atheisto

(an agnosticalament)
An agnostic is one who does not believe there is a god.
An agnostic is one who does not believe there isn't a god.
Why? Because either position requires some sort of direct knowledge of "godness". And by definition, knowledge of god is precisely what humans cannot have. If you understood god, you would BE god.
(That last assertion, however, may fairly be called suspect...for if "god" truly exists in some tangible reality, then it's indefensibly immodest to propose that humans might NEVER find a way to measure it's presence. Is there anyone alive truly qualified to put a limit on potential human knowledge?)
Forgive the digression. It can be so easy to do when invoking this ancient and foolish debate, as the vast majority will never be budged. Yet despite nigh-absolute intransigence on both sides, converts can (and will) be won. And statistically, that trickle flows in the non-religious direction.
See what i mean? A digression that produced a digression.
I have called myself an agnostic for nearly the entirety of my adult life. It's fit me like a glove. By any standard of rigorous rational thought, agnosticism is the correct choice.
And it's a choice i can no longer make.
The only critique that can be brought against agnosticism is intellectual cowardice - a clever way to avoid taking sides. That's a childish criticism, but as i go deeper into the reality of life on this planet, i find that agnosticism is a luxury our species can no longer afford. The stakes are too high. That said, there's also a fine chance the matter is moot. Realistically, we're past the point where any knowledge or intervention can prevent the self-destruction of our species (and most other non-insects as well). But if there's even a tiny chance that humanity may survive the unfolding ecological apocalypse, then tolerance of the forces that got us into this mess may prevent us from saving ourselves.
Am i saying that religion is responsible for the impending death of our oceans, and burning of our atmosphere?
Not quite.
Nor am i talking about war and terrorism in the atomic age. Although those may or may not play a huge part in our undoing, war is a complex endeavor. Yes, half of all current wars are directly traceable to religion, but even if you instantly removed every religious thought in the world, wars would not cease.
Yet religion is, above all, the eager embrace of ignorance. A superstition celebration. Lying hidden (or not so hidden) in the phrase "it's in god's hands", is an ethic of avoidance. "Thy will be done" absolves us of taking responsibility for who we are, for what we do, and the results thereof (i speak not of all believers of course, but the vast majority). You don't even have to invoke extremists yearning for the endtimes - go no further than those ordinary folk who see the rapacious violence we wage on ourselves and other species and entire ecosystems, and respond "It's part of god's plan". The litany of scientific advances that religion has fought to deny is chilling - astronomy, evolution, stem cell research...along with the social advances suppressed for decades or centuries - women's rights, minority rights, sexual freedom. Religion elevates intolerance into not just a human right, but a holy obligation.
Religion is NOT responsible for humanity's descent into barbarism - the enslavement of womankind and the agricultural revolution did that. But in the struggle to rise out of our darkness, religion is almost certainly the single most intractable obstacle.
Not long ago, i attended a mainstream church service, to support some friends who were performing. It had been a while since i'd been in any church. I did a double take when i heard the pastor start droning on about the "virgin mother". I was genuinely surprised, as there has long been no controversy among biblical scholars over whether "virgin" is a mistranslation. It's not even a question of interpretation - you don't need biblical scholars, any credible greek linguist will do. The Bible, as originally written, simply does not refer to mary as anything other than a "maiden".
It is laudable to acknowledge one's ignorance. It's something else entirely to revel in it.
It's just a story, you say? It gives comfort, that's all? I'm not convinced. Is it really so easy to compartmentalize a disregard for truth? We're not talking about tennis scores or tax returns, we're talking about a primary source of core values.
Having a virgin birth in STAR WARS is embarrassing. In real life, professed by people who actually procreate and hold jobs, it's terrifying.
And the most brazen example of willful religious ignorance isn't even mother mary - it's the acquiescence to the notion that god is male. HE created, HE punishes, HE forgives...i can almost forgive the leagues of women who can't even allow themselves to consider the possibility that this is the most noxious whopper ever concocted, as the stockholm syndrome is stronger than any of us. But all you thinking, pampered men out there, you really imagine that a being so superior that it's beyond space and time is...male? Not female, not both, not neither, just...male?
Your vanity, sirs, will soon be the end of life on this planet.
I know guys, i know, you don't really believe it, not deep down. But you've been in the catbird seat for so long, and nobody willingly gives up such intoxicating, sweeping power (don't worry...i won't tell the gals if you don't).
Some believers complain of feeling "persecuted" in the current social climate. I'm truly sorry when any kind of misery is perpetuated, but i can't muster much sympathy. If believers feel "persecuted", then they haven't done their homework. They haven't studied the mind-numbing atrocities that have been (and continue to be) committed in the name of religious propriety. Having your feelings hurt? You'd better come up with a word other than "persecution" right quick, or your pants are going to burst into flames.
I suppose the mormons at least will be wearing their holy flame-retardant underwear.
So have i become an atheist?
As loathe as i am to say so, i can no longer deny this outrage.
And to be honest, it's equal parts worldly concern and incredulity. It's so hard to believe that believers actually believe the things they profess. No human could be that willfully dumb. The obviousness of religious belief is so inescapable, it's...tawdry.
Humans know we are going to die. It's even possible that we're the only animals to have figured that one out. We will die. We've known it as far back as history records. DEATH - it's the only thing every human is born to do.
The fear underlying that knowledge is the most primal human fear. Psychologically, it is at the very core of what it means to be alive.
We get it. Death is scary. WE AGREE. But it's time to stop making an ass of ourselves, in order to prove the point.
I understand the desire to not think about unpleasant things. This world is a freakshow wasteland in which no one gets the love they need. Be assured, i engage in as much escapism as the next person (maybe even more, given the extent to which i face reality otherwise). But as real to me as mister spock is, i've never for a second imagined that he's...real. It's okay to say that we don't know what happens when we die (and that all available evidence points to that event being a non-happening, rather than a happening). It's okay to say that we don't know the meaning of life (and that maybe there is none). It's okay to say the word "die". Footballs pass away. People don't...except for the occasional dwarf, i suppose.
Take one moment to imagine how different your life would be if the fears of death and meaninglessness were swept away.
Or perhaps there's no need to ask, for that's exactly what religious people are doing every second of their life. Taking our most basic fear, and imagining that it's a lie.
I've created an invisible friend, and this friend says i'll live forever!
You know who creates invisible friends?
Lonely children.
We get it, we really do.
But it's all so obvious that my head spins.
Given the subconscious power of death, and the repressed loneliness we call "normal", the true miracle would be if there were NO holy men howling about the great beyond.
The tragedy is that many believers, even most, are thoroughly non-malicious. They're simply nourishing themselves on the strength given by communities who provide a sense of belonging, and obligation. Without that socialization, would children choose god? Don't ask me. Get the smartest clergyperson you can find, and ask them how many children raised in an open-minded, loving, superstition-free environment would choose god. Their answer might surprise you.
Is it about stupidity?
No!
Well...
Non-believers are smarter than believers. This is no longer just supposition or intuition. Comprehensive studies have been accumulated over the past eight decades, and the results are in (and indisputable). Non-believers are smarter than believers. In all cases and all times? Of course not. But in generalities statistically significant enough to be conclusive, religious people are flat-out dumber than non-believers.
Maybe this data shouldn't be taken at face value? Maybe it just means that smarter people are more self-important?
I'm sorry kids, but believers hold an unshakable monopoly on self-importance. To propose that a being which nobody can see thinks your species, or your tribe, is special above all other life...to propose that this being listens when you talk and can make you immortal, is a level of arrogance that no scientific-minded individual could ever be able to touch.
And if you think a bronze age fairy tale is going to save your life, you don't deserve to be saved.
Ah, the shame.
I'm an atheist.
Now, can we get to the business of saving this planet and creating a world based on sharing and caring and great sex? Who knows, if we all do this together, maybe we can knock it out in few decades...and then we can get back to being what we were born to be. Playful, clever, curious agnostics.
I love you all.