Theism.net Options: home | articles | books | search | webmaster
.gif){kind=small}
My Appeal To
The A.F.S.
(1997)
e-mail: j
"Government creates an illusion of quenching people’s thirst for
justice. In fact, it lulls their conscience into thinking that the steamroller
which is about to flatten them is their salvation. It isn’t."
Alexander Solzhenitsyn
I am a "freethinker." Let me clarify
this broad label. I consider widely disparate perspectives, focus on their
positive attributes, question authority, and challenge established beliefs. One
can call me whatever one chooses. I live free of theistic dogma, find
insufficient evidence to prove Yahweh’s existence, and strongly advocate
keeping the state and the church separate. I embrace numerous current
mainstream Christian politics, yet I loathe others. I am especially repulsed by
Christianity’s heinous history. I am equally repulsed by the heinous history of
Chinese and Soviet atheists. Furthermore, sadly, I am repulsed by the heinous
history of our own
I have been a rather poor member of The Atlanta Freethought
Society. My thirst for liberty extends
beyond the religious liberty for which we battle together. I have always felt
out of place. The feeling reminds me of my younger years in church. I turn to
you now, perhaps in a futile effort, to open the eyes of my fellow
"intellectual elite." If I am accurate in my claims, there is everything
to be lost by many generations of our loved ones. I truly desire that we prove
ourselves to be of stronger moral fiber than those we criticize. Let’s not
behave as they.
Too many secularists advance communism by
accepting socialism in the name of "liberalism." The totalitarian and
utilitarian aspects of such a political system deserve all the fear and
distaste we can offer. Totalitarian states have a history of, and a propensity
toward, oppression, enslavement, political and
religious "cleansing," brutality, and genocide once total power is
achieved. Police state incrementalism is taking place
in
The character of the state/church separationist who quotes the
Constitution while stating a case, then sets the Constitution aside, should be
questioned. Such a person is as great a hypocrite as the Christian we attack.
Such a person demands constitutional government regarding religion, then allows
that government to adopt a myriad of unconstitutional, socialistic, and
totalitarian programs. The U. S. Constitution is the law of the land. Honor
it all the way. Why excerpt appealing parts, interpret at will, and ignore
the rest, as so many Christians do with their bible? Neither the Constitution
nor the bible were written buffet style.
Secular groups express outrage when their
tax dollars find their way into religious coffers. This outrage is strangely
absent, however, when governmental authorities seize Christian dollars to fund
secular government schools. Apparently, forcing Christians to fund secular
education is less offensive than forcing secularists to fund Christian
education. The old saying, "When robbing Peter to pay Paul, Paul won’t
complain," rings true. What is the constitutional basis for
The Atlanta Freethought
Society and I share common ground in many respects, not the least of which is
an admiration for Thomas Jefferson, America’s third president. I agree entirely
with his position regarding church and state relations. Then I part ways with
most freethinkers. There they end their Jefferson Appreciation Day, whereas I
continue heeding his acumen regarding government overall.
Be wary of atheists’ rights, women’s’
rights, gay rights, Christian rights, and assorted other special-group-identity
rights. American governments have no legal authority to establish rights. The
Bill of Rights already delineates our rights. Governments will, however, grant
privileges under the guise of "rights" to select groups or
individuals that have potential to further government’s penumbral ends. If we
grant government the privilege of granting rights, we give it the power to
deprive rights. Also, we pave the way for our opponents to follow suit in using
unconstitutional government power to force us to conform to their standards.
Our fundamental rights offer all the leverage needed to ensure everyone the
same liberties and freedoms. We must make do with what we have, and it
is ample. Therefore, there is a need to honor everyone’s inalienable
birthrights guaranteed by the U. S. Constitution. If
To its credit, the Atlanta Freethought Society has honored a fine man, Sam Howell,
with the Sam Howell Library. My library includes a few books that Sam passed on
to me. I was already a Libertarian. These books solidified my position. Try
honoring Sam Howell by appreciating his philosophy, not his bank account.
Our nation is far from perfect. A fine start
at perfecting it lies in restoring the constitutional republic the Founding
Fathers shrewdly, meticulously, and graciously provided. Then, only by a
confluence of seeming adversaries bonded by freedom and liberty as Americans
can we effectively battle our country’s ills. Such a bond proved successful
when the Brits, Scots, French, Catholics, Atheists, Protestants, and others
battled tyranny together in the trenches of
G. Zeineldé Jordan, Se.
e-mail:
j
Theism.net Options: home | articles | books | search | webmaster