The Day I Learned the Ten Commandments

A few weeks after my kindergarten CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) sessions began, our instructors took us into a classroom to teach us the Ten Commandments.  This was the first time we were exposed to a serious, extended lecture style lesson.  Our two instructors also took on a serious demeanor we had not yet seen in them, and so we were all a bit nervous and not quite sure what to expect.

One by one, they went through the Ten Commandments and explained them in terms that five year olds could understand.  It was made very clear to us that we were not just being told a story; it was required of us that we learn them and begin to follow them. 

At first, they seemed to make good sense, although I felt as though good people were supposed to do things like honor their mother, and refrain from lying, stealing, and killing.  Why did we need God to tell us to do these things?  And where was the kind and loving God (of the New Testament I think) I had been taught about until this day?

The adults were so serious about what they were doing that I didn’t want to go against what they were saying.  However, the other children in my class had questions for each commandment.  It is hard for me to remember them, but I think some of them resembled questions like “Why do we need someone to teach us how to be good people again?  Our parents already teach us (to be moral)… Why does God need to command us to do things if he is all powerful?”

Their questions resonated with me, and our instructors were at a loss to tackle some of the advanced philosophical questions that were being asked.  I am still a bit amazed by the ability of these children to question their elders like that.  Maybe even five year olds are able to think like an atheist before they are indoctrinated.  I, however, stayed silent.  I was quite impressed by some of the questions that were being asked. 

After several questions for each Commandment, and more after all were taught to us, our instructors began to become frustrated.  Eventually, one simply began to insist that we should try to follow the Commandments because God required it of us, and the other instructor followed her lead.  After a stern lecture about how it was alright for us to think about the Commandments, but that we still needed to learn them and follow them, our CCD session moved on to another matter.

I remember thinking that the instructors would probably avoid the topic of the Ten Commandments in the future, because they would face the same barrage of questions and become frustrated again.  I believed it was okay for me to simply ignore that lesson, since although the instructors were supposed to be more knowledgeable than us, they lacked acceptable answers to our very important questions. 

The next week we had our next CCD session.  As soon as it began, our instructors verbally quizzed us on what the Ten Commandments were.  This time, they would have no more questions.  They simply wanted us to recite them.  We children obliged them, although at first I still thought that all of us considered it a waste of time.  As we went through this new routine, alarm began to creep into me.  The other children had many questions that the adults did not have satisfactory answers to, and yet we were now simply going along with them.  I grudgingly mumbled the Commandments along with the other kids, filled with anger and resentment towards the adults for forcing us to do something we clearly had demonstrated to them was frivolous.

The weeks went on, and my anger and resentment about the Ten Commandments became directed towards the other children.  I was filled with a sense of betrayal as well.  Why had we abandoned our skeptical stance towards these pointless commands?  Why did the adults simply need to insist on something for us to agree to it?  What was wrong with these kids?  I do not think I ever voiced my thoughts and feelings about the issue to anyone.  I do, however, remember that this same resentment surfaced later when we began to have prayer and doctrine testing done on a regular basis. 

Are Atheists and Religious People in the United States Doomed to be Enemies?

It probably seems so to most people.  I’ve lately found myself asking why we are so damned determined to defeat the other side and prove each other wrong.  It seems as though we are locked in a kind of ideological struggle with no way out.  Atheists and other non-theists tend to criticize historical proofs of the existence of a god, among other things.  On the other hand, the religious look at atheists and atheist organizations, and all they see is an individual or group that appears to be determined to undermine ideas that are central to their lives.  I am honestly not surprised that they are resistant to anything we have to say. 

Does it have to be like this?  There is good reason to criticize doctrines that most people tend to take for granted.  Society does need to know that there is a respectable alternative to religion and belief in the supernatural.  However, I personally have only had a desire to attack religion when it has resulted in bigotry and social isolation towards me or someone else for not being religious, or when I notice an example of when religious belief is used to manipulate people into being violent.

What I really want is what I think most people do: the ability to live a healthy, productive life, have rewarding relationships with friends and family, and to be able to start a family.  Why shouldn’t atheists be able to do these things, and to be openly atheist at the same time? 

Atheism is not a disease.  We are not mentally ill, and we are not atheist because we are angry at a god or because someone associated with a religion molested us.  We are atheist either because we were born that way and stayed that way, or because at some point we chose to become so again.  We are still normal people.  Most of us probably keep the fact we are atheist a secret because we do not want to be ostracized. 

I am tired of fighting with religious people.  I am tired of people asking me “so you think we came from monkeys?” when they find out I am atheist.  I am tired of people buying me books by Josh McDowell and C.S. Lewis to try to convert me back to Christianity.  I am tired of getting the cold shoulder from women that find out I am atheist as if there is something wrong with me.  I am tired of the references to Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot as leaders of supposed atheist nations. 

I often find myself drawn into debates about these and many other topics, but what I really want is the ability to live a normal life while being openly atheist.  This is one of many reasons why I decided to form my own atheist organization.  Instead of focusing on this cycle of attack on religion that we often find ourselves in, it goes in another direction.  Its three key activities will be community building, service, and outreach.  Maybe I am wrong, and another approach will one day bear fruit.  But my approach does not seem to have been tried before. 

ISA Chapter Positions

A couple of weeks ago, I began to use my blog to publish my ideas about the organization I plan to officially form in the fall of 2009.  The organization is called the International Society of Atheists (ISA).  I am still researching and thinking about the regional, national, and international positions in the organization.  However, I think that I have a reasonably clear idea of what the chapter positions will be.  They could change between now and next fall, but I think they are specific enough now that I can describe them.  Here they are. 

Facilitator

• anyone in the chapter that is an ISA member can register to be one
• someone can be a facilitator and hold another office in the chapter at the same time
• coordinates a social activity – announces it, makes appropriate arrangements, is present
• very little work or experience needed for a RAG (Random Atheist Gathering), more needed for special occasions, celebrations
• Random Atheist Gathering: an unstructured social event (for example, meeting at a coffee shop, game night, pot luck dinner, etc…) held for atheists… each chapter should have one at least weekly if possible
• example: Andrew posts an anouncement/reminder for a RAG on his chapter’s email listserv (and maybe in the newspaper or other venues if he has the time and/or money).  He tells everyone that the meeting will be at 7pm at the local Starbucks on Wednesday March 19, 2008.  He offers words of encouragement and notes that there will be a copy of The God Delusion on the table for newcomers to recognize the group.  Andrew shows up a few minutes before 7 that night and stays for at least an hour or two, and he chats with anyone that shows up.  After a few months, a group of regulars are likely to come to the RAGs… Andrew still tries to find ways to reach more atheists and encourage newcomers to attend.

Outreach Leader:

• elected every two years by chapter members
• meet with religious leaders and leaders of previously hostile private organizations (for example Boy Scouts of America)
•  - ask them to stop (or refrain from) denigrating atheists and atheism
•  - establish positive relationships
•  - jointly organize public dialogue events
•  - propose joint social activities
•  - propose joint service activities
• meet with holders of public office
•  - discuss separation of church and state concerns
•  - discuss civil rights concerns
•  - follow up with calls and letters
•  - if holders of public office are deliberately and persistently hostile, organize mass mailings, petitions, peaceful protests, other activist activities
• establish relationships with members of the media
•  - newspaper reporters and editors, local news reportes and producers, radio station producers
• reach out to local chapters/groups of atheists and other non-theists
•  - attend their local meetings, praise them for their strengths
•  - calls, emails, letters
•  - promote their activities to ISA members
•  - establish relationships

Service Leader

• elected every two years by chapter members
• plans, promotes, organizes the service activies of the chapter
• service projects in general community
•  - work with organizations such as the United Way to improve quality of life for local people
• services to individual atheists in the chapter
•  - legal advice/counsel when possible
•  - housing for abused, ostracized atheists
•  - provide mentors/mentorship to atheists that need advice

Community Leader

• elected every two years by chapter members
• provide support and leadership to facilitators
• ensures that regular social gatherings take place for the chapter
• encourages chapter members to acknowledge special occasions together, possibly facilitates them (for example: weddings, memorials, coming out parties, solstice/equiniox celebrations, Darwin Day, graduations, academic acheivements)
• assists neighboring towns/cities in forming new chapters and assists their facilitators
• evaluates, improves, and maintains the morale of the chapter

Chapter Leader

• elected every two years by chapter members
• communicates the needs of the chapter to regional leaders
• acts as facilitator, outreach leader, community leader, service leader in a smaller/newer chapter
• ensures that the chapter has at least one monthly structured meeting where business is discussed
• promotes the goals of the ISA – in ways the chapter sees fit, but within the working framework of the organization
• ensures that the chapter sets specific goals, assists chapter leaders and members to accomplish those goals

*****

You might notice that the positions of Facilitator and Outreach Leader seem to be a bit more developed.  The reason is because I have written about those two positions in the past already, so I’ve already spent a good bit of time thinking about them.  What do you think about the outline in general?  Hopefully it will give you a sense of what the organization is all about, at least on the local level.

The International Society of Atheists (ISA) Outline

My original outline that I published was fairly detailed and I think it conveys the sense that the ISA will be a fairly comprehensive organization.  Hopefully it also shows that I have done a great deal of thinking and researching, and that I am a good candidate to lead the project.  However, it does seem a bit cluttered at the moment.  Originally, I grouped it into four main categories: support, community, activism, and outreach.  There seemed to be a great deal of overlap in some of the activities listed for each category, and to be honest, I think it needs to be re-organized. 

Every so often, I will update the outline and published a revised version of it.  Since one reason I’m publishing my work is to receive feedback on it, please feel free to comment on it.  A fresh pair of eyes will be able to tell me where I am making mistakes, as well as where I and the outline in particular are strong. 

The outline will probably be the main source of the goal focused section of the organization’s constitution.  I will begin work on an outline for the organization’s structure in the near future. 

The three new categories for the goal outline are:

Community, Service, and Outreach

The activities that had been under social support are now a subgroup under community, and activism is now under outreach.  So, without otherwise changing or adding to the outline yet, here’s what it looks like:

Community

     Support:
Social:
Regular social gatherings for each chapter
Mentors to help those in need
Legal (will probably come later after organization grows):
Discrimination
Separation of church and state
Celebrations and ceremonies:
Weddings
Funerals/memorial gatherings
Coming out parties
Graduations?
Secular holidays? Winter solstice, etc…
Conferences/other events:
Speakers
Seminars
                 Service
                               Work with United Way (or other organizations), other service orgs

Outreach
religious leaders:
meetings, letters, phone calls
media:
advertising
public relations w/media
press releases
politicians:
meetings, letters, phone calls
other atheist/secular/nonreligious groups:
attend their meetings, conferences, write them letters, PR efforts
general public (through media, activism):
telling them we exist and are here to support atheists and their families and friends
Activism:
Petitions
Marches
Rallies
Mail outs/handouts
debates

****

You might notice that the Service category is now underdeveloped compared to the other two.  The reason I decided to make it a main category is because service to the community (the general community outside of the atheist community) will help raise the general public’s opinion about atheists, and I think it gives both a sense of purpose for atheist social groups and an avenue for our outreach efforts to religious leaders and holders of public office.  Of course, if you disagree, feel free to tell me why.  You might change my mind about something. 

Atheists Reach Out

In this post, I will describe my vision for the outreach activities of the International Society of Atheists, the planned atheist organization I plan to officially launch circa fall 2009. Right now I can think of four major areas of focus for our outreach activities. The four areas are religious leaders and groups, the media, holders of public office, and other atheist/secular/nonreligious groups.The outreach activities for religious leaders and holders of public office will be fairly similar. Depending on the size of the chapter, either the outreach officer or chapter leader (or both) would be encouraged to write letters and phone calls asking for meetings with office holders and religious leaders.

Meetings with religious leaders will probably focus on asking them to refrain from denigrating atheists and atheism. Hopefully positive relationships with at least some religious leaders will be established, and the ISA members might then propose that atheist and religious groups work together on service projects, as well as have public dialogue events and perhaps even socials together.

Meetings with holders of public office will probably focus on separation of church and state topics and any civil rights issues that may be of concern to the chapter or perhaps entire ISA. Chapter leaders and chapter outreach leaders would probably meet with city council members, school board members, mayors, and state legislators. Regional leaders would probably seek meetings with mayors of larger cities, governors, state legislators, and possibly federal legislators. International leaders might seek meetings with governors, federal legislators, and federal leaders and cabinet members.

If religious leaders and holders of public office are unable or unwilling to meet, the ISA member can follow up with phone calls and letters. Occasional (polite) letters might be most appropriate when the person is unwilling to meet.

Establishing relationships with members of the media will be important because members of the media tend to have the ability to make the general public aware of issues of concern to the atheist community. They will also be able to make the public aware that atheists, and especially the ISA, are dedicated to service and community building. Such reporting alone will probably greatly improve public perception of atheists and atheism. Members of the media will also be able to provide a voice for the atheist community when issues of separation of church and state and discrimination exist.

Outreach to other atheist and non-religious organizations will be another important activity that the ISA will pursue. ISA leaders will attend the meetings of other organizations on local, regional, and national/international levels. We will establish relationships with their leaders and members. We will attend their local meetings, as well as large scale conferences. We will also communicate with them on a regular basis and praise them for their strengths.

I realize some of the ideas I have mentioned may seem radical to many atheists. Hopefully, however, one can get a sense that our unique approach will in fact raise the public opinion of atheists and atheism, as well as allow us to pursue our goals in ways not yet possible due to the way atheists approached them in the past.  Of course, that is not a detailed explanation, but I think if one reads several of my writings about the ISA, he or she will begin to understand the approach I am taking with this organization.

Why Create Another Atheist Organization?

Someone recently asked my why I wanted to form a new organization, when some organizations already exist. They also asked why I wanted to wait until the fall of 2009 to begin the organization. My response was becoming so long, that I decided to adapt it into a post. So here it is.

Why Form Another Atheist Organization, When Several Already Exist?

I do not wish to criticize specific organizations that already exist, but the approach I’m taking is to find out what many different organizations do really well. That way, I can combine the best qualities into one cohesive unit: community building, social support, civil rights, service, outreach, networking, and perhaps some other qualities.

As far as I can tell, there are few if any organizations that exist on a national or international level that have a high level of grassroots support. On the other hand, there are many local atheist organizations that seem to be doing quite well in fostering a sense of community with their members. I have also seen a great deal of success accomplished in local polyamory groups of providing social support by simply having an informal system of facilitators that make regular announcements of social events and provide anchors for groups to form.

Many atheist organizations have democratic elections, but some do not. I appreciate the fact that there are only a small number of people willing and able to be leaders in a non-profit organization. I also realize that some groups face the danger of having large numbers of people join so that they can disrupt it and steer it away from the goals it was created to accomplish. However, I believe the benefits of elections and clear term lengths outweigh the dangers. Right now, I’m thinking term lengths would look like this: 2 years for chapter officers, 4 years for regional, and 6 years for national and/or international. Those numbers are tentative. Also, I would like to conduct more research before I decide whether or not we should have term limits.

A third key difference between my organization and existing atheist organization is the methods and mentality that are used to approach our goals. Rather than believing we opposed to all religious organizations on all issues, and thus creating a self fulfilling prophecy, we will work in partnership with them. True, there are some religious groups that will be more difficult to reason with than others, but there are also some that will be willing to work with us if we present ourselves as contributors to the community, rather than purely agitators. For example, The United States Atheists in Portland, Oregon helped organize an event called the Catholic and Atheist Dialogue Night. I think every chapter should at least attempt to have these kinds of events. I do believe that once religious organizations no longer see atheists as an overt threat, they will be much more tolerant and likely to listen to our ideas. That is not to say, however, that atheists or the ISA should tolerate bigotry, discrimination, or violence. Or that we should necessarily agree with religious organizations on most things or anything. However, if we disagree in a way that is non-threatening, we will be five steps closer to being viewed with respect and tolerance. On a local level, it will be impossible for atheists to be accepted members of the community if we make ourselves enemies of that community. I intend for the ISA to spearhead the public relations campaign that atheists so desperately need.

Why Wait Until Circa Fall 2009 to Launch The Organization?

The reason I’m waiting a year and a half is because I may be going to grad school then, and wherever I end up being will be where I start the international organization, have headquarters, and probably start several local chapters myself. That will also allow me to plan the organization in great detail. Rather than start quickly and uncover flaws in the way we’re organized later, I would like to research other atheist organizations and NGOs heavily. That way, I’ll be able to learn from their mistakes, and follow their lead in areas that they are strong. It will also allow me to write and build up a national (and possibly international) audience so that I will already have grassroots support for the organization when it starts. It will also allow me to build up publicity for the organization… the closest analogy I can think of is when Alfred Kinsey’s team of researchers would discuss their upcoming books and build public interest in them before they actually were released.

Becoming an Atheist

Becoming an Atheist

I first learned the word atheist when I was in the eighth grade of middle school (junior high school). Before one of my classes started, another student randomly asked me, “Are you atheist?” My reply was, “What’s that?” He said, “It means you don’t believe in God. XXX is atheist. I think she’s stupid.” I told him that I wasn’t atheist, and that I was unaware it was possible not to believe in God and that a word existed for such a non-belief. At the same time, I thought to myself, “Good for her. I takes guts to be open about what you believe in like that.”

Three years later, I had taken on this point of view myself. Granted, three years is a long time for a teenager, but not so long in the context of an entire human life in a developed country.

Let me backtrack a bit. When I was sixteen years old, a friend of mine let me borrow his copy of Tao te Ching translated by Stephen Mitchell. At first I read it simply because I was curious, but the apparent pantheistic nature of it immediately appealed to me. It also appeared to provide guidance that was of much higher quality, in my opinion at the time, than the Christian Ten Commandments, New Testament, and other important pillars of Christian doctrine. I soon bought my own copy of the book, and secretly considered myself Taoist for a month or two.

It wasn’t long, however, before my philosophical leanings became more deistic. Soon thereafter, they became a form of naturalism and essentially atheist. I was terrified of being socially ostracized and isolated for thinking this way, and so was a closet non-theist for about four years.

When I was 20, I was taking an SSRI to treat double depression. I strongly believe that one of the several side effects I experienced was SSRI induced mania, along with aggression. In a period of less than six months, I moved out of my parents’ house, strained my relationship with several family members, came out as an atheist to friends and family, and almost got arrested.

I do not recommend coming out to friends and family the way I did. I still suffered from dysthymia, but since I no longer suffered from clinical depression, I gradually stopped taking Zoloft. I was openly atheist from that point on. I did in fact experience the social isolation that I had previously feared. Being an atheist can be a large impediment to the love life of someone looking for female dates in a white, suburban, and mostly Protestant southern state in the United States. I joined one of the larger national atheist organizations with the hope that it would allow me to connect with local atheists. There was indeed a South Carolina division of the organization, but it was based in another part of the state and wasn’t actively having meetings at the time.

After a few years of relative social isolation, I came up with a plan. I would work hard and become a well known scholar, then later I would use my clout to write about atheism and act as an advocate for social change. I would go into philosophy, or possibly evolutionary biology or psychology. I would again take up the cause of atheism like Bertrand Russell did in the United States.

Sound familiar?

Well, since Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens (and others) beat me to it, why not start now? And while I’m at it, why not create an atheist organization that we an all be proud of and that will provide both a national and international voice, as well as social support for local atheists?

An Ideal Organized Social Group for Atheists

Last week, I introduced a basic outline for an atheist organization that I plan to start in about a year and a half (circa fall 2009).  Now I’d like to discuss the social support aspect of the organization in more detail. 

The organization, tentatively called the International Society of Atheists, will consist of many local chapters.  My goal is for the chapter to have regular social gatherings, hopefully at least once a week.  Since a major focus of the ISA will be local atheist community building, these regular social gatherings will be a cornerstone of the entire organization.  Here is my vision of how things will go:

The facilitator for the next social gathering will post an announcement on the chapter’s website and email list to tell chapter members vital information about the gathering.  It of course will include the when, where, and what to expect details of the gathering.  One example of a suitable gathering might be as simple as having some members get together at a local coffee shop or cafe to sit and chat.  The facilitator will hopefully use other resources to inform local atheists of the social gathering, such as newspapers and social networking websites.  An extremely important aspect of the facilitator’s duties will be to constantly work towards bringing new local atheists to the social gatherings, since there will inevitably be turnover in the group.

Some other examples of social gatherings might include theme parties, picnics, sporting events, dramatic theater performances, fundraisers that double as social gatherings, weddings, memorial gatherings, coming out parties, graduation parties, and secular holiday parties and celebrations (for example, Winter Solstice or Darwin Day).

The facilitator of the social gathering will be in charge of inviting local atheists to the gathering, and will also make sure that the logistics are planned well and taken care of.  The amount of work required of a facilitator will of course vary according to the type of gathering and the number of people expected to attend it.  For example, one would expect that a wedding with five hundred guests would be much more work and need more time to plan than something like a group of ten people going to a soccer (football) game.

 A major goal of the ISA will be to bring local atheist communities together, and these social gatherings will be a vital part of reaching that goal.  The ability to meet other atheists and to enjoy regular gatherings will raise the morale of the atheist community considerably.  It will also help satisfy the psychological need of atheists to feel like they are socially integrated and accepted.  It may even make many closet atheists comfortable with coming out about their atheism, because they will have a nearby support network of fellow atheists. 

Why Atheists Should Organize

Although the word atheist is problematic because its root words to not explicitly define what atheists are and think, I argue that contemporary usage implicitly suggests an overlapping set of ideals that bring those who call themselves atheist together.  Furthermore, I argue here that atheists should and will organize themselves better for a number of reasons. 

Humans are social mammals.  Although it seems obvious for me to say such a statement, sometimes we may lose sight of what that idea implies.  There is, I think, still a great deal of debate about what human social groups were like before certain agricultural and neurological advances.  However, it does seem clear that we lived and died as part of groups when these advances took place. 

Since humans are social mammals, it is expected that we will express a psychological need to be integrated into a group.  Local atheist communities will allow a formerly socially isolated atheist to fulfill this need. 

There is a need for atheists (and non-theists, non-religious, secular humanists, Brights, etc.) to work together in an organized way.  The only way to effectively lobby for separation of church and state, civil rights, and the promotion of science and reason is for us to do so as a relatively unified group, or at least an alliance of relatively unified groups. 

There may not be a need for organized atheist groups in larger and more secular cities, at least not for the same reasons.  For example, if one lives in New York City, Seattle, or London, finding secular friends to satisfy the human evolutionary and psychological need to be part of a social group will not be difficult.  However, it seems as though local active atheist communities could provide important services to atheists in small cities, suburbs, and rural areas. 

Atheist organizations that exist on the national and international level seem to do well when it comes to promoting ideas shared by the atheist community.  They also lead the way in being a watchdog for many issues related to the separation of church and state.  However, I have difficulty finding an organization that not only provides services to local communities of atheists, but also is able to coordinate well with other local communities. 

I therefore decided to create an organization that will consist of local chapters that provide badly needed support for atheists on a local level.  It will also have regional and international leadership to help individual chapters and the organization as a whole work towards a clear and cohesive set of goals.