tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post112872782885935527..comments2023-09-19T09:39:57.766-04:00Comments on THE GALACTIC GAZETTE: BEWARE THE FALSE PROPHETH. Philip Asterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00970489392681184111noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-75724987522422731602008-03-26T09:05:00.000-04:002008-03-26T09:05:00.000-04:00Great blog -- there are many points I would like t...Great blog -- there are many points I would like to talk about. We'll start with an anecdote from my own life.<BR/><BR/>Last week, two young, male Mormom missionary's came into my shop, looking for a book on crochet and a soul to harvest for God. They were flabergasted when I revealed to them my atheism, and when I asked one of them if he had ever considered that Joseph Smith had just made the whole thing up, he replied, immediately and emphatically, "Oh, no. Impossible." When asked why it was impossible, he answered, "Because we have the Bible and nothing contradicts the Bible." Seriously? As far as I know, pretty much everything Science has discovered in the last two hundred years has contradicted the Bible. (I would also like to note that the missionaries left my shop with a book on crochet but without my soul, an arrangement they didn't seem to find terribly disturbing, which if they really believed I was going to burn in hell, kind of bothers me.)<BR/><BR/>Reading your blog, I was prompted to consider why exactly human beings are so intent on believing in gods and demons, etc., ad infinitum. Many researchers have come to the tentative scientific conclusion that "belief" in something is programmed into our DNA; our ability to believe in a universal truth may have been an invaluable tool which allowed early societies to coalesce. Those human beings who were most willing to believe in a universal may have been most likely to survive the early days of human development because these universals, usually propogated by shaman and medicine men, were cleverly used to unite one group of people against another. In the same manner, many researchers also believe murder may be programmed into our DNA, and for the same reasons -- those human beings who were most willing to kill other human beings (namely, those whose beliefs differed from their own) were most likely to see their own culture survive. But then, the Bible is just chock-full of murder, isn't it?<BR/><BR/>I try to be philosphical and indulgent when it comes to other people's beliefs, but it becomes quite difficult when they insist on trumpeting their very own absurdities. To the young Mormon missionary, the Bible is the literal word of God. Why then does he so easily disregard so much of God's word? Does he eat shellfish? Does he stone to death adulturous women? Does he sacrifice a calf? Modern religionists' knack for picking and choosing which parts of "the word of God" they are going to believe in and live by is akin to a seven year old saying, "Well, obviously Santa doesn't slide down the chimmey or squeeze through the apartment radiator, but we have empirical evidence that he has gotten into the house somehow." Bullshit. As far as I am concerned, you either buy the whole book or you throw it all out. How can one presume to discern which parts of the Bible are really God, and which ones can be discarded? I have yet to meet anyone who can answer this question reasonably.<BR/><BR/>If you want to talk about belief, here is what I believe: In a couple thousand years (if human beings survive that long, which is in grave doubt), the Bible, and particularly this period of history, will be regarded as an embarrassing stain on the intelligence and evolution of the human being. The Bible does nothing so well but obscures truth and prevents intelligent people from challenging known realities and making a difference in the world. (If God made the world, and he made little children who would be born into drought-stricken areas and who would live four or five diseased and torturous years of life before dying an agonizing death of starvation, and if He's okay with that, why should you give up your Camry and go fight world hunger?) Only once we accept that the world we live in was created by human beings -- meaning poverty, war, hatred, and yes, love -- can we then accept our responsibility to improve on our own creation. Make no mistake; these are dark days, and these days will one day be called a Dark Age -- when the truth of the universe was hidden and blackened by the power of the religious.<BR/><BR/>I'll leave you with a couple of lines from a Sylvia Plath poem:<BR/><BR/>"Is it the sea you hear in me,<BR/>It's dissatisfactions?<BR/>Or the voice of nothing, that was<BR/> your madness?"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-86423547109475250822008-03-20T14:25:00.000-04:002008-03-20T14:25:00.000-04:00Stumbled across this while doing some research for...Stumbled across this while doing some research for a paper I am writing. Thought you were right on point and if anything stoped short. JP-great comments, all.<BR/><BR/>Laura, you must be very young and never really had time to have anything "hurt and terrify" you. Otherwise you wouldn't be spouting simplistic all you need is love BS.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-21433708317673432822008-03-14T17:25:00.000-04:002008-03-14T17:25:00.000-04:00Extremely interesting blog. I enjoyed the reasone...Extremely interesting blog. I enjoyed the reasoned analysis of the underpinnings and dangers of uncritical absolutism. However, I think you may sell the concept of belief a bit short. (But then again, I am a woman and therefor prone to unreasoned, fanciful, hysterical influence by the devil, according to Malleus Maleficarum.)<BR/><BR/>When I was a child I was fascinated and horrified with the Wizard of Oz; I loved the sudden rush of Technicolor when Dorothy first laid eyes on Munchkin Land; felt a sense of confirmation in my five-your-old belief that good people are pretty and appear surrounded by pink bubbles and bad people are green with pointy chins, learned that the universal solvent was, in fact, water and was absolutely, completely, utterly terrified of the Wicked Witch. My parents were kind enough not to try and convince me that witches did not exist, (clearly I would not have listened to them), but rather dutifully spray my room down in my Mother’s Emeraude perfume every night for a week, telling me that it was “Witch Spray” that kept the witches away and made me safe. (My older sister, who shared a room with me and never was silly enough to believe in witches would promptly punch me the moment the door closed for being a baby and making the room smell.) My point is that my parents knew that eventually I would learn for myself that witches did not exist. They didn’t try to disabuse me of my incorrect belief. What they did was infinitely more valuable—they allowed me to learn on my own. To test and wonder and pause over my conclusions about witches and acquire the skill of discernment. <BR/><BR/>If one considers the ultimate calling of humanity, as a species, to be understanding our universe and survival therein, then perhaps endearing, extraordinary falsehoods do seem potentially nefarious and considerably responsible for the ubiquitous “because the Bible tells me so” logic that is all too often both the starting and finishing points for society’s attempts to interpret our world. And don’t get me wrong, an understanding of our universe and basic survival, (in a social contract sense, I am assuming), are desirable, necessary ends. However, I believe that it is a person’s ability to believe, even when in disproportion to the evidence presented, that provides the humanity for our experience and transforms what otherwise would be a constant exercise in Doxastic logic. I don’t mean an uncritical belief in God, demons, angels or even flying horses; I mean the capacity of belief itself.<BR/><BR/>Later, all too soon, I learned that there were much worse things in the world, real things, which could hurt and terrify me. If we were to take, on the whole, the evidence of man’s staggering atrocities, both religious and secular, there would be ample, arguably overwhelming evidence that life is all too often capricious and arbitrary and cruel and singular. It is our ability to believe and hope and other synonyms of hope that I can’t think of right now, in amounts vastly disproportionate to the evidence of their utility that form the connective threads that hold humanity together. Are what, I feel, are a large component of the universal aspirations most every society shares; the desire to be part of a community, to see our children grow and flourish etc.<BR/><BR/>A fervent, uncritical and unfounded belief that the world is flat, or that my freckles were punishment for some iniquity, or that God will smite four generations of a family for worshiping their DVR instead of learning from Deuteronomy certainly is dangerous, the opposite of knowledge and far too prevalent for my tastes. (I think it was Plato that defined knowledge as “justified, true belief”, but don’t quote me on that.) But the capacity to believe, typically begun in childhood, should not be devalued in how society exists, survives and seeks to understand. <BR/><BR/>(That being said, I always wondered about the Jesus/Easter Bunny connection. As a kid I just assumed that they hung out together, League of Justice style, with Santa's elves and talked shit about the Tooth Fairy.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-70602465302916738302008-03-12T00:11:00.000-04:002008-03-12T00:11:00.000-04:00Fascinating. I find it odd that I also attended a...Fascinating. I find it odd that I also attended an Episcopal church as a child but don't recall being frightened about or even told about the devil. I heard all about the devil at the local Baptist church where I attended vacation bible school and the occasional church service with friends, neighbors, or relatives.<BR/><BR/>Re: teaching children about Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, etc. -- I think many parents struggle with this issue, particularly agnostic parents such as myself. Here we are, having chosen not to teach our children to blindly worship in a religious institution, yet we are selling that tooth fairy bullshit. I have discussed this issue with many of my peers and many of us have come to some type of compromise. We choose to perpetuate the societal and cultural tradition yet with less emphasis and theater. For example, Santa delivers ONE gift to my daughters each year, and the Easter Bunny leaves baskets with a few new books and some jelly beans rather than the elaborate chocolate bonanzas I recall receiving as a child. Also, we have chosen to respond honestly or at least without blatant falsehoods to questions about the veracity or existence of Santa and the like. <BR/><BR/>Finally, with regard to teaching children about religion, I feel that one must proceed delicately. While it might feel liberating to emphatically state to your six-year-old that the neighbors are "full of shit" in their beliefs, I can't imagine this would help your children make friends in our part of the country. We try to be sensitive to the traditions of others and have taught our children that "some people believe" this, some people think that, etc. This represents an attempt at encouraging the development of an open mind and a tolerance for other's beliefs and opinions.<BR/><BR/>I do wish, though, that more people were open about their skepticism. We feel at least some pressure to attend church -- it seems like most people do, although it is hard to believe that ALL of them really buy into it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-31385536172941433132008-03-07T13:02:00.000-05:002008-03-07T13:02:00.000-05:00Hm, not really sure what generalization I made, bu...Hm, not really sure what generalization I made, but I agree with you that science and religion do not have to be irreconcilable on a personal level. Personally, I see no real foundation for religious beliefs, and I certainly don't have any internal faith, but I respect those who do and yet who still maintain the proper perspective regarding the world around us. I just happen to find those people few and far between.<BR/><BR/>e.k., I think you hit the crux of the issue, which is <I>uncritical</I> acceptance of belief. I think faith, in the general definition of the word, can be a powerful good, even in the absence of empirical evidence (but not when it is contradicted by empirical evidence). But faith and beliefs must be examined-- repeatedly, fervently, and critically, and particularly in light of empirical evidence, to be of positive value rather than negative value. <BR/><BR/>The problem is that most people aren't capable of doing that, or at least don't have the desire to do so. And when you teach a child to accept a belief without questioning it, particularly a belief of such world-altering significance as religion, you head down the road to ruin. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps this is the big difference between personal and institutional religion. I have no problem with the scientist who studies does his job without reference to divine intervention but believes, deep down, that there is a greater force out there. I have a problem with the man who believes that humans lived in a garden with dinosaurs 6,000 years ago because someone thought to write "this book is infallible" in the front of their geneaology journal, or iwth the man who believes that it's okay to blow himself up and kill others, because if he does, he'll be teleported to a magical land full of submissive women.Jphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13702407898770090908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-32274136130779551872008-03-06T21:54:00.000-05:002008-03-06T21:54:00.000-05:00But, then, didn't Buddha say: "Believe in me?'Why ...But, then, didn't Buddha say: "Believe in me?'Why else would there be Buddhists bowing down to a fat man with his belly hanging over his tunic?<BR/><BR/>"Beware the False Prophet" is misnamed, best to label it: "Be aware of the Prophet". jp offers a generalization that, however valid for many, is off the mark for the truly discerning. There does not have to be a conflict between science and religion. It is only the weak minded that find it so difficult to accept that God created complexity for humans to study and process and Himself for humans to search for.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-36493826049166570352008-03-06T08:47:00.000-05:002008-03-06T08:47:00.000-05:00I suspect that if all religious people altered the...I suspect that if all religious people altered their religious views to account for reality, there would be very little religion (in the traditional sense). <BR/><BR/>One of the points I try to make in the blog is that faith can be truly dangerous. Teaching our children to uncritically accept ideas on faith without empirical proof is a short-term strategy for our self-destruction as a species.<BR/><BR/>That sounds like a radical position, but I'm willing to bet that the first person to detonate a nuclear warhead in an act of terrorism will be acting on the basis of a faith in the "unfalsifiable."<BR/><BR/>This very real prospect should be frightening to anyone, and it should be a warning that absolute faith in the hands of a resourceful human being is accompanied by <I>tremendous</I> consequences.H. Philip Asterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00970489392681184111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-25389210391746057452008-03-06T06:27:00.000-05:002008-03-06T06:27:00.000-05:00I don't have a problem with religious belief per s...I don't have a problem with religious belief per se, in that religion is, almost by definition, unfalsifiable, and I recognize that different people view belief itself differently. My problem is, as you discuss, when people let their religious beliefs color their views of empirical evidence to reach conclusions contrary to the facts, rather than altering their religious beliefs as necessary to account for reality. Maybe this mentality is a necessary incident of religious belief, but I don't think so. I hope not, anyway.Jphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13702407898770090908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-31814397771454481132008-03-05T11:31:00.000-05:002008-03-05T11:31:00.000-05:00I am continually amazed at how many well-educated ...I am continually amazed at how many well-educated people openly deny the validity of evolution, just as I am continually amazed at the number of people who vehemently maintain ungrounded, implausible beliefs that are substantially similar to those held by unscientific people 2000 or even 3000 years ago. <BR/><BR/>I believe it can be reduced to the fact that most people are chronically incapable of distinguishing between what is real and what they merely wish to believe is real. <BR/><BR/>I, too, am deeply relieved that we're not faced with the possibility of a Huckabee presidency. As you point out, though, there were still a hell of a lot of people who voted for him.<BR/><BR/>I take this as an indication that there remain a great many people in this country who would happily impose their loony belief system on the rest of us morally adrift apostates without the slightest hesitation.<BR/><BR/>Is your copy of the Witch Hammer translated into English? What does the companion volume address?H. Philip Asterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00970489392681184111noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-40750749040152264822008-03-05T07:09:00.000-05:002008-03-05T07:09:00.000-05:00A very valid point about how ready acceptance of s...A very valid point about how ready acceptance of supernatural explanations dims our ability to look for natural causes to phenomena. Ironically, I suspect that the reason we have supernatural explanations in the first place is a result of our ability to reason, or at least our innate drive to seek explanations for the things around us, coupled with our early inability to find adequate explanations.<BR/><BR/>This ia happy-ish morning, because Mike Huckabee will now definitely not be our next president, and that at least bestows some grace on the American citizenry. The fact that so many of them voted for him to begin with is disturbing, though. Our understanding of science is well enough developed that a man who openly says that evolution isn't real should be laughed off stage the same way we laugh off someone who got up and fervently suggested that frogs spontaneously generate from damp earth. And yet. People do so much just to maintain their belief structure-- but I guess I'll stay away from that rant right now.<BR/><BR/>Oddly enough, I have a copy of Malleus Maleficarum, and its companion, Compendium Maleficarum. Let me know if you want to get together and burn some witches.Jphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13702407898770090908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17598462.post-26290800679483944882008-02-26T15:32:00.000-05:002008-02-26T15:32:00.000-05:00Do not believe in anything simply because you have...Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.<BR/>Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many.<BR/>Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books.<BR/>Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders.<BR/>Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations.<BR/>But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com