Warning- Long Post Follows. - Narrated by Carl Sagan LOL
Atheism is rather free. It is not a belief- it is a lack of belief.
What an amazing thing it is, to study the Universe, to see where we came from. To know that you can research, test and examine to find answers, not chalk them up to a mystery, that only the mind of God can fathom.
It's a delight to observe our natural world, to see life emerge from a womb- to know how these things happened, where we most likely came from- It's a wonderment how self replicating molecules work in accordance with Emergence- Because it tantalizes the imagination that we are not Alone In The Universe. That out there, there are other life forms- maybe even on the Moons of the Jovian worlds in our own solar system.
Without the study, the research and the technology, we could never know of such things. We can verify this, see this, not pray about it or be left wondering, uncertain. We would not be able to communicate so efficiently, with such a diverse population as we can now. We would not be able to question our own baser instincts and improve upon our nature, such as overcoming racism, sexism, territorial and predatory instincts. Being able to question ourselves, our origins allows us greater ability to improve, rather than to try to pray, accept as Faith or follow "divine doctrine" that is often violent, archaic and self-conflicting. Yes, we have a long way to go- but we have time. We have the desire. We have many who will fight for it and many who are willing to teach young minds.
No longer are we constrained to live in the shadows, to question and not get answered, to fear eternal damnation over petty human differences in opinion.
It frees a person from the fear of death and assures us of a Special Place, not one in an afterlife of Heavenly wonder- But one in which we are empowered by our drive and desire to move forward, explore, find new heights of creativity and express ourselves without fear of condemnation by a fundamental establishment.
By examining our concepts of Morality, rather than just accepting desert scribblings, we can question their validity, search for a better way, a more productive way, a way that brings our differences together, rather than driving us further apart.
We are able to be more accepting of our nature, more understanding of our limitations, more open to progress and change.
We have ourselves, eachother, our differences and our similarities. We cannot be lonely. There is a diverse ecosystem that begs to be examined, explored and sometimes, just appreciated as you sit in quiet introspection watching the natural workings of life buzz around you. We have an amazing world of our own, that has new discoveries waiting to be made. We can even examine the lives of our ancestors, our roots. Where we started, how we progressed, how we lived. We can share in their experiences, from our earliest ancestors on up to the present. What could be more amazing than that?
We are not abandoned- we are able to Unite.
We are not rejected, we can speak a Universal language of Understanding.
We are not apathetic, we are driven by curiosity, motivated by progress, impressed with our ability to bring about change and can take small pride in what we accomplish. What we accomplish by ourselves.
We are not resigned to fate; we are enabled by our evolution to examine fate and encourage change.
Wynn, maybe you need to do what I do- get up on the roof of your house, kick back and LOOK at the Universe. It's amazing in every detail, and we are very much a part of it. A part that has the ability to SEE it.
I, for one, cannot imagine anything better than the kind of enlightenment that comes from hard work.
