RE: My Loss of faith has caused severe depression
June 5, 2013 at 10:17 pm
(This post was last modified: June 5, 2013 at 10:18 pm by The Grand Nudger.)
(June 5, 2013 at 10:08 pm)Aran Wrote: You're right, my lack of confidence in humanity has always been there. But when I was a believer I was certain that God would always be there to keep us in check. I'm afraid of what people can do, should they be left to their own devices. The idea I accepted upon my becoming an atheist that humankind is the sole master of its own destiny is daunting and troubling, given what we are capable of. Its the lack of that omnibenevolent agency which most disturbs me. Thank you for taking the time to respond to my problem.Did you ever see god keeping anyone in check? Did it seem to you then.... that god was engaged in this sort of daily business? If not, what? If so..now that you don't believe that god had anything to do with whatever you saw keeping us in check isn't whatever it -actually was- still doing precisely what it did before?
I don't know if I could honestly lay claim to being the masters of our own destiny. We have limitations. We are subject to things beyond our control. We seem to be able to exert a great amount of influence though. Sometimes that influence, the pursuit of our interests, appears to come into conflict with the interests of others (or even..admittedly a potentially horrifying scenario - our own interests). Perhaps this pulls you in the direction of pessimism..but if I could be so bold as to suggest that even in conflict we are capable of bettering ourselves, what would your opinion of this be?
There may be no omnibenevolent agency in your POV now, but there wasn't any omnibenevolent agency back when you believed that there was either (if your current POV holds). Is the belief in the agency more important than it's actual existence? If you were capable of manufacturing that sense of insulation before - why not now....with the realization that it was internal?
NP abut responding bud, narratives such as your own fascinate the shit out of me - having never experienced what you're experiencing.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
