Some believe in religion. Who can say where the truth lies or whether the priest lies? If there are gods, I think that they are indifferent to our fate. Our suffering moves them not at all. In a human being, such cold-blooded ambivalence is deemed evil. God is given a pass, but what is God?
Riddle me this. Precisely to what do you pray and why? I have spoken with many believers, but never received a satisfactory answer to that question.
In the Bible, HE remains anonymous with no history and no background. HE displays neither visible form nor audible voice. HE could be anything at all--devil, charlatan, fiction, alien, or arch-villain, take your pick. Perhaps this is a strategic rather than accidental omission. HE adapts to his audience, shape-changing to appear just a little bit different to every believer. HE is the playdough of philosophy, adapting like a virus to the requirements of his individual hosts. This is why there are so many different sects and even within the sects, individuals believe different things. There is no agreement among believers.
I do not think any religions have got God right. They do not even know what they worship. They are placing all of their money on the table to buy a mystery gift box without knowing what is inside the box. I think it would be better to know what is inside the box first.
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Common ground among believers and non-believers can be found on practical issues, such as morality. I do not think religion is necessary for morality, and it may even get in the way by inserting an unnecessary and fragile support structure.
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I see many references in classified advertisements to so-and-so being a Christian, implying that therefore they will be honest and not cheat others, but I think that such a statement reveals spiritual immaturity and spiritual arrogance. There are countless cases of professed Christians doing evil. I think it is more likely a professed atheist would be honest and not cheat others, because more honesty is required to admit to a minority belief. I avoid those who insert a statement about their religion while advertising a product or service, because I think that they may have something to hide. They are playing upon the prejudices of gullible believers and seeking out those who are easy to cheat.
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The most foolish among the non-believers, especially those who have recently lost their religion, assume that, since there may be no divine punishment or reward for behavior, they should do whatever they please. Perhaps the choice for good or evil is a matter of taste, but if so, evil is in poor taste and more likely to obtain poor results in the long run. There are examples in history of both believers and non-believers doing evil and doing good. I am not sure what the correlation is between belief system and moral behavior and probably no one really knows.
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The greatest tragedy of modern religion is the low calibre of modern priests. The exodus of the intelligent over the centuries has forced churches to subsist with dim lights indeed. Of course the churches must change fundamentally not only their opinions upon social issues but their very doctrine in order to attract the intelligent in large numbers. Some perceive that, but many resist change, because change is a disturbing thing for many people who do not wish to think about the ramifications. Unfortunately, the world that we live in is extremely complicated, and there is a natural human desire for simplicity. I love to watch movies about magic, gods and goddesses. Such things appeal to me a great deal. I do think the world could be a better, more interesting place with gods and magic, although there is a possibility it could be worse.
I believe that the church must retreat to a proper sphere, that of morality alone, and leave questions of history, science and theology alone. Perhaps the Unitarians are closest to this ideal at present. Of course it is tempting to venture into other fields, writing opinions about things such as God and angels and passing them off as facts, but doing so places credibility at risk. Better it is to say, I am human, and I do not know of such matters, nor can I know. In regard to those religions that claim to know what they cannot, I am atheist. I do like to think about a goddess watching over me, because that would be nice, having a protector and all, but I doubt she would really bother. Surely she would have better things to do with her time, being a goddess. At any rate, lately I've noticed that when I am in need, she hits the snooze button and can't be reached on the telephone.
I do not think that many churches have mastered the basics of morality, because they are so tied up in knots over relatively simple questions of human sexuality. If they cannot understand issues having to do with mere genitalia, then it is difficult to see how they will ever cope with weightier issues, and indeed the church was missing in action over all the big issues of the twentieth century. Where were the priests when the Holocaust happened? They were busy chastising their flock about such matters as divorce, contraception and homosexuality, no doubt.
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