Monday, December 16, 2013

WHAT IF YOU'RE WRONG?

"What if you're wrong?" That's the query believers like to fling at unbelievers like me. It's calculated to engender fear and a feeling of not belonging.

It's a really good question to contemplate -- by the questioner him or herself.

I like to respond with a counter question, like, "do you believe in Allah?" "No," they say indignantly. To which I reply, "Millions do. What if you're wrong?"

Same approach to taoism, hinduism, scientology, mormonism, you name it. It doesn't take any genius to conclude all those fanatically defended faiths and gods can't be real, anymore than Zeus and Thor were real. The names, the mythologies, the trappings differ in details, but the basic mental approach is pretty much the same -- belief in an all-powerful entity with astounding power and transcendence.

So, don't bother trying to scare me with that question. I know too much history and too many facts to fall for it. The days when I could be put on the defensive by such tactics are long gone. I'm no longer a quivering, tongue-tied denizen of fear and insecurity.

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