| General Fiction posted June 25, 2015 |
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A letter to an atheist contest.
A letter to my atheist friend.
by Jackarrie
My dear atheist friend
I am happy to have this opportunity to write to you. I would love to share my journey with you to where I am at present with regards to faith.
When I was born back in the 40's, in Catholic Ireland, it was automatic that every baby got christened into the church. That was to be my religion whether I liked it or not. If I had been born in another country I would be some other religion.
As I grew older and learned more about the different religions, I could never understand how one person could change the religion of his country to suit his need for a divorce. The pope would not grant Henry the 8th a divorce from his first wife. Henry did not start a new religion; he used it for his own gain. England became protestant with Henry the 8th the head of the church.
I lived through the terrible atrocities in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants. There were so many innocent people killed. There were terrible wrongs on both sides; it was more to do with civil rights than religion.
I guess you could say I was following the catholic teaching because I believed I had no choice. Not allowed to ask questions, we were very much left in the dark. I began to read the bible seriously and found inconsistencies in it. I hated the cruel acts, referring to the story about Moses adoration of the golden calf was no laughing matter Moses got 3000 people slaughtered, even though they were neighbors family and friends. The story of Noah involved all the living on the earth being destroyed by God.
I believe that honest inquiry is more valuable than old superstition. Christianity came at a time when we did not know that the earth was a globe going around the sun it was still thought that we lived on a flat earth, we didn't know that there were germs that caused disease. The pagans at that time really suffered if they did not become Christian.
In the sixteenth century Galileo Galili, was not allowed to say that the earth went around the sun because of the Catholic Church. This concept was already put forward in 220 AD by Arastacos of Samos. But the Church would not accept the scientific truth so we lived in ignorance of the heliocentric view of our solar system for 800 years.
My main problem with God, if he/she does exist is why allow children die of cancer and other illness. Why take Mothers or Fathers away from young families? Why not help all the suffering of today, and stop the cruel wars, if he/she is the sole Supreme Being.
We cannot say there is no God; this is something we will never know until we meet our end. I am sure like me you are demonized because of having no faith. I do not believe that Jesus is coming down from the clouds; I do not believe that we were created 6 thousand years ago. This is wrong as we know that the paintings in caves in Spain were painted 28,000 years ago.
Science is profoundly inspiring when they do not have the answers they will precisely say that, yet continue to search for the empirical truth. We now know that the universe was not made especially for us. The origins of life when Darwin talked about the origin species we are pushing back those frontiers and the fundamental complexities of evolution.
My opinions were never accepted as religion stopped the conversation on an ethical argument. I have nothing against Christians or believers of other Gods, the majority of my family fall into this category, but I would like them to respect my beliefs and to be aware that those who do not believe know right from wrong without a celestial guidance. The question that is always asked, "where do you get your morals if there is no God?" this is an insult. As nonbelievers, we have union solidarity, innate awareness of right and wrong, and can be spiritual and good.
As I moved away from the faith I was born into, I became spiritual. For many individuals today including myself, spirituality has become a direct and personal connection with a God of this cosmic universe without having membership in any organized religion. I am not into labels, but I am told I am a pantheist humanist. I see God in nature, the birds, the flowers, and the trees, in the faces of a new baby. In a beautiful old wrinkled woman. He is everywhere, in works of art, including a well-written poem, he is in the stars at night and the sun and the moon, the wind, and the rain. He is everywhere. There are many ways to worship and each has its own beauty. To live life in balance with this universal spirit is a healthy way. I always seek my own path, I appreciate what others are doing, however, I maintain my individual expression.
Dear Atheists contest entry
My dear atheist friend
I am happy to have this opportunity to write to you. I would love to share my journey with you to where I am at present with regards to faith.
When I was born back in the 40's, in Catholic Ireland, it was automatic that every baby got christened into the church. That was to be my religion whether I liked it or not. If I had been born in another country I would be some other religion.
As I grew older and learned more about the different religions, I could never understand how one person could change the religion of his country to suit his need for a divorce. The pope would not grant Henry the 8th a divorce from his first wife. Henry did not start a new religion; he used it for his own gain. England became protestant with Henry the 8th the head of the church.
I lived through the terrible atrocities in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants. There were so many innocent people killed. There were terrible wrongs on both sides; it was more to do with civil rights than religion.
I guess you could say I was following the catholic teaching because I believed I had no choice. Not allowed to ask questions, we were very much left in the dark. I began to read the bible seriously and found inconsistencies in it. I hated the cruel acts, referring to the story about Moses adoration of the golden calf was no laughing matter Moses got 3000 people slaughtered, even though they were neighbors family and friends. The story of Noah involved all the living on the earth being destroyed by God.
I believe that honest inquiry is more valuable than old superstition. Christianity came at a time when we did not know that the earth was a globe going around the sun it was still thought that we lived on a flat earth, we didn't know that there were germs that caused disease. The pagans at that time really suffered if they did not become Christian.
In the sixteenth century Galileo Galili, was not allowed to say that the earth went around the sun because of the Catholic Church. This concept was already put forward in 220 AD by Arastacos of Samos. But the Church would not accept the scientific truth so we lived in ignorance of the heliocentric view of our solar system for 800 years.
My main problem with God, if he/she does exist is why allow children die of cancer and other illness. Why take Mothers or Fathers away from young families? Why not help all the suffering of today, and stop the cruel wars, if he/she is the sole Supreme Being.
We cannot say there is no God; this is something we will never know until we meet our end. I am sure like me you are demonized because of having no faith. I do not believe that Jesus is coming down from the clouds; I do not believe that we were created 6 thousand years ago. This is wrong as we know that the paintings in caves in Spain were painted 28,000 years ago.
Science is profoundly inspiring when they do not have the answers they will precisely say that, yet continue to search for the empirical truth. We now know that the universe was not made especially for us. The origins of life when Darwin talked about the origin species we are pushing back those frontiers and the fundamental complexities of evolution.
My opinions were never accepted as religion stopped the conversation on an ethical argument. I have nothing against Christians or believers of other Gods, the majority of my family fall into this category, but I would like them to respect my beliefs and to be aware that those who do not believe know right from wrong without a celestial guidance. The question that is always asked, "where do you get your morals if there is no God?" this is an insult. As nonbelievers, we have union solidarity, innate awareness of right and wrong, and can be spiritual and good.
As I moved away from the faith I was born into, I became spiritual. For many individuals today including myself, spirituality has become a direct and personal connection with a God of this cosmic universe without having membership in any organized religion. I am not into labels, but I am told I am a pantheist humanist. I see God in nature, the birds, the flowers, and the trees, in the faces of a new baby. In a beautiful old wrinkled woman. He is everywhere, in works of art, including a well-written poem, he is in the stars at night and the sun and the moon, the wind, and the rain. He is everywhere. There are many ways to worship and each has its own beauty. To live life in balance with this universal spirit is a healthy way. I always seek my own path, I appreciate what others are doing, however, I maintain my individual expression.
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