So, one of the reasons I'm an athiest is because I don't think their is a sentient force guiding the universe. I'm willing to believe in the power of randomness. It's still a leap of faith, but at least it's not asking me to believe some Big Brother is out there watching me and offering aid as necessary (because I don't see that).
However, that's not the only reason I'm athiest. The other reason is that I dislike organized religion in general. I find that when people attempt to take spirituality and turn it into a community (or a club, more aptly), they tend to become overly serious, overly near-sighted, and overly dramatic about whether they are "right" or "wrong". Spirituality should be a personal thing and shouldn't require someone else telling you whether you're right or wrong. The whole point of spirituality is belief - sacred
opinion, in other words.
The reason I bring this up is become I saw someone on the bus with a book in his hands entitled "Why The Ten Commandments Matter," by D. James Kennedy. The man was a balding adult, so I think he would understand this already. The Ten Commandments matter because they are commandments. God commanded his subjects to do something (in the interest of promoting Good, but it's a command nonetheless), so He expects you to follow them. You shouldn't need a book to explain this.
In truth, the book isn't about that. It's about how and why the Commandments apply today, and how the idea of "grace" doesn't make the Commandments pointless since God would take us to Heaven anyway. (As a reminder, "Grace is God's unmerited favor. That is, grace is God doing good for us that we do not deserve." -
http://www.learnthebible.org/q_a_what_is_grace.htm, the first interpretation of many.) I suppose this is a sensible endeavor, but most reviews say that the book is just pontification and doesn't offer any new information.
In short, I'm still amazed at what people will say and do because of their beliefs. They will claim to be part of a group even when people within that group can't agree on their beliefs. That would be like if scientists couldn't agree on what the right answer to their logically-derived questions were.
Which, of course, happens on a daily basis. So in truth, nobody knows anything about anything. They just claim they do and form lobby groups to prove it and swing their weight around, in order to get what they want. Occasionally, they do good work though, so I can't fault any of them. All I can ask is that they work more and bitch less.
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