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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Response to an atheist 2

Yesterday we looked at the question of "Divine Need" and Perfection. Michael responded to that. Today I want to pick up on the penultimate point he makes and then finish up with his key concern, God's culpability, at the end of the week.

Quoting Michael, "Christopher Hitchens has said that he not only disbelieves in God but would not want a god to exist, since it would mean we would be under continual surveillance.--- as he puts it, "a sort of celestial North Korea"

I think such an admission is heroic honesty. Too often, atheist arguments against God's existence bandy about numerous psychological reasons for faith. Religious people are thought to be weak and in need of a daddy in the sky. Faith is criticized as a sort of sedative to calm jittery nerves when facing death and suffering. By extension, the critics paint a portrait of the noble, courageous atheist, willing to look the darkness in the face and soldier on. Atheism is often protrayed as the more intelligent option and certainly the choice of those with the guts and grit to live in the real world.

Hitchens, on the other hand, has admitted to his own psychological motivation. He desires to live an autonomous life, freed of the scrutiny of any God. [Alert, Hitchens has many other reasons and arguments as well. His is not simply a petulant rejection of God.] The reason this is important, to me, is because it serves as a reminder that ALL of us, believer or not, has a mixture of motives for our beliefs.

There is research connecting ones faith in God to one's relationship with one's father. There are needs based motivations which lead one to believe (or not). Social influences play a factor. Self image and self understanding have a part to play. Like all decisions and choices, faith is driven as much, or more, by non-rational factors as it is by reason and thinking.

For some the spectre of judgment is viewed so negatively that, at least in the Hitchens quote, the assumption is that an all knowing God must be like North Korea. I find such a comparison to be very telling. I also submit that there is an alternative. Judgment can also be an affirmation. Don't all of us need, want, require that another pass judgment on our work? Is asking, "Did I do a good job?" not an important part of being human? An all-seeing God may produce some anxiety as we look at our failures; yet it is of solace for those who hear God say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Even more important, as we face the travails of a broken world, where do we turn for hope of salvation. The watchful eye of God can be understood as a benevolent observer. The God of the Torah says, "I see your travails. I hear your cries. I know your suffering. I remember my covenant with you." Surely comfort can be mixed with fear in facing Judgment.

Hitchens prefers a world where there is no accountability. One can choose to live as one sees fit. I would argue that most unbelievers, fortunately, adopt a way of life which is contrary to their stated (un)Beliefs. They frequently act in a way that is moral and good, as if the world did make sense and as if there were SomeOne who provides a moral core by which we are to conform our behaviors. Faith, at least traditional Christian faith, demands right actions and morality. It places demands upon us. Yes, there is comfort, joy and hope, but, faith does not allow us to escape life in all its brutality and ugliness. However, faith does provide a rationale for our values... If one wants to value human life, to see the poor and needy as somehow different from a chimpanzee or an ocelot, then God is a context and criteria for making such a leap. This will be something to expand in the days ahead.

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