For me the positive side is how much more free I am to be compassionate.
I remember as a child the feeling of superiority from my mother when dealing with people who were different. I had a vague feeling that it was wrong but I didn't know why. With my mom, if it was in the Bible then it was right. She quoted scripture supporting slavery and even said that slaves were "marked" and we would know them. This is what she used to rationalize treating "colored" people as inferior. I remember being horrified and knowing I could never be involved in a religion that approved of owning another human.
Over the years I've successfully gotten over the prejudices of my parents. But time does not stand still and we are ever being bombarded with new "bad guys" and new "bad ideas." My atheism makes it easy not to hate a group or a person just because they are different. I look within myself and feel compassion for them and try to understand why I might feel threatened. We live and we learn.
7 comments:
I gasped when I read this entry... I don't mean to judge/criticise your mum, but christianity does not treat colored with inferiority. If anything, we r called to be treat everyone as equals.
I am sorry that you have to hear such teachings from your mum & hopefully, you will come to know the real God.
Let's see.... the bible condones slavery in these verses
Genesis 6:9, 7:1, 9:20-25, 17:23, 17:27
Exodus 12:44, 20:17, 21:2-6, 21:7-8, 21:16, 21:20-21, 21:24-25, 21:26-27, 22:2-3
Leviticus 22:11, 25:39, 25:44-46
Ephesians 6:5
Collosians 3:22
Timothy 6:1
Titus 2:10-11
1st Peter 2:18
And many Christians interpret Genesis 4:15 the mark of Cain to be changing the color of his and all of his desendents skin to black.
Yeah, xians like to claim the bible teaches tolerance, but one can find prejudice against any group of people if you look hard enough. Even if you just glance thru that unholy book one can find reasons to be bigoted against gays and women. In fact, I have yet to fully understand why any woman would be a christian. It makes no sense to believe in a religion that so belittles us. I mean really, being punished for handing Adam the forbidden fruit by have pain during child birth? No thanks!
I hope that big rice finds reason and comes to know that the god of the bible cannot possibly exist.
Thanks for the support "look an atheist!"
I remember being thoroughly ticked at god for punishing me because of what 1 woman did soooo long ago. It was just ridiculous, to the point that I was thinking stuff like, "Well I wouldn't have eaten the stupid apple".
Original sin. Complete bollocks. [I love british slang. :-D] Except my stupid american dictionary doesn't contain that word so I can check to see if it's spelled correctly. thanks google- ...llo not ...llu.
Don't you just love it when people phrase things like this...
"I don't mean to be X, but.....X".
And you're left thinking if you don't want to then don't. Anytime there is a "but" following "I don't mean to", you know they are about to anyway. How does saying the first park excuse doing it anyway???
I have a feeling that big rice is probably from a fairly moderate christian background. None of the verses quoted here were ever profiled in the sermons I listened to. I think te catholic church learned long ago that it doesn't do to upset half the congregation( at least in Australia).
You don't want to upset the Sheila's, might get you a kick in the jatz crackers (Aussie Slang).
I'm not around my family much so I don't get a lot of scripture quoting.I do agree with you about the "atheism makes it easy not to hate a group or a person". Big Rice,there is no "real" god.
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