Kilgore Trout
Misanthropic Humanist
Most people claim belief in some type of god, if not in a specific religious doctrine itself. Additionally, most of these people claim to have some idea of what this god wants them to be doing, and what the consequences are for not doing so.
My atheism, isn't a belief or a worldview, but is rather a result of a more encompassing perspective and worldview. None of my decisions are based on me being an atheist, but all my decisions are consistent in that they all are a sincere extension of a rationalist worldview, and thus, consistent with atheism as well. In effect, being true to my worldview makes it impossible for me to be anything other than an atheist, as long as I'm being honest with myself - which is part of my fundamental worldview.
However, if I were a theist, particularly if I thought I knew what god wanted of me, my behavior would always consistently reflect this. Knowing that my immortal soul was on the line, and an all-powerful god was judging me, would render it impossible for me to do anything which I thought would disappoint or anger this god. Not only would I worry for my soul, but my desire for internal consistency and honesty would make me constantly aware of my actions and how they would be interpreted.
In my observations of people, I find that very few people seem to display any consistency of behavior in accord with what they express their god wants them to do. If people's immortal souls were on the line, wouldn't they constantly be aware of this? In fact, any other considerations would be meaningless, in the face of being judged for eternity. Does this mean that people don't understand the weight of what they're saying? Do they not comprehend eternity? Or, is it more simply, that their expressed beliefs aren't as all encompassing as they would have you think, and that very few of their decisions even provoke them to think about their purported beliefs and what their god wants them to do? Does this type of belief have any value - and, even if it does, why vehemently push your beliefs on others, when your behavior belies the relevance of these beliefs to your own life?
My atheism, isn't a belief or a worldview, but is rather a result of a more encompassing perspective and worldview. None of my decisions are based on me being an atheist, but all my decisions are consistent in that they all are a sincere extension of a rationalist worldview, and thus, consistent with atheism as well. In effect, being true to my worldview makes it impossible for me to be anything other than an atheist, as long as I'm being honest with myself - which is part of my fundamental worldview.
However, if I were a theist, particularly if I thought I knew what god wanted of me, my behavior would always consistently reflect this. Knowing that my immortal soul was on the line, and an all-powerful god was judging me, would render it impossible for me to do anything which I thought would disappoint or anger this god. Not only would I worry for my soul, but my desire for internal consistency and honesty would make me constantly aware of my actions and how they would be interpreted.
In my observations of people, I find that very few people seem to display any consistency of behavior in accord with what they express their god wants them to do. If people's immortal souls were on the line, wouldn't they constantly be aware of this? In fact, any other considerations would be meaningless, in the face of being judged for eternity. Does this mean that people don't understand the weight of what they're saying? Do they not comprehend eternity? Or, is it more simply, that their expressed beliefs aren't as all encompassing as they would have you think, and that very few of their decisions even provoke them to think about their purported beliefs and what their god wants them to do? Does this type of belief have any value - and, even if it does, why vehemently push your beliefs on others, when your behavior belies the relevance of these beliefs to your own life?