A Spiritual Atheist?
- Details
- Created on Thursday, 14 February 2013 06:56
- Published on Thursday, 14 February 2013 06:56
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 5470
What exactly do we mean by Spiritual? It does not mean religious - that would mean belonging to a religion and having certain beliefs. It certainly does not by itself mean theist - belief in a god. I would say that it at least means to do with a soul or the supernatural. But atheists don't generally believe in the supernatural or a soul that lives after death so how can an atheist be described as spiritual? Buddhists and Hindus don't believe in the same kind of god that Abrahamic religions do - in fact, you can be a Hindu and still be an atheist. Yet Hindus are very spiritual - they focus on the essence of a person; the part which makes them an individual and which allows abstract thinking. In the sense that this is not yet quantifiable by science, this is mystical and supernatural. This essence could be defined as a soul. Perhaps all higher animals have such a soul and are therefore spiritual?
Read more: A Spiritual Atheist?
Time for a better Pope
- Details
- Created on Tuesday, 12 February 2013 06:57
- Published on Tuesday, 12 February 2013 06:57
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 388
Why should I care? Because contrary to reason, as many as 1 to 2 billion people accept what their pope says as factual. So if he says "never any abortions" or "Priest abusers should be simply moved", that's what Catholics do. But isn't a Pope by definition "good"? Well no, he's just a man - never a woman - and just like Jesus Christ, quite fallible and a product of his time and upbringing. But was Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) better or worse than others? There were certainly worse Popes - many in the middle ages and earlier were barbarous murderers and even Pius XII is thought to have been less than outspoken against Nazi atrocities. But Ratzinger was no saint; let's look at his record as reported on Cobourg Atheist.
God or higher power
- Details
- Created on Sunday, 10 February 2013 06:37
- Published on Sunday, 10 February 2013 06:37
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 3872
Atheists reject all gods, not just those of the Judeo-Christian and Muslim religions. If you look at many of the so-called "new atheist" blogs and their posts, they give very good reasons why Christianity or Islam are just plain wrong. These religions don't make sense, they are not logical or rational. Many Christians will even admit that and talk about the need for faith and something outside reason. But most of the believers I know really only believe in a "higher power"; even many who are Church-goers and nominally Christian. They like to hear all the good things said in sermons and bible readings and dismiss most of the irrational nonsense - yet they still cling to the notion that there is a need for a higher power, a creator of some kind. This higher power has a more limited definition and although his/her attributes vary a lot depending on the individual, they can be summarized as follows:
What makes us change beliefs?
- Details
- Created on Friday, 08 February 2013 07:02
- Published on Friday, 08 February 2013 07:02
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 375
Many of us would like to think that we change our behaviour and our beliefs because of logic or rational thinking. But is that really true? If someone comes up to me and says point blank - you're wrong - my immediate reaction will be emotional. I'll say "No - I'm right" - then perhaps "What are you talking about? What did I say that you think is wrong?". If I say to a religious person "I'm an atheist" - I'm implying that I think their beliefs are wrong so they will immediately go into defensive mode. Emotionally, people know they are right. Let's not fool ourselves - first reactions are emotional, not rational. There can be exceptions. If we know someone really well, if we have an emotional attachment to them - maybe even love them - and they tell us we are wrong, our emotional reaction is to be hurt, disappointed, concerned or surprised or all of these. But we are more likely to accept what they say.
Why Thank God for Human Actions?
- Details
- Created on Wednesday, 06 February 2013 06:41
- Published on Wednesday, 06 February 2013 06:41
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 3855
Why do Christians say grace before meals? Why thank god when you survive a plane crash? Why thank god that a loved one survived a medical emergency or an operation? First, we know why atheists don't - there's no one to thank. But assuming for the moment that there is an almighty all-powerful god who listens to what his "creations" say, it still does not make sense. Let's take these one at a time. When I was growing up, my parents would sometimes remember to say a prayer before a meal. Even today, I have adult friends who do the same thing. The prayer would thank god for "providing". But he didn't provide - someone earned money that paid for it; someone also cooked it and put it on the table. About all God did was not stop this happening. He didn't make it easy or hard to earn the money or do the cooking. He didn't help with shopping at the supermarket. I can see some thanks being needed when you grew your own food - maybe he managed the weather so helped the crop be good. Maybe he stopped a flood or fire that could have wiped you out. I think grace is a relic and now is just a way a Christian has of talking to their god regularly. A reminder to god that the Christian accepts that he's subservient and dependent.
God and Science are Incompatible
- Details
- Created on Saturday, 02 February 2013 06:36
- Published on Saturday, 02 February 2013 06:36
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 3556
There was an article on June 26, 2009 in the Wall Street Journal by Lawrence M. Krauss that is headed God and Science Don't Mix . The idea was first published in 1934 by J.B.S. Haldane in "Fact and Faith" and is quoted as follows:
My practice as a scientist is atheistic. That is to say, when I set up an experiment I assume that no god, angel or devil is going to interfere with its course; and this assumption has been justified by such success as I have achieved in my professional career. I should therefore be intellectually dishonest if I were not also atheistic in the affairs of the world.
Yet many scientists say that they are Christians or believe in some other Religion. How can that be?
Will Religion survive the Internet?
- Details
- Created on Monday, 04 February 2013 06:27
- Published on Monday, 04 February 2013 06:27
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 483
When religion was invented, many thousands of years ago, there was no science. There were many things that could not be explained and the only way to find answers was to think about them. Even the Greek philosophers did that. There were few experiments to test ideas. If it "made sense" it was probably true. Then later, when religions spread, there was no way to question if it was right. Not only that, but anyone questioning what the priests said was likely to be burned at the stake as a heretic. The first serious questioning was done in Luther's time which just so happened to be at the time of the printing press. He managed to get the word out using handbills before the Pope heard about it and demanded he stop. Too late - by then many were thinking the same as Luther. They were not questioning the existence of a God - just questioning the collection of add-ons put out by the Catholic Church.
Scientology - book by Lawrence Wright
- Details
- Created on Thursday, 31 January 2013 06:50
- Published on Thursday, 31 January 2013 06:50
- Written by John Draper
- Hits: 595
CBC's Neil Macdonald reviewed a book by Lawrence Wright: Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief. My first reaction is that both Macdonald and Wright should now be afraid - if not of violence then of being hounded by Scientology lawyers. The leaders of Scientology don't like the truth about them being said in public. Macdonald focuses on the fact that the classification of Scientology as a religion gives it a degree of immunity from Government and the law - much like the Catholic Church has not had its leaders prosecuted for the abuse by its priests. But it's important to spread the word on the facts about the vicious cult of Scientology so below are some extracts from Macdonald's review.
