The Silence

When I open the bible, I read of an active and vengeful God. I read of a God who brought a storm of fire upon Sodom and Gomorra because their citizens lost his favor. I read of a God who sent ferocious bears to maul dozens of children to death for mocking the hair loss of one of his prophets. I read of a God who once filled the lungs of nearly every person and creature on earth by submerging the entire planet just because some members of one species drifted astray from the apparently personal perfect moral standard he'd set for them. My disbelief in that god's existence anywhere beyond the pages of a book or the boundaries of Christian imagination is not only found in the petty, cruel, and immature nature of above listed actions. It's not just that my expectations for the sole pillar of some allegedly objective morality are so much higher than what the bible describes of the Christian god. My disbelief is fortified by such disappointment of his description in that text, but it is heavily reinforced when my study advances beyond its gilded pages and my reading continues elsewhere.
When I open a history book, I read of Germany from 1933-1945 to learn of six million people robbed of their lives because that God allowed one man and his cruel political party to rise to power and seek extermination of an entire demographic. When I read the memoirs of Holocaust survivors that depict the incineration of infants, the starvation and exploitation of those fit to work, and the inhumane experimentation done on others, I cannot help but contemplate the meekness of a once vengeful God. Could it be the reverent words prayed to him from the millions of dying voices fell on deaf omniscient ears because the lips that spoke them were born into the wrong religion? Perhaps it was because he saw the Nazi's annihilation of all Jewish people to be acceptable under his perfect moral standards- far more acceptable than mockery of hair loss for one of his chosen people of course. Though it seems any reasonable person would conclude that aggressive God of legend's quietness and unwillingness to react to such heinous actions as he apparently used to is in direct relation to his inexistence.
When I open a web page to learn about the American south in the early 1800's I find that devoutly religious people were treated as property. Human beings that were deprived of education, beaten for discipline, and forced to live lives from start to finish under the subjugation of wealthy men due only to the hue of the skin they were born into, and nothing else. If the Christian god is the one who answered the prayers of those innocent victims he did so in a way that was slower and more peculiar than any of his methods described in the bible. He didn't send angels to sweep the slaves away before raining fire on the plantations, nor did he transform the slave breakers into pillars of salt. He didn't send a great a flood to wash them away, or even a plague that only targeted the guilty. Instead, after generations of praying slaves died without reprieve, he apparently worked through political policies and military processions. Gabriel must have been busy that century, because he sent legions of men from both sides of the conflict and an unreligious president to answer their prayers with war and diplomacy, leaving centuries more of the same conflicts of culture assimilation that we'd expect from the slowly developing society that is mankind itself. God was becoming awfully good at disguising his works to look like the work of humans by the 19th century.
When I open newspapers and read of countless rape and murder victims across the country, I have to wonder how many last words were cries of help to a mute god- prayers forever unheard and unanswered. Could it be that that every woman and child ever raped and murdered deserved that act enough for it to be considered God's will? If not so, then how could it be done? What reason might there be for such inconsistency in his staunch punishment for evil in biblical times compared to his absolute refusal to metal in human evil during this age of science, journalism, and objective observation?
When I open my mind enough to consider the scope of the Christian God's description, it is clear why I can't believe. The biblical accounts of that God's activity are so monstrous and indignant that I can only describe them as those of an uncivilized human. Just as insulting and unconvincing on his behave, however, as the cruelty of his allegedly verbose and vengeful actions thousands of years ago, is the inconsistency forged by his modern, unyielding silence.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• GrapplingIgnorance
• god
• religion
• Christian
• silence
• meak
• action
• prayer
• pray
• earth
• pain
• suffering
• condition
• holy

[saveit4terry1]

God is all knowing man. He knew you from before he created the earth. He knew everyone whether they be "good or bad" according to the worlds standards. you have to understand God doesnt stop suffering for a reason. We cant even try to guess why he doesnt. God is outside of our understanding and he is sovereign. God can do anything he wants and he does it to bring glory to himself. if you seek him, you will find him. just try to seek him with an unbiased state of mind. i promise you wont be sorry

[GrapplingIgnorance]

@saveit4terry1 If we can't possibly understand him, then why are you claiming to understand these things about him? I, and many other non-believers WERE believers at one time who DID seek your God with a state of mind that was biased in his favor, and he still failed to reveal himself. Don't be so condescending, or vague in your apologetics. I was to tell you that Hitler had justified motives for his acts, but you couldn't understand them, would they be any less gruesome?

[BlameTheFirst]

So both God and the world around you do not fit your ideal standard; therefore, he doesn't exist to you?

I don't know whether or not that is illogical or just plain petty.

[GrapplingIgnorance]

@BlameTheFirst It's not about "my standard." It's about the inconsistency of the God from biblical times to modern times, as well as his described immorality. The God's alleged omni-benevolence, omnipotence etc. being inconsistent with his eternal silence when his people are in need. Did you even watch the video?

[UniversalCipher]

This is the first time I've felt guilty for hitting the "like" button on one of your videos.

The like count was 666 beforehand :P

[GrapplingIgnorance]

@UniversalCipher Hah, well I suppose this comment should absolve you of that guilt.

[GrapplingIgnorance]

@eyallev You must be joking. Would you say the same of a Dad who beats his kids, and then neglects them? Oh- when he did something it was too much, and when he didn't do anything he was a bad parent- make up your mind, there's just no pleasing you! I have HIGH expectations for an allegedly omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, omnibenevolent figure that demands eternal praise. The LEAST I could hold him to is the standard of a moral parent.

[saveit4terry1]

@GrapplingIgnorance its kinda cool looking at old Bible prophecies and seeing they are coming true today!

[saveit4terry1]

@GrapplingIgnorance well, most Christians say once saved, always saved and that is what the bible teaches. so you were never really a Christian if you arent now. you werent seeking God but your selfish motives. when God reveals himself to you, when you get a glimpse of his presence, there is no way anyone could stray from him. you can keep looking for proof that he isnt real, but there is no way you could ever convince a 'true believer' that there isnt a God because of what he does in there life

[cancerousmojo]

The fact that by the Bible's own account, even with the creator of the universe supposedly actively intervening upon this planet, that people still disregarded him on almost every occasion really doesn't say very much for this god. If a person can shrug off regular exposure to their alleged creator, he must be fairly underwhelming. Maybe that's why Yahweh slinked off - He was so embarrassed at his own numerous failures & his creation's collective snubbing of him. All praise to the sheepish god.

[Impalamark64]

Excellent, the best yet! It's too bad this message won't reach the poor, superstitious, deluded masses.

[PaintballLyndon]

What God doesn't give to you, you have to go and get for yourselves. We're pretty much on our own here folks, better start working together to gain some common grounds or humanity will be fucked because we'll kill ourselves off fighting over who has the best imaginary friend.

[istheevilclown]

I can't remember.

[kamul8]

this is the best GI video ever.

it explains perfectly, why i became an athiest ... and puts it in amazing words!

keep up the work!

[stealthgerm]

@saveit4terry1 that expains the vengence?cruelty???god does anything he wants because he loves us?ok he can do anny thing because we are so important to him? lol

[flexbrat]

they say everything comes back into fashion ? how about feeding the christians to the lions maybe this time it will take ! ?

[flexbrat]

@saveit4terry1 this evil god of the bible needs to be put to death but at last there is no god so thats out !