Does God Exist? Is there really a God? Applying Reality to the Existence of God

What is the Definition of God?

Is there a God? Is God the God of the Bible? To address the question of "Is there a God" we must ask ourselves what the word "God" means. This is the reason that the Church of Reality doesn't just come out and declare that there is no possibility that God doesn't exist by any definition. We don't know - for example - why anything exists. Why is there something rather than nothing and how did it get here? We can't say that we know that there is no possibility that there is some higher being out there and that our entire universe might not be a piece of software running on some computer in a a different universe. And - if you were to call that computer God - or call anything of that nature God - then God might exists. Some people have named their dog God - so God does exist. So - in the context of the widest definition of God as "something out there that's unknown" there might be a God. But if you get down to specific definitions of God - like the God described in the Christian and Jewish Bibles - no - that God doesn't exist.

The God of the Bible

The Bible was written thousands of years ago. No one knows who started it. It has been altered severely over the centuries with books added and deleted - new translations and interpretations - many new versions - and worshiped as a holy book. The myth is that in spite of all this, the God has a hand in the evolution of the Bible and that it is still "God's Word" and is 100% correct. God is - of course - all powerful - all knowing - perfect in every way - and therefore must have had a hand in protecting the integrity of his work. And - that must also apply, I suppose, to at least most all translations and interpretations - even if they appear to contradict each other and the laws of physics. But is there a way - assuming an infinitely powerful God - to determine if the Bible is real or not? Sure there is. Lets apply some logic here.

Let's take the Bible literally at it's word and make the following assumptions:

1. God is Good - would never do anything bad.

2. God is all powerful and can do anything. Example: God created everything.

3. God is everywhere and knows everything - even the future.

4. The Bible is the Word of God.

Limitations of being Omnipotent - No Free Will

Being omnipotent has it's limitations. God, for example, can't do anything wrong. "But", you would say, "God wouldn't want to do anything wrong." Yep - another limitation. I can want to do something wrong - God can't. God will never know what it truly feels like to personally commit a sin. I remember watching George Carlin with his trick questions for Catholic priests like, "Can God create a rock so big that he himself can't lift it?" Yes - this is all funny - but there really are some serious limitations to being omnipotent.

The Bible says God knows the future.So - if God knows the future, do we have free will? I mean - since God already knows what we are going to do - then we really don't have any choice. We seem to have a choice because we don't know what we are going to do. But - if God knows the future then reality is like a movie that's already been written and it's like we are watching the movie for the first time - so we don't know what's going to happen - but God has already seen the movie and he knows what's going to happen - and that's it. The movie can't change.

What this means is - there really is no such thing as "free will". Free Will implies that we have a choice and that we can do A or we can do B but if God already knows we are going to do A then we are going to do A. We can't chose to do B because if we chose B then God would have been wrong about knowing we were going to chose A, and God can't be wrong. Thus there really is no real choice.

Being able to see into "the future" is the most limiting power of all because once you can see the future then you can see you're own future and you no longer have the illusion of choice. You become infinitely powerless by becoming infinitely powerful. Imagine if you will God looking into the future and seeing himself remembering the moment that he looked into the future seeing himself remembering the past. Kind of like a tunnel of mirrors, enough to even give God a headache. (Whoops - another limitation - God can't get headaches!) Of course - this assumes God is subject to time (entropy) and if he is not - if God exists in all time simultaneously, then God is as stagnant as a lump of concrete and has no power to change anything at all. hmmmmm .... maybe that's what God depends on John Ashcroft and the Reverend Sun Myung Moon to do his work for him?

Sin - Who's Fault is it?

If God created me and I am imperfect and I commit sin - is it my fault? Not hardly! Why would it be my fault? After all - God created me - God knew how I would turn out if he created me with flaws. God saw it in the future - so why blame me? God should take responsibility for his own work and not try to pass the blame on for flaws he created - intentionally! I think so! God should quit acting like a baby and fix his own work.

For example. If I build a shed and I don't pour enough concrete to hold the main posts in place and the wind blows and lifts my shed out of the ground - who's fault is that? Do we blame the shed or the builder? If I write a computer program with bugs in it and the program fails - it is the fault of the program or the programmer? It's the programmer! If we are God's work and God is omnipotent and he makes us this way - then we are doing what we were created to do, what it was foreseen that we would do. What God already knew we would do before we were born. So - who really fucked up here? God did!

According to what the Bible says, if we commit any sin at all we will burn in Hell forever unless we are forgiven. What a crock of shit! I mean - think about it. If I told you there was this guy down the street who tortured people with fire for doing anything he doesn't like, you'd call the police and have the guy locked up. This guy would be a dangerous insane criminal. Who is this insane criminal in the Bible? God! According to the Bible our creator is absolutely insane. Think about it. If there were a perfect creator, would he be supremely cruel? I don't think so.

So - why is it in the Bible then. Well - because the Bible is just a myth and was written by men and is no more the work of God than any other novel. Back in the old days there were kings and kings had absolute authority and power and were often tyrants. Thus as you went to higher authorities within the social structure you found meaner and meaner tyrants - then God must be the ultimate tyrant because he had ultimate power. The concept of God was molded after the concept of kings. Thus prayer, worship, human sacrifice, and that sort of nonsense that was ingrained in ancient culture made it's way into the description of God.

But seriously - the whole Heaven and Hell thing - as if death isn't scary enough they create this afterlife which lasts forever and you either get eternal reward or eternal damnation depending of judgment - which is based on being loyal to your cult - recruiting new members - and giving mass quantities of money to the church. Hell is depicted as fire which is something that everyone understands. Heaven is a mystery depicted as a place in the clouds. Angels have wings so heaven must have a gaseous atmosphere and be subject to gravity. The streets are gold, which it a really poor material for constructing streets, but implies that God has a lot of money which makes sense that he would considering how much he's collected from churches over thousands of years.

Heaven seems kind of dull unless your a Muslim who gets 70 virgins when they get to Heaven. Shows you what the Muslim men what to do for eternity. I personally would rather have 70 whores but after a few billion years the virgins would figure it all out. At least the Muslims are getting laid in the afterlife. Of course - back in ancient times the directions like up and down were absolute and Heaven was up in the clouds where angels have wings and Hell was down in the earth where there was lava like fire. And since dead people were no longer here they had to go either up or down. Back then - this all made sense.

The Bible says - God is a Mass Murderer of Children

I remember being a young Jew and being taught about Moses leading the Jews out of Egypt, especially the events that led up to that. According to the story, God killed the first born male of all the Egyptian families. Being the first born and male - this was a sensitive issue for me. From my perspective they were saying that God would kill me if I had the wrong parents. I took a look at my parents and thought - Holy Fuck! - I'm in trouble!

The Jews put had to mark their houses by killing a goat or a lamb and smearing the blood around the door so that when God came to kill children, he didn't accidently kill the wrong ones. God's all powerful - but he's easily confused and needs to have things marked so that he doesn't make a mistake. And - God had to be appeased with animal sacrifices or he's going to come kill your children.

Now - if I told you there was this guy in the neighborhood who was going around slaughtering first born males of everyone who didn't have goats blood smeared around there door, we'd lock that guy up and make him the poster boy for the death penalty. But this is God we're talking about here who's the insane criminal. God - the all powerful creator of the universe - who knows everything - and loves us all - is also a mass murderer of children. Even at the age of 5 I wasn't buying it and I was living in a world where the adults were stupid scary people who were trying to force me to believe things that made absolutely no sense at all. Fortunately for me though I had parents who had their own lives screwed up so much that they didn't have it together enough to force this nonsense on me the way most kids were forced. And being a Jew wasn't nearly as insane as the what the Catholic kids in the neighborhood went through. I'm afraid of how I might have turned out if I actually bought any of this nonsense. But every day parents are abusing children by filling their heads with this sort of religious nonsense.

The Creation Story and other Flaws in the Bible

If the Bible is the "Word of God" and God is perfect then the Bible must be perfect. One would have the expectation that someone who created the universe would have a pretty good idea about how it all worked and that his books would be accurate. Well ... not so as it turns out. The Bible is full of serious errors. So many errors in fact that it makes you wonder where God went to school. What amazes me is how many people believe this - which shows you the sorry state of the human race.

First - the world was not created in 6 days. It just didn't happen that way. But - you say - to God a day is like 1000 years. Well - come on! If God is omnipotent and he's writing a book for people to read and understand - don't you think that God knows how long a day is? I mean - doesn't one have to assume that God isn't stupid? So - even if a day is 1000 years that takes the age of the universe up to what? 12,000 years? Where did the other 15 billion years go?

We are seeing stars and galactic clusters out there that are 10 billion light years away. That means that what we are seeing came from stars 10 billion years ago. That's how long the light takes to get here. if the universe were merely 12,000 years old, we couldn't see any stars that were more than 12,000 light years away.That would be less that 100th of our own galaxy and we would never see any other galaxies because the next closest galaxy is 2.2 million light years from here. The Bible is wrong. End of story.

But - you might say - maybe God just created the light in transit to make it look like there were stars out there older than 12,000 years to fool all those scientists with no faith. Well - besides the conclusion that God must hate smart people - if God did something to mislead people - if God created light to fake the age of starts - doesn't that make God a liar? Are you calling God a liar?

So - the Bible is wrong - what does that mean. Well - if there is a God - then he didn't write the Bible. Perhaps it's a forgery meaning that God is going to be pissed at all the churches. Or - most likely - God doesn't exist and it's all just one big fraud. Bingo! Sorry to burst your bubble but it's all just one big lie.

The Bible also has creating in the wrong order. The stars came before the Earth - God has it backwards. Then there is Noah and the Ark Story. Highest mountains are 27,000 feet - 40 days and 40 nights - that's 25 feet of rain an hour. That's one hell of a rain! And two of every species on a big wooden boat. All because God lost his temper and had to destroy the Earth. You would have though he would have seen that coming. God really has a temper problem and could use some violence counseling. He really needs to control his anger better.

Then there's the Tower of Babel. These guys thought they would build a tower to climb up to Heaven and mess with God. At some point in the construction God started to get worried about that and he had to put a stop to it before they succeeded. So God changed all their languages so they couldn't talk to each other.

Think that would work? God has never had any experience with a San Francisco construction crew where you pick up a bunch of Mexicans on Army Street and put them to work. They figure out what to do and how to get paid. And - considering the time - how high was the Tower of Babel? How high can you build a building out of wood rock and mud? How high was it compared to our modern steel and concrete buildings? Why didn't God stop the construction of the Work Trade Towers? (Oh - he did!) We've been in outer space and looking down at the Earth and God is not in the atmosphere. So - why was he threatened by a tower? See - doesn't make any sense when you think about it. (Although thinking about it is the work of the Devil.)

Is God a Male?

We all refer to God as HE implying that God is male. What does that mean - that God is male? Does it means that God must have a penis? Does he have testicles? What does God use his penis for? Isn't that the definition of being male? After all - what is male anyhow? Male is a living being with a penis. If God were female - she would have a vagina. If God had neither - then it wouldn't be described in terms of gender. Of course - to even bring up the subject of God's penis is blasphemy because the penis is a dirty thing and God would obviously be ashamed of his penis and that if I end up killed in a car crash or assassinated by a Christian fanatic then it's because God got angry and struck me down for talking about his penis.

Seriously though - if this sounds ridiculous - it's in the Bible. We are created in the shape of God. And since God is male then he must have one. And since God fills the universe and has shape then the universe must have a penis. Don't blame me - the Bible says it! Why would God have such a thing and what does he do with it? What are his sexual preferences? Do you think God ever did it? Maybe that's why women yell, "Oh God!" Yep - definitely going to burn in Hell for that remark! One of the mysteries of the universe ....

So - what's with Jesus?

So - this guy Jesus comes along and he's God's son. He was born to a virgin ..... hmmmmm .... yeah right! OK - Let's just assume that God can do anything and that he can reproduce through a human virgin. I'll just give them that one. But - why? What's the point?

Think about it. God - infinitely powerful - created the entire universe with trillions of stars - (although some believe that scientists have never actually proved that stars exist.) - this God goes to this tiny little planet and finds him a virgin to have a son with. And - she had to be a virgin because our method of reproduction is dirty. And - although God is male - he certainly doesn't use his penis for that sort of thing. So - God reproduces with human females and he has this son Jesus who starts a carpentry business. Then he goes out and performs a few miracles and is crucified on Friday - or was it Saturday? Then he comes back from the dead three days later. on Easter Sunday. A miracle in itself! You can't kill God you see. At least - you can't kill God for more than three days. That's the rule.

So Jesus dies for our sins. God has to allow his son to be killed because God does a human sacrifice for us to prove he loves us. Hmmmmm ... talk about a Jewish guilt trip! So - now it's all about faith and what you believe or don't believe - and if you don't believe this - you're going to burn in Hell forever after your dead. It raises an interesting question. How much do you have to scare a person to get them to believe in something that's totally ridiculous? That is the real question here!

If God Exists - then Where is He?

If God does exist then he must be hiding somewhere. Been a long time since he showed up in public. All we seem to have is this old book called the Bible. If God is all powerful and is everywhere - then why is he so inaccessible? Why doesn't he have a web site? Why doesn't he have an e-mail address? Why can't we call him on the phone? Why doesn't he appear on television? Why doesn't he update the Bible and do book signings at Barnes and Noble? Why doesn't he give speeches at the United Nations? He's not even registered to vote! (Although we all know that if God were here that he'd be a white American male and vote for Republicans.)

God is not only hiding - but for some reason God is so powerless that God needs to act through us to accomplish anything. If God has something to say then he has to make someone speak gibberish (tongues) and someone else interpret that. I've seen that happen and it's a scary scene. One has to assume that either God really is speaking through these people - or that these people are seriously mentally deranged. Most likely the latter because if God is all powerful you would think he would have basic communication skills. You'd think he'd show up as a burning bush and speak for himself!

One has to conclude that God is at least hiding for some reason and that there is enough evil in the world that he's obviously not involved. Or - everything is going exactly as planned and therefore what I am writing now is part of God's plan - even though I will burn in Hell forever for writing it. Is God testing us? Why would he have to do that? Since he can see the future - he already knows what the results are. I guess the invisible guy in the sky will remain invisible.

If God doesn't exist - then why do so many people believe he does?

This is a very interesting question. If so many people believe it - doesn't that mean it's most likely true? This question exposes a flaw in human nature that causes mass quantities of people to belive in things that are obviously not true. And many of these people are smart people. So why do smart people believe in stupid things? It has to do with the human brain being an imperfect tool. And logic is not the dominate factor that controls our thinking.

To answer this question we have to look back at human evolution. The ability to reason and communicate and to pass on knowledge from one person to another is at best a few hundred thousand years old. Before that our brains were dedicated to defending ourselves, obtaining food, and mating. And those instincts are far stronger and more well developed. One of those instincts is the instinct to socialize and act as a group in order to better survive. We are like a hive of bees who are individuals, yet can't survive by themselves. Bees live in hives which are really a super organism which is a collection including thousands of bees. Although humans are not as integrated as bees, we are definitely herd animals, and we depend on being part of society as our super organism. And that dependence on society is something that is hard wired in our brains on the instinct level and is far stronger than logic is.

An example of instinct being stronger than logic is President Clinton having sex with Monica Lewinsky. Here's a smart guy who obviously knew better but did it anyhow. In fact if you actually read the Starr report you can plainly see how he struggled to stop doing it and break it off and just couldn't help himself. And when it comes down to it - we're more like Clinton than most of us realize. If we weren't - the human race would have become extinct millions of years ago. If you look at what Clinton did in the context of instinct rather than logic - it all make total sense.

But sex isn't the only instinctive behavior to override our logic. Our need to organize as a society is at least as strong as our sexual instincts. For example - much of our brain and the structure of our mouth, tongue and vocal cords are devoted to speech. And speech has only one purpose - to communicate with other people. And we communicate because we have to. It's a key part of our survival strategy. We are totally interdependent on each other and our very being is programmed to form associations are work as a group. It is important to fit into the herd - and as we see in times of war - we are even willing to die for the herd.

Our common knowledge which I call the Tree of Knowledge is what distinguishes us from the animals. Our collective intellectual commons is far bigger than any one human mind can store and we are dependent on others to process knowledge for us and we have to trust others that they know what is true so that we can function in society. And the most common way of relying on external information is if "everyone" seems to accept it.

The advantage of the human mind allocating information storage and trust to other people or groups of people is that we have access to much more information than were can store and process ourselves. The disadvantage of this information allocation is that if the group is wrong - then all the members are wrong.

So - how do we rise above our instincts and determine what the truth really is knowing that our minds are under influences stronger than logic? For example - maybe my need to associate with my fellow cult members (people who I associate with) who are atheists are driving me to espouse positions that have undermined my logic. One always has to question ones own imperfect mind. If you were raised as a Christian - how do you know if you should question that?

There are a lot of religions on this planet and they have very different views of God - or Gods - or no God. One thing that is common is that people feel in their heart usually that the religion they were raised in is the true religion and that all other religions look like heathen nonsense. Christians think Muslims are primitive heathens, and Muslims consider Christians to be Infidels. But use this view to justify slaughtering each other as surrogates of a mythical God. I personally was raised Jewish (somewhat) and had to believe that being a Jew was better than any other religion, because if it weren't my parents would have converted to the better religion. And I believe that Jews really are one of the better religions on the planet even though the Old Testament is total bullshit. So - what do I believe that? Are Jews in some way superior - or - do I think that because I was influenced that way when I was a kid. How do I separate reality from the influences of my imperfect brain?

First - I look around at other people's bias based on the way they were raised and I have to assume that I am biased as well. And that what I believe about Jews is tainted by my instincts. I have to assume that my attitude towards Judaism is probably more favorable than reality would support since everyone else on the planet thinks their religion is best based only on that they were raised that way.

So - if you look around and see what I see - that people believe the religion they were raised with - and you believe the religion you were raised with - can you accept that it is as likely that you are as wrong about your religion as they are about theirs? Even though you "know in your gut" that you are right - you can't help to notice that they also "know in their gut" that they are right. In fact - for what it's worth - I know in my gut that I'm right. That believing in reality is the true religion. So - who's right? (I am!)

Getting back to the point here. All religions are cults - including this one. Our need to connect with a group and to identify with society is instinctive. Cult behavior isn't limited to just religions. Nationalism is similar. America is a cult. We believe we are better than everyone else and if God were here on Earth that he would be an American. Other cults include political parties, sports teams, neighborhood associations, memberships in organizations, corporations, etc. People organize into groups and are often willing to compromise their logic and accept the view of the group.

Have you ever wondered why - when a Jehovah's Witness, for example, comes to your door to convert you - that there's nothing to can say to them to shake their belief - even though what they are preaching is extremely idiotic? The reason you will never get anywhere is that this person is socially connected to this group. They are providing him more that just religious beliefs. This person has his identity tied to the cult mind. It gives him a sense of community and belonging and this identity and community is something that is important to him. If he were to question the beliefs of his group - he would eventually realize that it's bullshit and it would result in his having to leave the group. If this person is not prepared to leave the group - then his mind will play whatever tricks it needs to play in order to hang on to the required belief. Unless this person is ready to leave the cult - there is no way their mind can possibly accept information that is contrary to the required views of the cult.

Although it's easy for us to look at the Jehovah's Witnesses, or the Muslims, or the Hindus, or any other religion we are not a member of and see how ridiculous their beliefs are - when it comes to our own religion, country, or political party, well - that's different. Is it not true that the reason you might believe in the Bible and the God of the Bible is really because you have been brainwashed that way from childhood and that due to old mental patterns and fear of what you would lose socially - not to mention the idea that you are going to die and cease to exist - that you are too afraid to really consider that reality is not a pretty place and there is no God and we are out here all alone - responsible for our own choices - and with no parent figure in the sky to take care of us?

Anyhow - my point is - there are a lot of things that lots of people believe in that just isn't true - and it is the dharma of the Church of Reality to explore this and learn ways of separating what is real from what is not.

Why Belief in God is Dangerous to Humanity

So - you may be asking, "So I believe in the Bible. What's the hard? Why do you care if I want to waste my like pursuing insanity?" Yes - that is a strong point generally. The right to be wrong is one of the core principles of the Church of Reality because we often make a lot of mistakes on the path to discovering the truth. But - when a group of people threaten the well being of others then that's a different story.

In particular - Christians believe in the Apocalypse, or the end of the world. And - because it's important to them that they not be wrong = some of them are working towards making the world actually end. Others are just irresponsible and think that it doesn't matter how bad they mess things up because God will fix it and forgive them. That causes them to be irresponsible for their behavior and dangerous to society.

Faith in God is a dangerous thing. On September 11th 2001 a group of Muslims, acting in behalf of God, hijacked 4 planes and crashed them into buildings killing over 3000 people. The reason these people did it was because they believed they were acting in behalf of God and that God will reward them by giving them 70 virgins to have sex with for eternity. The fact is that these mass murderers are not in Heaven and that they are not having sex with 70 virgins. They are dead along with their victims. Why did this happen? Because they had faith! And as a result of their faith the world is a more dangerous place. Now Christians are seeing this as an opportunity to use their influence in the American administration to not only wage a war to kill a bunch of Muslims, but to take control of the world and impose God's laws (or rather what they believe are God's laws) on the rest of us by force.

Twenty years ago America had a Secretary of the Interior named James Watt. Watt was actually pro-polution and his excuse was that it didn't matter what we did to the environment - Jesus was coming back soon to destroy the Earth. Jesus is dead - if he ever existed at all - and he is not coming back. But - people who believe he is coming are much more likely to destroy the Earth and use God as an excuse to make it happen. If religious fanatics get control of weapons of mess destruction they will use them as part of their ritual fantasies. and the rest of us will suffer the consequences.

We live on this small ball of dust and this ball is all we have for now. We have the technology to destroy all life on this planet (well - all life of any complexity anyhow) and this is our home - and it's home to all of us. So if some people believe in the Book of Revelations and use that as a basis or excuse to destroy the home for the whole human race - then they are encroaching on our rights.

Historically religion is the basis for most war. Christians slaughter Muslims, Muslims slaughter Jews, Jews slaughter Palestinians, Catholics slaughter Protestants. They all think that God gave them property. They think they are the "chosen people". And they all think they are acting in behalf of God because God is impotent and incapable of acting on his own behalf, these people have to do God's work for him, which often includes slaughtering the nonbelievers. Nonbelievers like me.

So - because of religion some moron might start a nuclear war or something and wipe out the human race and then this planet just becomes another lifeless piece of dust in the universe. Maybe the cockroaches will take over and become intelligent and form a better society? But - I have to admit that I'm partial to humans - one of my prejudices I suppose. I just think it's a bad idea to annihilate the human race. Although as the founder of the Church of Reality I'm going to go ahead and abuse my powers and declare that annihilating humanity is officially a sin and punishable by being annihilated.

And - it's not just one religion going to war with another. They end up killing a lot of innocent people along the way. And it's all for nothing. People have to die over something that doesn't exist. So - it's not just a bad choice to believe in God - it's a choice that is dangerous to yourself and others. There are however some religions who believe in God and are not a threat to other people and that's much better. But the bottom line in most religions is world domination and I don't want to live in a world dominated by a deity fantasy. I choose to believe in what's real.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that there is no God and there is no afterlife and that this is all there is so you better enjoy it while it lasts. The God of the Bible is purely fiction and it's all one big lie. It would be nice if there were and afterlife and that we didn't have to face death and non-existence. It would be nice if there were some parental figure in the sky to take care of us when bad thing happen. But what we want and the way things are, are two different things. And you can just believe in something because that's the way you want it to be.

We are stuck here on this planet - a speck of dust in the universe - for but a flash of time. If we destroy ourselves then we are destroyed. There is no one out there who is going to clean up our mistakes other than ourselves. This is our planet and what we do matters and we are responsible for our own decisions. We are alone in the universe and this is our home - for better or worse - and that we are survived through our genetic heritage (although to reproduce we have to accept a 50% cut with someone else's genes) and what we leave behind in the Tree of Knowledge. Our legacy is what we contribute to the knowledge of mankind that is worth remembering and the events that we change by living our lives.

Questions and Answers

1. Q) So Marc - dude! Aren't you scared that you are going to burn in Hell?

   A) No!

2. Q) Are you absolutely sure? If so - why?

   A) Yes - One must assume that if God did exist that he isn't a moron - isn't powerless - isn't a child murderer - doesn't have an ego problem - never required animal sacrifices - and isn't an insane crazy person who reproduces by impregnating virgins. So - I think I'm pretty safe on this one.

3. Q) So - if this is all so stupid - then why do so many people believe it? I mean - really - can all those people believe something that is that ridiculous?

   A) Yes - that is what's amazing - that all those people can believe this? It's a scary thought. But - there are a lot of religions who believe a variety of bizarre things.Some people believe in reincarnation. Many believe there are lots of Gods. Muslim are waiting for their 70 virgins in the afterlife. Humans are above the animals - but not that far above. We are still a primitive species who are controlled more by our fears and our heard animal social instincts. These instincts are far more powerful than our logic and it tricks people into believing in things with no rational basis.

4. Q) But - if Christians are wrong - so what? But if you are wrong - you burn in Hell forever!

   A) If I'm right - and a person's entire existence is from birth to death - then Christians have wasted their entire existence on something that doesn't exist. If I'm wrong and the Bible is right - then Christians spend eternity worshiping a madman. I think I've made it clear that I'm betting on reality. Reality is all we really have and if you miss out on reality - you miss out on everything. This planet is just a spec of dust in the universe anyhow and we exist for but a flash of time so what does anything matter? But I'm going to take my little limited existence and try to at least understand what little I can about why anything exists. And maybe get laid a few times while I still can.

5. Q) But Marc - what about all this love I feel? My heart tells me this all is true!

   A) Yep - and all the other religions on the planet have members who feel that too. So - whose religion is the right one? People who believe opposite things all experience God and love and emotions that cause them to believe. Muslims and Christians go to war and slaughter each other both believing they are acting as God's proxy and with God's support. What it shows is how easily people can be suckered.

6. Q) Why do you put down Christians and Jews more than all the other religions?

   A) Because I'm more familiar with them and in America that's who surrounds me. I'm sure the rest of the world's major religions are at least as stupid - but I haven't wasted the time to learn them. I got better things to do than to hang out with the Hare Krishna's.

7. Q) Do you think there's any chance at all that some day you will become a Christian and get saved and give up your logic and accept faith and let Jesus control you?

   A) None - however - if I ever do become a Christian then I asks that someone kill me immediately because if I'm right then I will immediately go to Heaven and live with Jesus. And if I'm wrong then I lost my mind and don't want to live as a brainwashed cult member of some extreme religion. And - since I'm asking to be killed before I get saved then it's not like I'm committing suicide. And - after you kill me you can get saved too - and forgiven - so that when they execute you for murder - then you can be with Jesus too.

8. Q) I was the sole survivor of a plane crash. I have to believe that God spared me.

   A) OK - then you must also believe that God deliberately killed everyone else and that you are somehow better than all of them. Only the survivors tell their story. Wonder what the dead would say if they had a chance. Of course - if you REALLY believed in God then only the unfortunate survive because the ones who die get to live with Jesus and the ones who survive are stuck here running the risk of ending up in Hell. I mean - if you REALLY believe in Jesus then you want to die in that plane crash!

9. Q) But Marc - if this limited existence is all there is - then life on Earth sucks!

   A) Well - depends on how you look at it. It's not much - but it's warmer than Mars!

10. Q) Marc - what makes you so damn smart?

    A) I'm not from this planet. I don't know how I got here but some day a spaceship is going to show up and take me home. And all this will be but a dream.

Now you've shaken my faith!

"But Marc", you now say, "You have made strong arguments here. You have shaken my faith. You are making me think about things that are very uncomfortable. You have put Satan's message into my brain and are now tempting me with a life of sin! Everything you say makes sense and now I'm scared. If I believe in reality I have to give up my whole church scene. I've believed in Jesus all my life and now I have doubts. Are you Satan? What are you doing to me?"

Up at the top of this page I warned people who have strong religion not to read this. If you are right in your religion then you have to assume that I am directly controlled by Satan and you just read Satan's message and are being seduced by Satan himself. I am - of course - completely and unknowingly controlled by the Devil and you now have his message firmly embedded into your brain. But - you were warned and you did it anyway. Now your faced with believing in reality and losing your lifestyle and risking eternal damnation, or staying with the fantasy and asking God to forgive you for reading this web page and asking him to purge the evil thoughts from your brain.

This is like the movie "The Matrix" (A film that was written and produced by Satan himself!) where the main character is given the choice between two pills. The Blue Pill will let him go back into the fantasy world and continue to pretend and live in an artificial computer generated reality. The Red Pill however would let him see reality as it really is. In some ways we are similarly situated here. We can continue to try to force ourselves to live the lie and believe in the ridiculous, or we can decide to explore reality the way it really is. And - if you want to waste your limited existence with fantasy - you can do that. It's your choice.

By the way - yes - Satan does give me rewards for every soul I steal from Jesus, for those who are wondering about that.