Day 80 January 22 2014: Dogma

I thank God I'm an agnostic atheist.

Because atheists don't fly planes into buildings or start holy wars.

For Siddhārtha Gautama's sake Hitler was a Christian, only in name mind you and not by actions, but thats seems to be common.

When people say "God bless America" I think it's funny that God picked a team 237 and now almost 238 years ago.

I had an imaginary friend when I was a child but instead of being born again, I grew up.

It is sad to see a corporation become a person and that said "person" will believe something you don't and it takes away your rights, because you work for a person not a business. "We the Corporation..." I don't think thats how it goes. When did someone else's religious beliefs get to take away my rights as a person?
I also dislike having "In God we trust" as the motto and on the currency of this nation, because there is supposed to be a separation of church and state. I guess it only counts when you want it.
Shit, you cherry pick your religious texts so why not do the same with the Bill of Rights and the Constitution?

Theres something about religious fantasies that I'll never understand, for example:
In one story from the Bible, Yahweh sent himself to us to kill himself to save us from himself, all while the third guy just hangs out.

How is dying a sacrifice if you're just going to come back a few days later?

Also two things, I'm pretty sure Jesus didn't call it good Friday because it probably wasn't that good for him, but I don't even know he if really existed. I also find it pretty ridiculous that it is a monotheistic religion, but there are three separate individuals and yet they are they same person but separate...but still one person, etc.

In another myth from The Qur'an, Surat Al-Qamar 54:1 "The hour has come near, and the moon has split [in two]." It's believed that a man rode a winged horse and cracked the moon in half. I'll say that again, A MAN RODE A WINGED HORSE AND CRACKED THE MOON IN HALF. I don't think I need to explain why this is ridiculous. That man also married a six year old but didn't consummate the marriage till she was nine or ten years old.

In another one the wolf God Sköll would try to eat the sun and would succeed in his attempts causing a solar eclipse. It was believed that performing certain tasks or rituals would cause the sun to return. It would have returned anyways but, why learn when you can believe?

How about some lightning bolts because you didn't pleased a God?

How about a hurricane because of homosexuality? Don't believe it? Well talk to Pat Robertson and see what God has to say.

How about the myth of jewish slavery in Egypt? I don't believe it happened and evidence or lack of evidence shows that it is a fairy tale, but if you believe this myth then why would God harden Pharaohs heart? Exodus 9:12 KJB says, "And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto Moses." so why would an all knowing, all powerful God harden the heart of the ruler? Bring down boils, frogs, locust, and kill the first born of every person and every cattle? Just to prove his power?

These stories are pure fantasy and are a archaic, bronze age, and terribly dogmatic belief that needs to be studied, ridiculed, refuted, and placed in a part of our history in line with greek mythology.

Humans are more intelligent now, they don't need fairy tales to explain everything.

We may not ever understand how we came about or why certain things happen, but to say we know and refuse to question, well that stifles human intelligence and limits our potential.

I have a skepticism towards faith and blind faith is something I can't begin to reason in my mind.
People will kill other people, something we as humans have become greatly better at and do very frequently, based on blind faith. You'll do what you're supposed to do after God was done revealing his plan to you.

To accept something that has almost none, if not no shred of evidence and has no way of proving itself to be true, is something I can't do. Just because something doesn't prove to be false doesn't make it true. I need evidence and then I will question the evidence.
People have told me before that it is on me to prove that God doesn't exists, but you can't prove a negative and shifting the burden of proof doesn't make your claim anymore valid.
I don't like it when people tell me stories about what God has done, thats not evidence, that is an anecdote.

I dont understand prayer.

If God has a plan and he knows how its going to happen and its all according to his plan, then why pray for change? Why pray for help? Why pray for the sick to get better?

It is in his plan for people to get sick and die, its in his plan for your dad to be an alcoholic and hit you, its in his all knowing wisdom to keep food from millions and give them aids, so why bother helping? That would be taking away from the plan of your divine deity.

Fucking mother Teresa.

Suffering can be helped, but not by getting on your knees and pleasing an old man.

I find prayer similar to what someone strung out on drugs does, they think their talking to someone but all I see is them talking to no one and looking crazy.

Prayer is the best way to feel like you did something while accomplishing nothing.

For some reason though the philosophy of religion fascinates and frustrates me in a way that I don't think I'll ever stop reading and researching all the stories, fantasies, and myths that go along with it.

As they say, God's don't kill people, people with God's kill people.

"And in the beginning man created God..."

God is dead, in fact I don't know if she ever existed.