It was impossible for me, throughout most of my life, to reconcile the teachings of my religion and those teachings of my profession. I t was not until after multiple decades of Sunday school urgent discussions, three years of concentrated Bible study, reading some sixty books on religions, and reading through the Koran three times, that the answer finally came. I finished reading Charles Darwin “On the Origins of the Species” late one evening, at the age of seventy, when everything fell into place. Darwin was right. Humans had developed by means of natural selection. That meant that all our religions were fanciful mythology, formed by humans in an attempt to give them the illusions of comfort and direction in their lives. These religious mythologies were all based on historical figures and moral values, and were then magnified immensely with colorful symbolism and hyperbole. They served their purpose well. Our religions have given our ancestors great solace and meaning to their lives, a meaning that they desperately needed. They faced sorrow, pain, torture and death, and were trying to make sense of those catastrophes. Religion gave them a rationale for it all.
That time has come and gone. We now have a much more reasonable and compassionate understanding of our place in this universe.
In my attempt to express this epiphany to the public at large, several books have been published, and a slew of essays. Perhaps the basic beliefs upon which this torrent of words has been based, have been partially buried under this avalanche. Sometimes, it is best to express what we believe in simple, straightforward terms, without preamble, discussions, or supporting arguments. In those simple terms, these are the beliefs that all fell in place, after becoming free from religious mythology.
I believe that a force beyond our comprehension created this universe, which is also beyond our comprehension, 14.5 billion years ago. If it did not, then we would not exist. Since everything we know in this universe is causally related, we struggle to understand how a force beyond our ken could come from nothing. We do not know; we do not understand how or why this beginning began. It just did; and we exist as one of its results.
I believe it is a tragic error to assume that this force, which began this universe, has any personal relationship to us. As best we can determine, everything in this universe runs on the laws of chance and probability. These laws of probability have for some reason given us some very concrete laws of physics. These precise mathematical rules allow us to send missiles through millions of miles and years in space, to reach targets at the far end of our solar system. How we can reconcile this precision with the randomness of quantum spooky behavior, we do not know. All we can say, for certain, is that this force, which created us, does not give a flying f… about humans, any other life, or any other material. It just is. To believe that there is any force, or deity, out there, which cares about humans and is directing our lives, is a monstrous mistake.
I believe that we should all give thanks every day, in abject gratitude, to this creative impersonal force which gave us our lives, even though we are greatly aware that our Creator does not care. Life, to each of us, is precious. It is even more precious because we are not pawns directed by some Deity. It is, for that reason, entirely up to us to make this world a better place for all life.
I believe it is a thrill and a privilege to explore, by scientific method, what our universe is, where it came from, and who we are.
I believe that all of life is dependent upon all other life, so that in combination, all of life is one giant organism. If any part of that life system suffers, all other parts will also suffer. If we do not develop respect for all other forms of life, we become a cancer which destroys that entire organism of life.
I believe, therefore, that true ethics must contain deep respect for and nurturing of all other life, within that circle of life.
I believe that morals and convictions as to right and wrong vary from individual to individual, family to family, group to group, neighborhood to neighborhood, city to city, region to region, state to state, and nation to nation. I believe that morals also vary from religion to religion, race to race, color to color, and economic status. Morals are those values each of us as individuals or groups applies to our own behavior. Each individual has a belief and value system that is unique to him or her.
I believe, therefore, that ethics should be that overriding set of values which applies to all our wildly varying morals. I believe that ethics should be that value system which most completely promotes the success of all forms of life.
I believe that our planet earth is a cocoon, just the right distance away from a solar source of energy, with water, and a magnetic shield, which has limited resources in that cocoon. If we do not totally respect our limited resources, and use them in a renewable way, we will pollute and destroy our unique and only home. I do not believe humans will be able to establish thriving communities on other planets.
I believe that each of us must show the utmost respect for all other humans, of any belief system, any color, any appearance. We are all one species, living in one planet home, and must cooperate with each other in order for all of us to survive.
I believe that Thomas Jefferson, when he wrote that magnificent Declaration of Independence, was horribly wrong in a multitude of ways. These marvelous words, which have rung down through the ages, are loaded with grievous errors: “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” First, the rights of citizens do not apply to only men. It is clear that, from his treatment of women, children and slaves, Jefferson meant exactly that. He believed that these rights applied to only aristocratic white men. How awful. These rights apply to all men, poor or wealthy, all women, all children, all races. Second, we are not created equal; the exact opposite is true. We are all created with our own strengths and flaw;, we are all individually different. Each of us is totally unequal to anyone else. Third, these rights of citizenship are not endowed by our Creator. Our Creator God does not give a s…. about us. There are rights, however, which any decent government should supply. We all deserve equal opportunity to enjoy these rights of citizenship. Fourth, this poetic prose does not make it clear what those rights are. Let’s make it simple. Any decent government will provide its citizens with the infrastructure, law and order, to sustain life, and give equal access to food, shelter, and clothing to all its citizens. It will nurture all its citizens. Any good government will also provide universal education, and universal health care.
I believe that, when we die, we are gone forever, other than whatever legacy we have left behind. That is why it is so important that each of us does our best to make this world a better place for other life, before we cease to exist. Our structures will disintegrate, our cells will die, our organs will dissolve, our chemicals will decompose, our molecules and atoms will be used by other forms of life for their own nourishment. We will become part of cheetahs, owls, mice, insects and bacteria. We leave behind our genes, and those influences we have made on others. We pray that those are good genes and good influences.
I believe that when any one of us reaches a stage of permanent suffering, it is kinder to let that person go, through palliative pain relief.
I believe that unless we can contribute to the societies that sustain us, we have no business being here alive on earth. I do not want to live beyond that time I can in some way contribute to my society.
I believe that the greatest joy in life is the epiphany. These moments of ecstasy do not usually come without preceding prolonged laborious study, curiosity, and great effort to understand, answer unanswered questions. When that epiphany does occur, the doorway to heaven opens, and thousands of previously unanswered questions are solved. You understand thousands of things you never understood before. There are many intense joys in life, all of them precious. The epiphany, however, is the gift that never stops giving. It is like an orgasm that never ends, giving equanimity for the rest of your life.
I believe that all religions are lost in fanciful mythology, which, for each of them, has wildly different bipolar expression. Each religion has, at one pole, moral tenets which are of great value to our societies. Each religion also has an opposite hateful pole of intolerance, which is expressed in massacre, torture and destruction. Each of our religions must accept that all other religions are equal in value and validity of belief, to those of their own structured mythology. They must each give up their self-centered hypocrisy that only they are the chosen ones. They must each give up their egotistic beliefs that some jealous, bigoted Deity cares only about them.
I believe that if our religions do not give up their intolerance for other faiths, this misanthropic mythology will be used to promote further wars, further destruction and further pollution, leading us to succumb as a species. Our religions are currently leading us to disaster and termination. If they do not stop soon, it will be time for the cockroaches to take over.