Lemuel K. Washburn: “A Cruel God”

There may be some other religion in the world that sings of a God more cruel than the God of Christianity, but we do not know of any. At any rate, we believe it is safe to say that no religion of a civilized people has a God who is more vindictive. We have always wondered how men and women could set such infernal ideas to music as we find in Christian hymns. It is really too bad that human beings are compelled to sing such lies as we find in the pious song-books of the church. The sentiments contained in them are not fit for savages. It can only brutalize the heart to sing of blood, and nothing but blood, no matter whose blood it is. The “precious blood of Jesus” is just as suggestive of cruelty as the blood on the executioner’s knife. Men become what they read, what they think, what they sing, what they believe. Religions have made men wicked, cruel, hard, unkind. It is impossible to have faith in a God of wrath and vindictiveness without in time developing these qualities. Men grow into the likeness of their belief. As a man believes, so is he, to a certain extent.

The influence of cruel sentiments on the mind is greater with the young than with adults. Some hymns sung in Christian churches are positively brutal in tone. Think of human beings singing the following verse: 

“But vengeance and damnation lie
On rebels who refuse His grace;
Who God’s eternal Son despise,
The hottest hell shall be their place.”

Christians seem to delight in pictures of hell. God would hardly be God to them if he did not damn somebody. In painting the divine idea vengeance and damnation are laid on thick.

Here is the Christian notion of father and son:

“How justice frowned and vengeance stood
To drive me down to endless pain!
But the great Son propos’d his blood,
And heavenly wrath grew mild again.”

Think of the religion based on such an idea of God! And think on the terrible effect on men and women which such religion must have!

The following description of the Christian God was probably written by one of his adorers:

“Adore and tremble for our God
Is a consuming fire!
His jealous eyes with wrath inflame,
And raise His vengeance higher.

“Almighty vengeance, how it burns,
How bright His fury glows!
Vast magazines of plagues and storms
Lie treasured for His foes.

“Those heaps of wrath, by slow degrees,
Are force into a flame:
But kindled, Oh! how fierce they blaze!
And rend all nature’s frame.

“At His approach the mountains flee,
And seek a watery grave;
The frighted sea makes haste away,
And shrinks up every wave.

“Through the wide air the weighty rocks
Are swift as hailstones hurled;
Who dares engage His fiery rage,
That shakes the solid world?

“Thy hand shall on rebellious kings
A fiery tempest pour,
While we, beneath Thy sheltering wings,
Thy just revenge adore.”

And we are asked to love this God! We should just as soon think of loving a tiger, a cyclone, a deluge, a fiend. Love goes out to what is lovely. We can love what is good, what is beautiful, what is noble; a great-hearted man, a pitying woman we cannot help loving, but if we should say that we love such a God as is pictured in the words of that hymn we should lie. Man cannot love hate, vengeance, wrath – even in a God.

The Christian church, down through the ages, has been like the God it worshiped — full of hate, malice and cruelty. The world has grown kind and humane just in proportion as it has given up worship of this divine monster. We judge gods as we judge men, and we can respect and love only what is worthy of respect and love from a human point of view. If there is such a God as is painted in Christian literature he deserves, not to be worshiped, but to be ignored.

About The Great One

Am interested in science and philosophy as well as sports; cycling and tennis. Enjoy reading, writing, playing chess, collecting Spyderco knives and fountain pens.
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33 Responses to Lemuel K. Washburn: “A Cruel God”

  1. Mitchell says:

    Yeah, you don’t seem to want to admit that there is no such thing as good and evil. Only what you like or dislike. Want, don’t want. etc.

    • GhostRider says:

      Mitch, you goofy knuckle head, got sucked in, didn’t you my friend. Hey, hold your head high as there is no shame in that. Being that The Great One and I are long time friends, I’ve been getting sucked into this vortex for over 3 decades. BTW, you are only seeing the tip of the ice berg and the Buddhists seem closet to the truth by seeing all this – life – as an illusion. There may be no such thing as good and evil or anything else for that matter. It may all be an illusion. Looked at it from the perspective of science, through the work of Albert Einstein, and many others, current scientific theory holds that all particles have a duality. I can bore you with talk of wave–particle duality, the Copenhagen interpretation, the concept of complementarity, but the whole gist may be that reality does not exist until the moment, and only at that moment, that it is observed, thereby making it all an illusion……… Live long and prosper – even if it is an illusion.

      • TGO says:

        The jury is still out on who it was who REALLY got sucked in…

        By the way, CONGRATULATIONS!!! You didn’t mention consciousness even once!

    • TGO says:

      I’m not going to admit what I don’t believe. By the way, in case you haven’t noticed (and I can’t see how not) the main theme of Christianity is good versus evil. Remember, Eve was tempted by the talking snake in the Garden of Eden to eat of the Tree of Knowledge, she did so, and that was the Original Sin. Why do you think heaven and hell were invented? Good versus evil. Those who believe in God are good and presumably get to go to heaven; those who (like myself) believe the whole thing is make-believe, superstitious mumbo-jumbo are bad and so we are supposedly going to hell.

  2. Mitchell says:

    You said God was evil because you didn’t/like His system of justice. Some people do not like ours. Does that mean ours is evil?

    You said the biblical God did some evil things. Some people might think locking people in prison is evil. But it doesn’t make it so.

    You call the biblical God evil because you don’t like what He does. But I don’t like what lots of people do. Does not make them evil. Just means I don’t like them.

  3. Mitchell says:

    You said many times that the things God did in the bible are bad.

    Lots of things can be labeled “bad” but there must be something to compare them to. You cannot say something is crooked unless you know what straight is. And since you don’t believe in a higher power, you can only state that you like or dislike something. Not that it is good or bad because you don’t get to make that assertion. It is all relative in your world.

    I believe God defines good and bad. It is up to me to get to know Him and find out who He is. I believe He is good and everything He does is for the good of mankind. You might say, how does killing people benefit mankind. I would say, how does locking up murderers, thieves, arsonists, make the world a better place?

    • TGO says:

      Of course it is all relative. Losing a finger is bad; losing your thumb is worse; losing your hand is worst still; losing your arm is even worse than that! Isn’t getting a ‘C’ in an exam better than getting an ‘F’? Isn’t getting an ‘A’ better than getting a ‘C’? Isn’t having a healthy child better than having a sickly one? Isn’t it better to see than to be blind; to hear better than to be deaf; to talk better than to be mute? We don’t need God to answer these questions as the answers are quite obvious.

      I wish you good luck in getting to know Him. When you meet Him, tell him to check out my Blog. I’m being sarcastic of course. How are you going to get to know an entity that may not even exist? One that cannot be seen or heard or touched? You may as well try and get to know a little green man from Mars.

      You’re kidding, right? Locking up murderers, thieves, arsonists, etc. makes the world a better place as it prevents these people from hurting others. Hello! A little common sense please…

  4. Mitchell says:

    I will answer but please first define evil. What is evil to you? and who are you to define it?

    • TGO says:

      We’re going around in circles here. I am not out to trick you, change your mind about your beliefs, portray myself as more intelligent than you, or anything of the sort. I simply think differently than you do. Actually, the word evil never enters into my vocabulary. Evil is a word used primarily by believers; good versus evil, you know…. Being that I’m not a believer, and am not hung up on sin and atonement, the word ‘evil’ never enters my mind.

      I am who I am and that’s all I need to be. I already stated that I do not define anything. Things are what they are. If you put your thumb on a workbench and smash it with a hammer, that is bad, as it causes pain. If you love and care for your children (assuming you have children) that is good. It really isn’t that complicated.

  5. Mitchell says:

    It is neither, if neither exists.

    • TGO says:

      Well, based on your Christian beliefs, are these commands from God good or evil? I believe they’re evil, but then what do I know? After all, who am I to question God? Still, something tells me these commands of God are evil, what’s your opinion?

  6. Mitchell says:

    I have told you but professing a belief in the Christian God.

    Without a higher power, good and evil do not exist. Only what people like and dislike. It is all relative.

    • TGO says:

      God in the Old Testament tells us to bash the heads of infidels and demands of us that we be willing to sacrifice our children’s lives at his orders, and the God of traditional Christianity and Islam damns us for eternity if we do not worship him in the right manner. Is this good or evil?

  7. Mitchell says:

    Is there such a thing as good and evil?

  8. GhostRider says:

    Holy Moly…. I didn’t time myself but it must have taken me a long time – genetics didn’t give me a very smart brain and some may even say that I can hardly read or write – because I feel that’s one hour of my life I will never get back. Not that I was ever unhappy about the truth, quite the contrary, but I have never felt happier that I have no direction, no focus, no purpose. Great One, Mitchell, I thank both of you for clearly painting a picture – when one can hardly read or write, very little comprehension is obtained in the process – of what it exactly looks like to have direction, focus, and purpose but it’s not the life I choose. Good Night and God bless you knuckle heads.

  9. Mitchell says:

    Hi, I copied your reply and then responded below each paragraph. My answer will be under the line.

    Hypothetically, yes, if the biblical God does exist, and created everything then he definitely has the right to do whatever he wishes with his creation. But just because a being (whether a God or human) creates something it doesn’t make it right for that entity or individual to destroy it. Imagine having children and deciding to kill them simply because they are yours. You could say, hey, they’re mine, I “created” them; if I want to kill them I’ll kill them. How moral is that? And yes, I did read the New Testament. It isn’t nearly as bloody as the Old, as it was obviously written later by more “civilized” individuals (albeit still barbarians) But nevertheless, here are a few “gems” from the New Testament:
    ————————————————————————————————————————————-
    Well if it is ALL His, then He makes the rules. HE decides what is “right.” If He is smarter than us, then He must know what is right and what is wrong. So we would have no right to question Him.
    Mathew 10:34, 10:35, 10:36, 10:37, 10:38 –
    Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man ‘against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one’s enemies will be those of his household.’ Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

    Mathew 13:49, 13:50 –
    Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

    Luke 12:47, 12:48 –
    That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly…

    Luke 14:26 –
    If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

    Luke 19:27 –
    Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king, bring them here and slay them before me.

    John 3:36 –
    Whoever beliefs in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.

    Titus 2:9, 2:10 –
    Slaves are to be under the control of their masters in all respects, giving them satisfaction, not talking back to them or stealing from them, but exhibiting complete good faith, so as to adorn the doctrine of God our savior in every way.
    ————————————————————————————————————————————-
    All of these scriptures are taken out of context. You have no understanding of them. The sword is not a physical one. *shakes head*
    The Bible doesn’t teach violence; how funny is that? The Bible is full of violence. Christians simply point to a few quotes sprinklered throughout (most of which are really stupid) such as “turning the other cheek.” There is no question that the Koran endorses more violence (on the personal level) than the Bible does. But to say that the Bible doesn’t teach violence is ludicrous.
    ——————————————————————————————————————
    The NT does not endorse violence. ANY “violence” is in the Spirit and not the physical.
    Ephesians 6:12
    12For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
    2 Corinthians 10:4
    4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
    —————————————————————————————————————————–
    I don’t know what “studies” you are talking about that prove that religious people are more giving than secular ones? Religious people obviously donate to their church (at least many do) but so what? If it wasn’t for secular individuals, we’d still be living in the Dark Ages. Just consider what scientists have contributed to mankind (most of whom are non-believers) as opposed to the clergy. The clergy are just parrots, mimicking all of the nonsense written in the Bible; the “holy book” with the 6-day creation, the flat-Earth belief, talking animals, the people said to live to be hundreds of years old, the Flood, Noah’s Ark, Jonah living in the stomach of a whale for 3 days, and all of the countless other fairy-tales written by ignorant men. Not even children would believe some of the stories in the Bible, and this is the book that God supposedly inspired?
    ————————————————————————————————————————————–
    They donate more to secular things too. http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=2682730&page=1
    http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1759256/posts

    Were these people ignorant? http://www.godandscience.org/apologetics/sciencefaith.html
    And the bible NEVER said the Earth was flat. In fact, it said it was round, over a thousand years ago.

    Again, religion is not the mother of morality. One doesn’t need to be religious to be moral; to be a decent individual with good feelings, with compassion. I certainly wouldn’t drown my children as the God of the Bible did. I also wouldn’t keep slaves nor would I invent hell.

    You’re assessment of people who believe in scientific principles isn’t correct. Quite the contrary, people who believe in science are generally the skeptical types. Unlike religious individuals, we don’t start with the answer, with statements of absolute fact such as “there is a God,” with no proof whatsoever. Even brilliant scientists such as Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein, who were generally certain of many propositions “proven” through their experiments, have since had those certainties modified by modern science. My point: if I am not absolutely certain of something, I don’t make absolute statements, and even if I do I am well aware that I may be wrong. One of the things that is so silly about religious individuals is not only that they assert that God exists; they also make claims as to what God thinks and what God wants. The absurdity of these beliefs is obvious.

    ——————————————————————————————-
    WHAT?! A Christians starts with God yes. But we believe science backs it up. But atheists start with the notion that there is no god and will not consider otherwise. How is that different than Christians?
    —————————————————————————————————————————————-
    I don’t really know what you want me to tell you about how I “decide” what is good and what is evil? I don’t decide what is good and what is evil. I simply go through life without purposely hurting anyone. Conversely, I try to help people when I can, given my limitations. But if your definition of being good is getting on my knees and praying to the invisible man in the sky, or giving money to organized religion, or falsely making claims about my unwavering faith, then according to those standards I am certainly not a good individual.
    —————————————————————————————————————————————–
    Yes you do! This whole post you have been judging what is good and what is evil. You said God is evil and all the things in the bible you don’t like, you called those evil as well. So tell me what makes you the judge? Is abortion good or bad? How about incest, or gay marriage? What about people like NAMBLA or how about cultures that eat each other? The list goes on and on. How do you judge what is good or bad? All you can say is what you prefer. You prefer not to be robbed by someone but you cannot say it is evil because in some cultures it may be accepted. Just because you live in western civilization does not give you the right to judge other people. That is arrogant!!
    It would be better to just say you don’t like the God of the bible or Koran. Rather than saying they are good or bad. You don’t get to make that choice. Because some people think they are good. It is all relative.

    • TGO says:

      Wrong, I do have a right to question him. If God made me and gave me a brain, along with free will, I have the right to question anything I so choose. He didn’t make machines incapable of thought, did he? Your assessment is wrong.

      Nothing in those Scriptures is taken out of context. I am reading and interpreting them literally. What makes you think that some convoluted (subjective) meaning was intended? If I say no, does that mean maybe or does it mean no? It means NO. The Bible is full of contradictions. One book says this, the other says that… Not even the four Gospels agree on who was present when Jesus was supposedly resurrected. Arguably the single most important event in all of Christianity, and the Gospels can’t even get that right.

      Science backs up God; really? You must be kidding. That is not an intelligent comment, it is an emotional one. Tell me, where is God? Where does he reside? If you answer heaven, where is heaven? If you answer all around us, how do you know? If you don’t know any of the answers to these questions, how about just saying: I DON”T KNOW, instead of pretending to know the unknowable.

      I don’t believe God is evil; I simply believe he doesn’t exist, just as I believe that Zeus doesn’t exist, or Apollo, or Mercury, or Aphrodite, or Zena, or Horus, or Mithra, etc., etc., etc.

      Abortion is not good or bad, it depends on the situation. If a woman is raped or becomes pregnant as a result of incest, or if her life is in jeopardy should she give birth due to health reasons, then I believe that abortion is justified (based on the woman’s decision). Incest is ALWAYS bad! Gay marriage is not bad or good) although I certainly don’t endorse it. This is MY opinion. Cannibalism and robbery are definitely NOT good.

      Relax; no need to get upset, no need for emotions. I have the right to believe what I believe just as much as you do.

      The Bible and Koran are books of fairy-tales. They’re made up. That is MY opinion. I get to make any choice I want. Remember, freedom of speech, freedom of expression, free will? Indoctrination is NOT a good thing.

      Thanks…

  10. Pingback: Love Quotes From Hymn Books | Love Quotes 2

  11. GhostRider says:

    As for Lemuel K. Washburn and who the hell was he? The man did not even register a blip on Wikipedia. You can waste your time searching for info on him and you won’t find much, if anything at all. Logic tells you he was just a worthless, demented loony tune that lost his battle to the mentally incapacitating virus that is simply called obsession and wasted his life writing “Caca” when he may have shined if he had chosen to write rap instead – or even just product instruction sheets.

    • TGO says:

      Yeah, he was a real loser. Just another obsessed, illiterate, good-for-nothing waste of a human being. He did nothing with his life; just hung around all day, every day – going here, going there, with no clear direction, no focus, no purpose. Such a pity.

  12. Mitchell says:

    I apologize, I thought you only pasted the hymns and not the whole blog. But if you agree with what is written…

    Hypothetically, if there is a God (the biblical one) and He created everything, then doesn’t HE get to decide what He wants to do with it? I mean if he wants to kill someone or an entire population, that is His choice. It belongs to Him. But did you read the New Testament as well? What kind of evil God would give up His only Son? Would endure mocking, blasphemy, etc from pesky little people?

    The difference between Christianity and Islam is that the bible does not teach violence. “turn the other cheek.” You should know that. So any wacko can misinterpret a Burger King mission statement and kill a hundred people. Should we be mad at Burger King?

    If you want to talk about religious people we can. They are the most giving of their time, money and goods. The first to help out a stranger, volunteer or donate money. There are studies that show secular people are far less giving of both money and time. What is up with that?

    So if there were a God, you would expect Him to now allow ‘free will’? Doesn’t make for meaningful worship.

    Again, who are YOU to decide what is good, bad, moral or immoral? How can you say God or anything is immoral?

    And for someone who likes science, you sure have a lot of “probably,” and “ifs”. Not exactly scientific.

    We can go back and forth on the existence of God. You cannot prove He is fake and I cannot present any acceptable evidence to you. So no sense in discussing that further.

    I just want to know how you get to decide what is good or evil.

    Thanks

    • GhostRider says:

      The truth of the matter is, whether one is a Jew, Christian, Muslim, or Atheist, when one crosses a line and becomes obsessive with the irrationally obtained certainty that one’s belief is correct, one is no longer a free-thinker. As that obsession grows and festers, rotting away the threads of the tapestry of human consciousness, that individual enters the “Loony Tune” realm. Woe is all civilization when the tipping point arrives and the loony tunes out-number the logical and rational free-thinkers.

      • TGO says:

        Hey, you’re back!!! I’m beginning to think that you’re some kind of warlock, like Charlie Sheen, and that your weekends are set aside for “black magic.”

        You’re one to talk about being obsessive and looney – consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness, consciousness…

        Yeap, you’re a freethinker alright, and I’m a little green man from Mars.

    • TGO says:

      Hypothetically, yes, if the biblical God does exist, and created everything then he definitely has the right to do whatever he wishes with his creation. But just because a being (whether a God or human) creates something it doesn’t make it right for that entity or individual to destroy it. Imagine having children and deciding to kill them simply because they are yours. You could say, hey, they’re mine, I “created” them; if I want to kill them I’ll kill them. How moral is that? And yes, I did read the New Testament. It isn’t nearly as bloody as the Old, as it was obviously written later by more “civilized” individuals (albeit still barbarians) But nevertheless, here are a few “gems” from the New Testament:

      Mathew 10:34, 10:35, 10:36, 10:37, 10:38 –
      Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man ‘against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one’s enemies will be those of his household.’ Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

      Mathew 13:49, 13:50 –
      Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

      Luke 12:47, 12:48 –
      That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly…

      Luke 14:26 –
      If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

      Luke 19:27 –
      Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king, bring them here and slay them before me.

      John 3:36 –
      Whoever beliefs in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.

      Titus 2:9, 2:10 –
      Slaves are to be under the control of their masters in all respects, giving them satisfaction, not talking back to them or stealing from them, but exhibiting complete good faith, so as to adorn the doctrine of God our savior in every way.

      The Bible doesn’t teach violence; how funny is that? The Bible is full of violence. Christians simply point to a few quotes sprinklered throughout (most of which are really stupid) such as “turning the other cheek.” There is no question that the Koran endorses more violence (on the personal level) than the Bible does. But to say that the Bible doesn’t teach violence is ludicrous.

      I don’t know what “studies” you are talking about that prove that religious people are more giving than secular ones? Religious people obviously donate to their church (at least many do) but so what? If it wasn’t for secular individuals, we’d still be living in the Dark Ages. Just consider what scientists have contributed to mankind (most of whom are non-believers) as opposed to the clergy. The clergy are just parrots, mimicking all of the nonsense written in the Bible; the “holy book” with the 6-day creation, the flat-Earth belief, talking animals, the people said to live to be hundreds of years old, the Flood, Noah’s Ark, Jonah living in the stomach of a whale for 3 days, and all of the countless other fairy-tales written by ignorant men. Not even children would believe some of the stories in the Bible, and this is the book that God supposedly inspired?

      Again, religion is not the mother of morality. One doesn’t need to be religious to be moral; to be a decent individual with good feelings, with compassion. I certainly wouldn’t drown my children as the God of the Bible did. I also wouldn’t keep slaves nor would I invent hell.

      You’re assessment of people who believe in scientific principles isn’t correct. Quite the contrary, people who believe in science are generally the skeptical types. Unlike religious individuals, we don’t start with the answer, with statements of absolute fact such as “there is a God,” with no proof whatsoever. Even brilliant scientists such as Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein, who were generally certain of many propositions “proven” through their experiments, have since had those certainties modified by modern science. My point: if I am not absolutely certain of something, I don’t make absolute statements, and even if I do I am well aware that I may be wrong. One of the things that is so silly about religious individuals is not only that they assert that God exists; they also make claims as to what God thinks and what God wants. The absurdity of these beliefs is obvious.

      I don’t really know what you want me to tell you about how I “decide” what is good and what is evil? I don’t decide what is good and what is evil. I simply go through life without purposely hurting anyone. Conversely, I try to help people when I can, given my limitations. But if your definition of being good is getting on my knees and praying to the invisible man in the sky, or giving money to organized religion, or falsely making claims about my unwavering faith, then according to those standards I am certainly not a good individual.

  13. Mitchell says:

    So the typical rap song defines ALL African-Americans? You took a couple hymns (who knows how old) and painted God with that brush. Not to mention, you made no mention of the muslim god in your argument against gods. Do you have a problem with the way women, gays, atheists are thought of in the world of Islam?

    I mentioned Hitler because he was not religious (despite what some say). And he killed millions in the name of “science” (eugenics). What would you say about that? Not only “religious” people do awful things.

    Without some sort of objective standard, you would not know WHAT is good or evil. Some cultures believe murdering women is okay. Who are you to say otherwise? Are you a special being that has been granted special powers to judge the world? Without some sort of transcendent source for morality, we are forced into a sort of ethical relativism. You cannot say something is “good” unless you first know bad. And as I said, who are YOU to make that decision?

    Sometimes God intervenes and sometimes he does not. But I will tell you that there is a much greater chance of Him doing something when He is asked to (prayer).

    You cannot expect God to prevent every injustice. Just as you cannot expect law enforcement to prevent every crime. We would all be locked up in order to prevent stuff that might happen. We have a choice, a free choice. If we choose to break the law we will be punished (if caught). God also has a justice system. It is up to us to obey it. But there are consequences.

    • TGO says:

      I suppose you make up your mind about what you thought I wrote without actually bothering to read what I wrote. I NEVER said that typical rap defines ALL African-Americans; read again. And again, I didn’t “take” a couple of hymns to paint God with a brush, since I didn’t write the story in the Blog. Again, I simply posted what was written by Lemuel K. Washburn over a century ago, although I do concur with his views.

      I believe that ALL religions SUCK; some more than others. At the present time, Islam is probably the worst of all, as it is currently the most fanatical. But there was a time when this “honor” belonged to Christianity. It isn’t by coincidence that the period of time when most of Europe was ruled by the Catholic Church is known as the Dark Ages. I have a “problem” with all religions, as they are all founded on false miracles, superstitions and fairy-tales.

      I never said that only religious people do awful things. Obviously, there have been quite a few grotesquely evil human beings throughout history who have slaughtered countless numbers of innocent people and have not been religious. Nevertheless, religion is responsible for the overwhelming amount of pain, suffering, death and destruction brought upon man by man.

      Religion is not a source of morality. If you have read the Bible, as I have, certainly you are well aware of the immoral character of much of it. The Bible endorsed the slaughter of entire people (men, women and children). The Bible endorsed slavery; the Bible said that women were unclean; the Bible invented hell – need I continue?

      You’re dreaming if you actually believe that God intervenes in our daily affairs. If there in fact is a God, which there is no proof of, there is no indication whatsoever that he does intervene; quite the contrary.

      No, I do not expect for law enforcement to prevent every crime. But then again, law enforcement is not professed to be all-good and all-powerful. If law enforcement had been assigned these lofty accolades, I would certainly expect a whole lot more from them. Similarly, God has definitely fallen short of perfection in this regard.

      By the way, I hope you’ve realized by now that I do not believe in God, certainly not the biblical God or the God of the Koran; the God of the Book of Mormon; the Old Testament God of the Jews; or any other God for that matter. God is a thought, a concept, but certainly not real. God is also demographic. The Christian God belongs to Christians, the Jewish God to the Jews, the Islamic God to the Muslims, etc. etc. etc. Had you been born in India you would probably be a Hindu; had you been born in Israel you would probably be a Jew; had you been born in Lebanon you would probably be a Muslim; had you been born in northern Ireland you would probably be a Protestant; had you been born in Rome you would probably be a Catholic; had you been born in Utah you would probably be a Mormon; had you been born in Alabama you would probably be an Evangelical Christian…

      None of us know anything about God, his “justice,” his “plan,” or anything else for that matter. In fact, none of us know if there is a God.

  14. Mitchell says:

    So I could describe African American culture by posting the lyrics to a rap song? That would be a little reckless and irresponsible don’t you think?

    And how would you define “good care”?

    What about the extermination and torture of millions of Jews in Nazi Germany because of Hitler’s embrace of eugenics.

    And how do YOU know what is good or evil What knowledge or wisdom have you that we are all lacking, that grants you the judgement of what is good and what is evil?

    • TGO says:

      No, posting the lyrics to the typical rap song wouldn’t be reckless, it would simply be identifying what many in the rap culture sing about. It doesn’t mean that all rap artists fit a particular mold, but no doubt that many of them do.

      I would define “good care” as just about everyone else would. The Inquisitions, the Crusades, torture, disease, hunger, natural disasters, suicide bombers, 911, etc., etc. Neither I nor anyone else would describe any of these as good. If God is all-good and all-powerful as he is often professed to be, how do you explain these things? Don’t try; you cant.

      What does Hitler have to do with any of this? But since you mention him, why didn’t God stop Hitler before he gassed and roasted millions? And please, don’t say that God doesn’t interfere with man’s affairs, because if he doesn’t, then why do people pray to him so that he may grant them their wishes?

      I don’t need religion to KNOW what is good and what is evil. I never said that anyone was lacking knowledge or wisdom. I simply don’t believe in the superstitions and fairy-tales written by ignorant men in so-called “holy” books. But you mention evil, has anything more evil than the concept of hell ever been conceived? Leave it to religion (religious people) to dream-up such a despicable place. Thankfully for all of us, no such place exists.

  15. Mitchell says:

    Assuming God is real and is exactly how you have described Him. Why wouldn’t He just flick you off the face of the Earth for your blatant disrespect?

    Your blog sounds like more of a hate for Christ than a thoughtful, informed argument against religion. Hard to take seriously.

    • TGO says:

      I haven’t described God, I merely posted something that someone else wrote. How could I, or anyone else for that matter, describe something that is unknowable? The reason God doesn’t flick me off the face of the Earth is either because he doesn’t exist or because he doesn’t care. But if he does exist, he certainly isn’t taking very good care of his creation.

      I don’t hate anyone. I do however, despise organized religions. Religions have throughout history been the cause of more bloodshed than any other human invention. Religions perpetuate ignorance and superstition, alienate people from one another, and are generally responsible for a tremendous amount of human suffering. It is of no surprise that the most religious people in the world live in the most backward and oppressed societies. As particle physicist and Nobel Prize winner Steven Weinberg stated “Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.”

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