Apostasy

I have been having a lot of conversations lately, again, about atheism.

I really do think the world would be a better place without religions, and without faith.  I understand that ritual is the way that we organize the elements of our lives, and I apreciate that. Rituals mean a lot to me.  I enjoy them, but I also understand that they serve a function.

Ritual
- unites people for shared experience
- provides structure
- orders social interaction
- creates predictability and safety
- orchestrates meaning

Faith is something that provides a feeling of bridging between the known and the abyss.  Without that bridge, one has to stand on the edge of the precipice, and examine "the terror".

There isn't anything to fear about the unknown. We all have a place, and it is as large or as small as the space that we carve out for ourselves.

It would be a lot easier to believe in a pre-ordained plan, truth is, I don't.

It certainly seems that right now humanity isn't in a place to function without faith, but I dream of a time when we will rise above that need.  When we will be able to look at the world AS IT IS and find it beautiful.

That's all.  I don't desire to rip people's comfort's from them, and when I say that I feel like it's too bad that people have't evolved beyond needing faith to feel at peace with their lives and their world, I don't mean any specific people, I would like humanity to evolve to not needing it.  It makes me sad to see people I care about believing in fairy stories. 

I know that I say "things fell into place" or "must be what's supposed to happen" but I know that there's not a real plan for things, I KNOW that there isn't a higher power, and that when I see patterns, it's like seeing dragons in the clouds.

Perhaps there is some kind of cosmic ebb and flow, like tides, maybe we are moved like magnetic shavings.  I have too much on my plate, and not enough science background to read these things right now, but the thoughts amuse me.