Even for me, when I hear the word “atheist” I almost immediately get the image of a person who is cold, emotionless, and calculating. However, the thought that believing is the equivalent of being a kind and moral person is incredibly unfair in my eyes. To be perceived that I am less kind, less moral, less spiritual and instead more cold, more calculating -and God forbid- more rational just because I don’t believe in God is unfair. Even if I was, there are millions out there that are genuinely good people who just happen to not be attached to a faith. While religion tends to be about human decency and can often serve as a great motivator for such behavior, I feel it is not a necessary part of it.
I don’t want to be told that I can’t comprehend the full extent of something like love or compassion without believing in a God. I don’t want to be told that I have a lower set of morals than someone else automatically because they belong to a certain group that I am not. An entire history of humanity, of the terrible actions that people have done things in the names of their deities, is a clear indication against that.
I know there are people who say that there are always people who do things in the name of a religion that don’t necessarily represent the good ideals of what the majority of believers believe. I can certainly reciprocate that sentiment. However, wouldn’t you hold that true for any group of people? There are certainly good people who are from different faiths from you. There are also good people who are atheists. And of course, for any set of beliefs there are the bad people.
So what is it that makes someone good? Take two people with the similar moral principles but different faiths. Who is “right?” What is the distinction, what is the reason for one to believe in the holiness of Jesus and the other that he was merely a good man. Am I worser man, if I am good person who does not believe in God, than the man who has questionable virtues but believes? Or the man who is “barely” religious but still makes the occasional effort to come to church? What is the line where you make that distinction? Should there be a line at all?
Countries such as Japan are predominantly non-religious (most cases of “religion” are matter of tradition rather than “real” faith). A substantial percentage of certain European countries such as Great Britain and the majority of Sweden identify themselves as “non-religious.” Yet, the people there seem to be doing fine. Society is not plummeting on itself. Are all these people worse off as a result of not believing? Are they missing out on something better?
Ask: why do you believe what you believe? What is it that makes you right? Why is it that you, say as a Christian, believe that Jesus was sent to save humanity; rather than what the Jews believe: that he was otherwise; and what the Muslims believe: that he was a distinguished prophet?
Ask: why in the entire history of humanity embroiled in religion, why you choose to believe in your faith and not others. If its because your faith doesn’t allow for the worship of other faiths is there another reason? Monotheism is hardly something new in the history of religion.
Do you feel a spiritual connection with what you believe? Why? How is your experience different from those of other faiths? Religion has an indisputable psychological impact regardless of what faith it is. I’ve had my own experiences with this. But when does an experience separate itself from a psychological phenomenon to something truly externally induced?
Ask yourself: how much influence on you it may have had on you as a child growing up in a certain environment, perhaps with a certain set of rules, perhaps where other views were never mentioned. Would you have grown up as a Jew if you were born a Jew? A Christian if you were born a Christian? A Buddhist if you were born a Buddhist? Statistically, the answer would seem to be yes. So if that is the case, what is the veracity of your belief? The question that keeps on coming back is: Why do you believe what you believe?
And at the end of all this. Even if it your faith that makes you feel higher, more enlightened. Why do you think that it’s true?
Just because something is comfortable doesn’t make it true. Can you even imagine where we would be if we took everything comfortable as truth? Not somewhere good, that’s for sure.
My goal in saying all this is not to say that I’m right. I just feel that these are important things that people should ask themselves to know what their faith is truly grounded in.
In my mind, if faith is something so important that it demands this much respect, you owe it to yourself to break yourself away from societal tradition, family expectations, psychological or environmental influences from growing up, and the such which may have influenced you to believe in a certain way, and learn to approach religion in a way that is as pure as possible. As Thomas Jefferson said:
“Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear. “
I ask all these questions, question all these beliefs, because I have an intense respect for the idea of faith. The only way to approach faith is to remove these bondings from yourself and ask yourself why you believe, and if they for any other reasons that aren’t purely your own.