[John Scalzi] The Belief Schism

SF author John Scalzi tackles belief and believers (two related but distinct
things). I always find it fascinating to read the specific nuance that
thinkers have for their thoughts.

http://whatever.scalzi.com/2011/08/01/the-belief-schism/
The Belief Schism
>
> *This article at New Statesman magazine<http://www.newstatesman.com/religion/2011/07/god-evidence-believe-world>
> ,* in which (mostly) prominent (mostly) British (mostly) atheists explain
> why they don’t believe in God, is both interesting in itself and causes me
> to remind myself why I’m an agnostic who presumes there isn’t a God, which
> is: there’s no evidence for God, or evidence that a god-like entity (or
> entities) ever crawled around the skin of this world, telling humans what to
> do with their lives. This is different than humans suggesting that a god (or
> gods) has spoken to them and told them that bananas are forbidden, or to go
> slaughter the people in the next town, or to wear day-glo orange pantaloons,
> or whatever. That process doesn’t actually need the involvement of a god; it
> just needs someone with a good enough understanding of primate grouping
> dynamics to sell it.
>
> It also reminds me why I don’t feel particularly antagonistic toward
> religion as a concept, which is: Hey, if ritual and belief help you get
> through your life, and doesn’t get in *my* way, enjoy. The fall down here
> is not the concept of religion, but the practice of it, in which many people
> seem to believe that it’s not enough that they have to live as their god
> tells them to, but I do too, and so does everyone else. I find this annoying
> and typically speaking not strictly required by the person whom the religion
> purports to represent, and I regret having to spend the time and effort
> pointing out such things to the practitioners.
>