Recently, I went to a friend’s house for a drink, and another of his friends came over. As we spoke, she talked on and on about her Judaism, rather incessantly. She was one of those “cafeteria” Orthodox Jews. She turned on light-switches on Saturday, but didn’t drive. As most of you know, I was raised Jewish, and I know my way around religious Judaism. This girl was wrong — very wrong — about a few things about which she really should have been right. But when I mentioned I was an atheist, I got a very unexpected reaction. She said I hurt her feelings. Again, I said I was an atheist, and the said that I had hurt her, because I don’t believe in god. Talk about Jewish Guilt — I hurt her by simply stating that I disagreed!I don’t usually get that kind of glazed-eyes reaction from Jews. I usually get a much more measured response, because atheists are more common in Jewish families, and critical thought is more tolerated than Christians….or so I thought. Now, here was a perfect contradiction. A self-righteous, in-your-face, cafeteria-style, self-contradictory, and clearly brainwashed Orthodox Jew. She sounded as if she had just graduated from Liberty University, as opposed to a Yeshiva. A very predictable (with a Christian!) discussion ensued — she wanted to talk about god, I wanted to talk about her bigotry. We talked about her bigotry. I made my point very clear: bigotry is bigotry, no matter what side you’re on. Nobody gets to be offended because I say what I am. That’s step one. You want to debate? Argue? Sure, but first get over yourself. You are not offended, hurt, or owed an apology, just because I don’t believe in your god. Neither am I hurt because you believe in an invisible man in the sky (actually, she thinks God’s a woman — Like I said, cafeteria).Happy Chanukah
NotSoFast
This is blog about religion and the harm that it does. What bigger issues of our times than these?
Have you heard of the Project for the New American Century? Do you not know these names – Wolfowitz, Pearl, Abrams, Feith, Kagan, Kristol, etc? Do you not know of their central roles in selling the Invasion of Iraq?
Pandering? They were running the show!
Comment from Neo…
Need I say more…
I fancy I’m a bigot against bigotry. And though in my weaker moments I contradict myself, I always try to remember to consider the feelings of others before I speak.
But most importantly, I weigh the integrity of my antagonism through scientific methodology and the lessons we’ve learned from history. If this is bigotry, I yield. Sometimes you just have to take a stand.
However relative my position may be, I still believe: – evil flourishes when good men do nothing – in this context, evil being the subjugation of our fellow human beings
phreedumb quoted me on this:
Comment from Neo…
Freethinkers are offendeded by idiots lack of obvious perception.
Thus, implying that I’m a bigot. Okay, I agree with an earlier post, that we all have latent prejudices that we may not be aware of. But, you did not finish the quote, and the strike on your deliberate but lame bait:
“Theists are offended by freethinker lack of faith.”
So you are a bigot because you can’t understand my lack of cooperation in buying into blind faith, belief in ridiculous fairy tales, so I can come to peace with my mortality. If I need a mental crutch to deal with reality, I can think of several drugs that yeild more pleasure, and less devastating side effects than religion. But, either way you go, you no longer own your mind. That’s why I’m a free thinker and you are a nematod.
NeoWolfe
I have always felt that this sense of being ‘injured’ by the mere existence of non-believers points to the innate insecurity felt by the religious. If they were secure in their beliefs, another’s non-belief would not be perceived as threatening. For similar reasons, attempts at converting others to their religion borders on an obsession with many Christians, for it serves to reinforce their own shaky belief system. As a life-long atheist now sixty years old I have often felt like a Christian in the lions’ den [hence my blog ID] when attending a public gathering of believers. The pressure to ‘go along’ and join the masses is ever-present, yet I have always managed to resist it, even as a child. We are all born atheists. No child is born believing in gods or religious hokum. But the various churches that peddle religion have always adhered to the same philosophy espoused by big tobacco companies—as exposed by industry whistle-blower Dr. Jeffrey Wigand—and that philosophy is “Hook ‘em young, hook ‘em for life.”
Lions Den
I won’t be surprised if a Joseph Camel starts peddling their message.