National Atheists’ Day

In the early 1990's my job required a lot of travelling around Victoria. To pass the time I started listening to audio books, especially autobiographies, histories and the like. I found personal stories where people spoke of their own life history and experiences particularly interesting.

As a Christian I found the stories of atheists particularly interesting and challenging. While I cannot recall the names of those I listened to there was a common theme running through all of these. They had been raised in Christian homes and still adhered to what I see as Christian values. Yet they rejected the religion of their youth. Why?

The answer was simple. Rules and rituals seemed meaningless and restrictive. Difficult questions were met with simplistic and unsatisfactory answers – well, you just have to believe, don’t question God, because that’s the way it is, etc. Little wonder so many atheists today accuse Christians of accepting faith blindly, of not thinking for themselves, of being brainwashed.

Recently I saw a bumper sticker proclaiming ‘National Atheists’ Day – April 1’ with the words ‘The fool says in his heart “There is no God”’ (Psalm 14:1) beneath it in smaller print. My response to that was quite negative and left me questioning the mentality of the driver or whoever had placed it there in the first place. This negativity is reinforced when I see some of the comments placed on line by Christians in response to comments made by atheists challenging religion. Anyone who trades in insults and personal abuse rather than debate around the issue has, in my mind, lost the argument. It simply reflects a lazy intellect and, from a Christian perspective, insults God.

If, as the Bible says, God created humans in His ‘image and likeness’ He created us with brains. Many books have been written about the capacity of the brain and how little of it we use. The ability to question, reason, hypothesize, test and reach conclusions seems to be a purely human attribute. If He didn't want us to use it why did He give it to us in the first place? Can we honour God if we don’t use it?

There will always be gaps in human knowledge. In fact, the more we know the more we realise we don’t know. We will never know all there is to know, so we shouldn't feel threatened when asked questions we cannot answer. Questions we can’t answer give us the opportunity to explore further, to grow mentally. While I reject the notion of blind faith, believing that Christianity can stand up to intellectual interrogation, the nature of faith is that we will never have all the answers. Tough questions can be asked of Christianity and the Bible but the inability to answer fully or partially some of these does not take away what I see as its basic integrity.

As I see it many atheists are seekers for truth. They possess an honest integrity that looks for a reasonable explanation for the world in which they live and are repulsed by some of the things done in the name of religion. Many make outstanding contributions to the advancement of human welfare and look for answers to the problems facing the world.

Attitudes such as that expressed in the bumper sticker proclaiming ‘National Atheists Day’ do nothing to advance Christianity and can only help confirm in the minds of atheists an anti-intellectual view of religion. When it comes to discourse with those who disagree with us, all I can say to my fellow believers is ‘Use your God given brain”. You might learn something.

The Racket

If you have uncontested control of the market you can get away with anything – even murder. And they did. The racket they had went something like this.

Jerusalem was the centre of worship and home to the Temple. This was the only place the people could present their sacrifices to God as prescribed by the Law. On special occasions, such as Passover, the city would be teeming with pilgrims wanting to fulfil their religious obligations. What an opportunity for corruption.

First, the animals presented for sacrifice had to be without blemish, so the priests implemented a stringent quality control program. And when the animal was rejected there was a ready supply of ‘quality approved’ replacements at a premium price. Why would you want to risk sourcing another animal from the local, albeit significantly cheaper, market when there was no guarantee as to its ‘quality?’

Then there were the money changers. The Jews were required to pay half a shekel temple tax annually and, in addition, many would make free will offerings. Of course it would be inappropriate to allow foreign coins into the temple, especially if they bore the symbols of paganism. So the priests arranged for money changers to exchange this ‘unholy’ currency for that deemed acceptable to the Lord. And as it was only proper that the currency changers be compensated for this service a commission was charged – one that could be quite generous.

All this took place within the Temple precinct and, as such, was under the control of the priests. They authorised who could and could not trade in the area. Therefore it did not matter to them if the prices for the goods and the commissions charged were exorbitant as they made sure they got their cut.

One day, at the busiest and most profitable time of the year, a dangerous rabble rouser appeared on the scene. He made a whip, drove out the animal traders and overturned the tables of the money changers. Not that this was the first time that He had come to their attention. He had clashed with them before, challenging their interpretation of the Law. But this was a direct challenge to their authority. And so they planned to get rid of Him.

We remember this rebel in a special way on Good Friday. Jesus sought to free people from the burden of religiosity, of meaningless ritual, and religious practices that made human beings subservient to legalistic interpretation of the Scriptures. That which had been meant to instruct, enlighten and safeguard humanity had been hijacked to enslave and oppress. Jesus strongest words were aimed at the corrupt priesthood who used their positions of power and influence to further their own interest.

History often repeats itself and Christianity is no exception. The Church that claims to represent Jesus Christ has too often been marked by corruption, the imposition of man-made rules and interpretations that distort the true meaning of the Bible, the abuse of power and persecution of those that speak out against these practices. And if anyone takes the time to read carefully both what Jesus and the New Testament writes say they will find that this outcome was anticipated.

Too many people reject Jesus Christ because of the Church. I choose to stick with Jesus because I believe He offers real hope and His words point the way to a better future. The Church, including my own denomination, has too often betrayed the one it is meant to serve and therefore humanity itself. But those that have truly learnt to trust Jesus, and be guided by their understanding of His teachings without mindless adherence to the teachings of any ‘church’, will never be betrayed by the One whom we remember on Good Friday.

You can read the story in Mark 11.