Why I Can't Just Let People Be Happy With Religion

So many in the atheist community have asked me why I cannot simply be satisfied with the position in society of being accepted without bigotry. It is a good question and one I feel that I should take a look at.

In the simplest possible terms, we, as human beings on planet earth, do not live in bubbles insulated from one another. Throughout human history, the studies on ethics, morals, law, philosophy, and of course, theology have strived to find ways we should behave around each other, and have yet to come to a concise solution. Generally, we know that what one believes impacts how we interact, how we vote, how we raise our kids, and how we build for tomorrow.

As an example, if you believe the world is 6000 years old and is a testing ground for the real life after, then you might tend to miss the scarcity and preciousness of this one. You might seek death as a form of delivery. If you think that this world is an illusion, you might be ready to take ever-riskier challenges to test this.

But belief has it's limits, and generally, when confronted by new evidence, beliefs change. Unless, of course, it is based on faith. Faith is the enemy of reason, a grand test of gullibility, and a sacrificial offering of our critical faculties. To distill what is so wrong about the great number of faiths in this world, is no easy task, yet I will attempt it. The essential fanaticism, the consideration of human life as vessels to our reward, as opposed to our sole form of verifiable existence. The fantasy of purity, one which punishes normal human actions as dirty, wrong, or sinful, created sick, and commanded to be well by a cruel designer who has allowed this experiment to go on.

Usually this faith-based creator has an insatiable thirst for uncritical praise, and usually in the manner by which the faithful has come to by his own interpretation of holy writ, and which allows the desired morals to be enacted in the name of said faith.

Rather than seeking an objective truth by finding common ground, the faithful are encouraged to continuously seek personal experiences which reveal a subjective truth, often fulfilling a personal bias they have already had. Rather than maintain curiosity, the faithful tend to close their minds off to other possibilities.

Those with faith tend to answer questions with ambiguous, non-answers. Q: Why?A:  God. Q:Why God? A: God. A:Oh, and Love. Q: Should I believe? A: Faith. These types of answers tend to close the book on learning and have independently never arrived at any further knowledge, objective understanding or information.

Faith tends to infect every aspect of society, often leading to malformed logic regarding Economics, Education, Social Programs, Scientific Advancement, and often leads to the promotion of pseudoscience. Faith is the primitive disease we have the cure for, and despite the attempts to stamp it out, it manages to infiltrate our 21st century society.

Is religion inherently built on Faith? I do not necessarily think so. So what would it take for religion to give up in order to be off my radar as a concern? Let me take from the eternal Christopher Hitchens:

"It would have to give up all supernatural claims... No you are not to do this under the threat of reward, heaven, or the terror of punishment, hell. No, we can not offer you miracles... It would have to give up the idea of an eternal, unalterable authority figure, who is judge, jury, and executioner against whom there could be no appeal, and who wasn't finished with you, even when you died.

That's quite a lot for religion to give up, don't you think?"

Two Approaches, One Theology

I have tried for the last five days to summarize this entry into a short blog post, however my recent interactions today, perhaps I can cement a frustration many atheists have with large religious organizations.

For a long time, I have seen religions all around the world create problems, only to sell the solutions at the behest of the pulpit with threats of damnation and scare tactics. Sin is a perfect example of this. Invent sin, sell purity; Invent hell, offer heaven; Invent the mystery, offer truth.

Another problem emerges all together when you have found ways to intellectually overcome the scare tactics and yet stick with said scare tactics to maintain followers. This is what I have found recently with the Bison Catholics, NDSU's higher-education Catholic group.

After spending Sunday morning and afternoon as a guest of Mass and afterwards, social interaction, I have to speak very highly of my hosts and their tolerance to have an atheist present to play the Devil's Advocate. We discussed a wide range of issues, and throughout a majority of them, there was some level of disagreement, however there was also a level of intellectual honesty that I rarely find. This side of theology is rarely presented in followers of faith-based organizations in my experience, and despite some flawed logic, there was a considerable effort to remain honest to my eyes.

This is a common effect I get when there is a skeptic present, or at least when someone has prepared for a skeptic to be present. It is when no skeptic is expected is when we see the other approach. Last Wednesday, catholic speaker Viki Thorn spoke to a catholic crowd in the Memorial Union on campus and delivered a combination of gender stereotypes, America-centric observations, and complete scientific falsehoods all under the flag of science and medicine.

Using the unscientific language of a layman, she entirely dismissed the nature/nurture discussion by announcing that men and women are born to fill specific roles. Men will never be able to multitask, women are not expected to do anything well while menstruating, and men are unable to process emotion. Using poorly-worded explanations of real scientific studies ("They tested monkeys","Pornography is not sex; pornography is addiction.""From the moment of conception, 'babies' are already communicating their desires."), she laid out why she thinks Pornography leads to rape and sexual deviation, contraception will lead to the destruction of your relationship, it will kill you because of blood clots, and all men hate shopping.

She continued to deliver all manner of unfounded propaganda with assertive and authoritarian tones, while claiming her qualifications for this is that she has had six children. Thankfully, I was sitting with biologists and sexual education experts who COULD tell me how science presents these topics.


So here is the crux of it... After the presentation, many of the people who we talked to often proclaimed ignorance of the knowledge, yet felt she was compelling. In other words, when the echo chamber of religion is thorough, critical thinking does not seem to hold much weight. Yet when we get personally involved, I hear often of how they promote their followers to do their own research. Which is it, and would you please be consistent? What I witnessed on Wednesday was pure catholic propaganda mixed with a dash of science for effect. Today I enjoyed a philosophical discussion that bridged gaps. Let's stop hearing what we want to and engage in critical thinking.

Understanding the Importance of Optimism and Momentum

With any new activist group, we can always expect hiccups, unexpected obstacles, and of course, your occasional nay-sayer.

So far, I can say I am genuinely pleased about the turnouts and support. It has given me much confidence for continuing to not only build a better Fargo area, but to find myself calling it home with a sense of satisfaction.

I think some of the greatest challenges can be on opposite ends of the spectrum. On one hand, it can be hard to contain my excitement about long-term projects, knowing the anticipation with make progress feel slow. On the other hand, it is so important to keep morale a focus of the group.

As atheists in the area, we have many obligations while raising awareness. Constructive efforts are first and foremost. It means going out of our way to avoid the resentment and vitriol that we all have at times and remembering that our neighbors are our friends regardless of their beliefs. It also means keeping a positive outlook when reacting to some of the theocratic encroachment we see every day. There is something I am often reminded of: people often forget what I say, but they truly remember how I made them feel.

Another obligation is one of respect in society. Yes, we know we can be good without god, but I think we need to work extra hard as a suppressed minority to demonstrate that. Great Plains Atheists will be organizing many upcoming events. Let's get involved. Let's work with churches to feed the hungry, or help blood drives, or run a marathon, but the last thing we need to demonstrate is that we refuse to work with society because a some people discriminate.

The last obligation I will point out today is one of community. Let us remember how isolated and lonely many of us felt when we realized we did not believe anymore. Just remember there are still thousands out there with the same frustrations. Help to run your campus's Secular Student Alliance, and if you don't have one, Great Plains A's will help you get the contacts and resources to start one.

Join the FM Secular Community for regular social events, or  contact GPA (contact@greatplainsatheists.org) to get involved with activism. Just remember, we have made great strides in a very short time, and momentum is increasing, but let's not stop there. Help your local high school kids organize a group of their own, start a book club, or write a letter to your representatives. GPA will be sending delegates to speak with our elected officials, but without the community support, our voices may be perceived as the squeaky wheel. Most importantly, write us or comment here to let us hear how we can better support or represent you!

I am loving Fargo more and more every day, and it is because I am realizing that I am surrounded by friends and people who care. Thank you!

A passion for reading...

I love it when people ask me the oh-so-innocent question of "do you enjoy reading?" as the first thing to cross my mind is a series of sarcastic and entirely condescending remarks. Well...yes. To keep it simple.

Reading offers so much to the mind, such as languages offer the desire to express, or colors add to the ability to paint. In fact, when I imagine someone replying with a sober 'not really' it might build a well of darkness in my gullet as if being robbed of the moment.

So hard to think of a life in the absence of so much inspiration, such an exercise of imagination, I only see the noncognitive drought which only times of abundance make clear. Yet I now know it is hard not to see it as a weakness, but what is the alternative?

Films simply ask you to visualize a situation, a breakfast plate for example, specific in every way. A talented writer will describe that breakfast while making you imagine the details for your self, and the brain define the contours of every spoon for itself.

The bits we read on the internet barely hold the attention, and seem to encourage quick tangential searches. No, give me a good old fashioned poet to describe a mood, as Frost, Yeats, Fenton, or Wilde did on a daily basis. Let me learn with the works of any scholar, contemporary or ancient, and linger on every word which no documentary can afford. I can dive into the polemical, disect the history, and feast on the fantastical science fictions.

No, reading is not dead, and I do not feel I am being old fashioned in this, although time will tell. I feel we can all add the slightest pressures in society by encouraging our family and friends to pick up a good book, spend an hour in the couch, grass, or bed, and find something to expand our minds. Perhaps that hour might just inspire us into our next dream, which might lead to a lifelong fulfillment.

Yes. I like reading.

New blog network!

One of the many reasons I have been at a loss for words recently is the amount of time spent organizing the new group, and watching the silly detail involved.  Great Plains Atheists is becoming more and more involved in the community daily. One of the great tools at our disposal is the website, www.greatplainsatheists.org, and the many voices that contribute. Until now, My blog was the only one linked, and grateful for the hits I was.

Now a multitude of ideas, persuasions, and rants can be heard. And of course, from now on, I shall be posting directly to that blog simultaneously, sharing words in hopes of creating dialog.

Feel free to browse and comment, and of course, comment here or via a new email - contact@greatplainsatheists.org

Skepticism vs. Cynicism

Just entering the word Cynicism in google presents me with a problem I see in society at large. A synonym of Cynicism is Skepticism in this narrow google definition, and although they have largely been viewed as similar by many, it is so important that we take a moment and iron out why one is not productive, and the other is the foundation of modern civilization.

Originating in the Greek Skepsis, meaning inquiry, Skepticism is an approach of learning using doubt and critical thinking skills as opposed to authority, faith, or anecdotal evidence. Greek thinkers, such as Pyrrho, Epicurus, and the stoic philosophers such as Zeno, Seneca, Hierocles, tried to work out the best way to learn about the natural world, and in the process, the figured out that people are not necessarily honest to themselves. Richard Feynman astutely noted that the easiest person to fool is one's self, thus we must try to doubt our experiences and what we think we know.

Using Skepticism, we can attempt to verify evidence for our beliefs objectively, by removing human error. Of course this is the basis of the Scientific Method, and remains today the most reliable method of determining truth from fiction.

If I told you there was a UFO in my garage, you would be skeptical, or the world would call you credulous, gullible, or naive without asking for evidence. This is skepticism and modern education at work.

Cynicism on the other hand, is defined as: An attitude of scornful or jaded negativity, especially a general distrust of the integrity or professed motives of others.
In other words, it is an attitude defined by negativity, one of ripping down walls, rather than constructing them. These two are often confused and a rational thinker's attempt to bring reason into a conversation is often perceived as being cynical. 

Let's try to differentiate the two and remember that when someone is skeptical of your position, we should receive it well. When someone is being cynical, we should ask them to ask them to either find the flaw in our logic, or propose a better idea.  We can be very positive skeptics in this world. As for me, I am an optimist, and a hardened skeptic. They are far from mutually exclusive. In fact, I would go so far as to say that skepticism has made me more eager for life, increasing my curiosity and passion for the world, knowing we can move forward together!

Please comment on your experienced between the two concepts. Ten points to who can name the philosopher we get the word Cynic from...

The Harm of Faith

Christopher Hitchens once called faith the most over-rated virtue. Voltaire described it as what is beyond the power of reason to believe. Personally, I find it to be one of the most destructive forces in the modern world, and yet so many consider it benign.

So what is faith? If all things can be broken down philosophically into beliefs, and knowledge being beliefs of considerable certitude, then where does faith lie? It would seem when one has a belief which is not justified by reason, logic, or evidence, then perhaps we call that faith. Still, there are so many beliefs which are adjusted, altered or dropped due to new evidence.

That is because Faith is a belief that one REFUSES to give up regardless of the evidence against it.  As Nietzsche put it: "Faith: not wanting to know what is true." Faith is the ultimate weapon of religions and is isolated to one thing - God.

You see, despite how loosely the word is used in our every day vernacular, most of those examples are misapplied. Faith and trust are two different things, and since trust relies on experience and evidence, it is most often what people mean. You do not have faith in your spouse, you have trust. The same goes, for that matter, for doctors, the military, technology, transportation, etc... These are all things you have had a lifetime of experience with, and have come to trust them.

If someone has faith in their love, but then the relationship goes wrong, one would be considered crazy to still pursue the relationship with the same vigor afterwards. We often use faith to describe a sense of optimism we might have, however it is not to be confused with the faith of religion.

In a world where we are pushing so hard to improve education, to increase critical thinking skills, we find ourselves shocked by some of the zanier aspects of society and what they are willing to believe, but that does not concern me as much as the troves of people in the US who are simultaneously encouraged to apply skepticism,critical thinking, and faith in god.

So long as society thinks it is OK to believe in something for no reason at all, we will continue to be plagued by ideas which hold us down from progress. Climate change denial, creationism, job-creators, traditions, avoiding vaccines due to paranoia, alternative medicines, trickle-down economics, and so many more are simply held in place because some think it is OK to believe something despite the lack of evidence, or because of a poor application of logic.

Aron Ra described faith as the ultimate test of gullibility, to see how much you are willing to believe with the slightest evidence. So the question is, on the topic of faith, why is there anything encouraged to be believed without sufficient reason?