I’m an atheist because I could no longer continue to do mental gymnastics. I kept arguing with my own mind, trying to convince myself that the faith that my parents followed, was the only true way. Eventually I had to look myself in the mirror and admit I saw things differently. No, I was not destined to be less than all men given all the men I successfully competed against in school, in my profession etc. No I could not believe that I was miraculously born into just the right family to have just the right faith to save me from hellfire. No I could not accept that ancient books that were supposedly written by a god, who created the universe state things about the universe that are demonstrably false. No I could not accept that women were to blame for male lust and sexual violence and so needed to be covered up. No I could not accept that my future had already been written but I would be punished or rewarded for how my life turned out. I could go on and on. The mental energy required to keep supporting religion was just too much for my brain. I had to let religion go and set my brain free. Life is more beautiful ever since.
Fay
Michigan
Short, logical and to the point. That’s good writing. You obviously do very well competing with others, whether male or female.
Coulda used about a dozen more commas, though.
Well put, Fay. Thank you.
Unagreement on the comma issue. Sparse punctuation. Is. Good. Punctuation.
And a very simple and forthright explanation of one of the main disadvantages of fundamentalist religion: self-inflicted cognitive dissonance. One would think we have enought to worry about with self-image, peer-pressure, sex-drive, ambition, laziness and existential ennui without inventing extra meta-systems to fry our brains.
Watching the mental gymnastics some of my Facebook friends pull is truly fascinating for me. I’ve never understood it at all. I, too, loved the simplicity of this post. Perfectly stated.