2006 November 12 | Can We Talk?

Agnostic or Atheist? Which are You?

You talking to me? I figure cowards call themselves Agnostics. I’ll spit it out. I’m an Atheist. Happy now? So, does that mean I have a tail and horns? A tail, maybe. Horny? - well, I was once. Not, no more. Besides, being an Atheist does not mean I’m not spiritual, just not in an organized-religion sort of way.

I’ve come to the conclusion that Jesus, Mohammad, and all those other leaders of what’s right and what’s wrong, are metaphors. They never existed but, if you want - as a writer or story teller - to make a point, sometimes you have to put a human face on it.

The stories told in the Talmud, Torah, Bible or whatever, in themselves, are harmless and are, like Aesop’s tales, morals. How did they all come about? Long before radio or newspapers, TV or - gasp - the Internet, people gathered around the fire at night and the elders told stories. Some were of their own rememberences of childhood and their parents, their friends and their neighbours. Others were of stories their friends and neighbours told them. It was something to do before turning in. Of course, if you were a good story teller, you’d perhaps add a little here and subtract a little there, to make it more interesting. And so it was that stories were passed on for eons. Somewhere along the way, some people actually wrote the stories down, sort of like I do now with the stories my mother and aunts have told me. That’s my take on it. I’ll bet I’m right on the money.

So, let’s remember that they are only nice, harmless stories. They all preach the same thing in one way or another. Be kind to yourself, your loved ones and your neighbours. It’s not difficult, is it? Why can’t we just do that? Let’s all try from this day forth.