(no subject)
I feel like doing a rant today. It's quite possible that i will offend you in some way in the following update, so feel free to flame me in the comments section if that will make you feel better.
Today in sunday school we were having a lesson about marriage and what we can do to prepare to be an eternal companion. The teacher, this new lady that just moved in, read us a scripture in genesis and then said, and i quote, "Not to be too humorous, but men need us. They can't get along without us, and thats why we're here-to serve man." We then spent the rest of the lesson talking about the skills we should be working on acquiring to prepare ourselves-cooking, cleaning, organizing, and serving. What a load of -explative-. To serve man? gee, thanks for clearing that one up. I've always wanted to know what my true purpose in life was. Despite all the Da Vinci Code's (which i just finished today:D) shortcomings, Dan Brown was right about one thing. The rise of christianity was largely responsible for the rise of sexism and the male-dominated society that we live in today. Christianity, while it's purpose was a noble one-the worship and following of christ, a god and our savior who walked the earth serving and ultimately giving his life for all of humanity- was simply, after all the apostles died, a few men's interpretation of that worship. And mankind is corrupt, so without divine guidance, early christianity soon slanted the good and the pure of christ's life and teachings to it's own purposes. "They draw near unto me with their words, but their hearts are far from me." Ironic as it may seem to some, We have early christianity to thank, not paganism and anti-christs, for so many of the evils existing in our society today.
That is not to say people should blame God himself for all these bad things. The catholic church's will and god's were not always, if ever, one and the same. How could they be, with they themselves denying the existence of modern revelation? True christianity is the patterning of one's life, behavior and beliefs after Jesus Christ, the savior of the world and the only perfect example. Anything that is not synonymous with that is not christianity, no matter what label it is given. It seems a simple concept to me, but there are SO many people who have decided God must not exist, or must be an evil god, because people they know who claim to be christian are corrupt, or because they see pompous, hypocrytical people trying to convert them to "god's will". Why do people let the actions of others dictate what they believe in? it does not stand up to logic that because there exist people who claim to be of god, and are fools, that god must also be a foolish idea, or not real. they base their beliefs on a nonexistant god through association-they are letting others dictate what they think.
The other atheist argument is that because bad things have happened to them, or to the world in general, that god must not exist or must be an evil god. Atheists in general look down on christians and call everyone who adheres to a religion a "blind sheep" who refuses to think for themselves. If any belief is "blind", it's that atheist argument. Because bad things happen, God must not exist? so many people blame god for bad things, but think about it. If God decided to prevent bad things from happening, he would have to take away the freedom of choice from mankind. What are we without our agency? we are slaves. And slaves, whether to a good or bad cause, are still slaves. If God decided to stop people from dying, he would have to take away mortality from earth and disrupt the natural process of life. What is life without mortality? meaningless. An infinite amount of anything makes it worthless. Living forever in the same state as i do now, though traditionally coveted throughout history, is a hell you could not persuade me in a million years to accept. It seems ridiculous to me that anyone could actually believe in those reasons as proof that god does not exist. If that is the only reason you have for being atheist, you are being intellectually lazy.
There are so many intellectually lazy people in the world today. There is nothing more annoying. I'll just decide to be atheist, because It's easier than thinking about the complicated subject of religion, spirituality and God for myself. I'll just decide to be a strict christian who is easily offended by whatever my church tells me to be, and I will ignore or discredit all threats such as questions posed by non-believers, because it is easier than finding truth for myself. People who are not confident in what they believe do not handle threats to their beliefs well. If you are uneducated about what you believe in, and uneducated about your opposition's standpoint, of course you are going to feel threatened by opposing views. It is only those who are willing to discuss and defend what they believe with more than "you are just a blind sheep" or "you are persucuter of the righteous, and shall one day go to hell" that truly have thought for themselves about what they believe and deserve to be considered.