Atheism

Atheism. In so many discussions, it's a word that invokes suspicion, confusion, even anger. It's a hard thing for many to conceive of, especially the religiously devout.

For believers, it can be nearly incomprehensible as to how anyone could simply not believe in their god or, for that matter, any god or gods at all. For those who've had a rough road in departing from a religion that once held so much hope, truth and promise for them, it often stands as a looming condemnation more than anything. 

Some have told me that it feels like a brand of betrayal, to call themselves an Atheist. Others have described to me long-lingering recollections of how bitterly people they once shared laughter and friendship with reacted when they gave up faith for Atheism. I've done a lot of conversing with people on this very thing, and I'm ultimately left with one conclusion. We are, to them, the excommunicated. We're they whom they're taught to reject. We're the faithless, the heretics, the infidels. We're the betrayers of faith abandoners of belief.

For those coming out of a religion, it can be a staggering thing to suddenly be outcast and exiled, whether by their own choosing or by the dictate of church/temple/cult leaders, from something that quite possibly comprised so much of one's life in terms of friends, family and even one's own identity. 

Some have described it as feeling like they've lost a limb, or that they feel as if they're adrift on a shiftless wind going nowhere. As I write these words and by the breath of my body, I tell you that it does not have to be that way. 

The power of mainstreamed, organized religion is firmly rooted in teaching people to believe that, outside the Church or the Temple, there is no life, no love, no hope and no future. It's one of the most awful feelings anyone could compel of another, and it doesn't have to be that way, because you are not alone. 

Even if you are one of those who has been shunned by family and friends, you are not alone. There are others like you, out here, who know what you're going through. You are welcome to join us, to find fellowship with us and to realize, whenever you're ready and by whatever means you're able, that there is life, love, hope and a future for you without religion. 

It's a path of life walked on your own two feet, with yourself at the helm, taking responsibility for your course and your actions along the way. It's a path where love doesn't come with any strings attached unless you either attach them or allow others to. It's a way of life that does not come with pre-fabricated answers to all of life's questions, but does come with all the hope of finding your own answers you could ever want for. It is a road less traveled, and it does not offer false promises or certainties; rather, it offers you a future as you will make it to the extents you are able.

We Atheists do not rely on ancient stories and myths to guide us, to answer all of life's questions or to save us from all of life's problems...and that's a pretty scary thing for many to consider , especially those who've been told repeatedly that they'll go to hell or suffer some manner of divine wrath for daring to think they're anything more or better than sin-burdened scum. 

We believe only in that which doesn't stop existing as soon as we stop believing in it. Most importantly, we do not look upon each-other as somehow flawed, sinful, broken, aberrant or fundamentally wrong. We're all people; members of a species that's got quite a lot of peculiarities about it, but people just the same, united by our humanity. It's ok to be afraid, too. 

We humans spend a considerable amount of our time and energy being afraid, and that's alright. If you're afraid, no matter what about, you're still welcome. Welcome to the road less traveled, as penned by the opinion unpopular of the decade. This too shall pass, of course. But, until it does...be welcome. Be free. Be well. Peace.