Here's an interesting comment:
You are from a clan of atheists? But your post begins with a picture of your messiah(s). You have replaced god with a dictator. You follow the same morals that there are in the bible because they have now become mandatory under law. It is extremely unfortunate that wanting to rule and benefit ONE`S SELF is and always will be a fantasy.
-Anonymous.
First, I admit I don't know what you mean about dictators.
The question of morality is interesting. If you read the bible through and through, there's lots of different moralities in it. Lot for example, is considered moral even though he offers up his young daughters to a mob to be raped. Also, in the same place in Leviticus that god says laying with a man as you would a woman would dishonor him, he also says the same about planting your field with two different kinds of grains and wearing fabric made of two different kinds of fibers So all you lycra-spandex sluts watch out!
Honestly, my most important moral dictates is not to cause suffering and to alleviate it and injustice, you know, stand up for the powerless whenever possible, since the powerful are always being the schoolyard bullies. That's one reason why there were (and in many counties still are) all those child molester priests, they had absolute unchecked power.
But I think it's terrible that religious folk think the only reason people are moral is because there's an angry father looking at them from above ready to spank their asses in psycho revenge immeasurably worse than anything they did. An infinity of unspeakable suffering? Yeah, that seems about right for being human like you made us.
I did write a whole thing up a while ago ( scroll to the middle of this post) about why I use Catholic imagery despite not believing it, in an attempt to incorporate it into a greater synthesis, as I do all things I come upon.
Also, just cuz I don't believe a dude that existed in the void before anything existed (but was shaped in such a way as to interact with matter and gravity, cuz he made us after his image, which means in the void he had fingers/toes/tongue/lungs/digestive system... it's so mind-blowing) and just decided somehow to make everything... Just because I don't believe in that doesn't mean I don't believe in spirituality. Obviously I do, duh.
So my last thought on the whole matter is DUH! No it isn't! Anonymous, thank you for your thought-provoking comment. I'm trying very hard not to be sarcastic as I write this. Like saying it provoked more thought than it was written with. It's a joke!!! No really guys, I'm all for a little disagreement it gives me something to write about.
One last thought, stop thinking about ONE'S SELF (?) and give to the Jane Goodall Institute. Cuz chimps are made after our own image or something.
You are from a clan of atheists? But your post begins with a picture of your messiah(s). You have replaced god with a dictator. You follow the same morals that there are in the bible because they have now become mandatory under law. It is extremely unfortunate that wanting to rule and benefit ONE`S SELF is and always will be a fantasy.
-Anonymous.
First, I admit I don't know what you mean about dictators.The question of morality is interesting. If you read the bible through and through, there's lots of different moralities in it. Lot for example, is considered moral even though he offers up his young daughters to a mob to be raped. Also, in the same place in Leviticus that god says laying with a man as you would a woman would dishonor him, he also says the same about planting your field with two different kinds of grains and wearing fabric made of two different kinds of fibers So all you lycra-spandex sluts watch out!
Honestly, my most important moral dictates is not to cause suffering and to alleviate it and injustice, you know, stand up for the powerless whenever possible, since the powerful are always being the schoolyard bullies. That's one reason why there were (and in many counties still are) all those child molester priests, they had absolute unchecked power.
But I think it's terrible that religious folk think the only reason people are moral is because there's an angry father looking at them from above ready to spank their asses in psycho revenge immeasurably worse than anything they did. An infinity of unspeakable suffering? Yeah, that seems about right for being human like you made us.
I did write a whole thing up a while ago ( scroll to the middle of this post) about why I use Catholic imagery despite not believing it, in an attempt to incorporate it into a greater synthesis, as I do all things I come upon.
Also, just cuz I don't believe a dude that existed in the void before anything existed (but was shaped in such a way as to interact with matter and gravity, cuz he made us after his image, which means in the void he had fingers/toes/tongue/lungs/digestive system... it's so mind-blowing) and just decided somehow to make everything... Just because I don't believe in that doesn't mean I don't believe in spirituality. Obviously I do, duh.So my last thought on the whole matter is DUH! No it isn't! Anonymous, thank you for your thought-provoking comment. I'm trying very hard not to be sarcastic as I write this. Like saying it provoked more thought than it was written with. It's a joke!!! No really guys, I'm all for a little disagreement it gives me something to write about.
One last thought, stop thinking about ONE'S SELF (?) and give to the Jane Goodall Institute. Cuz chimps are made after our own image or something.
13 comments:
Yep, that angry father thing is what chases many away from believing. I cringe when I hear people with the 'holier than thou' attitude.
I'm a Christian and try to remember others might have different opinions. Our foreign exchange student taught me that, but I'll admit it took a while to sink in.
In the end we only need to worry about ourselves, and not worry about what others are doing.
How passive-aggressive. It's only a democracy when the one you want wins. People are only good if they believe and act just as you do. I love it when someone shits on my beliefs or lack thereof, especially in the name of religion or politics. But if I were to question theirs, I'm sure more name-calling and eternal damnation would ensue. Hey anon, how about living your life and letting everyone else live theirs if they are not harming anyone? And try not to be so closed-minded while you're at it, because your answer isn't the only one, and IMO it's not even a good one.
The dictators/messiahs I was referring to was the photo of the political figures whom you began your post with. You have replaced biblical deities with political ones.
“I think it's terrible that religious folk think the only reason people are moral is because...” I am not sure if this is an argumentum ad hominem attack towards me, but just to clear away any confusion I did not mention anything about being affiliated with a religious group.
More interesting is that you further proved my point on the hypocrisy of atheism by going into a moral outrage over the fact that the bible isn`t moral enough for you. Rather than ridding yourself of morality, you have merely expanded upon it. Basically, I just wanted to point out that there is little difference between religious and political zealots.
To beadybaby, I stand on neither side of the political spectrum and perhaps you should look up the definition of passive-aggressive.
Oh dear me, this is not the forum for Anonymous to just cruise in and get snarky with our friend Fanci. I suggest he or she go find a chatroom where folks are really interested in the subject of whether there is or is not a er, um, god. We're just artists here, commenting on life as we each see it, and I am sure not one of us cares for any interference with our freedom to do so. So if you don't like the channel, tune in another one or start your own blog or something. We aren't here to argue or convince each other, just to share, right?
Ahh Anon- always so much to have an opinion on, yet always that little mysterious moniker to hide behind. I wonder if this is the same Anon as last time?
Well I have lots to say on this subject, but I'll keep it brief cause sincerely I don't give a shit about what other people believe- as long as they're not hurting anyone, live and let live. I'm agnostic, though if I had to choose one today I'd probably go with Paganism, since that's the one that makes the most sense to me.
The Bible is not what it used to be- it's been fucked with, misinterpreted and edited by just about any agenda-fueled son-of-a-monkey who could get away with it. There's a lot of old and wacky 'rules' in there (as Fanci pointed out), which people pick and choose from in order to dominate others and act superior. Every religion has them, as every religion has good and bad ideas (including paganism), every religion has people who are tolerant and people who feel the need to spray their ideas around with militant zeal.
I also agree with Fanci that it's terrible to think people have morals based on the fear of punishment. Morality exists in the human spirit as a separate entity from and regardless of belief. Christianity wasn't the first set of rules seeded by a collective's belief in otherworldy beings for the purpose of guiding the human race. In fact systems of belief based on moral ideas can be traced as far back as the Neanderthals.
What's really unfortunate Anon, is the amount of Christians who don't live in Christ-like ways. Jesus was a great guy, too bad most of his followers have been so mislead by the mutilation of their holy texts.
Oh I forgot to say the circle around God's eyes with 'angry' next to it was hilarious, then the chimp picture made me bust a gut.
Oh I can't resist -- it seems to me religion has stirred up a lot of nastiness to no good end, and it is, after all, simply a human invention. Invented probably because people just can't accept mortality. Me, I am a follower of Dharma, and have been taught that it's ok, although not necessary, to have a god, any god, if you want one, just don't offer up living sacrifices. Sentient beings need all the breaks we can get, what with the suffering and all. And the "angry" Michaelangelo god figure above made me think of Yeats' (was it Yeats?) "old Nobodaddy." He kinda thought the concept fell short of what's needed, but most agree his poetry was sublime, anyway. See?
Oh, it was Blake, not Yeats -- "Then old Nobodaddy aloft. Farted and belched and coughed, And said, "I love hanging and drawing and quartering. Every bit as well as war and slaughtering."
Holy schnikees. What happened to the pretty jewels n stuff?? Can we talk about patinas or somethin, you guys are freaking me out! Fanci, please though, have that image of angry god with the circled expression and toes screen printed on a women's size small fitted tee for me, I will buy it tomorrow.
This anonymous person doesn't deserve all the attention she is getting here. You cannot convince her or educate her, you'd better ignore her.
Best to block all the anonymous comments anyhow, just like you would trash an anonymous letter.
I thought that, thanks to Anonymous, and Marina's and y'all's thoughtful answers, the blog/with/comments got an "edge" it didn't have before. It's interesting to hear what art-inclined people have to say about other issues!
I agree the chimps cheering for Michelangelo are hilarious.
final 0.02 reply to anon's reply
"The dictators/messiahs I was referring to was the photo of the political figures whom you began your post with. You have replaced biblical deities with political ones."
No duh that's what you were referring to? Thanks for pointing that out because as a supposed tree-hugging-liberal-atheist freak I'm too a-stoopid to have gotten that.
And I think Fanci just meant "you dumber-than-a-post gutter-slime, if you think that President Obama is a dictator, than you really need to move to somewhere that actually HAS one. Buh-bye, have a nice life."
Sorry, Fanci, I've been away, and I just had to laugh and sadly shake my head at utter ignorance just one more time before we give thanks for some questionable "relocation" practices this Thursday. I know what I'll be giving thanks for and it ain't that! Cool new stuff, too.
PS feel free to delete if you think I'm just feeding the troll. :-)
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