(November 4, 2014 at 1:06 pm)LostDays Wrote: Definitely doesn't change or alter my belief in Gods.. (Still don't believe and never will)
But would change and alter my beliefs with respect to human existence I guess..? I always come back to Science at the end of the day.. I sit and ponder what the point to human existence is all the time and I find the answer that 'Life is what you make of it' still very unsatisfying for many reasons one of the biggest ones being that I work with people who have mental health issues and deal with suicidal ideation a lot.
All I can ever tell these people is that this existence is the only one we have, and we need to make the best of it while we are still here. These people are severely depressed and don't have the same outlook on life as a lot of us.. and it is hard for me to try and find reasons to tell people to keep hanging on.. Some of the things these people have been through is just absolute insanity... I don't know how you help someone re-discover that life is worth living when some really horrible things have happened... I guess I see why certain people resort to religion? After some of the stories I've heard from these people that is all that they have to bring them comfort... How can I bring words of comfort for these people without imposing my Atheist views?
That seems like a dilemma alright. Personally I should prefer to find a way to relate that didn't feel false and therefore condescending. I wonder if hollow platitudes -especially those in which we don't believe ourselves- really give anyone 'comfort'. If the circumstances were reversed, would you actually want the person charged with helping you to resort to trite sentiments they did not believe? I would imagine the most important thing you have to offer is a real encounter, an authentic relationship. I guess it depends on what your role is and how your duties are described. If you're charged with keeping people calm and non-confrontational, perhaps you have no choice. If you do have a choice, you'd have to do what feels to you like the right thing.
