Wednesday 9 October 2013

Pride?

I am aware of a growing movement . It's not atheism, it's atheist pride.....much the same they tell me as gay pride. Except it's not at all like gay pride is it?

An atheist is someone born with a mind that can think, reason and function well. No one declares themselves an atheist without a great deal of thought and I would defend their right to chose and stand by their beliefs absolutely. It would be a dull world if we all thought the same way.

What we believe is personal to us, shaped by life's experiences and hopefully much thought. I have a lot friends who almost apologise for not being Christian.

I have a friend in America I met playing backgammon. We have been friends on Facebook for years now and I have watched her battle cancer, marry, adopt children and move house. She put up a board advertising atheist pride when she moved in. She is not happy right now and doesn't believe or understand why she is disliked in the neighbourhood.

The atheist flag is a negative banner she is waving. It proclaims that she doesn't believe something. That's not the same as a gay man or woman who refuses to be ashamed of their way of life. Their version of pride is born of years of having to hide their nature, the relief at being openly gay deserves celebrating I think.

My friend is a good, caring person. She may not believe in Christ but she certainly lives by the ethics He taught us.

I feel desperately sorry that she is so unhappy....she does not deserve that. But proclaiming a negative is always going to be misunderstood I think.

I have humanist friends here who are open minded and ethical in their dealings with people.

We are all different....colours, backgrounds, beliefs....shapes, sizes, disabilities, talents all are ours to be celebrated......not judged.

Judge not lest you are judged is a pretty good standard to employ in life I think....no matter who said it first!

1 comment:

UKViewer said...

You're quite right. There is no shame in being either Atheist or being Christian or of any other faith or none. I'm not sure why people feel the need to advertise their pride in their beliefs? I always think that the old adage "Pride comes before a fall" is often borne out in life.

Judging others seems in some way connected with pride. Rather we should care for others and pray for them if they are in trouble or need help.