Religious affiliation is a huge way in which people define
themselves. Religious adherents are always eager to espouse their own faith and
creed to others. The proud fashion in which the pious advertise their beliefs
is what I believe to be a remnant of our prehistoric tribal past. This helps
them to identify with other members of the same faith and thereby form a bond
with them. This is likely why religion has been shown to be such an efficient
means of controlling people. Those in power typically use faith as a
justification for others to obey them. At times through history, this obedience
has been used to commit acts of atrocity and evil. If you can convince a man
that he must obey you for the good of the herd or for the will of some all-supreme
being, then you have effectively enslaved him. Not all religious people may consciously
feel that they are enslaved, but by accepting the doctrine and authority of a religion,
they are absolutely (or partially) surrendering their will to think to others.
I view the acceptance of religious doctrine a lot like
ordering at a fast-food restaurant. You are effectively ordering a combo of
pre-established ideas in the same way that one would order a combo of food. For
instance, when you purchase the Family Dinner Box at KFC, the meal includes two
pieces of chicken, a chicken sandwich, two pieces of mini chicken breast, a
wrap, French fries, coleslaw, and a potato and macaroni salad. When you adhere
to the religion of Catholicism, you receive your own standard issue set of
beliefs much in the same fashion as receiving an assortment of soggy poultry bits. The combo pack beliefs of Catholicism include the opposition to a
woman’s right to choose, to homosexuality, to stem-cell research, the belief in transubstantiation,
the absolution of sin through confession, and the divinity of Mary. Just like
you may not negotiate how much chicken you can receive in your Family Dinner
Box, you are forbidden to disagree with the doctrines of Catholic ideology if
you choose to be a member of that religion. Don’t question the rules! The Pope
and Colonel Sanders are equally infallible.
I believe that one’s spiritual beliefs should never be
accepted as the doctrine of any organisation or institution. People should also
never accept their political or cultural views in this way. Instead, they
should be acquired based on your individual morals and values. If you claim to
be a conservative, it is not necessary to adhere to every single conservative
ideology. You must justify for yourself what you believe based on your own
intrapersonal contemplation and rational ability.
There is no empirical evidence whatsoever to assume that a god or any mystical being exists. Therefore, I see no more reason to believe in Zoroastrianism or Voodoo than I do Catholicism.
Atheism is the philosophical default on religious ideology.
It is merely the lack of a belief in a deity and entails absolutely nothing
else. Atheism is not a pre-established set of beliefs and philosophical ideas.
Atheists vary greatly in terms of political ideology, nationality, aesthetic
tastes, fashion, moral beliefs, and culture. Atheism is the declaration that
you refuse to accept your philosophical beliefs in the same way that you
purchase chicken. It is a sad reflection on an individual’s mind if he/she
chooses to accept the theological premises of our knuckle-dragging past. My
unwillingness to submit to such dangerous doctrines is why I am an atheist.
