Who you gonna call........ Ghostbusters?
A few times I have heard the ‘argument’ put forward that Atheists have no one and nothing to fall back on when times are hard. Whilst Christians can call on God or Jesus to help them through disasters, difficulties and day to day problems the poor atheists are left to their own resources which (rather inevitably) prove inadequate to the task. Atheism is, therefore, a rather sad, cold and unforgiving belief system.
What nonsense!
Everyone, and not just atheists, can call upon the greatest minds that have ever lived. These singular members of humanity have, through the ages, pondered the ‘many shocks that flesh is heir too’ and have derived ways of coping with adversity in order to come out again the other side possibly stronger than before. The only thing you need to access this awesome wealth of knowledge (apart from the will to do so) is the ability to read. With such a skill you too can have access to the wisdom of Socrates, Aristotle, Plato, Voltaire, Rousseau, Hume, Darwin, Marx, Sartre, Nietzsche and thousands of other Western philosophers. If these greats are not enough for you then try the equally rich philosophy from the East. There is an abundant resource of non-theistic philosophy available with little effort required to access it. It is not, nor has it ever been, a case of a rich religious tradition versus the bleak non-religious outlook. When you realise that the answers offered by religion are inadequate this does not mean that answers to your questions are unavailable – it just means that you have been looking in the wrong place. Start reading philosophy and you’ll be surprised by what you find – I know I have been.
4 comments:
OK. I have to admit I laughed really hard when I saw the picture with the post. It reminded me of a George Carlin bit about how religious people believe in god, holy spirits, angels and stuff... but not goblins or zombies.
I think theists and athiests fall back on the same thing but just call it something different. I mean, if you believe that God will help you, then you're falling back on your own beliefs and peace of mind. As are atheists falling back on the things they believe in.
I take your point, and wouldn't mind it if people read more philosophers, too.
But . . . really, do we, for most of our problems, need philosophers? Do we not have each other to turn to? IMO, even more than having the great literature of the world to turn to, we have the faculties and resources of other humans immediately connected to our lives. And they are always quite able to help us out -- far more immediately and personally than a philosopher in a book and WAAAAAAY moreso than some non-existent god!
God or philosophers, "... This above all: to thine own self be true ...". All of our decisions are filtered through our own sense of right and wrong. We should trust no one god or person, but take everything in and make our own truth.
Laura said: I think theists and athiests fall back on the same thing but just call it something different. I mean, if you believe that God will help you, then you're falling back on your own beliefs and peace of mind. As are atheists falling back on the things they believe in.
True - but what I was getting at is more of people looking for the 'meaning' of things (for want of another word). Searching for meaning doesn't begin and end with religion. Questions like: What shall I do with my life and How can I be Happy have been pondered by philosophers for millennia. Their thoughts on the subject can be useful in deciding on any particular course of action. I find the whole thing very interesting. What I'm saying is that we are not alone when considering these sorts of questions and don't need to turn to God for advice. We have the greatest minds who ever lived to listen to.
Chris Bradley said: But . . . really, do we, for most of our problems, need philosophers? Do we not have each other to turn to?
For the majority of day to day issues we certainly don't need philosopers - indeed I have had little exposure to them for the vast majority of my life without (I contend) much loss. However, I think that some knowledge of philosophy can be used (if needed) to help people make the big decisions in their lives - like what sort of person they should be. This may be the kind of conversation some people have with family and friends but I think it is the rare person who discusses 'meaning of life' issues in that way at least to any great extent.
Of course you can easily live without philosophy in the same way that you can live without religion - but I am coming to the opinion that philosophy provides a useful resource to draw on when we need it.
dbackdad said: God or philosophers, "... This above all: to thine own self be true ...". All of our decisions are filtered through our own sense of right and wrong. We should trust no one god or person, but take everything in and make our own truth.
Very true. [Actually 'To thine own self be true' is one of my favourite moto's].
We most certainly should not put our complete faith in any one or any thing. However, I contend that philosophy can help us inform the internal debate that goes on in our own heads whenever we make important decisions. Knowing where our sense of right and wrong come from and integrating what we consider to be our virtues into a consistant self image can be aided with a knowledge of philosopical thought.
Actually I've been reading about the Greek philosophers recently and came across the Classical idea of being a Virtuous person. This really appealed to me and I intend to follow this up with more indepth reading on the subject. It looks like an interesting idea to pursue further.
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