A facebook friend from
Britain who is also a gifted author and researcher posted this on his wall and
it got me to thinking. Now, this wasn’t the whole thing and he is not an atheist
at least not to my knowledge. But, it is the single most brutally honest definition
of atheistic materialism I have yet read. He isn’t a materialist but was
talking about the dogma of materialism. The quote:
“You cease to exist.
What this means is that
everything about you, all your hopes dreams, loves, hates, all are for nothing.
You will never meet your loved ones ever again.
For billions of years you
did not exist and for billions of years you will not exist. In effect something
existed for a vanishingly small amount of time when taking into account the age
of the universe, this something perceived something and then disappeared as if
it never existed at all. It spent this small amount of time believing it had
some form of inner existence, but, if modern science is to be believed, these
“perceptions” were simply an accidental outcome of blind evolution; an
“epiphenomenon” of brain processes.
There was no point to
this life other than its short existence.
Morality and humanity have
no meaning in this scenario. This life could have been lived in an orgy of
brutality and nastiness or in a caring, loving way. The universe is totally
indifferent to this. Indeed, in such a scenario the only rational approach to
this short life is a life of hedonism and self-gratification and/or suicide,
which is the only way that such a creature can really take any control in a
deterministic and indifferent universe rapidly moving to a state of total
heat-death.
Nothing matters and life
is pointless. Then you die and that is it.”…Anthony Peake from a much longer
post on life and death.
The above captures my
feelings about atheism in its entirety and is the main reason that I’m not an
atheist. I truly believe the universe is sane even if insanity happens within
it. A pointless soulless universe in my opinion would not be a sane or even
desirable universe. Neither from an evolutionary or spiritual point of view.
Certainly not from a personal lifetime view. Mr. Peake also takes on the
traditional heaven and hell of fundamentalist religion. While I agree that the
static heaven or hell for eternity based on our few earth minutes also makes
little sense. I no longer hold that view but I also don’t try to convert people
who do. One of my views of God is If you can
totally define God then you should write with a little “g” since the source of
all being isn’t a creature in the created universe. If Satan is Lex Luthor to
God’s Superman then God isn’t God he’s
god. But, that’s getting into theology and I don’t want to do that here. However, there is still room to let Deity out
of the box and retain the teachings of Christianity without falling in to the
one size fits all of American (which I am) Evangelical (Which I’m not)
teaching. Still I don’t think I can honestly use the term Christian in the
evangelical use and be honest. I prefer Jesus Follower or maybe even just
spiritual these days. Maybe just simply “I’m me and I have my journey and I don’t
know all the answers would be more honest.”
I recommend the novel the movie “What Dreams May Come” by
Richard Mathewson is based on. The book and not the movie. An accounting of our
life on earth and a sterile pointless heaven or hell? No, I agree that isn’t
likely. But, if the afterlife is at least as fluid as this one then we have no
reason to think we can’t go forward or backwards or sideways just like we do
here. I don’t prescribe to any guru or
book or one size fits all explanation of life. But, the idea that we gravitate
to the people and places our spirit is at home with in the next life makes
sense to me. One day I will try a better explanation of my thoughts on the
subject of life after death. As for
reincarnation I have some thoughts on that since I honestly do lean or
gravitate towards that in a general or non dogmatic way.
as an adult with some past life memory and having meditated
and found some possible patterns in my life I don’t think reincarnation has
made me a totally different being and I do lean towards the concept although
not the religious views of reincarnation. To say it’s disconnected would be to say that
just because I don’t remember spilling my baby food down my chin as an infant
means it has no relation to my being now. Of course it does. I’m the same “I AM”
for want of a better term. Now, where I was born and what I experience in this
lifetime absolutely affects my way of dealing with life and my personality.
But, the “I AM” is not discontinued. I
am now in my sixth decade of this life’s journey. I have had heart surgery and
the little pains and things of my youth that I could happily ignore are now
signs that my doctor says I have to pay attention to.
The road before me isn’t as long as the road behind me in
this life. Somedays that’s hard to get my mind around . But, on the other hand
it has given me a certain freedom. At work when the little emergencies pop up
and OMG moments from Montgomery or local management I’m able to take a breath
and breathe and even smile. It can run the powers that be crazy but that’s also
a bonus. It’s also a strength when I hear people argue politics and just so
stories be they conservative or liberal. It’s not that I don’t care it’s just
that you have to take a step back and if a stand really needs to be made then
you make it. If not then don’t waste your breath trying to convert somebody who
refuses to be converted.
But, the main thing is my thought that the universe isn’t
insane even if insane things happen. My hope is in my knowledge that it does
matter and there is a place where I can become fully myself and allow others
the same hope.
One of my favorite passages in the bible is Psalms 87:7.
Depending on the version you read it may be worded slightly differently. But, I
love what it means to me. “All My Fountains Are In You.” That’s my greatest strength. Even in times of
pondering my own mortality I believe there is a better more real place that I
come from and that I go back to. A source which some call God and some call
Spirit and some call consciousness and some call ground of all being. I no
longer see that source in a Sunday School version but I still have my inner
dialog and I know the universe is sane.
I agree with Martin Luther King Jr. “The arc of the moral
universe is long. But, it finally bends towards justice.
Peace.
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