To say that reality was created by an invisible man in the sky who you cannot see, hear, feel, smell, or sense in anyway is the exact same thing as saying you don't know where reality came from but you don't want to believe it is self sustaining. To say that ethics are outside of the realm of reality is to say that ethics are not real, but you want to believe in them any ways. Or to put this all in a simple thesis, to be a religious person is to be a cynic who still wants to hold on to beliefs.
Think of what the religious person is truly saying. Its the belief that mankind is a broken animal, reason and rationality are not valid, the senses are not always accurate, and that there is no inherent good in reality. Now if we leave it at this then I think it would be safe to say that anyone who believes this is a cynic and nihilist. There is only one thing that religion adds on to this cynicism: That there is a magic man in the sky that makes it all better. This magic man takes care of reality, and controls it, this magic man created ethics with the wave of his hand, and for this reason you don't need to rely on rationality and trying to understand reality. In fact for the religious person thinking is really just game, that you can do if you feel like.
Ultimately the religious person is a person who thinks that reality has nothing to offer them so they look to non-reality (or things that aren't real) as the source of virtue in their life.
I have pointed out the problem with this belief before, mostly in my blogs The Nature of Emotion and Joy, Philosophy and the Fulfillment of Being but to put it simply, you can't invest emotional happiness into the existence of leprechauns and expect to get a return on that investment. Because leprechauns do not exist.
If mankind is in fact a broken animal it is not because of his nature but because of his ideas. By teaching children that they need to invest emotional well being in to something that is non-existent you can expect nothing else but broken minds, and broken lives. As an anti-mystic and pantheist I believe it is an individuals relationship with truth and reality that determines his well being. This being said, rationality is vital to the health of the individual, not just some game you can play if you feel like it.
You can either embrace reality, or you can reject it, but reality will always win, and you will always lose.
1 comments:
I remember when I was a child and doubted Santa. I begged my parents to tell me that he was not real. They still encouraged my belief. I knew in my heart and soul that I should not believe. You know what! I have the same feeling regarding God! Instead of questioning my parents now, I question the world: and offers encouragement with the absence of logic and proof!
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