Sharing the "Good News"
I recently saw a Facebook post by a "reasonist" page indicating that the author's Christian friend had become an atheist after watching a documentary entitled Zeitgeist, apparently without a word from the already-atheist friend. The author was obviously proud that he/she had liberated this person from Christianity and turned them to "reason".
I read the thread that ensued, watched the movie myself on Netflix then provided a link to a quality skeptic's site with a debunking review (http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4196). Many were a little uncomfortable with the posting about de-conversion and considered Zeitgeist to be an extremely weak documentary and any de-conversion with this less-than-scholarly work would likely not stand.
Others criticized the author for attempting to indoctrinate the Christian into thinking the way they did about religious matters. I've been grinding on this a bit for the past couple of days. Many of the atheists / freethinkers / humanists / agnostics (label soup...I know) that I know - including me, especially the more outspoken - have deep roots in religion and often in evangelicalism. Many of us have been damaged by religion in some way. Many of the atheists I know who are more passive about their atheism came from nonreligious backgrounds and upbringings and have no such baggage to deal with; they watch us more "evangelical / militant" types with curiosity as they have no such axe to grind. But for those of us with an evangelist's bent, we're out there in the social media universe advocating our views.
There are many ways people deal with recovery from trauma, whatever the source; Whether it's some sort of abuse, addiction, accident, injury - whatever - there are stages to recovery and I'm certainly still moving through mine. For me, there has been some lashing-out, but mostly I've turned to a little bit of evangelizing with the "good news" that people no longer need to accept the things they were fed and that life can be better on the other side; that morality and religion are completely separate, often opposing forces and that it's OK to admit it. Many people like me are brimming with energy by their new discovery of scholarship which shows their former religious beliefs as demonstrably false and their former way of thinking as delusional. We want to share it with others!
Isn't this exactly the same thing that religious evangelists do? Don't they want to "share the good news"? Further, aren't many of them compelled to do so as part of the "great commission"? I don't know many Christians who would deny the doctrine to "bring hearts and minds to Christ".
Yet these very same people who believe they have been called to be the "light of the world", "share the good news", etc., etc., are the ones most offended when non-believers share their own view or push back when confronted. A double standard emerges where the religious are permitted to proselytize yet non-believers are to keep their views to themselves. "Don't force your views on me"! Worse, 'BLASPHEMY"!
I'm beginning to better understand a very key concept:
“The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend. ” ― Henri Bergson
Many people have been indoctrinated into dogmatically believing that the answer to every question is God, as defined by the indoctrinator, and that every question must be framed in this way. Anything contradicting this view is immediately cast aside as blasphemous, dangerous, and invalid. They WILL NOT accept anything else and refuse to look into it. They are comfortable confronting you in your apostasy, but it's meant to be a monologue, not a dialogue, no matter how many questions they ask you (these really aren't questions, that they're willing to discuss, they're plants meant to lead you to their view). Suggest some reading that supports your position?; Rest assured, it won't be read. It's utterly infuriating to them that many of the atheists are far better read in religious and supporting texts / apologetics than the religious person is, as that's where we came from and took it very seriously. Many atheists will tell you that "The quickest way to atheism is to really read your bible."
We all have our reasons for wanting to bring others over to our way of thinking. My personal view is that I don't care what anyone believes, but I care very much how they behave, toward me and others. Religion was terribly damaging to me, but I'm recovering from it and will not only survive it, but will thrive in spite of it. I'd like to be of assistance to others who've had similar experiences. I want religion out of politics and the public square. I'll fight for religious freedom as well as freedom from religion, but indoctrination belongs in churches and not in the workplace or the government. I want to spare children the horrors of indoctrination and being forced to accept absurdities under penalty of believing they'll burn in hell, at least until they are of an age where they can decide for themselves. But I cannot save children from their parents and that is something I'll have to accept.
Eventually, I hope to be a more effective and less combative advocate for scholarship and reason, but I'm a work in progress. For now, I'll try to remind myself, daily, that “The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend.”
Peace friends.
Allen
I read the thread that ensued, watched the movie myself on Netflix then provided a link to a quality skeptic's site with a debunking review (http://skeptoid.com/episodes/4196). Many were a little uncomfortable with the posting about de-conversion and considered Zeitgeist to be an extremely weak documentary and any de-conversion with this less-than-scholarly work would likely not stand.
Others criticized the author for attempting to indoctrinate the Christian into thinking the way they did about religious matters. I've been grinding on this a bit for the past couple of days. Many of the atheists / freethinkers / humanists / agnostics (label soup...I know) that I know - including me, especially the more outspoken - have deep roots in religion and often in evangelicalism. Many of us have been damaged by religion in some way. Many of the atheists I know who are more passive about their atheism came from nonreligious backgrounds and upbringings and have no such baggage to deal with; they watch us more "evangelical / militant" types with curiosity as they have no such axe to grind. But for those of us with an evangelist's bent, we're out there in the social media universe advocating our views.
There are many ways people deal with recovery from trauma, whatever the source; Whether it's some sort of abuse, addiction, accident, injury - whatever - there are stages to recovery and I'm certainly still moving through mine. For me, there has been some lashing-out, but mostly I've turned to a little bit of evangelizing with the "good news" that people no longer need to accept the things they were fed and that life can be better on the other side; that morality and religion are completely separate, often opposing forces and that it's OK to admit it. Many people like me are brimming with energy by their new discovery of scholarship which shows their former religious beliefs as demonstrably false and their former way of thinking as delusional. We want to share it with others!
Isn't this exactly the same thing that religious evangelists do? Don't they want to "share the good news"? Further, aren't many of them compelled to do so as part of the "great commission"? I don't know many Christians who would deny the doctrine to "bring hearts and minds to Christ".
Yet these very same people who believe they have been called to be the "light of the world", "share the good news", etc., etc., are the ones most offended when non-believers share their own view or push back when confronted. A double standard emerges where the religious are permitted to proselytize yet non-believers are to keep their views to themselves. "Don't force your views on me"! Worse, 'BLASPHEMY"!
I'm beginning to better understand a very key concept:
“The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend. ” ― Henri Bergson
Many people have been indoctrinated into dogmatically believing that the answer to every question is God, as defined by the indoctrinator, and that every question must be framed in this way. Anything contradicting this view is immediately cast aside as blasphemous, dangerous, and invalid. They WILL NOT accept anything else and refuse to look into it. They are comfortable confronting you in your apostasy, but it's meant to be a monologue, not a dialogue, no matter how many questions they ask you (these really aren't questions, that they're willing to discuss, they're plants meant to lead you to their view). Suggest some reading that supports your position?; Rest assured, it won't be read. It's utterly infuriating to them that many of the atheists are far better read in religious and supporting texts / apologetics than the religious person is, as that's where we came from and took it very seriously. Many atheists will tell you that "The quickest way to atheism is to really read your bible."
We all have our reasons for wanting to bring others over to our way of thinking. My personal view is that I don't care what anyone believes, but I care very much how they behave, toward me and others. Religion was terribly damaging to me, but I'm recovering from it and will not only survive it, but will thrive in spite of it. I'd like to be of assistance to others who've had similar experiences. I want religion out of politics and the public square. I'll fight for religious freedom as well as freedom from religion, but indoctrination belongs in churches and not in the workplace or the government. I want to spare children the horrors of indoctrination and being forced to accept absurdities under penalty of believing they'll burn in hell, at least until they are of an age where they can decide for themselves. But I cannot save children from their parents and that is something I'll have to accept.
Eventually, I hope to be a more effective and less combative advocate for scholarship and reason, but I'm a work in progress. For now, I'll try to remind myself, daily, that “The eyes only see what the mind is prepared to comprehend.”
Peace friends.
Allen
Great essay and great analogy. I am among the never religious so I have no trauma. It helps me to understand why there is such a need to speak out forcefully. Thanks fOr sharing,
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