On Certainty

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Guess it's time for me to churn another one of these blogs out. Why yes, I do think churning butter can be sexy. If a brawny, hairless man wearing suspenders, no shirt underneath, slightly-torn sandals, and a 5 o'clock shadow were to smile at me while churning butter, I'd feel warm and tingly. Might blow him.

Radical atheists annoy me more than the hardcore religious — probably because I spend more time with them than Christians lately. They seem sure there is no god and have the attitude, "I've got this all figured out". It fucking irritates me. But at the same time, some radical Christians can be pushy with their agenda. The radical Christian can get preachy, trying to swerve every wayward conversation back to their agenda. And some of them are easily offended. I'm making a mistake, I realize. I'm judging atheists and Christians based on my personal experiences of atheists and Christians rather than by their creeds. And I think I do this, subconsciously, because I want to fit in. I want to be with the group that is chill, not annoying, and fun to be around. Perhaps that's why I call myself a secular Buddhist while sipping my caramel macchiato/kombucha. 

At the same time, perhaps there is something to judging creeds by experiences with people who follow those creeds: "by their fruits you will know them" (Mt.7:16). Actions do follow from beliefs. If I believe I have all the answers to something, people who have a different view on the same thing will seem inferior. So I guess what frustrates me about these atheists and Christians is their certainty that they have all the answers. To all those atheists and Christians who keep an open mind, thank you!

I hate reading the "in your face" posts from these radicals. An atheist Facebook page I used to follow enjoyed pointing out the impossibilities of Noah's Ark and other such Bible stories. To me, that's just as pointless as pointing out that Harry Potter couldn't have happened. These folks are missing the point of Bible stories being more like fables that we can learn from. Right away I can see the radical Christian jumping in to defend the literal interpretation of Bible stories as historical works. Their certainty of these Bible events is equally annoying (actually a little more so since hard evidence suggests the impossibility of some of these events). And to clarify, I am not certain that Bible stories are fables. Maybe they happened. My point is to keep an open mind.

I'm not suggesting that people shouldn't have opinions or views on things. I just wish people kept an open mind while maintaining their point of view. I know it's hard. I am not a Trump supporter, but I force myself to listen to the other side so that I do not become too set in my ways. Michael Kietzman has a post that goes in depth on this (thanks, my guy). Closing ones mind and being certain of anything seems like a pride issue.

All of this makes me think of a quote from my Brazilian friend, "happy people don't annoy others". When we're so invested in a certain viewpoint, we try to persuade others to adopt our perspective. That's why Christians emphasize evangelization; why atheists are so keen for debate; and why many radical groups will even resort to violence to make a point. Happy people are already content, don't feel the need to push an agenda, convert others, or start fights.

No matter our points of view, there is so much uncertainty that still exists. So be open, be vulnerable, and be kind. Or don't. This perspective works for me and is as equally uncertain as anything else.

"People with opinions just go around bothering each other"

-Guatama Buddha

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