Quote:
Originally Posted by Someday
I just read an excellent article that was written by a self described atheist. This is a nice piece of honest writing that I think every "New Atheist" might be interested in reading.
Personally, I think this writer is quite thoughtful, and has the ability to see both sides of a thing quite keenly.
Blessings
BTW, I think there is some truth to the idea that deep down, atheists have a metaphysical belief in a creator/deity. When I tried to become an atheist, that tiny voice deep within me would not let me completely throw off the idea of God. And I simply could not live in denial of that little fact. So I called myself agnostic with atheistic leanings, never being able to rid myself of the part of me that would not be subdued into disbelief. |
Thanks for sharing that someday, yes I found the article interesting to read.
It continues to highlight the Pendulum swinging manner of people, which is prevelant in society today.
I.e If its not Right it has to be Left., If its Up it has to be Down
There isn't much room it seems in people for it to be Both and yet Neither
The quest to be correct and wipe away all other possibilities has been part of humanities story from its beginning.
Yet, when it comes to matters of the Unseen, the Non Material world.. its just a given your going to have the Believers and the Skeptics.
And no amount of back lashing with different perspective reasoning is going to convince a person either way.
We are all led to our own Truth about what we believe to live by..
The lipmus test of what a person beliefs shouldnt be reached soley by resting on reasoning, force, or theological persuasion, but in deciding if for themselves, not for others, but for themselves if what is being heard, seen or read is harmful or damaging to them and others...
If a person feels it is, they have all right to choose to not allow it in their life.
One thing I did like about the article was the reply to Dawkins asking people to Question Everything.
He replies " Not to belabor the point, but if I questioned whether George Washington died in 1799, I could spend a lifetime trying to prove it and find myself still, at the end of my efforts, having to make a leap, or perhaps several leaps, of faith in order to believe the rather banal fact that I had set out to prove. "
Yes I agree, that a person could spend a lifetime trying to piece together enough material from which to make a call on whether to believe or not in an event, person or belief and many have given themselves to do so.. i.e Scholars and as we are aware they themselves agree and disagree with each other.. and have judgement calls on what to accept or reject as being truth to live by.
Reason though in itself is not a bad thing, and it has been given for a reason ( no pun intended ) just as sight, sound, taste and touch have.
Atheists love a good reasoning, Religions if they are honest love it too, when its within the boundaries of what they believe should or can be reasoned about.
So resting believe in the existence of God, the Existence of Jesus, the Validity of any Religion... soley on Reason or Not Reason is really not the case here.
Every word that a person believes and lives by.. at some level that person has used a dab of reason and a dab of faith.
With atheists and religious folk there is never just one without the other, they are both there and both operating within a persons determining choice.
Honestly I found the article to be an atttempt at trying to understand the other side of the coin, yet resulted in subtle jabs, and shallow assumptions concerning the atheists he was talking about, yet this is a common response to have when a person feels their world and reality which is held together by their belief is shaken and threatened. It is likely the same approach the atheists took in writing their books too.
I would agree with him though that religion has its place, and like any other belief of practise which really that is all religion is... a working out of the beliefs that people hold.
If religion is seen as the dark enemy, or atheism is.. its not a case of riddening ourselves of it, attempts to do that is what causes so much frustration and angst today, as its like trying to get rid of a part of ourselves. It's is never really gone.
Efforts should be made towards tolerance
The argument underlying most if not all of the common arguments that have taken place in books, websites, schools, workplaces and governments rests more in the question of Identity
People scared that someone is going to take away who they think they are, and who they think they were meant to be.