I've been thinking about athiests a lot lately. More specifically, I've been thinking about the nature of atheism, and what causes it. I think I've got an idea or two. I'm writing on-the-fly, so we'll see where this goes.
First of all, let's take a look at our culture. I've wondered more than once why missionaries can go to poverty-stricken countries and see tremendous conversions to Christ. How people in countries where Christianity is illegal (and punishable by imprisonment or death) will meet in standing-room-only rooms, under cover of darkness, just for an opportunity to hear the Scripture. It truly boggles the mind when, in the US, church members will stay home from church when it's raining. And raining plain ol' water, not bullets.
Not to go all Tyler Durden here, but I think consumerism may be part of the cause. In Western countries, we're advertised to CONSTANTLY. We're made to think that our lives are lacking if we don't have the latest gadget, the fastest car, the whitest teeth. What this causes is a society of consumers. And what do consumers do but, well, consume? Everything in our lives is focused on drawing in - on pulling things towards ourselves. We become black holes at the center of our own little universes and, when we are at the center of the universe, it becomes difficult to perceive anything else as being more meaningful than our own existences.
I think that this is where atheism springs from. If we are our own gods, what use have we for any others? Indeed, it becomes galling to even consider our focus wavering from ourselves. When our lives are full of our stuff and our own concerns, where is there room for God? So many of the atheists I know have such scorn for Christians. I know that I hated Christians before I became one. I think this contempt is a product of the perceived weakness of a group of people who would willingly submit to another entity, especially one that you can't see.
"We don't need God. You want me to believe in God? I'm going to need you to put him in this box for me. I'm going to need him to show himself to me, personally."
There is no room for faith in this thinking. Instead, it's a demand for a more self-focused approach. More consuming for the consumers. We want God to come to us. We want God to be a product that we can digest. What we don't want is something to be subservient to. We're far too proud and intelligent and self-gratifying for that.
And most of us Western Christians display these characteristics, too. This explains why the flashiest churches have the highest attendance - they have the best, shiniest product. It's also why, in any given Western church, maybe 20% of the population does all of the work. The rest of us don't want to stop focusing on ourselves - to stop consuming - long enough to truly build a relationship, either with God, or with our supposed brothers and sisters in Christ.
I think it's interesting that - as far as I know - every major society in the span of human existence has believed in and worshipped one or more deities. That being the case, is it completely unreasonable that - maybe, just maybe - there's something to that? That maybe you are NOT the center of the universe?
I'm not bringing all of this up to pick a fight. Truly. Atheists, I used to be where you are. I used to be you. Then, I was broken. I reached a point in my life where my own deity (myself) failed me. I turned to God in desperation and, while my life certainly hasn't been all puppy dogs and ice cream since then, I've been more filled up than I ever was as an atheist. My sincere prayer for you is that you are broken to the point where your own deity is insufficient. Not because I want bad things to happen to you, but because I want to share what I now have with you.
Hope to see you on the other side.
