I was also raised in a religious family, but became an atheist, a humanist and an existentialist during my late teens. The more I read, the more it seemed like these beliefs were just perfect for me. I also really like Buddhism, but I don’t think I could devote myself entirely to it’s concepts and practices.
Religion is a personal experience, and, in the name of freedom, I also don’t believe it’s right to slander anyone based upon their personal beliefs, provided that those beliefs do not violate the peace and freedom of other people.
So the next question that I have is: do religious beliefs violate the peace and freedom of other people?
The Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths all have the same commandment:
Thou shalt have no other gods before me
This simple direction breeds arrogance, contempt and violence. It has resulted in more bloodshed than any other sentence ever uttered. Look no further than the crucifixion of Christ, the Crusades, and the contemporary agenda of militant jihad.
These are good reasons to resent the offenders. They are good reasons to question religious people about their personal perception of killing in the name of God. These are fantastic reasons to embrace atheism.
Our philosophies define our mind, our character, and our ethical framework. So I would not assume that a religious person necessarily is bigoted, but clearly prejudice has existed in tandem with religion to the point of war and murder.
Which transitions nicely into the homosexuality consideration.
How many times do we have to listen to self proclaimed religious people attribute the death of homosexuals as God’s punishment for their sinful lifestyle?
How many more times will we witness hate crimes directed toward homosexuals? And how many of those criminals, if polled, would call themselves atheists?
Christians seem to think that because I am an atheist that I can’t wait to get out there and SIN!!!! Nothing could be further from the truth. I don’t have a god to forgive me of my indiscretions. I don’t have the devil to blame.
Here are some examples of Sharia Law which demonstrate both homophobia and misogyny:
1. The death penalty for sodomy.
2. A daughter's inheritance is half that of her brothers.
3. In instances of rape, some authorities of Sharia law require for an allegation to be validated, victims must have four Muslim-Male witnesses to the crime or else the victims risk being charged with fornication or adultery. By the way, Punishment under Tazir law, in the fine country of Pakistan can include incarceration up to twenty-five years, a fine and 20 lashes with a whip.
4. Men have the right of unilateral divorce. Women do not.
5. Some hadiths indicate that husbands have a right to discipline their wives in a civilized manner.
9. Conversion by Muslims to other religions is strictly forbidden, and is, you guessed it…punishable by death.
10. Men are permitted to engage in polygamy and reject alimony.
Hey, I have a friend who successfully used AA, and I absolutely admire him more than words can express. He has 20 years of sobriety, and he is happy, successful and well adjusted.
The 12 steps mention God 6 times and contain references to “a power greater than ourselves” “prayer” and “spiritual awakening.” The times that I have attended AA have left me believing that theists have a much better chance of feeling comfortable with AA than atheists.
I have come to the point where I believe that anything we do to permanently quit drinking will keep us from being prisoners in our own bodies. It will make us happier, healthier and more capable of appropriately dealing with emotions like anger and resentment.
I would like to thank you for sharing your post, since it is obviously very personal, and to tell you that there are others who have many of the same beliefs and feelings with regard to religion and AA.