I Heart Hitchens
aka why im an anti-theist
(long and possibly offensive)
(so if you dont like me after reading i warned ya..)
Some fun rabble between me and the hubby on politics tonight inevitably led to the religion topic.
And there are many things i could talk about concerning religion but this post is why it's harmful.
I recently watched "the atheism tapes" from the BBC and often the question raised was "why is religion harmful" And i dont feel enough of the interviewed addressed this topic well enough.
I believe dawkins and hitchens have to some degree touched on it and many would cite such atrocities as the crusades, the inquisition, 911 etc. However as much as i agree these incidents were fueled by religion and are a stain on its reputation i feel such events and wars are part of human nature and just as many are committed in the name of conquest, of money, of power, or other factors.
To me the greatest harm of religion is not wars or torture. The greatest harm of religion is that it teaches people a way of life that is untrue, deceptive, and disconnects them from reality and the world around them. It works as a destructive hive mentality that tells groups of people an unnatural way of behaving, logic, and morality.
While it may seem that i digress with this, its to make my real point in the telling.
I have practiced Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism and a touch of Episcopalian. I was raised catholic and stopped believing in god sometime around the age of 10 or 11.
I very much enjoyed Hinduism. I took it on for a good many years, and found it to be very fulfilling. I found it brought me peace and enjoyment. It made me feel more centered and balanced. And i do mean that. I still think i should practice, though i dont, as i find some comfort in it. with that said,
i dont believe a damn word of it. I dont believe Shiva exists. I dont believe the way to enlightenment is through not drinking alcohol or not eating cattle. I liked the ceremony, i loved meditating. I loved the dozens of dozens of deities, the art, the custom. But i did not believe for a second my personal deity of choice was real, or did me any favors.
So the point of that was i found comfort, balance, and fulfillment in a religious practice without thinking it was the end all be all absolute truth. I have no problem with people practicing and believing whatever they want, as long as its an educated choice. Thats its not treated as absolute truth to the outside world. For example: A decent amount of people believe they are vampires. They hold parties, they have gatherings, im sure they have communities with rules and roles and what have you. Great. That is fantastic. And as long as you dont expect the world to play vampire with you i dont care. As long as you arent forcing your "vampire rules" down your childrens throats i dont care. You're an adult, living your life to a preference. Im fine with that.
Why is that ok? because as a society we found out long ago, vampires dont exist. No one could pop into office and make a law saying The queen of a territory can choose the diet of her minions" because societies accepts this is an arbitrary rule, that only applies to a fantasy mentality. We dont overly condone that behavior, however there are no laws saying you cant play vampire. We live and let live on that issue. However religion we are forced to respect.
Religion is dangerous when we condone it as untouchable, protected, and sacred. When we condone the actions of the fanatics as being above the people playing vampire, or elf, or whatever lifestyle on the proverbial fringe they choose. We've given religion something of a protected status where its still uncouth to tell someone their belief in jesus is nothing more than an imaginary friend. Dont get me wrong, that would be rude face to face. But at the same time when we let these people think they arent just choosing to believe something we give it status.
And this again is dangerous because we now have whole groups of people living in a different set of rules. Rules that are based on mythology and fiction. It inhibits scientific progress. it inhibits societal and ethical progress. These are rules that cause internal conflicts in people by holding them often to unnatural standards. Mother Theresa is actually the best example of this. A woman who spent her life trying to please and feel a god she never felt. A woman who dedicated her life to suffering for an unobtainable goal. Religion when seen as an absolute divides.
Religion as an absolute becomes this need to force it on others, the fantastic evangelical idea that the good word must not only be spread, but made law. When people actually believe the bible is the word of god, how can they not force it on othes? after all, they have the truth.. and when you know something to be true.. dont you want to share it?
The problem is its not true. And it drives people to push a morality that doesnt exist. My favorite example is abstinence only education. Time and again this is proven not only to NOT curb teen pregnancy, teens have sex at the same rate but with MORE pregnancies.
This is morality based on religious values, still in place, that defies data and human nature. An in the name of morality is keep in place despite the known harm.
That to me is the real danger of religion. The power to ignore the world around you in favor of your fantasy world. And this only is a problem because people still play nice and pretend religious belief is more valid than believing you're a vampire. We give the religious right this power, its like letting a child believe in their imaginary friend and defending it until they're grown and then wondering why they hear voices. This is why im anti theist. Because we have to stop letting people think their delusions are both accepted and protected. And until we do we will continue to have archaic christian based laws and inequalities. We wil continue to have political debates based on religious belief. Every persons life is affected by the us condoning these peoples opinions as valid to the rest of the world. If religion really stopped at home, where it belongs, i think we'd all be much better off.
(long and possibly offensive)
(so if you dont like me after reading i warned ya..)
Some fun rabble between me and the hubby on politics tonight inevitably led to the religion topic.
And there are many things i could talk about concerning religion but this post is why it's harmful.
I recently watched "the atheism tapes" from the BBC and often the question raised was "why is religion harmful" And i dont feel enough of the interviewed addressed this topic well enough.
I believe dawkins and hitchens have to some degree touched on it and many would cite such atrocities as the crusades, the inquisition, 911 etc. However as much as i agree these incidents were fueled by religion and are a stain on its reputation i feel such events and wars are part of human nature and just as many are committed in the name of conquest, of money, of power, or other factors.
To me the greatest harm of religion is not wars or torture. The greatest harm of religion is that it teaches people a way of life that is untrue, deceptive, and disconnects them from reality and the world around them. It works as a destructive hive mentality that tells groups of people an unnatural way of behaving, logic, and morality.
While it may seem that i digress with this, its to make my real point in the telling.
I have practiced Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism and a touch of Episcopalian. I was raised catholic and stopped believing in god sometime around the age of 10 or 11.
I very much enjoyed Hinduism. I took it on for a good many years, and found it to be very fulfilling. I found it brought me peace and enjoyment. It made me feel more centered and balanced. And i do mean that. I still think i should practice, though i dont, as i find some comfort in it. with that said,
i dont believe a damn word of it. I dont believe Shiva exists. I dont believe the way to enlightenment is through not drinking alcohol or not eating cattle. I liked the ceremony, i loved meditating. I loved the dozens of dozens of deities, the art, the custom. But i did not believe for a second my personal deity of choice was real, or did me any favors.
So the point of that was i found comfort, balance, and fulfillment in a religious practice without thinking it was the end all be all absolute truth. I have no problem with people practicing and believing whatever they want, as long as its an educated choice. Thats its not treated as absolute truth to the outside world. For example: A decent amount of people believe they are vampires. They hold parties, they have gatherings, im sure they have communities with rules and roles and what have you. Great. That is fantastic. And as long as you dont expect the world to play vampire with you i dont care. As long as you arent forcing your "vampire rules" down your childrens throats i dont care. You're an adult, living your life to a preference. Im fine with that.
Why is that ok? because as a society we found out long ago, vampires dont exist. No one could pop into office and make a law saying The queen of a territory can choose the diet of her minions" because societies accepts this is an arbitrary rule, that only applies to a fantasy mentality. We dont overly condone that behavior, however there are no laws saying you cant play vampire. We live and let live on that issue. However religion we are forced to respect.
Religion is dangerous when we condone it as untouchable, protected, and sacred. When we condone the actions of the fanatics as being above the people playing vampire, or elf, or whatever lifestyle on the proverbial fringe they choose. We've given religion something of a protected status where its still uncouth to tell someone their belief in jesus is nothing more than an imaginary friend. Dont get me wrong, that would be rude face to face. But at the same time when we let these people think they arent just choosing to believe something we give it status.
And this again is dangerous because we now have whole groups of people living in a different set of rules. Rules that are based on mythology and fiction. It inhibits scientific progress. it inhibits societal and ethical progress. These are rules that cause internal conflicts in people by holding them often to unnatural standards. Mother Theresa is actually the best example of this. A woman who spent her life trying to please and feel a god she never felt. A woman who dedicated her life to suffering for an unobtainable goal. Religion when seen as an absolute divides.
Religion as an absolute becomes this need to force it on others, the fantastic evangelical idea that the good word must not only be spread, but made law. When people actually believe the bible is the word of god, how can they not force it on othes? after all, they have the truth.. and when you know something to be true.. dont you want to share it?
The problem is its not true. And it drives people to push a morality that doesnt exist. My favorite example is abstinence only education. Time and again this is proven not only to NOT curb teen pregnancy, teens have sex at the same rate but with MORE pregnancies.
This is morality based on religious values, still in place, that defies data and human nature. An in the name of morality is keep in place despite the known harm.
That to me is the real danger of religion. The power to ignore the world around you in favor of your fantasy world. And this only is a problem because people still play nice and pretend religious belief is more valid than believing you're a vampire. We give the religious right this power, its like letting a child believe in their imaginary friend and defending it until they're grown and then wondering why they hear voices. This is why im anti theist. Because we have to stop letting people think their delusions are both accepted and protected. And until we do we will continue to have archaic christian based laws and inequalities. We wil continue to have political debates based on religious belief. Every persons life is affected by the us condoning these peoples opinions as valid to the rest of the world. If religion really stopped at home, where it belongs, i think we'd all be much better off.