Skeptical Freethinker

As a skeptic, I feel to agree or disagree you have to use the Socratic Method and Scientific method, you have to define what you mean, so you can find fallacies and hopefully correct your thinking and find truth, I am seeking truth, which is defined as something that is demonstrable or proven. Therefore, I must define what do I mean by god, according to dictionary.com, god is "A being conceived as the perfect, omnipotent, omniscient originator and ruler of the universe, the principal object of faith and worship in monotheistic religions." God as defined by Oxford English Dictionary (the definitive record of the English language) is the one object of supreme adoration; the Creator and Ruler of the Universe. Also according to dictionary.com and Oxford Dictionary : An atheist is defined as one who denies or disbelieves the existence of a God. However, Charles Bradlaugh wrote in an essay titled A Plea for Atheism: “The best policy against all prejudice is to firmly advocate the truth. The Atheist does not say "There is no God," but he says: "I know not what you mean by God; I am without idea of God; the word 'God' is to me a sound conveying no clear or distinct affirmation. I do not deny God, because I cannot deny that of which I have no conception, and the conception of which by its affirmer, is so imperfect that he is unable to define it to me. If, however, 'God' is defined to mean an existence other than the existence of which I am a mode, then I deny 'God,' and affirm that it is impossible such 'God' can be. That is, I affirm one existence, and deny that there can be more than one." An agnostic is one who believes it impossible to know anything about God or about the creation of the universe and refrains from commitment to any religious doctrine. Infidel means an unbeliever, especially a nonbeliever in Islam or Christianity. A skeptic doubts and is critical of all accepted doctrines and creeds. Pantheist belief that God and the universe are identical. A freethinker is one who has rejected authority and dogma, especially in religious thinking, in favor of rational inquiry and speculation. In studying the above definitions, I am a skeptical freethinker and by default an infidel. If Charles Bradlaugh’s definition is true, then I am an atheist too, for I cannot deny something I am unable to conceive, for as Albert Simmons, a 19th century rationalist, stated “We cannot say anything of the supreme cause as a deity or a god, for to conceive the idea would involve a conception of the inconceivable, and every conception involves relation, likeness and differences, whatever does not present each of these is unknowable.”I cannot call myself a permanent agnostic in principle (perhaps a temporary agnostic) because we are still trying to understand how the universe emerged. I cannot say we will never know which the definition alludes to, this why we have science and are trying to find the answers. I am not a pantheist as defined because although there is proof for the universe, I am unsure what the word god means and I cannot say that god and the universe are the same. I am a skeptic because I doubt and am critical of all accepted doctrines and creeds. I am a freethinker because I have rejected authority and dogma, especially in religious thinking, in favor of rational inquiry and speculation. I think the best summary of my freethinking skepticism was offered by the famous African-American Intellectual, co-founder of NAACP, Pan - Africanist Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois reply to a priest in 1948, in which the priest asked Dr. Du Bois if he believed in God, which Dr. Du Bois replied "If by belief in 'God', you mean a belief in a person of vast power who consciously rules the universe for the good of mankind, I answer 'No'. I cannot disprove this assumption, but I certainly see no proof to sustain such a belief, neither in History nor in my personal experience. If on the other hand you mean by 'God' a vague Force which in some uncomprehensible way, dominates all life and change, then I answer 'Yes'; I recognize such Force, and if you wish to call it 'God', I do not object"... neither will I. I also agree with Dr. Du Bois assessment when he stated “There is no religion which I know of whose dogma and creed is one in which I wholly believe. I do not believe in the existence and rulership of the one God of the Jews. I do not believe in the miraculous birth and the miracle of the Christ of the Christians; I do not believe in the tenets of Mohammedanism (Islam) and Buddhism; frankly I do not believe in the Guardian of the Baha'i' faith has any supernatural knowledge of what may happen, or is any more than a fine, conscientious, and hard-working leader of men.” Nevertheless, what I am above all things is someone who seeks truth (something that is demonstrable or proven) and how to apply this truth to my ephemeral existence. Sources: god. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/god atheist. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/atheist agnostic. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/agnostic infidel. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/infidel skeptic. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/skeptic freethinker. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved September 19, 2013, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/freethinker http://www.infidels.org/library/historical/charles_bradlaugh/plea_for_atheism.html

The Word of God?

I often hear people say the Bible is god’s word but I have never read this directly, the closest I have read is that all scripture is given by inspiration or god-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16), or gods words are pure (Proverbs 30:5.6), neither statement defines what they mean by inspiration or god's word. When these authors wrote this they were not thinking what they were writing was scripture, they may have been talking about the Torah or the Law (Psalm 19:8). They may not even have been talking about the Hebrew bible because it had not been canonized or decided on when these statements were written. I listened to a podcast by the Non-Prophets recently and they said something I had not thought about before. What is the difference between me saying that god is speaking to me through a box and someone saying that god speak to them through a Bible, Koran, and the Vedas or any so-called sacred text, the only difference people would think I was insane or delusional, while the other is seen as not insane or delusional.. What is the difference? What is the difference if I say god speaks to me from one book over another? Let say I said god spoke to me when I read the American Heritage Dictionary another said god speaks to them when they read the Bible, both of them contain words. What is the difference? Well most believers would say I believe that the bible or gods word is alive, well if something is alive it eats, reproduces, converts energy to one form to another, and so forth, I don’t know if trees or plants breathe but alive is synonymous with to breathe. It is alive because it is you who makes it alive, if the reader did not read it, then it would be another book collecting dust on the shelf. Another thing I am aware of is when a believer states his or her faith, they are acting as the judge and the advocate, when they say the bible is the infallible word of god, if you ask what do you mean by the word of god, and if you follow up with how do you know this is true? Could they give you an answer without circular reasoning? Think about it...

Soul Man? Part 2

I think the idea of a soul is not unusual, we don’t know what death is, and it is something we do not have control over. In the person of Jesus of Nazareth you have the story of a person who overcame death by his so-called resurrection. It does not bother the average believer in Jesus that he conveniently ascended to heaven to no longer be heard from or seen again; or at least until his "second" return. He symbolizes our desire to overcome our greatest enemy, death. Mankind have conquered almost everything on this planet except his death. I think it is our imagination and desire to be associated with something that is eternal and supreme. For example, If you listen to any contemporary gospel or "inspiration" station and if you listened to an average song that the words will be how god was worthy of worship because he is holy and if you asked yourself how do we know this is true, that there's a god who is holy and worthy of worship, to be honest we don't, I have yet seen a sea part or a talking snake. I cannot fault Christianity or Islam because they give the answers to one of our greatest fears, the fear of no longer existing. In Islam and Christianity you are given the promise of immortality, which I think is wishful thinking and nothing more. I hate to be the bearer of reality but this is it folks, there is no second chance, no reincarnation, no resurrection, yes your atoms will be absorbed into the natural ecosystem like other natural things but the you who you think you are, this egocentric identity will end when the brain dies. We need to get over the fear of death and live this life, as Epicurus allegedly stated "Death means nothing to us, for when we are, death isn't and when death is, we are not" and that's the way it is. Think about it...