Upon the death of Christopher Hitchens, I have been pondering the nature of the struggle for which he fought. Being one of the four horsemen of the “New Atheist” movement, Hitchens crusaded against perceived rampant ignorance and intolerance in the world which has been caused by centuries of blind religious dogma. I remember when Wired magazine ran a story about this movement several years ago. I had just gotten saved and I was reading about these guys who potentially wanted to remove children from the custody of parents who gave them a religious education. In my zealotry I was incensed. I felt like God had plucked me from my disbelief specifically to combat the propaganda of the New Atheists. This ideological campaign of mine was mostly fought on Facebook and MySpace and I have yet to have the impact of a William Lane Craig, but I like to think that I made some people think twice about Dawkins style intolerance.
Anyway, NPR was running a little biographical tribute piece about Hitchens the other night. As the anchor was explaining that Hitchens saw his struggle as being one against blind ignorance and allegiance to an unreasonable dogma, and that Nazism, Stalinism, etcetera would fit into his definition, I realized something: I agree with him. Human ignorance and intolerance is primarily caused by blind allegiance to an unreasonable dogma. Who can disagree with this? This is a secondary cause, but it is definitely prevalent in our world and worth struggling against. In this way, I can honor the memory of Mr. Hitchens, even though he spoke so vehemently against the faith in which I believe. To anybody who will commit their life to fighting against what they perceive as the greatest evil in the world, a hearty kudos.
The difference is how we would define reasonable. Reason is an ability all human beings possess, whether or not we employ it is a different matter. However, it is not the foundation for anyone's world-view, even Hitchens’. At the base of all of our perceptions is a set of beliefs or assumptions that we, being limited in our sensory and intellectual capacity, cannot prove or disprove. This is obvious for people of faith. I will freely admit that my faith in Christ as our king, while it is well researched and considered, rests upon belief and not empirical evidence. However, I would submit that all world-views are this way. A Darwinist or a materialist can gather compelling evidence for their position, cataloging fossils and observing geological columns, but they still must trust that their dating methods are accurate and ignore the infinite number of unknown variables which they could never factor in. In addition, the claim that all of the matter in our universe has originated “ex nihilo” or out of nothing, is something they have in common with theists. However, we can explain it by our belief in an all-powerful creator. The new Atheists do not believe in this creator, so they must believe that this creation event simply happened, without a cause, and for no reason at all. This, I would submit, is as much a faith-based position as any other.
So, that puts us all in the same boat. There are some things we can all but prove with empirical scientific measurement, and some things which we all must assume or not assume. This is actually a really good thing. If one realizes this, it affords them a sense of unity with their fellow humans, which is nary felt in these days of polarization and ideological strife.
So what function does reason serve? People, coming from many different belief systems, will employ reason and arrive at different conclusions, so what use is it? I think that if we default to reason in all situations, it will keep us out of a lot of trouble. Have you ever heard somebody say,”be reasonable!”? It is usually directed at somebody who is letting their emotions get the best of them, somebody who is allowing their irrational feelings cause them to do something which will harm themselves or others. If that person were to breathe and consider the consequences of their actions, consider the impact of their words, and consider the lessons they have learned in life and how they apply to their situation, then the outcome of their situation will probably be much more positive. So, reason should function as a way to keep us from hurting ourselves and others.
Now, this definition does not really apply to somebody like Hitler or Charles Manson who thought it quite reasonable to commit their heinous crimes. I will explain this from my theistic viewpoint as the influence of evil. I will explain it from a secular viewpoint as the existence of sociopaths, that is, people who lack a conscience. There is really nothing we can do about these types of people. They will smile and flatter their way into power and then use that power to harm great numbers of people. They will claim belief in Christ, Krishna, or the Easter bunny if it will allow them to rise to the top. This will not change by the hands of human society and there is no foreseeable effective way to detect sociopaths en masse. Heck, they are probably running our country right now. These folks are the source of the crimes which have been committed in the name of Jesus, Darwin, and Marx. Then, foolishly, good people who would never hurt each other squabble about which ideology causes the most violence. Ideas have no hands and most reasonable people do not murder for power.
Human beings are created in the image of an all-powerful benevolent creator, whether they believe it or not. This is why we feel a pang of guilt when we lie, murder, and steal. The righteousness of God exists within us, even if we ignore it, and it is difficult to completely get around it. When we are reasonable, I believe most people will default to a position of empathy and understanding of their fellow man. When we are blinded by belief in a dogma, be it Christian or Marxist, we lose that ability to reason and thus default to out innate benevolence, and we do abhorrent things which we would never otherwise. So, I am with you Mr. Hitchens. Reason is a grand thing and I hope that people will employ it daily.
Ultimately, it will be revealed to all humanity that we have been caught in a cosmic struggle between good and evil, that deception and exploitation has been the foundation of our fallen society, and that we already have a King who will come and make things right. Until that time, the world will be a mixture of different viewpoints and belief systems; I just pray that we can all be more considerate of why we believe what we do. More thinking, less shooting.
I hope you were able to endure my clumsy sarcasm. I just had to get that off my chest. In all seriousness, I can point to many instances when it could have been said that our nation "crossed the Rubicon" toward a fascist state, but this is one of the most obvious examples on its face, a sad day indeed. However, I believe that our God will use this tragedy in a big way. The American church has existed in a kind of sleepy malaise for a long time. Many preachers are still trying to tackle the social issues of the 1950's, like smoking and teenage heavy-petting, while their congregations are shrinking and society is moving toward an explosion of fascist neo-paganism. I think that the passage of this bill will wake many Christians up to the reality that the United States is no longer a nation which values freedom and Judeo-Christian ethics. While this is a sad fact, it will also cause many to get serious about their relationship with God.
I agree with the Senators, the United States has become a war-zone. However, the real enemy is not terrorists, it is the evil and demonic forces which have been influencing our society for decades. We can no longer ride the spiritual coattails of our Christian homeland, because it's not there anymore. We are strangers in a strange land and the population around us needs to hear the truth. Those who truly love Jesus as Savior and King need to become adepts at warfare, the spiritual kind. We will need to know how to fight and in the very near future. A major metaphysical struggle is heading toward your doorstep, if its not already there. Let's get prepared and learn how to wear our spiritual armor and employ the sword of the spirit in our families and communities.
Here is a free course on spiritual warfare by Russ Dizdar, a man who God has used mightily to confront and confound the works of the enemy. Happy training.
Satan runs a shell game. He lures us over to his back alley table and tells us that if we can manage to follow the nimble movements of his hands and guess under which shell the prize is hidden, he will bestow upon us great power and knowledge. That we will be able to do whatever we want and not have to worry about consequences. That we will, after playing this game and laying more and more of our soul on the line, finally attain that elusive prize he is offering, peace of mind and freedom from death.
Some will play this game for their entire life and will literally die in the middle of making their ten thousandth guess. Some become so exasperated with the game, realizing it is a ruse, they turn to the game master himself and plead, "I will do anything! I will give you whatever you want! Give me this prize!" At this point, Satan recruits these desperate souls to become junior game masters themselves, and they will spend the rest of their lives running a shell game for other weary players, convinced that their employer will, after a length of faithful service, finally bestow on them the great and elusive prize. Some will come to the realization that Satan is a liar and that he holds no prize at all, he's conning them. However, after many hundreds of attempts and losing so much of themselves in the process, they are cynical and broken and spend the rest of their lives sitting nearby the game table and scoffing at those still naive enough to play. Some will lose their minds and become convinced that the game itself is the prize and they must simply be content by not allowing themselves to become emotionally attached to the outcome of the game but to simply love the game as they play it to their death, a placid smile upon their face. Satan is content with all of these outcomes.
Meanwhile, standing not far from the table at all there is a man. He routinely walks over to the gamers and those who have lost faith in the game and tells them a very heartening piece of news. "The game is a ruse," he will often say. Most do not hear him as they are absorbed by the movements of Satan's hands.
Those who sit and scoff usually respond, "Tell me about it. I figured that one out ages ago. You know what else? Not only is the game a ruse, but so is this whole blasted existence. There is no peace of mind and it ends with a painful death, followed by nothingness."
The man then says, "The game is certainly a sham and the game master holds no prize, but this world is a gift and your life can be so much more than playing this game unto death or sitting here and awaiting that same wretched end. I tell you, eternal life and everlasting peace awaits you and it is a free gift! You don't have to uncover any prizes under shells, you don't have to contend with a cruel and heartless game master, you were created for this life and to live it well at peace with your creator."
It's at this point that many of the scoffers begin to become angered at the new idea. It simply sounds like another scam to their broken hearts. Some, however, are intrigued by this concept and their interest is piqued. Noticing this development from behind his game table, Satan rigs his next round. "We have a winner!" All the commotion ceases and all eyes are turned back to the game. An ecstatic player is jumping and down and shouting for joy, their face flush with simultaneous exhaustion and excitement. Satan tenderly grips the player's arm. "How does it feel?"
"I feel amazing, I can't believe how incredible this is! I can't think straight right now."
"Wonderful!" Satan responds, "Now, step right back here and begin your new life of immortality and never-ending pleasure." The player then sprints inside a door behind the game master. With a gentle smile on his face, Satan turns to address the remaining players. "You see folks, with enough hard work and dedication, you too can win this amazing prize. Now, step right up!" Amid the renewed enthusiasm for the game, many of the scoffers even get up and get in line to play.
Disheartened, the man turns and walks back to his spot not far from the table. He will wait for another opportunity to share the good news about the free gift, until then he will watch and pray for the desperate players of the game.
As he is walking back, one of the scoffers rises from his seat and cautiously follows.
Now, this definition does not really apply to somebody like Hitler or Charles Manson who thought it quite reasonable to commit their heinous crimes. I will explain this from my theistic viewpoint as the influence of evil. I will explain it from a secular viewpoint as the existence of sociopaths, that is, people who lack a conscience. There is really nothing we can do about these types of people. They will smile and flatter their way into power and then use that power to harm great numbers of people. They will claim belief in Christ, Krishna, or the Easter bunny if it will allow them to rise to the top. This will not change by the hands of human society and there is no foreseeable effective way to detect sociopaths en masse. Heck, they are probably running our country right now. These folks are the source of the crimes which have been committed in the name of Jesus, Darwin, and Marx. Then, foolishly, good people who would never hurt each other squabble about which ideology causes the most violence. Ideas have no hands and most reasonable people do not murder for power.
