Irreligiosity - Just Be Good for Goodness Sake

Fom today's edition of the Owen Sound Sun Times:

What is your beef with Christ, Christians and Christianity anyway? This question came up at a humanist meeting I attended last week. My response was that my biggest problem with Christianity (and religion in general) is that it amounts to a waste of time. Defenders of religion will quickly object by pointing out all of the good works which are carried out in the name of their faiths. The late Christopher Hitchens dismissed this objection when he wrote:

“Nine times out of ten, in debate with a cleric, one will be told not of some dogma of religious certitude but of some instance of charitable or humanitarian work undertaken by a religious person. Of course, this says nothing about the belief system involved: it may be true that Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam succeeds in weaning young black men off narcotics, but this would not alter the fact that [it] is a racist crackpot organization. . . . My own response has been to issue a challenge: name me an ethical statement made or an action performed by a believer that could not have been made or performed by a non-believer. As yet, I have had no takers. (Whereas, oddly enough, if you ask an audience to name a wicked statement or action directly attributable to religious faith, nobody has any difficulty in finding an example.)” - Introduction to The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Nonbeliever (De Capo Press, 2007).

Another humanist attending our meeting referred to the famous observation by physicist Steven Weinberg: "With or without [religion] you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, it takes religion.” Of course, religion is not the only social phenomenon which can accomplish this. Look no further than the insane jingoistic rhetoric spewing out of candidates for the U.S. Republican presidential nomination. The sad part is that much of this rhetoric is cloaked in religiosity. Current front-runner Mitt Romney provided this gem of a quote on October 6, 2011: “God did not create this country to be a nation of followers … America is not destined to be one of several equally balanced global powers”. At least Romney can take credit for leaving an atheist like me muttering “Sweet Jesus …”.

It is taken as a given that a public announcement of non-belief in God would render a U.S. presidential candidate unelectable. On the other hand, it was considered perfectly appropriate for former President George W. Bush to suggest that God literally told him to invade Afghanistan and Iraq (source: The Guardian). One is left wondering how long Bush would have been left in charge of the nuclear launch codes if he described speaking to Zeus instead of the moral majority’s chosen Lord and Savior.

I am often asked by people why I bother to write this column. The answer is simply because the truth matters. It matters whether the miracles described in the Bible occurred and whether they will occur in the future. It matters whether prayer works or if it’s nothing but a waste of time. It matters whether diseases are caused by demonic forces or natural pathogens. It matters whether our purpose on earth is dictated by a deity or whether it is up to us (and only us) to define that purpose. It matters whether worshipping the idea of a human sacrifice is beneficial to society or not. It matters whether we need a god to be good or not. Wouldn’t you be concerned if your neighbor was more likely to steal if they didn’t think that someone was looking over their shoulders? In fact, one can define morality as that which motivates us to do the right thing when nobody is watching and we have no fear of being punished if we choose to do wrong. If anyone gives this issue serious consideration, they will realize that we don’t want people to be good because they have to be good. We all want people to “Just be good for goodness sake” - this is my favorite humanist slogan.

For those interested in learning more about humanism, the Grey Bruce Humanist Association meets monthly to discuss topics relating to the betterment of humanity without the supernatural. Information can be found on the GBHA’s website at: http://www.greybrucehumanists.org/.

Note - Special thanks to Luke Muehlhauser (creator and host of the podcast Conversations from the Pale Blue Dot) for his riff which inspired the "because the truth matters" paragraph in the above column.

If you don't want to give at church, you can help the needy through Kiva ...

If you are looking for a decent secular charity, please accept my invitation to join the Kiva microfinance website: http://kiva.org/invitedby/erroll2505

For just $25 (which you can pay via Paypal or a major credit card), you can help funding a loan to worthy individuals and groups almost anywhere in the third world. Once the loan has been repaid, you can relend the funds - it's truly a gift that keeps giving.

You also have the option of joining community groups within Kiva in order to show that you support the interests of that particular community. Not surprisingly, the Atheists, Agnostics, Skeptics, Freethinkers community (my chosen group) is leading the donations this month, like most months.

Please note that I am not suggesting that Kiva is the answer to alleviating suffering or poverty in the third world. The people that receive loans through Kiva pay interest (not to Kiva lenders but to the organizations that administer the loans) and often at rates much higher than what we are paying in North America. That being said, Kiva makes seed financing available to many people/groups who would not be able to borrow money but for Kiva.

Comments from an Advocate Against Apathy

I found this email amusing and it provoked a bit of introspection. My comments are in square brackets:

Dear Atheist Missionary,

Your blog is interesting and insightful and predictable. People love to spout what they believe, so it is a never-ending exercise in defending one’s stance and attempting to convince the fellow bloggers, tweeters, posters, of something they will never be convinced of. Wow, 3,000 twits! The atheists are validated, the theists charge forth in defence. What really is the point of it all? It appears to be an exercise in futility, rhetoric. [You sound like an advocate for apatheism]

How you have time to read so many books about, and spend so much time pondering, something that is a given, is puzzling. Do you fear you might actually meet a maker one day? Are you just making sure you won’t, over and over again, trying to convince yourself? [I was heavily indoctrinated with religion as a child so I suppose there may be fear of eternal conscious torment submerged in my subconscious. However, my interest in the philosophy of religion was sparked by a mid-life realization that Plato was right on the money when he observed that the unexamined life was not worth living]

Belief in a god or its antithesis is simply an abdication of responsibility. My view. In my view, we are the only ones responsible for what we do in all aspects of our lives, and the only ones responsible for how our actions impact the lives of others. [Agreed]

Morality cannot be tied to any god, nor can immorality be tied to any lack of a god. There is nowhere to pass the buck. [Agreed]

Whether one is a theist or an atheist is really of no consequence to me. What is of consequence, is that one practices what they preach, regardless of what that might be. Hypocrisy and immorality are so closely linked as to be synonymous in my view. [I agree that actions speak louder than words. However, I also agree with Susan Neiman when she observed that a failure to adhere to a particular moral standard does not invalidate that standard]

“Personally, I find what is called ‘rule consequentialism’ to be the most appealing because it chooses rules of moral behavior based on the consequences of those rules.” Interesting. Are the rules ever-changing to suit the purpose? [No more than a constitution requires interpretation and evolves]

I was fascinated by your relation of the values you attempt to instill in your children. Do you teach by example? [Not very well. That being said, I am a firm believer that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree]

"1. Treat other people the way you want them to treat you. Basically, be kind to others.” Do you, or can you possibly, practice this in your profession?” [Absolutely. Putting yourself in other people' shoes is an essential ingredient to successful negotiation. See Getting to Yes]

"4. Be generous - It feels good to help others and expect nothing in return.” What efforts have you made in your life to help others, that have provided you with no personal gain, be it professionally, financially or for the purpose of bolstering your own ego? You don’t mention any.” [Great question. While I give more than 10% of my income to charitable causes annually, it is an open question as to what benefits I derive from that philanthropy. The Jewish philosopher Maimonides put a high value on anonymous giving and I tend to agree with that view. There is also more than a grain of truth in Tim Minchin's brilliant Guilt Song]

6. Don't believe anything just because someone tells you.” But, if they sign a retainer agreement, defend it all costs, regardless of the human consequences. Isn’t that what lawyers do? Or perhaps just some of them. Consequential rules. ” [Just some of them. I routinely fire clients who try to sway my moral compass]

7. Don't let anyone take advantage of you or bully you.” You forgot the complementary value, ‘Don’t take advantage of or bully anyone.’ Or was that a necessary oversight? [Good point. Freudian slip perhaps?]

"If I could choose curriculum to offer students, it would be a British book entitled The Philosophy Files (Orion Children’s Books, 2005). Why? Because it teaches children how to think, not what to think.” Why can’t you choose? It seems you choose not to choose, or you just don’t really care. Are you actually getting off your blog and taking action or just pontificating in cyberspace with myriad others who also have no intention of actually effecting change? Have you brought forth recommendations to that school board or the Ministry of Education? You evidently have the time to spend on useless pursuits, how about some useful ones? If I must stand corrected, please share your recommendations about curriculum. I will support you. I am very much an advocate for advancing and creating a curriculum that is the most beneficial to each and every individual student. They are the leaders of tomorrow. They are being shortchanged in the Backwater District School Board. If I could choose a curriculum for students, it would ensure that children learn their multiplication tables, cursive writing and keyboarding skills by the second grade, so they can get on with the business of “how to think” and get through our school system with the skills to compete in the economic market that is their future. Those little Indian kids with bare feet, goats in the kitchen and government subsidized tablets, will eat your kids’ lunch. Guaranteed. What will you do about that, besides criticize religious belief, read a thousand and four books, and quote the musings of others, who also have nothing better to do?

[Most of us have hobbies that we indulge in for hedonistic reasons. I have many - golf, skiing, travel, reading, art appreciation, the NFL and writing. This blog is an outlet for my opinions and, if you would like to dismiss that as pontificating, that is certainly your right. What am I doing to actually effect change? Not much. However, in order to effect change, you need to be informed about what needs to be changed and how to change it - I am not well equipped in either regard. That's why I sometimes pine for philosopher kings. I'm just a father/husband trying to raise my kids to be happy/productive members of society and keep my clients happy so I can continue to support my family. My ambitions are modest and, if you want to call that apathy, then so be it.]

I didn’t bother to post on your blog because the publisher is surely discriminate. The unabashed self adulation in your blog is true to form. [Blush]

Your kids will apparently grow up knowing “how to think” and what will they think? They will probably come to the conclusion that no matter how much lipstick one puts on a pig, it is still a pig, underneath the veneer. [I sure hope so] I am in a position to have seen what children who know “how to think” think about what they see and experience, the absolutism of it all – much like Atheism, you just can’t argue against it and win. Those who argue against it have no proof, only a blind faith in hogwash. It is what it is. Surely it must be the same in law.

Yours truly,

Advocate Against Apathy

P.S. Puzzling commentary: “There came to him an image of man's whole life upon the earth. It seemed to him that all man's life was like a tiny spurt of flame that blazed out briefly in an illimitable and terrifying darkness, and that all man's grandeur, tragic dignity, his heroic glory, came from the brevity and smallness of this flame. He knew his life was little and would be extinguished, and that only darkness was immense and everlasting. And he knew that he would die with defiance on his lips, and that the shout of his denial would ring with the last pulsing of his heart into the maw of all-engulfing night.” These are not the words of an Atheist. [I disagree] These are the words of a man who fears, as are all the words in your blog. [No, these are the words of a man who only lived to be 38 and who understood only too well that this was likely his only kick at the can] Reread them. Heaven and Hell, such as they are, are right here to be endured. No escaping, no buck passing, and so many onlookers, students, impressionable children. [These are comments I applaud] Teach your children well.

RIP Christopher Hitchens

Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011): Husband, father, author, journalist, bon vivant and fearless atheist.

Hitch, you'll be missed. I couldn't think of a more fitting epitaph to you than Thomas Wolfe's preface to You Can't Go Home Again:

There came to him an image of man's whole life upon the earth. It seemed to him that all man's life was like a tiny spurt of flame that blazed out briefly in an illimitable and terrifying darkness, and that all man's grandeur, tragic dignity, his heroic glory, came from the brevity and smallness of this flame. He knew his life was little and would be extinguished, and that only darkness was immense and everlasting. And he knew that he would die with defiance on his lips, and that the shout of his denial would ring with the last pulsing of his heart into the maw of all-engulfing night.

Irreligiosity - Comparative religion should be a compulsory part of public school curricula

From today's edition of the Owen Sound Sun Times:

Over 2000 ratepayers recently signed a petition to allow the Gideons to continue their practice of distributing copies of the New Testament to grade 5 students of the Bluewater District School Board [in Ontario, Canada]. I wholeheartedly support this practice and my only concern is that it does not go far enough. In addition to the Gideon’s efforts, I hope that other groups will come forward to offer the distribution of the Jewish Bible (similar to the Protestant Old Testament), the Book Mormon, the Qur'an and the Upanishads (philosophical texts considered to be the source of Hinduism). But let’s not stop with permitting the distribution of selected sacred texts.

We should not allow children’s religious education to be confined to indoctrination by their parent’s choice of religion, non-religion or irreligion. Indeed, a study of comparative religion should be a compulsory part of our public schooling like it is in [the Canadian province of]Newfoundland and Labrador. In that province, children begin learning about religions practiced around the world as early as kindergarten on the basis that:

“Religious and denominational intolerance will be eliminated only when people are more understanding of the intrinsic worth of religious views and traditions that are not their own. An effective religious education program gives accurate information and demonstrate respect for all world faiths.” (source: NL Kindergarten Religious Education Interim Curriculum Guide 2008).

What might students learn from a compulsory comparative religion program?

1. That Jainism is an Indian religion that promotes non-violence to all living things. Discussion could include the ethical theories underlying veganism and animal rights.

2. That the gnostic gospels are a collection of over 50 texts of ancient wisdom which have been excluded from the Bible. Students could read The Gospel of Thomas and discuss the following passage: His disciples said, “When will the kingdom come? “ [Jesus replied] “It will not come by watching for it. It will not be said, ‘Look, here!’ or ‘Look, there!’ Rather, the Father’s kingdom is spread out upon the earth, and people don’t see it.”

3. The difference between the Calvinist and Arminian branches of Protestant Christianity. At risk of oversimplification, Calvinists believe that God only extends grace to those elected for salvation and that others (known as “reprobates”) are predestined to roast for eternity. On the other hand, Arminians believe that salvation is available to all.

4. That Zoroastrianism (founded in Iran before 600 B.C.) affirms the existence of a transcendent god and revival of the dead at the end of time when a savior restores creation to a state of perfection. Zoroastrians also believe that good thoughts, words and deeds are necessary to keep chaos

5. How and why the Roman Catholic Church canonizes saints. Discussion could include the fact that Saint Thomas More oversaw the burning of heretics at the stake for offences that included translating the Bible from Latin into English.

6. That the Muslim fast of Ramadan is intended to be an act of deep personal worship in which adherents seek a raised awareness of closeness to Allah. For 30 straight days, Muslims around the world get up before dawn to eat a pre-dawn meal and then have to stop eating and drinking until sunset. Sexual activity during fasting hours is also forbidden. Discussion of Muslim religious beliefs can also include whether the prophet Muhammad actually travelled on a winged horse and why cartoon images of the prophet Muhammad caused such a violent outrage throughout the Muslim world in 2005.

If I could choose curriculum to offer students, it would be a British book entitled The Philosophy Files (Orion Children’s Books, 2005). Why? Because it teaches children how to think, not what to think. Here is a snippet from the chapter entitled Does God Exist?:

“For those who have religious faith, life does have meaning. We are here for a purpose: God’s purpose. Many believe that purpose is to love and obey God. But what if you don’t have faith? What if you don’t believe there is a God? What is one to say about the meaning of life then? If there is no God, then is life meaningless?” (p. 208)

I realize that there are people who support the distribution of bibles to our youth who would oppose their children considering these questions and learning about other faiths. However, as the late mythologist Joseph Campbell famously observed, “Myth is what we call other people’s religion”. Our children should learn about them all.

Words of wisdom from a modern sage

I am currently reading and throughly enjoying Chris Hedges' I Don't Believe in Atheists (Free Press, 2008). Hedges is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School who calls for an end to both religious fundamentalism and the secular myth of societal moral advancement. I highly recommend this book to atheists and theists alike. Here is a snippet:

"We live in a universe indifferent to our fate. We are seduced by myths that assure us that the world revolves around us, that fate or the gods or destiny have given us a unique and singular role in the cosmos. It is hard to reject these myths and face the bleakness of human existence. It is more comforting and reassuring to have faith in our collective moral advancement as a species, to believe that we are heading toward something great and wondrous. The bitter reality of existence and the bondage of human nature, however, are real. These myths are not. All those who tempt us to play God turn us away from the real world to flirt with our own annihilation". (pp. 89-90).

I wish more people would listen to Hedges.
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network

Why I Pine for Philosopher Kings

Today I've been listening to podcaster Dan Carlin rail against the Tyranny of the Unwise. I've also been reading how atheist ethicist Alonzo Fyfe would explain why there is a universal aversion to torture that justifies condemning the practice of waterboarding.