February 8, 2009, 8:13 am by dc-agape.

My post on Becoming an Atheist: Pascal’s Wager I have been getting a lot of Russian commenters.  I am getting the strongest feeling that whoever is using this IP address is looking for me to link to their webpages.  Here is the latest one:

beteoncine: wrote: “Added to your bookmarks. Now will you read much more often!”

I must admit that some of their websites are quite interesting so I will point out a few of them that are possibly worth checking out.  If you do not read Russian try this Google translation site.

perCethy: this commenter directs you to a Russian website on traveling in Denmark.

LierOrnare: This commenter directs you to a Russian website on the American National Hockey League.

Hokillisse: This commenter directs you to a Russian website on traveling to Cameroon.

ZomoTrep: this commenter directs you to a Russian website on Chinese cuisine, with recipes!

Soablelo: this commenter directs you to a Russian website on coffee.  Definitely my favorite topic!

Unsarmarer: this commenter directs you to a Russian website on traveling to Egypt. 

All of these commenters are using the same IP address so there maybe something fishy with what they are up to.  But with proper security in place some of these sites are quite interesting.

Posted in State of Mind, Introduction | Print | 27 Comments »

February 8, 2009, 6:57 am by dc-agape.

I feel that I did not stress one point in yesterday’s post on Atheism: Love.  I am certain that I did not express the concept of having only one life strong enough.  I also feel that I completely forgot another point.  The point that I forgot to bring up was the difference between compulsory love and “freewill” love.

When most religions believe that everything will be sorted out in the afterlife, it allows people to overlook injustice in a very un-loving manner.  This belief, that a supreme being will correct any problems that occur in our short lives, leaves many believers with the “someone else” will correct the evil that occurs here on earth.  This same belief leaves the believer with the concept that “sinners” don’t really need to be looked after, since they are going to hell.  This is an extremely un-loving approach to life on earth.  On the other hand, when an Atheist sees any atrocity our hearts are wrenched.  The reason that we feel the pain more than most believers is that we understand that each life here on earth is temporary and as a result, more presious than even the believer thinks.  We understand that there will be no sorting out after death.  Without the “us vs. them” mentality, it is even more painful for an Atheist to see pain and suffering in other living creatures (especially other humans). 

The biggest reason for Atheist sympathy towards other people is that we know, by the random act of birth, it could be any of us that are experiencing suffering.  We know that our birth into life is not “God” given.  This does not mean that we are ungrateful to be here, in fact, it might make us even more grateful than the believer!  We understand that if we had not been born we would not experience the joy of living.  Where as many believers think that they have somehow deserved the right to experience life.

One of the things that I found amazing when I de-converted was how much easier it was to love my neighbor.  Without the all-power deity demanding that I love my neighbor or being a “sinner”, I found that I could look through the eyes of my neighbor much easier.  I found that someone who hurt me was not a “test” from this powerful being, but instead it was just another human living their life the best they could.  I gained a stronger sympathy and forgiveness that religion cannot teach.  I also found that it was a much lighter weight on my shoulders to be loving; because it was my choice…I was not forced by my religion to love. 

What was even more amazing was that it is now almost impossible for me to hate anyone.  I have always been somewhat forgiving of others.  Now that I am an Atheist, I understand other people’s motives are just human nature.  They are not being used by YHWH or Satan to “distract” or “test” me.  They are acting just like what you would expect a human to act like.  Some humans are greedy, some are hateful, and some are loving by nature…not from some supernatural source but from their personal experiences (and maybe genetic make-up).

Posted in Atheism, Freewill, State of Mind, Becoming an atheist, Introduction | Print | 2 Comments »