One of my main issues with organised religion is the fact that people truly believe they are right, and everyone else is wrong. It's not the mysticism of it all that gets to me (that will probably be revisited in a future post), it's the fact that you are inevitably raised to think that you have a step up over everyone else.
Concentrating on the three monotheistic Abrahamic faiths (purely because that's where I have experience - having been raised Muslim, studying in a convent then marrying a Jew), a prerequisite to "qualifying" for heaven is being a believer. Now, that just does not sit right with me. Should heaven and God (who we should obviously assume is fair and just, otherwise what's the point) exist, surely the only prerequisite should be that you're a good person (ambiguous, I know - just go with it).
I've had many people force share their opinion on with me on this topic. I will never understand why people feel so compelled to "fix" me. I honestly don't care what you believe, unless it's something derogatory/close-minded and you're clearly talking out of your ass because you know basically nothing about what you're talking about (currently at least 50% of my Facebook feed thanks to the Israel-Hamas situation).
Thing is, at the end of the day, as long as there are more prerequisites than just being a good person - religion, sexual orientation, race, etc. - then that really sounds like hell to me. I would prefer not to spend the rest of eternity with a bunch of people who, let's face it, will be fucking smug about the fact that they were "right".
This just horrifies people. "Aren't you afraid of going to hell?!" Frankly? No. I'm not perfect. Far from it. But I honestly don't think I'm a bad person. If living my life the way I am sends me to hell, where murderers and rapists and paedophiles are sent too, then so be it. I rather not go to heaven that is governed by a God that can justify doing that, because that God is neither fair nor just. That God is vengeful and spiteful. That God is punishing me for acting/dressing how I want, eating/drinking what I want (and obviously so much more, but I highly doubt there's time for this) in the same way he is punishing others for taking lives, for stripping people of their dignity, for destroying families.
That's like a girl getting punished in school for wearing black shoes instead of white, the same way this other kid gets punished for stabbing someone during recess. Nobody would be fine with that - there would be such an outroar! Newsflash - same thing, really.
So why do my personal beliefs affect others so strongly? You'd assume it's because they care for me. You'd be wrong. Most of the people who want to "fix" me are barely present in my life. And yet here they are, veins popping out of their necks and foreheads, eyeballs threatening to pop out of their sockets, as they try so hard to make me believe them. Why then? Easy. "Fixing" me is just something that will fatten up their resume for heaven.
Which leads us to this question:
If the Abrahamic faiths explicitly stated that there is no afterlife, how many people (in your opinion) would actually follow all of these rules and regulations knowing full well they will not be rewarded with heaven nor punished with hell?
Bazinga.
Nice Post!
ReplyDeleteYou live your life the way you want to live your life, still feeling connected to God and having faith & trust in him.
Answer: Definitely religious people would change if they knew there was no afterlife.
Looking forward to many more posts! :-)
Am wondering if you realise how you sound rather closely as presumptuous as the people you write about. Cos I find it a little righteous to volunteer to languish in hell rather than accept the "heaven" (even if) of a "vengeful and spiteful" god. Is a "vengeful and spiteful" god's version of hell rather a walk in the park?
ReplyDeleteLike you, I choose to believe in a just and fair God.
Where I'm finding trouble is how you presume that a just and fair God would see it fit to reward a humble soul - with the superlative of all rewards no less (read: heaven) - "just for" being good. Isn't that a little idealist and simplistic? Existential? (and dare I say, as an omniscient being likely to be infinitely more complex than His most complex creation, He's probably - if just a tad - "less simplistic" ... than *anything*) Truly, if all we needed to be was an adjective, then pray tell me where the fight to find and define ourselves - and the struggle - and the overcoming of that struggle - would be.
IMHO, the cornerstone of my belief is not simply "being", and then languishing in that "being" (even if it's "just good"). It is about tangibly demonstrating - and fighting to demonstrate - my love and faith in the way my God has requested (let's not define what these "should" or "ought to" comprise because that's not the point).
The difference is that I believe this demonstration of love and faith to be necessary in much the same way I believe it integral between parent and child. Because at the end of the day, aren't we all in a relationship with our Creator? (Unless you aren't.) Yes, God is *God* but He explicitly asks of us because ... well, because He can.
Also, stating that people won't bother "[following] all these rules and regulations if there was no afterlife" is (once more) simplistic and reduces personal belief systems (including secular ones). I give alms to help a needy, not for fear of hellfire!
PS - I'm not professing to be "a step up" from anybody. I even share some of your inclinations (like who gets to go to hell) ... but in the same vein, I wouldn't espouse about who should get to heaven. And God knows best.