How not to hate religious folk?

[KnockOut]

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to get some advice from other Objectivist on this matter. I've been an Atheist since I was 14 and still had to grow up in a Christian household. I still had to go to church and still had to be around alot of religious people. Now I have my own family and live my life by my own ideals I've lost touch with the religious culture. Everytime I hear a person mention how God is all that matters in their life I can't help but to say "ill". "God made me do this" or "God sent me on this path" I wonder is this what the people said during the Spanish Inquixisition or what religious suicide bombers say before they explode? I try to remember the good things religious leaders have accomplish for example Martin Luther King or Gandi, but I still can't swallow how easily religious people dispatch Reason when it comes to their beliefs. On top of that these psychos kill innocent people in the name of Islam and the Christian conservatives blatant attack on reason and justice through the U.S. Supreme Court, it only fuels my, for lack of a better word, hate. I don't want to become a bigot nor do I want to hate or be disgusted by other people's beliefs but it is becoming increasely hard.

[BurgessLau]

On a personal level, I share your revulsion towards some religious individuals -- but not towards all of them. I would much prefer to know, befriend, or be a neighbor to some religious individuals I have met than to any nihilist I have met.

However, in terms of our culture overall, the greatest barricade to Objectivism and the possibility of an objective culture are not the Biblicists, fideists, and traditional mystics (who have a "personal relationship" with God), but instead are the quasi-objective people who advocate reason and faith, each in its own area, and mean it. That package is more difficult to argue against because an Objectivist must first untangle all the assumptions underlying that couplet.

It is no coincidence that the most successful sect of Christianity is Catholicism, which has cemented a veneer of respect for "reason," in some areas of life, onto a faith-based ethics.

In summary, and by analogy to criminal trials in which the (guilty) defendent testifies in his own behalf, the most difficult lies to overcome are those that involve elements of truth, elements that supposedly lend credibility to the other claims.

Edited December 5, 2005 by BurgessLau

[RationalBiker]

Regarding the "quasi-objective" people mentioned, I noticed that the Science section of Barnes and Noble had quite a few books trying to marry god with science.

One such book made a statement along the lines that it's time conservatives did something about liberals hi-jacking science. Science can't be "hi-jacked", as science remains objective when studied or used properly. When someone subverts the scientific method, it's no longer science. It's banner can be used as a mask to misguide the un-informed though.

[Eternal]

I grew up in a very Catholic family myself, and had to attend the services, while I was living with them. I became an atheist myself, in my teens, although looking back it was a gradual change (I think I went from Catholic, to Deist to Agnostic, and finally to Atheist).

I especially find it ironic when I see people after some disaster "thanking God for saving them", while conveniently forgetting the fact that it is the same God that sent the catastrophe their way, or at least did nothing to prevent it. All I have to say to those people is that if God couldn't be bothered with Hitler, he sure couldn't care less about their fate...

[Groovenstein]

KnockOut,

My family is religious and I too grew up in a Christian household. Until recently, I became upset at the very mention of "God" or the very thought of its "existence." Now I don't let it bother me anymore. I imagine I would become upset even now if it affected me or something I cared about in a personal way. For example, I am soon to be a lawyer, and have a deep love for the legal process and the pursuit of justice. Therefore, when I hear of a judge, jury, or someone else tainting that pursuit with religion, I become upset for a very short time. Then I move on, acknowledging the legitimacy of my rage but realizing that I don't wish to dwell in it.

Anything else, though, I've decided just isn't worth my time. My hours are limited. I decided I would rather spend those hours doing things I enjoy, like my studies, my work, my band, my friends, and my leisure. I'm not ignoring the existence of religion or its influence over many. I've just decided that, as far as my life and the pursuit of my values goes, it doesn't matter. I invite you to decide for yourself how upset you should allow yourself to become, and where that fits in to your value system.