In an honest observational mindset, it would be reasonable to say that just about anyone could look around and be certain that modern social tendencies have proven destructive. I don’t mean that we can simply recognize everything isn’t perfect; it never is. But a look at history will reveal that society has been sliding down a path of degrading excellence.
If Television is any indicator, just take a look at the nature of what people sit in front of these days, and what passes for “entertainment.” We have entire T.V. shows dedicated to studying why people hoard stuff, who can be a better model, and in what ways thousands of families have failed to get a loved one to stop making obese choices. I wonder about what we call “depression” sometimes, and while I do not wish to play lightly with a very real and substantial condition, I think we ought to recognize that modern “depression” is likely fueled by the nonsense we stuff into our brains. I may be wrong, but I think there was a time when crowds of women weren’t fighting over who could more like a Paris Hilton.
I see this as intrinsically tied onto the topic at hand. Atheistic thinkers have taken the posture that it is religion, and Christianity in particular, that need to suffer the blame for various social ills. They ruthlessly attack anything resembling faith, and label it as antiquated with the goal of propagating their move toward all things antitheistic. We are told that if we can remove the stain of religion off humanity’s garment, then we can finally look and feel better.
There is no reason to act as if some terrible atrocities have not been acted out in the name of Christianity. Many people have abused Christian ideas and made a mockery of what Christ taught. That should be openly admitted for what it is. But other such atrocities, more numerous to count, have been conducted by the hands of those who have bought into antitheistic ideas. And on what reasonable basis could an atheist call Stalin wrong? If the atheist is right, and we are nothing more than a big cosmic accident, it makes no sense to pass judgement on Stalin’s actions. On what basis does a life have value, if there is no moral law on which to make such a judgment? In other words, logically speaking, atheistic thinking is morally bankrupt.
If that seems like one big leap to you; consider this: Antitheism teaches that humans arose by accident out of a cosmic accident, in that we are a result of random mutation. We happen to be here, but there is no reason for our existence. Men like Sam Harris act as if this were a joyous discovery, a freeing knowledge that there is nothing beyond our biological existence. I find that outlook to be particularly depressing, insofar as it removes any meaning from life at all. For goodness sakes, how could we expect anything other than a social-wide epidemic of depression, after plugging into our brains the teaching that says, “We are here for no reason, so stop looking for one.” ? It’s no wonder that people seem so wrapped up in silly stuff– we have removed all the meaningful things.
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