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Originally Posted by filtherton
I think it depends on what you choose to focus on. Certainly it could be easier to have a map. However, sometimes that map is completely missing large pieces or takes you places that really suck.
On the other hand, being an atheist doesn't necessarily mean that one doesn't have a map. After all, buddhism is atheistic(correct me if i'm wrong, it's been a while), yet is incredibly prescriptive.
Also, depending on the particular brand of theism in question, there isn't necessarily a map.
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True. I was certainly generalizing in my statement. There are plenty of "spiritual" types that are looking for a path to follow, etc.
Buddhism, while not theist is spiritual and does have a prescribed method of seeking "enlightenment".
I am referring more the standard organized religion method of theism. The benefit to an organized religion is that it *is* all laid out for you. Do *this* and you will achieve *this*.
I am not the sort who would deny people the right to pursue their spiritual path. I am also not the sort to say that one should always be rational. Irrational thought, to me, is when the moments of "magic" occur (and I don't mean magic like pulling rabbits out of a hat or turning water into wine). It was in search of this essence of irrationality that I did so many drugs in my 20s and spent so much time looking to break away from the rational world.
Art, creativity, tangential thinking, Freudian slips, humour, etc. are all magic moments of the irrational. I embrace these moments as they occur. For me, inspiration does not come from rational thought.
That said, I do not look to external forces such as deities for these moments. I see religions, at their root, as myths we, as humans, have created to explain the unexplainable. All of the other baggage that has been attached to religion... rules of diet, rules of sexual relations, rules of doctrine, etc. are all just controls on society - controls largely there to control the unruly masses. These rules were largely created (largely) thousands of years ago in a world that was a very different place.
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Originally Posted by filtherton
Believe it or not, theism can also mean doing the right thing because it is the right thing. Not all theists believe in hell- for them heaven is assured. Without the threat of damnation, one can defer to whatever one wants when deciding what the right thing is.
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Again, I was generalizing but you have to admit that the larger population of "religious types" are not of this ilk. Rather they are the reward and punishment sort.
My larger point was that being an atheist in America, in this day and age, is not an easy row to hoe. But with more discussion and more exposure, such as Sweeny and Dawkins there will come an understanding that atheists are people too. Just because they don't believe in God doesn't make them evil or immoral.