I often hear religious people say that freethinkers are proud people, leaning on their own human understanding. The faithful claim to be humble, acknowledging our limited wisdom and thereby surrendering mind and will to the Almighty, the Supreme Being of the universe.
At first it seems they have a point, but if we look closely we’ll see that it’s actually the other way around. While theists may appear humble before their God, they are actually quite contemptuous towards people who do not share their beliefs. I could not explain it better than a commenter named Pecier Carpena Decierdo:
Reason is humble, faith is not. Reason is open to the possibility that its claims are wrong, faith is not. Faith is cock-sure and certain, scientific reason is not. Faith makes claims to super-human knowledge, scientific reason does not.
The only knowledge human brains can contain is human knowledge, that is, limited knowledge. Because all we have are human brains with limited human knowledge, we cannot claim to be certain about everything. Yet faith, that archenemy of reason, makes people believe that they can be certain about things they actually know nothing about.
I just watched a one-hour video on how the universe could have literally come out of nothing by accident, negating the necessary first cause or creator. The speaker remarked that this shows just how insignificant we really are. And it is a humbling thought indeed.
Which leads us to ponder, what then, is the purpose of our existence if we came out of nothing by pure chance? I guess my answer will be that the purpose of our existence is to find a purpose for our existence. Existence precedes essence, and if we indeed came out of nothingness because of pure luck instead of being created by a deity, then I guess that would be the greatest and most generous and most humbling miracle of all. And since we are lucky enough to exist at a point in time and space where conditions are suitable for life, it is wise to open our eyes to the world around and not waste our finite days haughtily holding on to some eternal “truth” that demands suspending our reason. Surely we have better things to do here.
..two thumbs up!
"the truth only clings to those who believe in it…
what we believe is true is the truth…
it would become false when you stop believing that it's the truth…"
—-
As an extremely faithful person, I find it offensive that Atmosfera thinks believers think that they know more about everything just because they are faithful. I would argue that the reason people can believe these supernatural things is because they have the faith to get them past all of the technicalities. I also think it is highly unlikely that we came out of nothing. If planet earth can have water and sustain life in the way it does, why don’t any of the other planets have such abilities. Also, how did people and animals come about if there was no one to create them?
primitive/lazy/superstitious (wo)man's science: Godidit
You just watched Carl Sagan’s Cosmos, didn’t you? Sagan is the most wholesome person I knew througout my entire life. He emphasized our potential as be united species, as well as our futility in the whole universe.
One of the most thought-provoking message from him is from is “Pale Blue Dot”
Humility is not the monopoly of either Reason or Faith. There are people who, because they are immersed in Reason, will arrogantly reject everything that is non-rational. There are people who, because they have "too much" Faith, will arrogantly reject everything that comes from Reason.
There are certain things that humans do not know or cannot know. Okay, John Galt's speech may have foreseen that I should make this comment, but let me say that the issue here has never been infallibility, it is ATTITUDE. It does not matter who is right or wrong, objectively, but how a person reacts to ideas which in his view are right, or wrong. There is no point in pitting Reason against Faith, especially as regards infallibility. Reason enables us to question things we cannot understand, while Faith enables us to accept things we cannot question. Where the boundaries are is different for each person, but to argue that we must question EVERYTHING – and, on the contrary, to argue that we must question NOTHING – is de facto arrogance. We must necessarily allow for a spectrum of diverse opinions, because we can never reduce people to unit qualities – if we do so, we unconsciously provide for a Law or Norm which just replaces the Law or Norm we questioned.
Within all reasons and with faith… it is good to be a Creationist! You will be in your present time as you are… But, they are who they are, so am I or you. So, it would also be good to be a member of Filipino Freethinker! 🙂
If there is no truth…how can you prove to me your telling the truth? :))
http://www.christianityexplored.org/tough-questio…