This is an old paper I wrote almost two years ago. Wow, how things change!

"Let’s go to the beach!”

As I attempt to draw a line in the sand, a line between 'believing in God' and 'not believing in God', my vision blurs and I’m unable to see clearly.I am an Atheist, and to be honest, my perception of God is a dim, murky, and foggy one. Sense I have been living a life absent of God for my entire existence, I find it difficult to understand God. I’m unable to even visualize the figure of the divine lord. Stating all of that, I ask you this: is religion just a superstition or not?

Everyday I wake up and I look out of my skull through the eyes of an atheist. It's all I know, it's all I can see. I can't imagine looking through the eyes of a Christian, Jew, Muslim, or any person who believes in any form of God. When I look around and see the bluebirds, flowers, cars, clouds of pollution, rainbows, reminders of war, grass; when I see all of these things, my mind in no way registers anything concerning God. That's just how it's always been for me. I'm not complaining, but maybe you can understand my position better... it’s my way of establishing some sort of creditability. Given the fact that I’m unable to see through the eyes of a person with faith, can they even imagine looking through my eyes? Would it be frightening? Terrifying? I have no idea. I can personally tell you right now though, it’s not all that bad. It works really well for me.

Yes, I think that all religion is superstition. Please don’t start throwing chairs or anything; I didn’t say that it’s a bad thing! Religion is a superstition that you devote either your life, or at least part of it, to. My mentality on religion is that if it works for you, go for it! Don’t try to shove any aspect of your religion down anyone’s throat, that’s just wrong; what we should do is learn to accept every aspect of religion and respect it! Remember, this is an Atheist speaking; we’re not all goat sacrificing, baby murdering heathens! In fact, we have some level minded people amongst our ranks.

Personally, I don’t lend my hand or heart to any form of God or religion. That makes me a sinner by most super Christian standards, but through my own biased lenses, I’m still a human. A human that tries to understand faith and the religious aspects that come along with it. You see, I’ve attempted at prayer, and received nothing in return. I don’t hate people of faith, in fact, sometimes I envy them. However, I follow some superstitions of a smaller degree. I catch myself making a wish at eleven after eleven, 11:11, if you will. The myth goes that if you make a wish at this time, do some childish rituals to ensure that the wish comes true… the wish will. My wishes are never anything huge, like a briefcase full of cash or a brand new car but they’re gestures of good feelings. When I see loose change on the ground, I pick it up and expect some form of good luck. I’m not Irish, but come on, that’s luck just sitting on the ground, getting stepped on and ignored. I guess you could say I follow these superstitions religiously. 11:11 is my daily prayer; the change on the ground, my Sunday sermon. But here’s the catch: through my eyes religion is a beautiful form of superstition. This isn’t some anti-Christian slander or some radical Atheist blather; this is a compromise. My life without God is one worth living, no matter what anyone says. I respect religion, and I expect that same respect for someone without religion. That’s only fair.

Getting down to business, wrapping this up nice and tidy: Can the person of faith see through the eyes of an Atheist? (or Vice versa?). Can the Christians, Jews, Muslims, any person of faith, can those people understand that I have my life under control? Because I surely understand that they have their lives under control. Just so you know, this isn’t a cry for help, redemption, or saving… It’s just an argumentative essay concerning faith. So with that line in the sand finally drawn, the line between ‘believing in God’ and ‘not believing in God’, I catch myself on the side of ‘not believing in God’. Standing there, I hold a large, obnoxious sign, big enough that everyone can see.

The sign reads,“But that’s O.K.”