yesterday was the national day of reason- for those who might have missed it. one of the yahoos- stewart or colbert- had on about atheism catching on in europe- colbert i think. been having interesting discussions around here about whether or not we need the IDEA of god so that we aren't too full of ourselves and arrogant- enough to destroy ourselves and the world. i wrote this great post in my head yesterday while sitting in the car waiting for my sister. sigh. it tied all of these things together and was entertaining at the same time. i can't remember it. so- you get the half baked ramblings of a chick who hasn't had her morning coffee yet- and is pooped from too much exercise. hey- any movement is alot for a couch potato. :)
my take on the whole thing is- and i am disclaiming right now (even though my one adviser keeps telling me i don't have to and shouldn't) that if you believe what you believe and don't hurt anyone else with it- groovy- i reserve the right to look askance at religious folks. i don't believe that an idea of god- even without belief- is necessary. i would hazard a guess that most of the world's religions have a lot more folks who 1) believe because they were brought up to; 2) believe because- hey let's err on the side of caution; 3) don't really believe but cling to the idea or 4) are zealots and try to force their beliefs on everyone. then there are the rest of us who believe whatever.
divajood put forth the stoic idea- idea without necessarily belief- because we are not all powerful and succumb to our own arrogance. i agree that we are not all powerful, and that as a species we are arrogant, cruel, hateful, etc. but i would also put forth that religion has been around for a few thousand years now. we have had the idea of many gods and 1 god and 'god in three persons- blessed trinity' and we are still arrogant, cruel, hateful, etc. as for needing the idea of god for comfort- that was brought up by someone recently- get a teddy bear. i mean really. it would at least be something tangible to hold and would listen as well as an alleged spirit in heaven somewhere where we can't see, hear, or touch.
if you believe and go to church or whatnot- and that's your bag- fine. besides, i love the constitution and it says you have a right to worship how you please- as do i. i will defend that right for you- as i would defend the proponents of the second amendment. just not for the same reasons as either.
3 comments:
I'm with you on this one betmo. So long as "your" belief does not interfere with my leading my own life on my terms, then I'll stay out of "your" way. Hey, I have friends who claim to be religious, but I see every day how their actions contradict their beliefs or how they waffle when they know they are in mixed company. I am generally forgiving of these "fence-sitters/hedge-betters". The people I have the most problem with is not even the fundies, who appear to practice what they preach (appear above reproach), it's the people who preach about how other's lead their lives while doing exactly the same thing: (see Gingrich, Tobias...). This is probably why I have very few friends in real life. I have a very low tolerance for bull***t, particularly after years and years of letting myself be taken in by trying to be supportive of same in the name of "religion" or "friendship". I did learn how to be tactful (mama dizzy did teach me that if you can't say nothin' nice...yada yada yada...), so rather than try to change people who annoy me (by keeping my enemies "closer"), I just keep my distance...That way I can keep my rep as a "nice person" otherwise, my cover would have been blown years ago because some people definitely drive me to want to "tell them about themselves". I can't remember who said it, (either Jefferson or Franklin)--something to the effect of, "If it neither picks my pocket nor breaks my bones, it is not my concern." If religion is your bag or swinging from your chandeliers with a group of horny hippies is your thing, more power to ya! ;)
Religion-
A weakness...an argument starter...WAR fuel...right up there with politics.
I understand your position, and respect it. I guess my faith comes from looking at the incredibly amazing design, if you will, of the earth. How everything serves a purpose, everything has a place in the life-cycle. I choose to believe in a higher power, but I cannot stress enough that there is a huge difference in religion and pure faith.
All organized religion seems to follow specific rules, sometimes so rigid that it is impossible to follow them. Faith, to me, is what you draw from all belief systems, and decide what you accept and what you reject. I think most people base their concept of religion on the Christian concept, but there are many other views out there.
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