Okay, I'm an atheist. To be clear, I'm not a believer in the Christian right's American version of god. I don't apologize for not believing in a god who supposedly gets involved in every detail of our lives, sends natural catastrophes to punish humanity or created this whole universe for us, one self-absorbed species in this thin film of life on our obscure little planet.
I don't believe in a god who only loves the superstitious, anti-intellectual, heterosexual, white Anglo-Saxon, Protestant archetype. You know, the false idol of the extremes of American Christianity.
In fact, those who believe in this little god are blasphemous and idolaters.
My final straw was a story about an elected official claiming that god forms a threesome in a Christian marriage. I've heard god implicated in all kinds of activities but this one is the winner for me.
It's way past time we grow up and think about the concept of God for what it is: a limited human explanation for the mysteries that abound in this universe. Yes, there are many unexplained mysteries. But an anthropomorphic entity with a long flowing beard, dressed in a white robe and fussing about what humans do with their genitalia? I don't think so.
American Christians have had it easy for the last couple of centuries. But "things are a changing," as the saying goes. Not because anyone has declared war on Christianity, but because the revised, perverted version, designed to appeal to the extremes of the right, drives people away from all organized religion. It simply makes no sense to anyone but them.
And that's what it takes to continue to believe in this American version; a reasoning black out in favor of a wholesale, unquestioning acceptance of some of the most twisted ideas in existence today.
We've already seen states allow children to forgo learning units that violate their religious beliefs. And, now we are seeing states trying to exempt people who discriminate against others if the mistreatment is based on religious beliefs.
For God's sake, if there is a God, doesn't the logic in this idea convince anyone with half an ounce of critical thinking left, that the idea is idiotic?
A religious belief that justifies mistreatment of other human beings is illogical!
The word "religion" is based on the word "religare" which means to bind, not separate. And mistreatment is a form of separating some "undesirable" person or group from the "desirables."
But my argument will fall on two kinds of ears: those who already know what I'm writing about and those who don't have a clue and couldn't care less about the true meaning of religion or mistreatment based on its falsifications.
So yes, when it comes to mainstream religion, I'm an agnostic. But when it comes to that small god that seems to have taken up residence in some American Christian churches, I'm not just an atheist. I'm an anti-theist.
And whatever derision these people are experiencing is justified. In this case, not in the sense of a religious exemption, but because of a complete lapse in judgment in favor of mindless reiteration of perverted ideology. A perversion that turns an ideology of love and compassion into one of hate and discrimination, all in the name of a small god who reflects their personal projections, human frailties and all.
A moment or two of open-minded reflection will reveal the fallacy of one person judging another in the name of a religious principle.
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