My Evolving Stance On Religion & God

Admittedly, I can be pretty tough on religion. For the most part, I think I've been fair in my treatment of it overall. Yes, I focus on the negative aspects about 90% of the time. This isn't a newspaper, so if you want balance find it elsewhere. There are plenty of apologists and supporters that can tell you about the good things that religion can bring to the table. Often though, they act as though the good that is done by the religious couldn't be done without the behest of an ancient book. I take major exception with that premise, as even a two or three year old child can feel when someone is in need of comfort. For that matter, there are less evolved primates that can feel sympathy and care for others. That's not where I'm going today though. I want to actually put some of my thoughts down on how religion can be a benefit without being a detriment. Of course, I realize, even before I forge ahead that I will likely aggravate both the believer and non-believer with what I have to say. That's OK. I feel like maybe I'm doing something right if that's the case! 

Perhaps it's time to put aside the miracles. I don't care how devout you are, there has to be that little voice in back of your mind saying "That didn't happen.". No, it's not the "debil" saying that, it's your common sense. There are more reasonable explanations. And among those explanations are.....someone made it up. The virgin birth is not mentioned in two of the gospels. I, personally, would think that would be a pretty big deal if I were writing an account of someone that I considered to be the son of god. A better explanation would be that the authors (and nobody is 100% sure of who they are) that did include it were fulfilling prophecy. I'm not going to start listing all of them, but since there are no credible accounts of miracles since, it's pretty safe to say that the miracles were probably made up or misinterpreted. A lone person such as Muhammad, Paul/Saul, Joseph Smith, etc seeing heaven and being told what to do by god could just as easily been a mental delusion or the effects of psycho-active drugs. It happens today all the time (UFO sightings, people saying Jesus appeared to them), but nobody gives them credence. Read it in a 2,000 year old book and suddenly it's the spot on truth! Let's not pretend that people were not using hallucinogens for religious ceremonies in the past. That's been happening all over the world for thousands of years and could very well be the basis for why Jesus said the kingdom of is within you. I certainly know that I have felt that connection much stronger in seeking "god" (I really hate using that term, but for the sake of understanding I will) apart from religion than I ever did when I was immersed in it. Most eastern religions also refer to god or heaven being inside of us and not an external place to be sought after. So, I guess in these areas I'm asking folks to consider that the books written thousands of years ago may contain quite a few exaggerations, inaccuracy, and perhaps some passages that need to be re-examined in the context of what is possible or mostly probable. 

What about the notion of defining the attributes of god? God is explained in the ancient texts of our most popular religions as a man. A man with very human attributes and what we would consider flaws if we were speaking of a human being. We are told god is all loving, yet he is unforgiving. We are told god knows endless grace, yet he is vengeful. Maybe, just maybe, god has all the attributes of man because that's exactly who created the account of what/who god is? Why would god have a sex? Why would god need to be full of vengeance and anger? Why would god need to be jealous? Not very god-like attributes are they? Sounds like you or I, doesn't it? If we let go and actually admit to ourselves that we have no idea who or what god is, we could unshackle our imaginations and allow ourselves to be truly in awe of what god is (if god exists). What a wonderful creation we have. What an awe inspiring universe we are a very small part of. Do we need to be so certain that we are the center of it all? Do we have to be so certain that a very human-like god is keeping an eye on everything as a sort of cosmic pit boss? How about seeing the watchful eye of god in nature? That we are evolving and nature takes care of its own by instilling survival skills that can adapt to different environments or stimulus? Philosopher Alan Watts says that god is everywhere and everything, so any harm you do to anything else, means you are hurting god. He also says, so brilliantly that "the only god we can cling to, is the idea of god". Watts means that we can't possibly know something that is by definition vastly superior to us, and also is us. You let go of the idea of god because god can't possibly be defined in any way that doesn't limit it. I am not certain either way if there is a god or not. I will say this; if there is a god, I am CERTAIN that I wouldn't know how to describe it. Anything that we say about god must be so weak that we do a disservice to the very notion of what an all-powerful entity is. It's a disgrace to describe god. The religious texts are very wanting in the description of god. Amazing and awesome are even inadequate if there truly is a creator, don't you think? 

The devil and hell have to go. Much of the Old Testament doesn't really deal with the idea of hell after death. That death is merely the end with no eternal torture. Depending on the OT translation, "hell" could mean several things from merely being non-existent to a separation from god. I've said a good bit on hell on this blog before and don't intend to repeat much other than this; an eternal hell is in direct opposition to a loving and forgiving god. This notion of blaming everything that isn't "godly" on the devil is excuse making for our own humanity. It's time to stop bringing people to eternal love with the fear of eternal torture. Notice, I didn't say punishment....I said torture. That's the only way to describe what hell is as defined by most modern religious folks. 

The Hell Thing August 25th, 2010

Let's bring the ancient texts into modern times. The Bible/Torah/Koran are only precious and not meant to be altered because they say they are. They are only true because they say they are. Could you write "Kobe Bryant is god" on a napkin and use that as proof that Kobe Bryant is god? Of course not, so why would you take the word of a book that a bunch of people wrote that had absolutely no knowledge of how our natural existence worked? Because the books tell you to, right? See where I'm coming from? 

The 10 Commandments are nice, but we know that they are not the absolute authority on how human beings should act. There are some good ideas there, but any guide that doesn't include something about treating women and children humanely might need some revamping. A guide of morality such as the Bible is called that doesn't tell us to abolish slavery, yet tells us just how severely we can beat our slaves might not be that moral. I guess I will defer to Sam Harris on the 10 Commandments; 

“If you think that it would be impossible to improve upon the Ten Commandments as a statement of morality, you really owe it to yourself to read some other scriptures. Once again, we need look no further than the Jains: Mahavira, the Jain patriarch, surpassed the morality of the Bible with a single sentence: "Do not injure, abuse, oppress, enslave, insult, torment, torture, or kill any creature or living being." Imagine how different our world might be if the Bible contained this as its central precept. Christians have abused, oppressed, enslaved, insulted, tormented, tortured, and killed people in the name of God for centuries, on the basis of a theologically defensible reading of the Bible. (23)” 
― Sam Harris, Letter to a Christian Nation

We could merely lift the ideas that are fit for modern time and apply them to our lives. It'd be so easy. Jesus and Muhammad supposedly said some great things and among those were lessons on how to treat other people and even animals. How can modern Christians and Muslims hold to those standards while at the same time wanting to deny the mere humanity of homosexuals, women, children, and opposing faiths? This "do unto others" thing doesn't really work unless you apply it to yourself honestly. If judgement truly is for god, you must give up judgement. We could also use a heavy dose of "STFU" when it comes to wanting to teach religions dogma in public schools. Science is science and we can't teach our children that Adam and Eve and Noah are the origins of life on the planet. We are already slipping down the list of the top educated countries and we continue to confuse the issue by telling our kids that the Bible/Koran can tell them more about the world they live in than modern science and basic common knowledge. The stories in these books can be inspirational and strong metaphors for living a life, but to teach them as truth is outlandish and a disservice to our nation and to humanity. 

We have seen the Crusades where Christians would "save" (baptize) babies before murdering them to serve god. We have seen Muslims blow themselves up taking life with them in order to serve god. These are extreme cases, but these things are done in the name of ancient texts which have no bearing on our modern society. Christianity has mostly evolved past the killing of apostates, but Islam is still behind the game. The ancient books hold us back. They separate us. They shame us as a species in how they ask us to treat people who do not believe as we do. 

Religion can be such a positive and if people truly think of their god as all loving and all forgiving, then they need to start acting like it and separate what they know in their hearts and minds from what they are being told by people that were trying to control populations and force their will on the poor and weak thousands of years ago. They still hold power today and that's a disgrace. Make religion personal. Make it about you and your relationship with god. If you say with your mouth that god is love and wants us to love one another than start reflecting it in your actions. It doesn't have to involve hate, distrust, and separation from others does it? Do we really think that is what god would want? 

So, I say that we can move towards a more harmonious existence that may well please a god by showing love, forgiveness, empathy, and understanding to one another. Not just to those who agree, but with everyone. We are not us and they are not them. We are all the same. We are of the same species. We belong to the planet and should be doing all we can to preserve this place for future generations. We should be doing all we can to ensure that our children have a pathway for living a life that doesn't involve worry about being ostracized for being a different color or of different sexual orientation. Shouldn't our children grow up thinking of others and how we can better existence for everyone? Should another 18 year old have to die in a war that is fueled by the unwavering dogma of a religion that holds absolutely no relevance in our modern times? Do you think the Middle East problems are going to be solved? If you do, you better think again. The problems in the Middle East are directly related to the notion that the believers of different religions (that all believe in the same god, the god of Abraham,oh by the way) think god promised them a piece of land that is for them and them only. That's not going to be solved until we set aside the two thousand year old bullshit. Nobody owns god, but I see people every single day that act like they do. To pretend to know what god wants is very presumptuous and prideful. If anything would help us to avoid killing or hurting one another it would be understanding at least that much. 

I could have really sunk my teeth in to more, but I'm not writing a book here. Our modern society can benefit from all religions fulfilling what many modern believers see as their core values; selflessness, forgiveness, understanding, kindness, and love. If you believe those are the attributes of the god that you worship, why would you accept the awful and disgraceful written words that implore the religious to act in direct opposition to those things? It's a tall order, but isn't it worth the effort?

I guess I'll close this by saying that I don't have a belief in "god". I do not have unbelief in "god". It is religion that I have the problem with. You Christians should really dig into the words of Jesus a bit deeper and think of them on a deeper level. I can't imagine that his words can be taken as someone that was intending to create a dogmatic religion based on his existence. I merely want to find as much understanding and knowledge as I can and religion gets in the way of that by limiting my (dare I say it?) god given gifts of reason, intellect, and curiosity. In that way, it doesn't matter to me if a god exists. I know that there is at least one conscious being on this planet and it's me. I can't be certain about anyone else. For now, I'm a part of the universe experiencing itself. I am not perfect, but even though I fail quite often, I want to try to treat people decent and with love.  I truly don't believe any amount of jumping through dogmatic hoops will honor our existence or a possible creator more than that. 

Some Musings....

I don't have much to say these days, so I've pretty much given up on writing. It feels like self-indulgence most of the time anyhow, but to keep up the charade, I wanted to put a few things down. If you want to read on, do so....but at your own risk. You have been warned. I'm feeling a bit "saucy" today, or old and bitter....you can choose.   

Duck Dynasty

I prefer to refer to it (if only in my mind) as "Dumb Fuck Dynasty". If you watch it, good for you, but seriously, isn't there something on that you could learn from? Maybe pick up a book? I do get the fascination with hicks, idiots, bad mothers, skanks, and "guido" types, because they are so ridiculous that they are amusing. For any of these shows to last more than a year or so just reveals how pathetic and empty we have become when engaging our entertainment. I'm proud to say I have NEVER watched a minute of the Dick Dynasty. So how can I judge it? By listening to the people that watch hours of it. By the way, I have no problem with what that dude said about gay and black folks or marrying a 15 year old. I like the stupid to reveal themselves. It's their right as Americans to say things that they believe, influence others and hold society at large back. It's also everyone else's right to tell him he's a moron or stop watching the show. Don't censor these people.....leave them on the air!

Music

The state of pop music is pretty sad. Between boy bands and untalented Disney bitches you just can't find anything on the radio that is worth listening to. Oh, I guess I could turn it on the country station and listen to songs about pickup trucks, dirt roads, and fucking plastic cups, but that doesn't really take me up a rung on the ladder does it? Oh, and what's the deal with Miley Cyrus' tongue? Put that thing back in your head already you ugly little troll. She's built like a 14  year old Asian boy, but insists on running around in "clothing" that would be better suited on a real woman. At least Madonna has talent. 

ESPN

They don't just cover the sports news, they make it! Between their scheduling games at 9 or after on week nights and causing all of this conference upheaval, I don't have much to care about on that network any longer, unless it's a Louisville game. For all the greatness they have brought over the years, they have just about equaled it in how terrible they  have been for sports. They have turned sports into a highlight competition and pretty much control college athletics now. The NCAA is filthy with ESPN money and it's been to the detriment of college athletics. It's not about the students or the athletes....it's about the money. Don't forget that. 

Religion

I've gone from Christian to atheist to agnostic to spiritual seeker and have finally settled on this;

Ehh....I don't really give a shit. If there is a god; great. If there isn't a god; great. I don't really care. Atheists that gather for meetings and try to convert people are every bit as annoying as the religious zealots. I'm very much in favor of personal religion. It can be a positive thing. Just don't think that what works for you will work for everyone. Not everyone needs Jesus to live a good life. If I hear "What keeps you from raping, stealing, and killing if you don't have Jesus?" one more time I think I will claw someone's eyes out and respond "Nothing, I guess." Seriously if you need to believe in Jesus to keep from hurting others, you need to stick with it. It tells me a lot about a person when they say stupid shit like that.....as in...."this person is potentially dangerous".

Stand Up Comedy

OK, something positive! We are in a new golden age of comedy, even if you can't see it in the mainstream. Comics like Louis CK, Bill Burr, Doug Stanhope, Joe Rogan, and Jim Jeffries (among others) are just killing it these days. Get on You Tube or Netflix and find some specials by these guys or Patton Oswalt, Marc Maron, Daniel Tosh, or Tom Papa. You will get a ton of laughs consistently. Our culture is ripe for ridicule and these guys take it on from all sides. 

Struggling With Faith? Do Something About It!

For most of my life, I have been a believer in the Christian god. I was brought up on it and like others, I really got scared of the whole notion of hell and someone listening to my every thought. How bad I must be to have "sinful" thoughts as often as I did. I never even considered that everyone else has stupid stuff go through their minds too.....I thought it was just me. I wrestled with hell a lot, but I never allowed myself to even consider that I might be wasting my time with all that worry. 

A few years back, I started exploring my faith. I looked at Christianity with a critical eye and I began to research other religions. Then, I read "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins and it occurred to me; What if there isn't a god? What if I can just live my life without the guilt and torment? What if I could be a happy human being? 

From there, I felt like I should look into my questions. I had never really gave not believing a fair chance. How could I? I was raised up on Jesus watching me all the time (not just in December when Santa has his critical eye on me) and fear of damnation. I was in church at the time and came to a point where I felt like I was being hypocritical by attending Sunday school in the morning and then reading Dawkins and Sam Harris in the evening. I stopped going and decided I would put the Bible to the test, so I started actually reading it. I wanted to test it against modern morality and ethics and see what god really said about how to treat people and it didn't hold up. I still continued to pray a couple of times a day for Jesus to help me along and show me the truth. Obviously, he didn't have much to say. My relationship was a one way street with my imagination. 

I continued to study religion and atheism and finally a little voice in my head said; "There is no god." Along with my losing religion, I was also dumping my penchant for certitude. Rather than proclaim myself an atheist or whatever, I decided that I just didn't know. With a gun to my head, I'd bet on there NOT being a god, but otherwise, hell, I just don't know. Nobody does. 

OK, it's taken me four paragraphs to get here, but what I wanted to say is that it's alright to have doubts. It's natural and you should welcome those doubts. If you don't, you are shutting off your mind, your intellect, and reason. If you believe a god gave you those things, then certainly you can see why it should be imperative that you use your intelligence and exercise critical thought. If I had to suggest some reading for a Christian who was wrestling with his faith, I would first suggest the Dan Barker book "godless". Barker is a former evangelist, Christian song writer and record producer. His book outlines his journey from being on fire for god to firing god. It speaks in a easy going manner to the recently converted and/or those who are starting to become unsure of their faith. 

I'd also suggest "Letter To A Christian Nation" by Sam Harris. He makes a great case, in a very short book, against religion as a whole. He mainly focuses on Christianity, because it is the prevailing religion in the USA, but he does so in a way that tries to allow the reader to take their belief into account in context with Islam or any other religion. His first, full scale book is called "The End of Faith" and it's also worth a persons time. It would be easy and probably cliche' for me to tell someone to run out and buy "God Is Not Great" by Christopher Hitchens or "The God Delusion" by the aforementioned Dawkins. Those are great books and for someone who has recently lost their faith, I'd recommend them as great guides to strengthen your decision and resolve. You Tube is a great resource to hear anyone speak that I've mentioned to this point. Learning about the universe, quantum physics, consciousness, and critical thought have been so satisfying after spending much of my life tuned out to those things. 

Don't let anyone talk you into or out of your faith if you are wavering. Explore it for yourself. Use your mind and reason. Read the Bible. Really read what god says. If your faith is meant to be, it should stand up to the scrutiny of your mind and what you learn. You wouldn't be afraid to read Lee Strobel's "The Case For Christ" or "The Ragamuffin Gospel" by Brendan Manning, so don't be afraid to read some of the stuff I've mentioned. Be fair to god and yourself.  It's been a very satisfying journey for me personally and I wouldn't change it for anything. If you are struggling with your faith, go ahead and do something about it. Either way, you should come away feeling proud that you came to your decision on your own terms, without indoctrination.

War On Christianity, War On Christmas .... yada yada yada...

Alright, we have an ongoing pissing contest in a Texas town over a nativity scene. Big deal. Happens every year, or so it seems. A nativity scene goes up on public property and some big bad atheist group wants to have it taken down. There are many times....hell, most times where I think "Who really cares?". But that is just a personal view on it. A nativity scene and religious symbols surrounding the holiday doesn't really bother me, even though I don't believe in Bible god or Jesus. It's like Santa Claus to me. Do I worry about a man coming down my chimney and invading my home? Of course not....it's not real. The nativity scene could have baby Sponge Bob laying in the manger and it would be just as real to me as the Jesus baby. But, despite my personal opinion, there are valid reasons for not allowing a religious nativity scene on public property. 

First of all, our nation's founding fathers (most of them) believed that church and state should remain separate from one another and that the state (government) shouldn't support a religion. That is not only for the benefit of the government, but it's also a benefit for religion. Religion gets the gift of living a tax free existence, in regards to how much money it brings in. Religion is allowed to flourish, so long as it is not infringing on the rights of others in a tax payer funded place. That means public parks and government centers are off limits for religious displays. If we allow religious displays on public grounds, then perhaps we should expect churches and religious organizations to start paying taxes and have their books audited. And perhaps the government should step in and start looking at the curriculum that private schools teach in regards to religion. Maybe government officials can be on hand at every service to make sure that political candidates were not endorsed? If you want to be a part of the government by being able to display and promote your religion on tax payer funded ground, then you must expect that the public wants to know exactly what is going on inside of the churches. Maybe getting this out in the open and making religious organizations pay taxes could be a good thing. Atheists can start going into these churches and handing out literature on Sunday morning. Gonna feel a little persecuted then? 

There is no "War On Christmas". It's a fallacy. There is no "War On Christianity". It's a fallacy. There are organizations out there that want to beat back religious influence, that's for damn sure, but to believe you are being singled out for persecution because of a nativity scene being challenged is sort getting yourself worked up for no good reason. Would it be OK to start displaying symbols and depicting scenes from other religions on publicly funded ground? If it's OK for a nativity scene to go up, then it must be fine for an atheist group to place their own nativity scene right beside it, right? Or put up a big sign saying "There is no god, Jesus is a fairy tale".....down with that?  Perhaps the Muslims could start sitting outside every courthouse in America and do scenes about Muhammad catching a winged horse to heaven? Maybe Satanists could do their version of a nativity scene? Is that OK? 

The story of this small Texas town got to me and I posted on my Facebook page that I sort of thought....ehh....just leave it be, it's only for a week or so. But, I had a friend make some very good points to me about why you can't give an inch. If you give an inch here and an inch there, when does it stop? And who does it stop? We don't need anti-religion propaganda on tax payer land any more than we need the religious propaganda. And if you allow a Christian display and don't allow other displays, there is no line between church and state at that point, as Christianity would be basically endorsed by the state. What about the Muslims who may live in that town? Are they not tax payers? Do they not have the right to not feel like they live in a town where one religion was not preferred over another? Here is a snippet from the story I'm going to link from FOX News;

Pastor Lorick said it’s time to draw a line in the sand — and start standing up for the Christian faith.

“Christianity is under attack in America,” he told Fox News & Commentary. “Our country is quickly heading down a direction which the Christian faith is taking a hit — it’s quickly becoming suppressed.”

The attorney general (Greg Abbot) agreed with that sentiment.

“There has been an ongoing battle between the forces of atheism and the forces of those who are antagonistic to all things religious against those who recognize the religious heritage of this country,” Abbott said. “And by defending Nativity scenes, by defending the Ten Commandments and by defending students who try to say a prayer at a graduation ceremony, we’re trying to preserve, protect and defend what we know is perfectly legal.”

Don't Mess With A Texas Violation Of The Constitution

Those quotes make me cringe just a little and chuckle a little more. You can have a nativity scene at ANY church and you can leave it up year around if you like. You can have a nativity scene at any privately owned place. You just can't do it on public grounds where people who may not agree with you also go and pay taxes to use. Those comments above have no place in the discussion. You can display the Ten Commandments in school. A Christian/Jewish school. You can openly pray to a Christian god at graduation. A Christian school graduation. You can hand out Christian literature at church or in private places. You shouldn't be able to wield your influence in public places, unless you are ready to accept all that is going to come with that. That would be a bad deal for both the Christian and non-Christian. 

Let's face it. Christmas is not a religious holiday. It's pagan. That's it. Pure and simple. Many of the traditions that Christians (and everyone else) follow every year are from pagan cultures, not Christian ones. Besides Jesus, there are other "gods" who claim birth on December 25th. All of them came before Jesus. Coincidence? And let's face something else. If about 80% of Americans consider themselves Christians, what are you afraid of? How can you feel attacked with that number? How can you feel attacked when almost every political leader in our nation brings up god every time they give a speech? How can you feel attacked when "In God We Trust" is on our currency? How can you feel attacked when the pledge of allegiance has the words "one nation under god" firmly in place? How can you feel attacked when a great deal of the Christmas music played is religious in nature? It's nonsense and just a reason for Christians to kick and scream a little bit. If you are offended that a small group of people want to ruin your fun, then shouldn't you also feel concern when a large majority wants to have it's way, simply to have its' way? Try a little self awareness and try to put yourself in the shoes of someone that doesn't agree with you.   

Muslims were not allowed to buy a piece of property and build a mosque in New York City, but Christian groups feel persecuted because they can't put a nativity scene up on public ground? Ha Ha......wow.....talk about having your head up your ass! It's WAY up there. 

The answer is this. Find any church or private land and put up your nativity scene. I'd love to take my kids to see it. For full disclosure, if they have a live scene at a local courthouse, I'd take my children to see it if they wanted to go. But that doesn't mean it should be there. There is a can of worms that can be opened and I don't think Christians want that to happen. Once we start giving in to open season on religious displays in publicly funded places, you are not going to be happy with what ensues. You'll be begging to follow the Constitution of the United States again. Enjoy yourselves. Enjoy your religion. Enjoy talking about the birth of Christ with your friends and family. Religion is a personal venture that can have a real impact in people's lives in a very positive way. But everyone doesn't believe and that should be respected. 

And for atheists and agnostics who feel they have to battle religion at every turn. I support the fight to keep government and religion separate. But, get over the anger. Sure, I have my own anger story from my "transformation", but at some point you have to let it go and work from love and knowledge and not from disdain and anger. A dogmatic fundamentalist Christian is no less annoying to me than a spiteful, angry atheist who won't concede that religion can (and does) have a positive place in many corners of our society. 

Let's try to respect each other and not spill our anger, venom, and frustration into areas where we only cause a greater gap to emerge between one another. Love and understanding is the only way to truly bridge gaps. If every move that everyone of us made came from love, how much better of a world would we live in? If we cared more about human beings than getting people to believe or not believe, couldn't we build towards a society, a country....a WORLD, where no child goes hungry? Where no child has to fear a bomb being dropped on their home? Where a mother doesn't have to stay up at night worrying about her 19 year old son or daughter fighting in wars? Wouldn't it be a great world if every child got a meal, not just at Christmas, but every day? Aren't those the important things? Put the nativity scenes on church grounds or private places and enjoy the season. Perhaps you may draw in some non-believers and you can share your religion with them....or not. Maybe we can all enjoy the hope, joy, love, and peace that seems so promisingly close at this time of year. 

May you enjoy thinking of Christmas' past with friends and loved ones who are no longer with us. May you enjoy the presence of friends and family and appreciate the love and compassion we can show one another. May each of us share a little love and compassion with a stranger who is need of comfort.  

Happy Christmas To You All!!!

.