As my wife will tell you, I love Christmas time. I love the little-kid nostalgia, cold weather, Christmas music, even the occasional trip to an over-crowded mall. I'm convinced that fir trees and Christmas lights generate palpable joy and good cheer that bring out the best in humanity.
But, good cheer or no, it wouldn't be the holidays without an argument over the secularization of Christmas. I recently found this article describing two Christmas "protests".
The first is a placard placed at a nativity scene in Olympia, WA by the Freedom From Religion Foundation. It asserts that religion is a mind-ensnaring myth and (correctly, but trivially) complains that Christmas celebrations intrude on the ancient celebration of the winter solstice. Both the placard itself and its surrounding drama are sufficiently unremarkable that I'll only say this: c'mon, guys, it's solstice time! Don't stomp on people's festivities just so you can make a trite, predictable statement.
The second "protest" is more unusual and much more interesting. In Washington, D.C., the American Humanist Association launched an ad campaign featuring bus posters with the tagline "Why believe in a God? Just be good for goodness' sake". Even though I believe in God, I think there's a wonderful germ of truth to be harvested from these ads. They aren't arguing that people shouldn't believe in God (although I'd wager they tend to believe that). They're saying that there are better reasons to be good than the threat (or reward) of eternal consequences. That you don't need a belief in God to live a happy, moral life. (This last point should be particularly relevant to the believer; we should have better reasons to believe in God than because we think our lives are happier that way).
Humanism gets knocked around in religious circles because of its agnostic associations, but I imagine that if you asked a humanist, he'd cite this idea--rather than agnosticism--as the fundamental unit of humanism. That each of us has a innate spark that drives us towards goodness and greatness. That we reach a purer form of goodness when we do more than just respond to the threat of punishment or promise of reward. And I'm convinced it's an idea that even--or especially--the God-fearing can adopt as their own.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
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4 comments:
This was very interesting. I have to agree with you for the most part. But I think that having a happy life is a very good reason to believe in God.
It's too bad that no one can assert their rights without stepping on someone elses. If I was out visiting a Nativity scene, I would be pretty upset seeing the FFRF sign. But I agree with Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire, "I happen to be a Christian, and I don't agree with the display that is up there. But that doesn't mean that as governor, I have the right to deny their ability to express their free speech."
A happy life isn't a bad reason, necessarily, but I certainly find it an insufficient one. To me the point of the AHA ads is that you can lead a happy, meaningful life through 'good' living unattached to religious belief. If there were no God, for example, but believing in him helps us be happy, should we choose to believe in him anyways? I sure don't think so, even if it means I have to work harder to find happiness and meaning in life. Whatever additional bonus there is in religious faith comes only because God is real. And--in the spirit of the GBS quote--the fact that believers tend to be happier is only circumstantial evidence in the argument over the existence of God.
I found the FFRF placard to be harmless but annoying. I respect their rights to have it up, and I fully believe that Christmas is a time to particularly avoid taking offense, but why go Scrooging on everyone's fun and upsetting people just so you can make a tired old point about the evils of religion?
Oh matt. Oh you. Here's what I think:
I would argue, that people are generally good. And this goodness, I think, comes from the light of Christ which each human being has been blessed with. Sorry to get all churchy on you, this is just truth.
And I think that if people knew that the light they have is from God, they would be happier. I know, you want some concrete proof for why a belief in God makes one happier. I must admit, I have nothing for you. I just know that God makes me so happy it is overwhelming at times, and that the happiness I feel is something that those who do not believe in God will never feel. And that makes me sad for them. They, in my opinion, do not know true joy. At least not entirely.
But that is me and Life of Pi is one of my favorite books. I guess that makes me a looney.
That being said, I do find it unfortunate that people view God as someone/something to be threatened by. People should be doing good things because it is the Christlike, or human, thing to do, and not to dodge punishment. If you will recall back to Genesis, man and woman were created in the image of God, and so, in my humble opinion, have a responsibility to be good and kind not because they fear God but because they should be like God, who is a good and loving Father. Therefore, to be human is to be like God. Yeah? That is all.
I agree with most everything that you said, but I feel the need for two points:
First, it's important not to conflate the happiness of living a good life and the happiness of experiencing God. Religious faith is a good way to encourage people to avoid self-destructive habits, love those around them, appreciate beauty, and generally find joy in life. But, as the humanists argue, you can find that joy without religious faith, although you may have to work harder at it. It's easy (and trite) to say "I don't know where I'd be without the church" and assume that you'd be in the gutter somewhere dying of liver failure. But that's probably false. I absolutely believe that there exists a higher, divine joy that the humanists miss out on; but it's important that not to lump the divine joy with the human joy.
Second, I'm not asking for proof that believing in God makes you happier. My argument goes the other direction: the fact that the religious tend to be happier is not evidence that God exists. I've heard testimonies explained in terms of "it makes me happy, so I know it's true", which is a lazy (and harmful) approach to the epistemological enterprise. And religious faith is too important a topic to be lazy about.
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