Received 4.3.2000

Good job. We need more of these sites. I live in a small-town Texas community, and basically everyone is religiously religious. My family does not attend church, as we believe the things they teach are ridiculous, sexist, and not necessary to make us better people. My father is the most religious in our family, and it is hard to discuss things like religion with him. He is not a Bible-thumper, nor someone who believes much of what the Bible has to say. But he does believe in a soul, God, etc. I, however, do not. I may be young, at 17, to be so blatant and decisive. But I do know that I have an inquiring mind, and that there are just not enough facts to prove there is a God, or anything of the like. I have traveled all over the world, from Thailand to China to Australia, and frankly I think that everyone should be allowed to believe what they want to. I guess I think that if there was a God, he would be doing something more than sitting up wherever and watching us all screw up.

I don't have a very good impression of what religion teaches people. All of the Christians I have known, from fundamentalists to the occasional church-goer, have been obnoxious, rude, and extremely opinionated about everything under the sun.

I can't stand to hear things like, "Animals were put on the earth only to be used by man," or something of the like. I love animals, and believe that if there really was such things as souls, we would all have one, down to ants and spiders. Why are we any more deserving of a soul than a horse, a dolphin, a tiger? They are all thinking, feeling beings that I respect more than most people I know.

It sickens me what this world has been treated like. People litter, poach, pollute, murder, rape, pillage, and basically ensure the eventual downfall of Earth. And religion is not helping.

I say to those religious folks, let people believe what they want to, and stop trying to "recruit". Stop assuming that everyone believes in a God. We don't! We are free to believe what we want, have sex with who we want (leave the homosexuals alone!), and learn what we want. If you don't want your Christian children to learn about evolution, then either take them out of the school or try to disprove the facts, but stop interfering with other people's lives!

I don't need to feel so secure, that when I die I will go somewhere and live forever. I believe that we each have our place on this earth, and that when we die we are gone. Get over it. Live life to the fullest, and don't do anything you will regret. Then die peacefully.

Although I don't believe in an actual soul, I do believe that we all leave a little bit of us left after we die, in the hearts of people we touched. That is the important thing: To be born, to live your life, and to die. I believe every living thing, from humans to horses, from whales to dogs, can make a difference in someone's life, and that is what truly matters. Not if there is a God, not if there is an afterlife. Just that you made a difference in the life of someone, otherwise you are wasting your precious time. We have one life to live, make it a good one.

LM

My Reply:

Thanks for visiting the Closet Atheist and taking the time to write. You don't need to include a disclaimer stating that you are only 17.  You obviously have a mature outlook on life.  Being well traveled may have a lot to do with it.

Ultimately, I think man is drawn to religion because it attempts to explain his place in the universe.  In this quest to find his place, man creates a universe all about and for himself.  If you take Genesis literally, all the stars and galaxies exist only to light the Earth, every plant and animal exists only for our exploitation, and we are created in the image of a God.  Christians sure think highly of themselves.  These beliefs may have fueled the industrial revolution, but hopefully most people today are at least vaguely aware that these kinds of attitudes are self defeating.

You are right when you imply that religion is a security blanket.  Atheists are people who have faced the hard facts and accepted them and I think it requires a lot of strength and confidence.  It is not just about having an extra hour to spend every Sunday. 

I share your frustration with the assumption by most Americans that everyone is a Christian.  It frustrated me so much that I built this web site.

An e-mail from a sympathetic reader.  Received 4.16.2000

I can SO relate to that young Texan (age 17 LM)

I've had it worse. First off, I'll say that I was born in a Mormon state and have no idea what a Mormon is. I now live in a Catholic state & hope to move to a more Atheist state like
CA or maybe Asia. I had to condition myself to refrain from fighting or expressing actual anger.

OK. Ever since I was a small girl, I've been pushed around & abused by Christians & Catholics SO MUCH, that even REFERRING to anything monotheistic will annoy the Hell out of me. Everywhere you go in Nevada, you will find 2 churches DIRECTLY across the street from each other, separated by another 2 churches at a max of a 2 to 3 mile radius. Most of the kids at high schools wear crosses and make sure EVERYBODY notices, even if they have to slap you with them. They even hold church clubs at schools!

I am a very non-violent, modest, and usually a quietly non-opinionated girl. All of my friends are either Atheist, Buddhist, Shinto, Hindu, Taoist, Confucianist, or gay men. A few have obnoxious religious parents & have been driven into Goths, in otherwords, their parent's insanity is driving them into mad rebellion, so I have to accept Goths as friends, hyper & morbid as they are and a bit over my head.

People here will literally beat you for defying their religion. They will even try to publicly humiliate you. (That's what drove my best friend to the Goths.) I totally hate fighting but I will
always step in to protect my male friends, who are almost ALL gay men. I don't approve of this antigay stuff. If 2 men really love each other, hell, even 2 girls, is it so different? It's not the physical map that counts, it's the emotions.

I find Atheists to be more sound of mind than any other Human. Buddhists are the most moral, innocent people I have ever met, like Moon Hee-Jun from H.O.T. It really pisses me off that Missionaries started converting Asians. Sure, nationwise, we get along better now, but if some form of non religious-based government could be created that we could ALL accept, that it could be even BETTER. But not Democracy, cause the Government will take 50% of all your $ or throw you in the slammer.

If anyone can compare to this or the Texan's story, please E-Mail me at byrdaviary@worldnet.att.net so we can exchange some friendly emotional sympathy.  If you have any MEAN comments about mine or the young Texans, please don't respond.