This God Con
by How empty the lives of those earlier humans must have been, without the comfort of knowing about this supposedly all-powerful god who burst onto the scene a mere 2,000 years ago?
With a history spanning at least 50,000 years, and possibly far longer, one feels obliged to ask how empty the lives of those earlier humans must have been, without the comfort of knowing about this supposedly all-powerful god, who burst onto the scene two thousand years ago, by allowing his offspring to walk the earth as a mortal man. Interestingly enough, there is no mention of the night of passion he and Mary ought to have enjoyed to reach conception, but that would kind of spoil the image?
Thing is, that if you look at what even creationists accept are the facts of human biology, then you have to be aware that immaculate conception is simply physically impossible, and even a god would have to adhere to the laws of physics, id indeed he made man in his own images. Logic dictates that some things just make no sense at all. It is now indisputably known that the planet we inhabit has existed for over four Billion years, yet humanity, if those years were represented as a 24 hour clock, has existed for less than ten seconds.
Why would the supposed god, whose existence has been known of for far fewer years than humanity has existed, have allowed the paradise planet that he had created to remain unoccupied by human life for 99.99999999% of the time it has existed? Hardly, so how do the god squad account for this minor faux-pas? Research has proved beyond doubt that the chemical soup in which life first came into being, as single-celled organisms, was the foundation of all life on the planet, as well as the universe as a whole.
It beggars belief, for me and many others I am certain, that there is such a gigantic groundswell of opinion that science has the facts skewed somehow, and that the creation is still a feasible alternative explanation for everything around us. Are these people so devoid of logical thought process that they swallow this guff, as a whale supposedly swallowed some bloke named Jonah? Surely the recent events in Japan – the gigantic earthquake and the devastating Tsunami that claimed possibly 30,000 lives are ample proof of our fragility?
We may have, according to the bible bashers, been created in gods image, but godhead is an illusion that needs to be dispelled, because we are but animals atop a giant natural food chain, and the whims of nature leave us utterly powerless to protect ourselves fully. What kind of god allows such wanton destruction and loss of life in the name of salvation? Hardly a benevolent one, but then humanity is very far from being a benevolent species. We blithely destroy the natural worlds resources in the name of progress, then bleat at payback time.
I still have, on the wall, in front of my computer, that 4,000 year-old poem, translated from ancient Maori language, that clearly states – you are your own devil, you are your own god, you fashioned the steps that your footsteps have trod – how profound and how prophetic, humanity were dreaming up beings superior to themselves since time immemorial, perhaps in the hope of bettering themselves, but reality bit, even back then, and sensible people realized that god was pure fiction.
Do I believe that there may be intelligent life in the universe that is far older and wiser than humanity, with what we might see as god-like abilities? Yes I do, because the laws of probability male it very likely that they exist, though we may never get to see them, distances in space being what they are. Then again, I doubt that evolution has yet finished with our species, and humans may, in the next few thousand years, develop mental abilities as normal that are the stuff of science fiction now.
I think now, and have done since I realized, at seven years of age, in Sunday School, that this god con was a complete crock of rubbish, that those who rail at science for telling the truth, and spend their lives preaching meaningless drivel to the masses, are the most pernicious con-artists of them all. The gullible public get happily fleeced, the Vatican Bank one of the wealthiest on earth, all in the name of a fisherman who had expressly forbidden the building of temples. The God Con is a terrible thing, and I want no part of it.
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Post CommentAsh Alexander
On April 19, 2011 at 9:52 am
Great article on the god myth!
d1dezire
On April 19, 2011 at 9:55 am
That’s just it; you can’t understand it! That’s because He uses the foolish things of the world to confound “the wise” .Believe what you will, it does not affect the existence of God.
d1dezire
On April 19, 2011 at 10:01 am
http://authspot.com/thoughts/words-that-kill/
Von Shanks
On April 19, 2011 at 10:16 am
All of the destruction that is happening in our world these days has been prophesied in the Bible. If you choose not to believe that, it is your choice, but I pity the day you die and have to face judgment.
Thinker
On April 19, 2011 at 11:05 am
Your tirade sounds all very emotional, but you weren\’t around @ the beginning and you as a finite being are not all knowing. Just b/c you don\’t comprehend how God could exist and/or perform miracles does not disprove either.
tonyleather
On April 19, 2011 at 2:09 pm
Forgive my rampant scepticism here, but the BIBLE was ONLY written 2,000 years ago, so how on earth can it be peretinent to anything, when it is nothing more than a collection of unverified old wives tales? God did not create us, because WE created him to justify our own inhumanity toward one another. It is not that I choose not to believe, but that I choose not to accept a man-made fiction as anything other than it is – absurd.
bedlamchaos
On April 19, 2011 at 2:15 pm
great info
Thespeakman
On April 19, 2011 at 3:00 pm
As always Tony – your articles are intelligent and well written – i enjoyed it greatly
DemonDogZack
On April 19, 2011 at 8:32 pm
You figured this out when you were 7. You left out that humans kill each other all the time over hatred, but I shall tell you this. I figured this out when I was 2.
GDino
On April 20, 2011 at 12:33 am
I am intrigued by what possibly compelled you to write such a piece. Well, perhaps being seven years old and already staunchly against the ‘god con,’ this article 50-plus years later (forgive my math if it’s off by a few years) is but a glimpse of your innermost genuflections about man’s god. The is-he-there-or-isn’t-he debacle is far too threadbare, and as such I don’t think I can offer any musings about it that someone else hadn’t already shared. But still, it’s great food for thought. Kudos for going there.
At this point in my life, barely a quarter of a century old, I like wondering about the existential value of the Bible and its God, instead of trying to defend the religious or the scientific. More than the evidence science may inadvertently put in the way of believers, psychology and philosophy has more intriguing and compelling discussions of man’s god and the seeming need for there to be one.
I would like to learn Aramaic and Hebrew and get my hands on the original scriptures to finally behold the true glory of something far greater than any collection of prose and poetry so far. Unfortunately that is simply not possible. I think you would agree that the Bible, at the very least, is a great piece of prose poetic in its scope. No version of it now would probably be as refined as it is in original scripture.
My view on the topic is simple. I actually want there to be a God, but not one men in history have been dreaming up. I think what I want there to be is a supreme intelligence that is almost unfathomable, whether this being is responsible for our creation and plight might actually make no difference to me. The problem is perhaps in the concept of good and evil, particularly good, to which images and conceptions of god have always been tied to. I like the Old Testament God that chose to smite down idiotic followers. Much more efficient that way, isn’t it?
Anyways. Thanks for provoking this much thought, Tony. Keep the great articles coming.
-G
Sourav
On April 20, 2011 at 1:20 am
I would actually like to see more comments on this article. Ironically, there isn’t much.
I love the way you’ve written this article. The tone, the logic and the words, everything is so gripping. I agree with you on many points here. It’s a highly debatable issue and when we see things from the logic, this ‘God’ thing seems very illogical. But believers love to believe in miracles and illogical things. So, the debate goes on…
You’ve just written what I think often as this topic bothers me very much. Reading this article seems I’m talking to myself.
Very well written. Thanks for this article!
alucard91
On April 20, 2011 at 5:17 am
The endgame is coming and everyone will see lol
adicodrean1967
On April 20, 2011 at 7:23 am
great post
d1dezire
On April 20, 2011 at 3:21 pm
He didn’t create us, we created him? Really? hmmmmmmmmmmmm
karmicchristian
On April 21, 2011 at 12:40 am
Nicely written article. Thanks and a good day. My two cents worth on the subject can be found @ http://tiny.ly/YiBO if interested.
Charles
shawna y.
On April 21, 2011 at 1:43 am
I go to church and believe in a higher power. But that still does not explain the existences of dinosaurs or cavemen. Aliens which there are they have proved there is life on mars it is not human it is microscopic but it is still life. Who\’s to say we are not the aliens. For all we know we could be the aliens. Please explain there are like 14 books missing from the bible. I can tell you why cause they are controversy and they can tell us things that went on before and during like aliens and flying machines etc. I have done a little bit of research on this issue with the bible. Not only that but the bible is conflicts itself at times. The bible we have today is not the original bible. The original bible was written in a lost language that is not spoken or read anymore not even by Jews Americans Germans etc etc. But I do believe in a higher power and yes I question god everyday That is what he wants us to do is question him and have arguments with him. Cause it shows our emotions to him. Some times you will get an answer right away some times you may not. very good article Tony I liked it very much. Like i said i do go to church but do I believe everything no. That’s like if you believed everything you saw on TV which is bs and a lie. People that believe what\’s in the newspaper or on TV with out doing their own research and homework are fools.
bwellman
On April 22, 2011 at 6:15 pm
Great article. This was very thought provoking for some it seems, but then the death of a religion or belief is always a difficult thing for a civilization to deal with. I’m sure the Greeks and the Romans had just as difficult a time when their gods were reduced to “stories of old.” With the advent of technology and the irrefutable truths of science, many of the mythos of current religions are being put to the test and as the young begin to realize the immeasurable power of the future and what could be, it seems only a matter of time until a new sense of self is accepted. I find that much of religion feeds on fear and this is exactly the reason it is created, to provide a sense of control in a world in which we have so little. Thank you for a truly wonderful read.
Erin Miller
On April 24, 2011 at 8:07 pm
This is one of my favorite articles so far!
Julian the Apostate
On May 5, 2011 at 10:38 am
I’m not even a Christian, so don’t take this as a defense of Christianity, but this is poorly written and misinformed. You have fundamentally misunderstood the nature of religion in general. You make claims that science has proven this or that without a doubt, then you claim to be a skeptic, which should always leave room for doubt. Perhaps I’ve missed it, but I wasn’t aware that science has precisely and irrefutably solved the mystery of the origins of life on the planet, much less across the whole universe. You sound less like a skeptic and more like a dogmatist. As a student of history, I find your assertion in the comments above that the Bible was written 2000 years ago perplexing – the Bible is a compendium of writings produced and edited by different people over many centuries, not just pulled out of a hat at an exact date 2000 ya. Similarly with the God of the Bible, a concept that evolved over a lengthy period of time, but began far earlier than the birth of Jesus.
I always have to chuckle a little at these atheistic rants against Christianity. The emotionalism and childishness! Why so hung-up on it? If you’ve truly left “religion” behind just leave it behind. My guess is that you did not reject Christianity at the age of 7, but rather you were raised fundamentalist, wrestled with your faith for a long time and still continue to do so. Why else the need, at your age, to write an insipid, completely unoriginal rant whose only purpose is to prove to the world and yourself your supposed disdain for the religion you were raised in. Sorry if this sounds harsh, but the tone of the article was harsh and provocative. In my lifetime I’ve seen aggressive, militant, fundamentalist Christianity give way to an aggressive, militant, fundamentalist atheism and I can’t help but noticing that the two have much in common with one another than with the kind of open-minded, wide-ranging, stimulating and inspiring discourse that could actually lead us somewhere worth going.
William Lamont
On April 1, 2012 at 4:59 am
Hello Tony.
I don’t imagine your article will convince any fundamentalist Christians to give up their faith. You ponder how empty the lives of the people who lived before ‘God burst onto the scene’ must have been, but of course fundamentalist Christians believe God has always existed, so your argument would having no meaning to them.
Similarly, referring to ‘logic’ will not help. Fundamentalist Christians believe the rules of logic do not apply to God.
Therein lies the problem. Fundamentalist Christians and atheists operate with a different set of ground rules, which means that neither side can hope to win over the other side with a simple argument.