A Waste of Time?

I usually start my posts with an opening quote.  I offer up two quotes which, though they are probably meant to be read one way, as an atheist, and yet both actually lend themselves to be interpreted as a theist or an atheist.  Neither has evidence to prove their argument and, therefore, can be dismissed.  Both can also claim the other is absurd in their belief and both have committed atrocities due to their belief.

“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
-- Christopher Hitchens

“Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.”
-- Voltaire

I read a quote this morning which actually does make perfect sense.  "Atheism: The belief that there was nothing and nothing happened to nothing and then nothing magically exploded for no reason, creating everything and then a bunch of everything magically rearranged itself for no reason whatsoever into self-replicating bits which then turned into dinosaurs.  Makes perfect sense."  As a person who believes in a universal power which put into existence physical laws of balance to which everything must adhere, this does make perfect sense. 

I can't ascribe to atheism. From when I was a child the very thought of no higher power was abhorrent to me.  Having belief in something for which there is little or no proof taught me to think out of the box; it kept my mind active and open to possibilities, including the possibility there is no God, not as organized religion would define it at any rate.  God could simply be the energy of the universe from which everything is created and must adhere to the physical laws thereof.  But, atheism would have me believe that statistical odds took a holiday, forever, and we're the result of a statistically impossible cosmic toss of the dice in which everything happened just perfectly an infinite number of times.  Horse poop.  

I'm going to try to take the quote, from the first paragraph, and restate it.  As I understand this, in order to be an atheist, I need to believe that life is DNA miraculously appearing and creating me, with a dollar in my pocket, in Las Vegas, in front of a slot machine, with miraculous knowledge of what to do with that dollar and how to use the machine, so I fed it into the machine and hit the jackpot, and then I went to the craps table, which I also understood, and kept on winning, and then I went to the roulette wheel and hit every number I bet on, constantly, for six days, until I was bored and had to rest and nurse a screaming hangover before I did it all again, and all of this was due to a neverending run of blind luck which started with a "big bang" that occurred from nothing and for no reason?  Really?  The initial miracle of the "Big Bang" set into motion a series of other statistically impossible balanced miracles which continue to sustain our reality to this day?  Lucky us!

Now, atheists would accuse me of being gullible for having faith in a power greater than myself for which there is little or no proof, and yet they seem to have their own undying faith that all of this is the result of a single roll of the dice in which the odds of winning were so astronomical as to be, for all intents and purposes, impossible, and I'm gullible?  My head wants to explode.

The other day I gave my usual weekly talk at the medical center's PTSD unit.  I got on the subject of our next life, the one after this one which came on the heels of the last one, and the subject made a young lady in the group extremely uncomfortable.  She held the belief that there is no God and when she dies, that's it.  So, it seems you can't be an atheist and believe in an immortal soul which returns to the ether from which it originated to possibly be used again, as the universal balance is maintained?  That would require, first, a belief in universal balance but, then, she seemed to have an issue with just considering a belief in anything.  She said that believing in stuff like this was a waste of time, what precious time she had in life.  This made a bit of sense as, during our conversation, I discovered she was a member of my favorite group, the League of the Perpetually Offended.  Her membership in the League made my job all the more easy, as I knew whatever I offered up was going to fall on deaf ears.  

I had offered up just the idea of a sustainable soul, and this was considered offensive.  The very idea of considering the possibility of infinite existence caused discomfort.  Who would've thought the idea of infinite existence would be so considered by someone such a waste of time as to take offense at it?  Well, she was young, after all, and those who now donate their genetic material to create progeny tend to leave said progeny to find their own way through this life.  Mentoring is now considered by many, especially parents, to be the purview of others.  

If this young lady ever considers having a child, will she think of it as a waste of her precious time, a statistical miracle, or the product of an ability gifted to her through a universal power greater than herself, an ability to bring forth life which can, through free will, learn to disrespect its very own existence?  I hope she is a loving mother who learns to mentor children to embrace life with an open mind so they can appreciate all the happiness which life has to offer.

Editor's Note

(Re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card)

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider an alternate viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 22 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with the premier, world renowned, Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, and wages his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead Chaplain and Chaplain Program Liaison, at the regional medical center.