least that I disagree with the Judeo-Christian conception of a god. However, I worry that many people, having been brought up in the fairly heavily religious culture that I discussed previously, tend to just accept the idea of an existence of a god as a universal constant, whether intentionally or otherwise. They just assume that all civilized or reasonable people share the basic framework of their beliefs. I, personally, feel that it is extremely healthy for such people to have it almost shoved in their face that not everyone agrees with them. I think the society as a whole needs to be faced with the idea of reasonable, intelligent people, who honestly believe the prevailing ideas are mistaken. We can't, nor do we seek to, prove that we are right, nor even to persuade anyone to atheism. All I ask for, and I suspect many atheists agree, is more general recognition that people of our beliefs do exist, and won't be converted. Recognition that whatever you belief about god, you are entitled to that belief, but it is merely a belief, not The Truth, and that they can't necessarily assume anyone agrees with them. This recognition, it seems to me, (again, see the linked post), is far underrepresented in our society, and it is to that end that I sometimes will attempt to force it in peoples' faces, to a degree, that I am in fact an atheist, and do emphatically, but also reasonably and calmly, disagree with the prevailing notions.
2 Comments:
hehe now that's a a bit of a rant.
I'll say that I agree with you that people who have been brought up in a certain faith and are totally unquestioning should have a bit of a wake up call (or have it "shoved in their faces" hehe). It is healthy, and it makes you think.
But some food for thought:
Have you ever wondered what you would believe if you had been brought up differently? In an extremely religious household, for instance. I have. Who's to say we're right? I mean, its human to look for answers, isn't it? You and I do it too, just not in the supernatural. In the logical.
Even if there is no God, what's the harm in believing there is one?
Well, I guess there is a certain lunacy to the idea of spending time subjecting yourself to something that doesn't exist. I get that. I mean, my church has a ton of crazy traditions and I sometimes wonder where the hell people think where all the bowing and floor kissing (don't ask) and crossing themselves is going to get them.
But I also know people who've gotten a ton of strength from their religion, people who *need* it.
So yes, it sucks that people are sort of conditioned into their beliefs, but if your beliefs have that much to do with your environment, then we are too.
Another way of thinking of religion is that its a way for people to relate to what they think is increadibly cool, like the universe or something, by personnifying it. But I agree with you that it can go too far sometimes. Way too far.
If religion interferes with politics I am totally against it. But I think there's something to say for letting people do their own thing, even if you seriously disagree. Conversian is conversian... crusades or not. Anyway, don't put too much effort into messing with people's heads who won't take in a word you say. They may be okay with having beliefs that are not based on anything logical, even irrational ones. I love everything rational, but most people don't and that may be just fine. There's nothing wrong with a little bit of head in the clouds every now and then, right? (and to get philisophical, who knows whether what we call 'logic' is just a sort of filing system made to fit the world around us in our heads, and not a pattern that everything conforms to, how could we know... hehe)
I know I don't have you even a little bit convinced here :), but you know that I at least *want* to believe in God (and free will and lots of other things) whether or not I actually do. So I guess I'm a little bit biased. Maybe we all are. I guess what I mean is this: just because you don't belong to any religion, doesn't mean you're neutral, or objective.
Plus, leaving people to their own thoughts keeps the peace. And you know I'm all about the peace, love, and pasta. mmm. Who knows, maybe I just fear the wrath of unsettled convictions...
Now that was a major rant. Perhaps not sequentially logical, but I tried. It's one in the morning.
And don't worry, I'm still 'on your side', just... pondering. That's all. -Alex
I think I actually agree with most of your sentiments, although it may not have come across in that unedited stream-of-ranting that made up my original post :)
I recognize the strength that religion provides for many people, the good that it is capable of doing. Whether or not there is a god, I see little or nothing wrong with people believing what they will, so long as they do not try to force those beliefs on me. I hope that it didn't come across that I am attempting to persuade people to become atheists, because that is not my goal. If someone asks, I am happy to explain the rationale (such as there is - even atheism is a sort of faith) for my beliefs, but for the most part, I ask only that people recognize that there are people who disagree with them, people who have given the issues thought, and who won't be easily (if at all) persuaded.
Ideally, for me, this recognition would accompany an understanding that no one knows the truth for sure, and thus the possibility that any or (more likely, to my mind) all of us may be wrong. To be fair, though, as someone who has never really been exposed to a strongly religious culture, I have to consider the possibility that truly strong faith cannot coexist with a belief that you may be wrong. I can't really know.
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