When I first joined this forum, I was way much more open to deism. But over the last few years and especially since the events of January 6th, I've become much more critical of all forms of superstition and delusional belief systems. When I was in my twenties I participated in the Usenet forum Christianity vs Atheism. At first, I argued the pro-atheist's position. Then, just for fun and because it was so challenging, I started arguing the deist position in the debate. And then something funny happened. I started to believe my own arguments for deism! So for many years I pretty much believed in God. But not now. God is just a word for me and its meaning only exists in our imaginations. Science is real. Facts are real. Everything else is imaginary delusion. It seems I've returned back to my atheistic roots of my childhood!
My other problem with religion is the way Christianity and politics have been combined in the GOP. The D students in the back of the class continue to think they are smarter than everyone else. The GOP rank and file want their STRONG daddy figure so they can worship him as if the person is God on Earth. It's almost like a cult. It's like the GOP authoritarians have been indoctrinated with a religion based on monarchy which advocates a single authority at the top with a bunch of obedient slaves at the bottom. With Trump, the GOP seems to want to return to a King James type government. King James believed in the divine rights of kings and wrote about it in his book "True Law of Free Monarchies." The divine right of kings claims: "In European Christianity, the divine right of kings, divine right, or God's mandation is a political and religious doctrine of political legitimacy of a monarchy. It stems from a specific metaphysical framework in which a monarch is, before birth, pre-ordained to inherit the crown. According to this theory of political legitimacy, the subjects of the crown have actively (and not merely passively) turned over the metaphysical selection of the king's soul – which will inhabit the body and rule them – to God. In this way, the "divine right" originates as a metaphysical act of humility and/or submission towards God. " The GOP doesn't believe in the rule-of-law, equality, no one is above or below the law, voting, democracy, and a fellowship of equal voters. The GOP wants STRONG leadership above every other consideration!
I just cannot accept the nature of modern day Christianity. I cannot accept the way the GOP puts STRONG leadership before the rule-of-law, equality, no one is above or below the law, voting, democracy, the fellowship that comes from considering everyone as being equals, and women's rights. I'm done with Christianity. I just can't stand it.
And even further, years ago I read Friedrich Nietzsche's criticisms of Christianity which really persuaded me against Christianity. Friedrich Nietzsche said Christianity was born in response to Roman oppression. It took hold in the minds of timid slaves who did not have the courage or strength to get hold of what they really wanted. The slaves could not admit to their own failings. So they clung to a philosophy that made a virtue of cowardice. Everything the Christians wanted and wished they had in their lives for fulfilment was what was considered to be a sin. A position in the world, prestige, sex, intellectual mastery, wealth were too difficult or beyond their reach. The Christian slaves created a hypocritical creed denouncing what they wanted but were too weak to fight for to get while praising what they did not want but did have as being worth having. So in the Christian value system sexlessness turned into 'purity', weakness became "goodness," submission to authority became "obedience," and in Nietzsche's words, "not-being-able-take-revenge" turned into "forgiveness." The Bible is a worthless religion for sadomasochistic slaves. I simply refuse to be an obedient slave to any person or any belief system.
I still like Taoism and the Unity of Opposites. But as I said, after the events of January 6th, I just can't pretend the weak minded cultists are benign and meaningless any longer. I'm probably leaning back towards a strong minded pro-atheist position. Plus, arguing atheism is so much easier to argue than deism. Atheism is way more intellectually pleasing, logical, and consistent as a belief system. When you have the absence of belief, there's nothing left to argue about!
