The God Gene?

I have been reconsidering something I have been telling people for a few years now. I have stated before that I used to be a Christian. That somewhere around the age of 47 I had a series of life-events that allowed me to reassess my beliefs. I am coming to terms with perhaps the truth that I was never a Christian to begin with. Rather I was a “Christian of Convenience” that merely went through the motions because it was the path of least resistance.

I am saying this because I am coming more and more convinced that there is a “god gene”, a genetic characteristic that allows, no forces, an individual to believe in a higher power. I simply don’t have it.

This concept makes more sense to me all of the time. Look at people like Banana Man Ray Comfort. He just won’t let go, no matter how silly his arguments are or how convincing the arguments against his positions are. He just glazes over and continues his mission.

I think if it is proven to be true, this “god gene” concept may go a long way towards religious peace and more tolerance of people like Ray Comfort. I will try to explain.

The more I have gotten into the ex-Christian thing, the more convinced I am of the absolute truth that there is no need for a biblical god to exist and there is absolutely no proof that he does. In fact, the Christian concept has become absurd to me, making no sense at all in a scientific, spiritual, ethical, or moral sense. But people I love all around me would literally die for it. Why is that? They aren’t stupid. They aren’t insane. What is going on?

The best analogy I can think of is homosexuality, It has been determined that this is also part of our genetic code. I have never tried to convince a homosexual that my role as a heterosexual is “better” or “makes more sense” than theirs, but I suspect if I did I’d have about as much chance of converting them to “go straight” as I would converting a Christian to an ex-Christian. It would be impossible to convert them, as their beliefs are the only one that makes sense to them.

I believe that “belief” is not a choice. I didn’t “choose” to be an ex-Christian, it just happened after I took a good look at it. I soaked up the evidence and my beliefs are what they are. I could never just choose to be a Christian. It would be fake. Just as it was my fist 47 years. But the fakeness was no big deal, in fact it helped me to get along with my social peers.

So, if this god gene thing is true, wouldn’t we ex-Christians be more tolerant of Christians knowing that they are not that way by choice? Sure, the fake ones like me could be convinced, but the ones that have gone through a religious upheaval and still emerged a Christian have no choice. No amount of convincing, whether it be logic, science, morals, whatever, would convince them otherwise because it is genetically impossible.

Or am I being too simplistic? I mean, it’s not a “Christian gene”, it’s a “god gene”. There are many alternatives to Christianity that still believe in a higher power. Could someone that possesses this gene be talked into any type of god-based religion? Thoughts?

A Rose is a Rose

I think that some of the friction between science and religion comes from the double-speak of religion, where many words are given meanings that are counter to the word’s secular definition. Take the word “truth” for example. The Encarta Dictionary defines “truth” as:

1. Something factual - the thing that corresponds to fact or reality.
2. True quality - correspondence to fact or reality.
3. True statement - a statement that corresponds to fact or reality.
4. Obvious fact - something that is so clearly true that it hardly needs to be stated.

Note that any belief derived from faith alone cannot be considered a truth, yet the word is used constantly by the religulous . Every major religion, and every one of the thousands of sects within, claim that they are the only “truth”. I would be willing to wager, for example, that nearly every major radio market has a religious radio station called “The Truth”. Most of these stations are about as far to the left as possible. Pastor Chuck Smith on “Pastor’s Perspective” the other day was discussing how man and dinosaurs coexisted. I’m not sure whether belief in that “truth” is funny or sad.

Let’s take one more word. The Encarta Dictionary defines “religion” as:

1. Belief and worship - people's beliefs and opinions concerning the existence, nature, and worship of a deity or deities, and divine involvement in the universe and human life.
2. System - an institutionalized or personal system of beliefs and practices relating to the divine.
3. Personal beliefs or values - a set of strongly-held beliefs, values, and attitudes that somebody lives by.
4. Obsession - an object, practice, cause, or activity that somebody is completely devoted to or obsessed by.

Many times I have heard Christians attempt to completely sidestep anti-religious arguments with the classic “But Christianity is not a religion. It's a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” Yes, Virginia, it is a religion. You can’t change the definition of something simply by calling it something else. A rose is a rose and all. Suppose you accuse someone with a drinking problem of being an alcoholic and they say, “I’m not an alcoholic, I have a personal relationship with Jim Beam.”

God the Baby Killer

Thanks to Steve Wells’ “Dwindling in Unbelief” blog, I now have a new favorite Bible story, replacing my former favorite, 2:Kings 2:23. If you recall, the story in 2 Kings was about God sending bears to maul to pieces 42 children for making fun of Elisha’s bald head. This is one of the stories that started my de-conversion from Christianity. There’s a good debate about it on Steve’s blog in which I participate here: http://dwindlinginunbelief.blogspot.com/2007/10/go-up-thou-bald-head.html

I was named David by my parents after the Biblical David, so I am interested in stories about him. This particular story is told in 2 Samuel chapter 12, which I will paraphrase as follows: In the preceding chapter, David sees Bathsheba taking a bath and wants her so badly that he arranges messengers to kidnap her, commit adultery with David, then sent home. She gets pregnant, of course. Upon hearing about it, David arranges to have her husband killed by sending him to the front of whatever battle was going on at the time. Bathsheba mourns the loss of her husband, then becomes David’s wife and bears his son.

God is so angered by David’s deeds that he makes his infant son ill. David fasts and pleads with God to save his son to no avail. The baby suffers in sickness for an entire week, then dies.

There are many bizarre immoral twists in this story, but they would all detract from this main message: The biblical god murdered an innocent child to punish someone else.

Unless you are a brainwashed Christian, there is no way to twist this story around in your brain to make it anything other than what it is. The biblical god is an evil immoral murderer.

PS Lest you take this story out of context, go read this story in its entirety, if you can stomach it. There’s so much more to absorb than simple baby killing. There’s voyeurism, adultery, outdoor rape, polygamy, massacring, incestuous rape, sawing people up, and a jewel encrusted gold crown for Dave that weighs over a hundred pounds!

The Prophet, The Children, and The Bears

I often tell folks that when you go to church, you never hear a sermon about the bad stuff in the bible. I was wrong.

Grace Baptist Church in Fremont California took on one of my favorite 'bad' stories in the bible. Not only did Pastor Michael Phillips take on this subject for his congregation, he tailored the subject to be presented directly to the children of his church. The link below provides a very short written version, which is fun, but the real gem is the full length 43 minute recording of his sermon “The Prophet, The Children, and The Bears”. Grab a cup of joe, snuggle up on the couch, gather ‘round the kids, and soak this in:

http://www.gracebaptist.ws/sermons/notes/ChildrensSermons/TheProphet_TheChildren_TheBears.html.

Now, if you are a Christian, I would love to hear your viewpoint of this sermon. Did you enjoy it? Do you think it is appropriate for children of all ages? Do you think it was God inspired? Is this what you are teaching your child?

Since I don't expect any responses to this, I will go ahead and give you my opinion:

This sermon is blatant child abuse. It is a perfect example of everything I detest about conservative christianity.

God's Body Count

I have been pretty quiet on here lately. One reason is that whenever something comes up that I feel compelled to write about, I usually do a little web surfing to research the subject. Nearly every time I do that I find someone out there expressing a similar opinion far more succinctly and intelligently than I ever could. Not only that, but reading about it and mulling things over usually has a somewhat calming effect on me, so I am able to let it go.

My latest subject, however, I cannot let go, and would be number eleven on my list of why I could never again be a Christian: The biblical god murders an awful lot of his own creation. Just doesn’t make any sense to me. In trying to get a handle on just how many he has murdered, I ran across this blog: http://dwindlinginunbelief.blogspot.com. It is run by Steve Wells, the editor of one of my favorite sites, http://skepticsannotatedbible.com. One of his running posts right now is precisely this subject. Steve’s running total, constantly being updated with helpful input from concerned readers, is 2,270,365 human souls, including many innocent children. Keep in mind that this does not even count some real biggies (such as the flood) where the bible doesn’t happen to give a body count. It also does not count the billions of people, including myself, that will receive a fate even worse than death, eternal punishment in Hell.

To balance good vs. evil, Steve also counts the deaths credited to Satan. The grand total is 10, the sons and daughters of Job. Personally, I give god credit for them, as they were the result of a friendly wager between Satan and god. A nit for sure, especially since god made it all up to Job by giving him a new set of kids, even better looking than the first set.

In my book then it's:
God:2,270,375
Satan:0

If you are a Christian, I would love to hear how you justify in your mind the worship of such a loving, omnipotent, omniscient, perfect...
murderer.

Thought for the Day

Do you have more than one child? If so, do you have a favorite? Have you chosen one child over the others for special treatment?

Are you thinking, “Of course not, Dave, that is ridiculous. I love every one of my children equally! How could you even suggest such a thing?”?

Every parent loves every child just as much as the others. Differently, yes, but not more or less. I can’t even begin to think of what I would do if I were forced to make a “Sophie’s Choice”. I literally get a lump in my throat to even think about it.

Yet Christians believe that God does have special children. Chosen children. They believe that even though God knows every decision that every child will ever make before He even creates them, this God will judge them at the end of their lives, sending some to live in bliss with his son forever, the rest to suffer for eternity in hell.

Absurd.

Opus Dei Vinci

Shamelessly lifted from http://www.bettybowers.com:

This man (on the left wearing a fabulous vintage chiffon-lined Dior gold lamé gown over a silk Vera Wang empire waist tulle cocktail dress, accessorized with a 3-foot beaded peaked House of Whoville hat, and the ruby slippers Judy Garland wore in the Wizard of Oz) is worried that The Da Vinci Code might make the Roman Catholic Church look foolish.

Tough Week for Christians

Wowee, I go on a cruise for a week, and a few atomic bombs are dropped on Christianity. Coincidence?

First, the largest intercessory prayer study ever conducted, to the tune of 2.4 million dollars, is completed and shows that God’s mind isn’t changed by prayer. What a surprise.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-2112892,00.html

Of course, this won’t faze your average Christian fundie. The biblical god’s not about to respond to prayers made during a scientific experiment! Why, that would prove he exists, and then the average person couldn’t make a decision to believe by faith alone. Just think how empty Hell would be. Can’t have that! How can a Christian enjoy Heaven if there aren't billions suffering in Hell at the same time?

Next up, many creationists claim that evolution is disproved because no fossil has been discovered that is a major transition, such as from a sea to a land animal. Evolutionists know that they do exist, and have found many, but that sea-to-land one has been a bit elusive. Not any more:

http://www.world-science.net/othernews/060405_tiktaalikfrm.htm

Of course, the creationist will simply respond that this creature is not transitional, is unique, and where there was once one gap, there is now two! The evolution model from primordial soup to man can’t be true – it is filled with thousands of gaps!

I think it’s ironic that creationsist won’t buy into evolution unless every single fossil is found and photographed such that if they were played one after another in animation, a movie going smoothly from an amoeba to a man would be stepless. Yet they blindly accept Jesus as their savior when not a shred of his physical existence exists. And not a shred of evidence of any paranormal activity whatsoever has ever been proven, let alone intercessory prayer. Ever.

If you are a Christian, whatever you do, do NOT study science. The case for evolution could hardly be any more sound. Unless, of course, you remain totally ignorant about science. Keep your face in that bible and throw science away. Yeah, that’s it.

By the way, just for the record, I have no problem with the concept that God has created us using evolution as a tool.

Third, and finally for now, there’s this:

http://www.world-science.net/othernews/060406_codexfrm.htm
From the site:

“An ancient manuscript dating from the third or fourth century, containing the only known surviving copy of the Gospel of Judas, has been conserved, authenticated and translated after being lost for nearly 1,700 years, scientists say… The document gives an unusual view of the relationship between Jesus and Judas, offering new insights into the disciple who according to the Bible betrayed Jesus. Unlike the New Testament Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which portray Judas as a traitor, the document portrays Judas as acting at Jesus’ request when he hands Jesus over to the authorities… Jesus selects Judas from among the other disciples for a special task: “... you will exceed all of them. For you will sacrifice the man that clothes me.” Jesus would thus have been asking Judas to help him get rid of his physical flesh, to free the spiritual being within.”

As if the bible isn’t a contradicting mess anyway, now comes this. Maybe Mel Gibson will make a new version of his snuff film where Judas is heralded as a hero.

I can’t wait for my next cruise!

Thought for the Day

25,000 children will die from starvation today. Why then would God answer YOUR prayers?

Jesus Pets

I hereby volunteer to take care of your family pet post-rapture!

Dave's Top Ten List #1: Christianity

The following are my top ten reasons why I will never again call myself a Christian.

They are presented in no particular order, and are entered as individual entries. A book could be written about each one (and may be!), but I have kept them as short as I could. Comments welcome.

#10: Pascal's Wager

Pascal’s Wager is thus: “If there is a God, He is infinitely incomprehensible, since, having, neither parts nor limits, He has no affinity to us. We are then incapable of knowing either what He is or if He is ... you must wager. It is not optional. You are embarked. Which will you choose then? Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. Let us estimate these two chances. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager then without hesitation that he is.”

Many Christians will state an equivalent argument. If you are a Christian and you are wrong, you have lost nothing. If Christians are right, and you choose otherwise, you could be condemned to hell. Therefore, take the path of least risk. Have you ever thought this way or used this as an argument for Christianity? I know I have heard it many times.

I had a strong set of thoughts about this wager the other day. A vision if you will. Suppose, for a moment, that there is indeed a judgmental god that will indeed separate the lambs from the goats, sending people to either Heaven or Hell after they die based not on their deeds, but on their beliefs. An imaginary conversation follows between you and God upon your death, at the Pearly Gates if that’s where you think you’ll be:

You say “Dear God, I accepted Jesus as my savior, saving me from Hell and giving me eternal life with Him. I accepted Jesus as my only path to you. I accepted the Bible as your inerrant holy word, and spread it’s message to others.”

God says, “For God’s sake, how could you possibly believe that I would create such an evil place as Hell? How could you accept that I would send even one of the people I created in love and perfection there? How could you think this for even one second?”.

You respond “But, but it says in the Bible that Jesus is the only path to you! And the Bible is The Truth!”.

“The bible is absurd!” booms God. “It was created by Satan as a test! As we did with Job, Satan wagered that man could actually come to believe that I could actually and physically create a place where humans would suffer! And Satan was so confident that he claimed these people would even believe it was for eternity! To know that you can believe this breaks my heart.” Tears flow down God's face.

“But why then did you send Jesus, if not to save us?” you ask.

“Jesus was my son, just as you are my daughter. Jesus was an example of what man could be. His message was distorted and twisted by those in the church under the influence of evil. The Bible has nothing to do with Who I Am.”

“But my dear Father,” you plead, “just because I believed in Hell, are you going to send me there?”.

At this point, the story could go in any direction you think God is willing to go. If you are a Christian, you believe God is perfectly capable of sending you to Hell. I am not. So, in my version, God continues thus:

“My sweet daughter, I could never do that to any of my creations. I have created every human being with love. You will have eternal life in Heaven, as will all of my beloved. Please enter with my blessing. Your brother Dave is there, eagerly waiting for you with open arms.”

Pascal’s Wager only makes sense if your choices are limited to precisely two. In the case of Christianity, there are far more choices. Pascal's Wager is a case against Christianity, not for it.

#9: Heaven

Do I want to live forever? I'm not sure, but I do NOT want to live forever in a biblical Heaven. An eternity bathed in bright light with a large part of my soul removed and a smile plastered on a face does not sound appealing.

The Bible explains that we will not have any evil in us in heaven. I don’t know about you, but I am in large part "evil". I am filled with “evil” human emotions, lust, greed, anger, you name it. But you know what? I love my self just the way I am. These faults make me who I am. Without them, I'm not me.

In thinking about those I love, I do not love them despite their faults, I love them because of their faults. With those faults removed, who will they be? Certainly not who they were before. As Friedrich Nietzsche said "In heaven all the interesting people are missing."

In Heaven, what kind of life would it be without choices between good and evil? Will it be between good and gooder? Does that mean everything but the goodest will become evil? But there is no evil! No choices then? What will we do?

Will children be born there? If so, think of the population expolsion! We're talking infinity here. If no new children, parenting, the best part of my life on earth, will not be possible. And those children that do end up in Heaven... will the grow? Will we be frozen at our entrance age?

Assuming I don't have to go to Heaven, and instead chosing mortality, coming to grips with the finality of my life has been energizing. I now realize my life on earth must be the best I can make it. If there is no second chance, I better make the best of it! No goofing off waiting for salvation, I better get busy!

But I will live forever, in a very real sense, through my daughters. And them through their children. What a natural thing. That makes me want to be the best father possible!

And for some reason, even if I were to be saved and go to Heaven, billions will be in Hell. How could we celebrate in Heaven knowing even one of our brethren is in Hell? Will we be ignorant of this? I don’t want to be ignorant! How could that be good?

#8: The Passion

“Jesus Had a Bad Weekend for Your Sins!”. This is a parody bumper sticker that is very close to the Christian truth. Assuming biblical accuracy, I have never understood the huge sacrifice that Jesus apparently paid for our sins. On one hand Christians proclaim “Jesus died for your sins!” and then on the other proclaim “Jesus lives!”. Okay then, where is the huge sacrifice? Did he sacrifice, then, his life on earth as a man? But Christians are just waiting for the day when they can rise to heaven and be with God! So it seems Jesus death wasn’t a sacrifice, but rather a favor! Not only that, according to Christianity, Jesus IS God, so how can God kill himself to appease himself?

#7: Atonement

Jesus “paid” for our sins? Even assuming we are unworthy of God’s love, can anyone other than ourselves accept moral responsible for what we are have done? It is a foundation of Christianity, yet morally corrupt. Even our legal system does not allow the substitution of guilt. We can pay the monetary debt for someone else, but never the criminal guilt. Why not? Because it doesn’t make moral sense.

#6: Guilt

We should not be guilty for Adam and Eve’s sin. The Bible itself says that children should not pay the price for their parents sins, yet condemns us for something that Eve did 5000 years ago. Not only that, but at the time Eve committed this ultimate sin, she didn’t even know the difference between right and wrong! Yet if you are a bible believing woman, the very reason that you have child-bearing pain is because of what an innocent Eve did in the Garden of Eden. And because Adam and Eve were tricked by a talking snake, we are all pieces of crap unworthy of God’s love. Absurd.

#5: Salvation

The concept of salvation is nonsensical. Salvation from what? The hideous Hell that the god of the bible himself created? The life that the Bible tells you will end unless you are saved? The Bible saves us from fates of its own creation!

#4: Science

The bible is totally absurd from a scientific point of view. Genesis is a contradictory mess for a reasonable explanation of how the universe was formed. It reflects precisely what was believed by man at the time and shows not even a hint of divine guidance in this area. The earth is flat and held up by 4 pillars. Earth and heaven are separated by a “firmament” with water stored above, and little points of light that are so small they can fall to earth. This is what man believed, not what God knew. God's Word? Hardly.

#3: History

Throughout history, religions have done horrible things to good people, and Christianity is as guilty as any of them. Christian intolerance and the hideous examples in the bible of what god has done to the Un-chosen, has been the fuel for killing millions throughout history, and it continues to this very day. Even our own country, under the guidance of a “Christian” president has invaded a non-threatening nation and killed thousands of innocent people under the proclaimed guidance of God.

#2: Intolerance

Christianity’s intolerance of other beliefs makes it unworthy of my adherence to it. Often quoted to me: "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but through me". To a Christian, this is a loving thing to say, but to an non or ex-Christian it is a nearly unforgivable insult. You might as well say “Unless you believe what I do, God does not want you in his presence”. It is hard for me to imagine a greater damnation. Two thirds of the World’s population will never accept Jesus as their savior (with very good reason I might add), and per Christian beliefs they will be spending eternity roasting in Hell. On this reason alone, I can never again call myself a Christian.