Today is Sunday. It's a day that many people put on uncomfortable clothes, gather in large groups, nod in agreement to the people speaking loudly in front of them....... then forget everything they heard for the rest of the week. Why?
I am an atheist... of a sort.
It's not that I don't believe in God. I do.
What I have trouble believing in is man. In particular, religious men. I find it difficult to take people seriously who think they are able to call themselves great 'Christians' (or 'Jews' or 'Muslims' or what have you) simply because they went and got their attendance card punched.
Too often organized religion gives a false sense of superiority. When you boil it down, we are all children squabbling on the playground. "My God is bigger than your God!" The sad truth is, when all is said and done, they are the same God. The divergences come from the trappings put on the universal message by men 'in the know'.
The message is muddied by the messengers for various reasons. It is perverted to justify why I'm better than you. It gives validation for the actions of tyrants and dictators. It is used as an invisibility cloak to hide sins. Sometimes it is just simple misunderstandings that get repeated wrong over and over until no one knows what the original message was.
I like to think of religion as Baskin Robbins. There are many flavors offered up for all to sample and choose from. Some choose elaborate sundaes complete with three flavors, hot fudge, whipped cream, nuts and a cherry. Some choose a single scoop of vanilla. Some come for a scoop every week. Some seek it out in times of stress. And still others are content with just a taste from the little pink sample spoon. But it's all ice cream. I love ice cream, but the ice cream doesn't want me to go to war in it's name. I also know a diet of only ice cream is not healthy for anyone.
God is the ice cream. Enjoy responsible.
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