I just have to say, things like this piss me off. And they piss me off because ............ the person who wrote this has failed to understand the meaning behind the words he/she believes in.
So, guess what. I DO believe there is a God. I do belong to a particular religion.
But you know what else I believe in? What I believe is 100% true?
"I believe in humanity working together to better the world, I believe that science is constantly expanding our knowledge of the universe, I believe in teaching children to never stop being curious, I believe in more than I don't."
Are you saying that Muslims don't believe in Science? Hindus don't want to teach children? Christians don't want to help people or better humanity? Here is the thing, if you are not a part of any particular religion, and all you know about them is what you see on TV, Jon Stewart, or read on the internet, you're going to have an extremely dim view of those religions. Try going to your local church - whatever denomination. Try meeting the people. Try seeing what, on a local level, is really going on there. You just might be enlightened. In fact, you just might learn that children are being taught to be curious, or that humanity is working together to better the world.
Oh, don't get me wrong. As with everything - there are really shitty people that are associated with it. No person and no organization is perfect. They make mistakes. They have people involved that suck. That doesn't mean that it outweighs the good.
But - finally - the person who wrote that picture is essentially saying that Atheists are the only ones who believe in the things written. By writing it that way, he's excluding people who believe in God. That's not very "humanity" working together.
While I may believe in God, I am extremely happy that there are people who DO NOT, because it makes the world a better place!!! Just like the fact that there are different races, different religions, different thoughts, different sexual orientations. Different everything makes the world wonderful.
So, to all you religious people out there - stop trying to force your beliefs on others. Stop showing disdain and judging people who do not believe the same as you. And guess what, for all you non-religious people out there - stop trying to force your beliefs on others. Stop showing disdain and judging people who do not believe the same as you.
5 comments:
I don't see them saying that religious people don't believe in those things too, just that they do as an atheist. If a religious person says they believe racism is wrong or they believe in treating people fairly does that mean that they are trying to say atheists don't? Maybe these are beliefs that you have in common with this particular atheist.
If the person who wrote it wasn't intending to differentiate between religion and atheists, then he/she wouldn't have even mentioned he/she was an Atheist.
Especially since the text at the bottom is all information that many people accuse religious people of not doing. Obviously, the teaching of creationism or darwinism is directly related to "teaching science" and "children to be curious" etc.
In this particular photo - in this situation, the writer IS making that distinction.
You are correct that in a different scenario, atheists and religious people can make statements that aren't attacks on the other. But that is not the situation here, at least as how I read it.
It's not really off topic :)
I just don't see it like that, more of an affirmation that this is what they believe in. The majority of Christians believe in the same things they are saying I think, the final statements affirms they do believe in something, just not a supreme being.
That is not saying anything about religion at all. So many people have unfounded beliefs about atheism, and I used to be a christian, I know what they say in church about atheists. I am quite open about my beliefs, and am contantly questioned, accused of being immoral, and verbally attacked. I love this photo, because I think it is important for theists to know what atheists believe and to understand that we are not the monsters that religious leaders would like to make us out to be. To stand up for ourselves and say that we are good people with good intentions does not automatically imply that people who don't share our beliefs are not. That's simply not a logical conclusion to reach.
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