god and i opined

Let me start off my spiel by saying that I do not believe in talking about religion through the internet on principle, because most readers will merely take these words and project their own opinions through them without considering what is actually said. This bit of thought is not to be interpreted as a request for debate or criticism of Christians/atheists/whatever. With that said:

I despise the way Christianity is used nowadays, as a crutch by both those who follow the faith blindly and by those who label believers as backwards, whose opinions are not to be considered. I don’t think morals should have anything to do with religion, because what’s right should be right because it has a place in the world—not because God says so.

I’ve heard, listened, and watched too many people use Christianity as a defining edge in a stance. Citing scripture is not an appropriate form of argumentation, though it may be used as support. At the same time, just because God or the Bible is brought up in a conversation doesn’t mean it should be disregarded completely. Being an atheist doesn’t make one all-knowing, the same way being Christian doesn’t give one all the irrefutable right answers. In this manner I caution against using religion at all in conversation, because who is anyone to say what God wants or whether there is a God at all?

Unfortunately, there seems to be an unspoken rule on the internet that ignorance, irrationality, and sheer stupidity must invade all but few conversations on religion. While I personally believe that faith is a personal matter which requires a great deal of open-mindedness and consideration to cultivate, I seem to find more and more cases where God is a single-dimensional character whose words are twisted and abused to fit specific instances in life.

I suppose what I’m saying is this: if God’s will must be asserted as the reason something should or should not be done, His wishes better not be the sole support. Additionally, knowledge of a few dozen Biblical stories does not imply expertise on the Christian faith. Whether or not there is a God we should listen to should not affect every choice we make, be it the right to gay marriage, abortion, or marrying a cousin. To give all words consideration, even when filled with deep personal conviction, is a true sign of enlightenment, and the key to a rational society where everyone can live in understanding, if not agreement.

1. juliaspeaks liked this
2. ivyleaguenobody liked this
3. jenwondering posted this