Whom to ask for goodies if you aren't religious?
When I lived in China, people would ask me whether I am religious. Here, in Uzbekistan, people just presume I am a Russian Orthodox. The thing is, I am actually an Atheist. Or Spiritualist? I have no idea what to call that, and whether that label is really necessary.
I can't say "I believe in Evolution Theory", because science is not something people are supposed to believe in. Scientific facts are true(until, of course, the fact is disproved, but then there is another fact), and it really does not matter whether you believe in it or not.
But then there are dark areas or currently unexplainable things. There are theories of how these unexplainable things work, but there is no way to prove it. At least yet.
However, there are still a few things I believe in. I believe there is something like karma. I believe there is some way for thoughts to materialize. Or maybe it is just all coincidental. Either way, I am living my life in a socially accepted way: I don't steal, I don't kill, I don't fuck around behind my wife's back and so on.
Actual picture of karma Cool looking lamp
The point is: me, believing in one god or another, or the same god with a different name does not automatically make me or anyone else a bad person. And here's a fun fact: I used to be quite radically fucking religious person at one point of my life. Taking fun to the next level, let me just say I used to be a huge hypocrite and asshole because of that(or maybe it was due to my nature? lol). So again, while believing in whatever does not automatically make you a bad person, I kind of used to be way less tolerable and adequate during my glorious Orthodoxy days, lol.
The interesting part is how I came to it:
Back in the 90s and early 2000s, Russian society was just starting to form. Suddenly, forbidden and even dangerous topic of religion has become part of the national culture. And of course, when suddenly you are allowed to do something, you pump it into a new, hypertrophied form. As of now, denying the very existence of god is punishable by law in Russia. Just try googling "russia pokemon go church".
So here is how it happened to me. My grandma used to have the posters of Jesus and icons all over her place. Somehow, I got to some reading and by the age of 10 I'd seriously pray to god so that the teacher would give me a good mark when I wasn't quite certain of my own ability to earn it. It'd go further and further until my baptizing when I was 16, a few weeks before I left for China.
Me, being the shy introvert I am, did not hang out much in my first years in China, hence I had a lack of communication. That was further influenced by my limited ability to speak English; and well somehow I just couldn't mix with the Chinese. As the time passed, I felt like I really needed to be a part of something, something bigger than myself, whether a community, a movement, a religion or whatever. One thing led to another, and somehow I became increasingly patriotic and religious. I guess, a few months after, came a massive cognitive dissonance.
Imagine this:
On one hand I love my country, on the other I have troubles tolerating Russian government. Then I see the church playing dirty games, and being more and more involved in politics. For a person with a fraction of human brain that would be an issue; I am lucky to have an brain in its entirety, so of course that has ultimately led to a rejection of both national religious ties. I believe, part of that rejection has come from the fact that by the time I was 20, I had a very diverse group of friends, literally from every corner of the world; I started consuming most of the information online and from the books and magazines in English, and yes, it is often different from what you might hear or read in Russian. I have also got involved with a foreign woman, who was way too wise for me. And thank god(lol) she was patient enough with me, so now we are married.
Ultimately, now I am free of any kind of pride that has to do with my(or anyone else's really) nationality and heritage. We do not choose where to be born, just as we have done ZERO input into our heritage(because we INHERIT it, duuuh), so the very concept of patriotic pride and happiness based on a fact of being born whomever is bizarre. Same has happened to my religious views.
Now, the funny part is I still have an instinct of a sort to pray when I am hoping for something to happen and that something in no way depends on me. And I have to say, it is quite disarming to catch yourself on a thought that I do not believe there is anything superior that could help me on demand.
I guess, looking for some kind of higher power is an instinct of ours, just like it is for some animals to seek shelter or playing dead. Ultimately, it is about protection from a third force, independent from ourselves.
I'm happy to find more atheists here on the steem blockchain :)
I would say it's OK to believe scientific findings as long as you base your belief on reason and evidence. What's problematic is having faith in the sense of believing without having sufficient evidence.
The thing I wonders is, do you have reasons to believe in karma really and why would you believe it if there isn't evidence to demonstrate that this is the case.
I personally think it's a good idea to withhold belief until belief becomes warranted through evidence.
I couldn't agree with you more! :)
I don't know if it's an instinct, or something that has been culturally ingrained in our heads, but I would say it's understandable. Still, I personally am always striving to stay away from such thoughts or feelings.
Hey there! Thanks a lot for dropping by!
Lol, isn't it just weird that at THIS level of global technological advance people still believe in god?
That's exactly the thing! There is no way to disprove the existence of it, but sometimes things just tend to happen as if it did. I have seen a plenty of times the "what goes around comes around" thing happen, but then again, it all could be a mere coincidence. Now that I think about it, one can give that exact same impossibility to disprove argument when talking about the existence of god. I guess, a more proper way to put my "belief in karma" is to say that I treat people and the environment the way I'd want them to treat me; and so I am hoping for a "mirror-like" response. I guess either way it is about mutual respect. Whatever attitude you give is pretty much what you'll get in response, right? Just logic, no need for karma indeed..
I agree; as I said, I tend to find myself thinking "well, it's too bad there's no higher power that would help me out at this point", so ultimately the only thing left to do in such case is to calm down, see what happens next and act accordingly.
Oh, I do support the golden rule and treating others with respect, I just see the belief in karma as equally unreasonable to the belief in a deity as you pointed out yourself. And if you decide to see if you can test if karma actually exists, you'll find plenty of counter-examples like children dying at a young age while many murders remain unsolved meaning that there are many murderers out there that have escaped punishment. Indeed there are plenty of horrific dictators that end their lives in luxury facing no retribution while their people suffer.
You're right indeed. I guess, my belief in karma is more of a wishful thinking after all!
It's stunningly refreshing to meet people that are ready to update their world views as soon as they find a convincing argument or a new piece of evidence. I personally see this as more praiseworthy than being right in the first place!
Look, it is either that, or confirming yourself to be an ignorant fuck. That is simply not who I am, lol.
Again, thanks for dropping by, I am looking forward for more of those discussions in future, buddy :)
Same here on all accounts :)
I understand you! I was in a similar situation. I was born in Yugoslavia, which was also a socialist country. After the break-up of the country, there was a great accent on nationality. People turned to religion. It's been over 20 years since. The passions are calming down. Everything becomes more normal. I think religion is positive if the man is controlled. If he knows where the border is. Religion is up to that limit. After that, the effect becomes negative. Religion and nation are communities.
All of us should belong to these communities regardless of whether we are believers or atheists. When they ask me which religion I belong to, I tell them that I am an Orthodox.
If the question is whether I am a believer or an atheist, I answer that I am an atheist.
Thank you for reading :)
Where did you end up then? I mean, which part of Yugoslavia?
Oh yeah, that's a cycle of a sort that new states go through when they're just formed. Or well, re-formed.
Well, I feel there's literally no good from a religion, especially when organized. They become invasive and start dictating their opinion as the only proper one, and let's face it: they're far from the truth 99.99% of the time. I don't say 100%, because well, I consider presumption of innocence to be a universal right, lol.
Is your association with Orthodox church more of a cultural thing?
During my stay in Russia, I learned that in1930. many monumental Orthodox temples were destroyed. It was a horror!
Cities in Russia would be more nice, that those cultural monuments saved. Museums in Russia would be better, historical data would be more ...
Regardless of the dogmatism of ecclesiastical teaching and the abuse of the church, I think that we should emphasize belonging to this community.
Yeah, the revolution was a big hit, both socially and culturally for Russia and most of the countries that have ended up as part of the USSR. It is not only about destroyed churches, mosques temples and so on, but also of the violent, bloody regime that was set up in the years following 1917. Russia has lost a lot of educated, talented people, lucky of whom were able to flee abroad, and others have perished.
I am a Serb and I live in Serbia. The construction company in which I work was building some objects in Russia. Six years I lived and worked in several Russian cities.
The church insists on morality. Priests tell believers not to lie, not to steal, not to deceive spouses ... (these are some divine commandments) That is positive. Many church leaders abused their positions. That's negative.
My associations with Orthodox church are cultural and historical!
In the past, many of my fellow countrymen have died in the struggle for Orthodox faith! The obligation towards them also creates a national connection with Orthodoxy.
I have a bunch of friends from Serbia back in China. Fun and nice people they are!
Ah, I see
I hope you wouldn't mind me pointing out that this is not the only things the church teaches. For example, it also teaches homophobia or staying in a bad marriage even if you are getting physically and emotionally abused because divorce is supposedly immoral and so on and so on. Priests also tend to advise believers to read the Bible which is full of horrific and immoral stuff sandwiched between the moral teaching you mentioned and blatant scientific inaccuracies.
So in my opinion, it's not fair to say it's all good.
The fact that people have died protecting an idea or an ideal has nothing to do with the ideal or ideal being beneficial, good, moral or correct and those are things that need to be assessed on their own merits.
Additionally, there is nothing wrong or impossible about keeping your culture and even the good parts of religious tradition, but not supporting religion.
I do not mind criticism, but I do not think you understand me. I stressed what I see positively in church teaching. Divorce? The church is against divorce, but not always! It is not negative to read the Bible. If I need to search for negatively in church learning, I would say that this is the position of a woman. In all traditional religions, except for Judeism, a man is favored. Are you saying I support religion? How? I do not know in which country you live? I grew up in a country where religion was banned. Despite the ban she was present! The presence of religion in our lives is a reality! The reality we have to accept. I just think it should be taken positive from it. Against all the negative should be struggling!