From Simon Garrett

The God Delusion

If you use Christmas shopping as an excuse to browse in bookshops, then this Christmas you are sure to have seen Richard Dawkins’ latest book: “The God Delusion”.  Dawkins also wrote “The Selfish Gene”, probably the best-known book (indeed the only well-known book) on evolutionary theory after Darwin’s “Origin of Species”. 

Dawkins is also a well-known atheist, and atheism (not surprisingly) is the subject of The God Delusion.  Most people might think of an atheist as someone that does not believe in God or religion.  Dawkins does not believe in God, but with a fundamentalist and evangelising zeal that many people would call religion.  In fact, Dawkins has been described as a “deeply religious non-believer”. 

In the book, Dawkins ridicules many of the “proofs” that God exists.  Well, many of them deserve to be ridiculed.  Then he sets out to prove that God probably doesn’t exist with (dare I say it) somewhat ridiculous arguments.  For example, Dawkins suggests that the universe is unfathomable, and may be “not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose”.  That is, the universe and its origins may be not only unknown, but unknowable.  At the same time, he applies logic based on our knowledge of the universe to “prove” that God probably doesn’t exist.  So his proof is based on unknown unknowns.  Donald Rumsfeld would like that one. 

He doesn’t help his case by attributing most evil in the world to religion, while making heroes out of atheists.  Rather comically, in several cases where someone he admires is not an avowed atheist, he tries to argue that really they are atheist, or would be if they were better informed! 

At the same time, I found myself agreeing with much of Dawkins’ criticism of religion.  A great deal of evil has been done in the name of religious dogma.  And let’s not pretend that this is all in the past, like the Crusades or the Inquisition.  We have only to consider Northern Ireland, Palestine, Iraq, Lebanon… the list goes on.  To say that secular causes hijack religion is not enough.  Often religious leaders (on all sides) watch silently from the sidelines, or actively seek to benefit. 

Islamic leaders (including some in this country) exploited sometimes violent criticism of poor-taste cartoons in a rather obscure Danish magazine.  But many Arab newspapers regularly contain far more unpleasant anti-Jewish cartoons.  Political and Church leaders in the West just mumble about the need to avoid upsetting anyone.  Islam is not alone in demanding special treatment.  A schoolboy in Ohio won the right in court to wear to school a T-shirt proclaiming: “Homosexuality is a sin, Islam is a lie, abortion is murder”.  Surely, freedom of speech doesn’t protect “hate speech”?  No, but freedom of religion does – in the United States, at least. 

Religion is used too often as an excuse to impose one’s dogma on others.  Pity is usually the first casualty.  “I have a Revealed Truth that allows me to behave without thought for those that don’t agree with me.”  After all, if they don’t share my Truth they must be mad, bad or both.  I don’t need to think about it.  Freedom from thought, not freedom of thought. 

Well, I reckon God wants me to think: faith based on reason.  He teaches me (I think) that the Bible is not a Revealed Truth, but the Word of God written and interpreted by men.  I am required to think about what it means. For example, the Bible doesn’t mention women priests, so does that mean there shouldn’t be any now?  This is not an excuse to “water down” Christianity, nor to ignore bits we don’t like, but a requirement to think. 

Or am I just being dogmatic? 

Simon Garrett
 

From Gill Lee

I have never been keen on flying, but being married to someone who is passionate on the subject I have picked up the occasional principle or two of flight, and one thing I have learned is about attitude.  The attitude, or angle at which a plane flies through the air is all-important.  A wrong attitude means the plane’s efficiency is impaired, and in extreme cases will cause the plane to fall out of the sky. 

Attitude is all-important in life.  In fact probably the single most important decision we make each day is our choice of attitude.  Minister and author Charles Swindoll writes: “the longer I live, the more I realise the impact of attitude on life.  Attitude, to me, is more important than facts.  It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.  It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill.  It will make or break a company… a church… a home…  I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90% how I react to it.  And so it is with you… we are in charge of our attitudes”. 

The Apostle Paul knew the importance of attitude.  Life threw everything at him – shipwreck, imprisonment, floggings, persecution, hardship, hunger, “at risk in the city, at risk in the country, endangered by desert sun and sea storm, and betrayed by those I thought were my brothers.  I’ve known drudgery and hard labour, many a long and lonely night without sleep, many a missed meal, blasted by the cold, naked to the weather.  And that’s not the half of it” (2 Cor.11:26ff Message).  Later, chained to a Roman soldier in a Roman prison he wrote to the church at Philippi, “I’m glad in God, far happier than you would ever guess .  .  I don’t have a sense of needing anything personally.  I’ve learned by now to be quite content whatever my circumstances .  .  whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am” (Phil.4:11-13 Message).  Paul had learned the importance of attitude!

Attitude is all about choices.  Whatever life throws at me, however many storms I might fly through, I get to choose my attitude to my circumstances. 

I have found these ‘attitude enhancers’ from Max Lucado helpful, and hope you do too:

  • Love God more than you fear hell
  • When no one is watching, live as if someone is
  • Succeed at home first
  • Pray twice as much as you fret
  • Listen twice as much as you speak
  • Only harbour a grudge when God does
  • Never outgrow your love of sunsets
  • Treat people like angels; you will meet some and help make some
  • God has forgiven you; you’d be wise to do the same
  • When you can’t trace God’s hand, trust his heart
  • Don’t feel guilty for God’s goodness
  • Never let the important be the victim of the trivial

“To sum it all up: Approach life like a voyage on a schooner.  Enjoy the view.  Explore the vessel.  Make friends with the Captain.  Fish a little.  And then get off when you get home.” (In the Eye of the Storm.  Max Lucado)

Whatever 2007 brings to you and I, as the Nat King Cole song says, it pays to “straighten up and fly right!

Gill Lee