The Joy of Atheism

We find joy in the fact that good means wellbeing and has nothing to with God - God would be an idol for it is nonsense to say that worshipping a being is the same as worshipping wellbeing.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that faith is intrinsic to our nature and it will flow as long as we don't use religious crutches and counterfeit faith and put no obstacles in its path.

We find joy in the knowledge that faith does not promise that troubles will not come. It equips you with the means of maximal victory under whatever circumstances come.

We find joy in the knowledge that dogma is not about telling us what to think but about freeing us by giving us the truth and providing us with a standard. Dogma never harms. It is people refusing to see that they are wrong that does that. They are dogmatic too but are engaging in arrogance and deceit.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that there are teachings that are best for us and their being the best for us is evidence that they are true for we can sense that there is power in us that looks after us.

We find joy in the knowledge that our approach to living is about what people need more than what they want. Those who give people what they want as opposed to what they need are manipulators.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that if we love our bodies as they are instead of wanting them to be turned into magic bodies at a resurrection we are contributing to our own mental and physical health.

We find joy in the knowledge that an unhealthy body can make the mind unhealthy and an unhealthy mind can make the body unhealthy and we must seek treatments if necessary that enhance body and mind together.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that good thoughts attract good thoughts and therefore good feelings and good things.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that the best way to feel good and act good is to do good - eg, helping the sick affirms that you have power over good and it has power over you that you embrace.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that creation, making things out of nothing is absurd, for there is nothing there to make things out of. It adds to the awe of our existence.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that the universe might return to its pre-big bang state and perhaps there will be a new big bang and big bangs will happen to infinity. We rejoice for life will continue and are content to let others enjoy it though we will cease to exist forever at death.
 
We find joy in the knowledge we can know and we more than just think we know - we are part of the ultimate reality which makes us confident that our knowledge is real
 
We find joy in the knowledge there is no God - each one of us is God of their own life - and we are made of the power that has made all things and so we are co-makers of the universe.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that the more we try to be successful in this world, we are programming the universe to give us what we desire. The key word is, try.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that negative attitudes are different from negative thoughts and are more dangerous because attitudes are beliefs while thoughts are just thoughts and do not affect as deeply as beliefs for knowing this helps us see we need to avoid having negative attitudes at all costs.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that no angel or God is going to fix the universe for us and we must do that ourselves and revel in the responsibility we are honoured to possess.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we may not kill the animals that share in this consciousness for food. Yet we must look after our own species first of all.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that pregnancy may be terminated at an early stage before the embryo becomes conscious and after that it may only be done to save the life of the mother.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that if one is dying and in tremendous pain that person with their consent can be helped on their way and this is not wrong though we must beware of abuse.
 
We find joy in the knowledge the ideas that you should do this or that are false. To say somebody should do something is to potentially judge them.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we should never blame anybody for anything because what is done is done. What we do is remind them that they have the power to change and we leave it up to them.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must deal with criminals not to hurt them but to uphold the law. The motive should be not to hurt though they will be hurt but because a law that does not afflict the lawbreakers is not a law at all.
 
We find joy in the knowledge we must be rational because we reason all the time and so to want to be irrational would be degrading and unnatural.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that prayer is not us helping another person but asking a God to do it for this knowledge tells us to go and help them ourselves or help somebody else in their honour if we cannot help them.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that though we like controlling things we do not want to control things fully. We need an element of surprise in life. We need chance though we may fear it at times.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that prayer is not trying to help anybody - it is leaving the helping up to a God figure - help someone instead of praying for them or doing magic for them for feeling and knowing that we have really done something comes first!
 
We find joy in the knowledge that love means to consent to the wellbeing of another - it can be accompanied by affection.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must let the joy shine out of us so that others may be attracted to the message too. They have a right to find and enjoy it and gain the blessings of this world and the worlds to come.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we need faith but we must exercise it in such a way that no harm is done if we are wrong - that is we must look at things rationally and not be influenced by religious dogma but we must be firm secularists.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that secularism honours us as human beings and it refuses obeisance to religions and gods in order to bestow it on humankind.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must not hate the so-called wrong that people do. Such hate is stirring up evil in your heart.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we may understand how things work but we cannot understand how a grain of sand, life or free will can be made.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that what is right or wrong is right or wrong just because it is right or wrong and not because some God says so.
 
We find joy in the knowledge by experience and instinct that we have free will and that we are not machines.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that real love is feeling regardless of whether it is voluntary or not and rejoice in the fact that the argument, "A being programmed to love does not really love at all but goes through the motions" is putting theory before how we actually function.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must be as liberal as possible - the fewer rules to break and abuse the better.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that each of us should be their own God, pope, saviour and Messiah so let us forsake all religious ties and memberships.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that if we don't learn to deal with hurt and resentment that we are tormenting ourselves over what somebody did to us and unless we believe that good thoughts attract good feelings we will never get better. It is up to us and not God.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that the rights of a person to fair treatment and fair access to the benefits of the world are earned simply by virtue of being a person.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that "marriage" starts when love starts and lasts only as love lasts. This is because it is love not vows that really bind people together.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that all human beings, male, female, transgender, gay, lesbian, black, white - whatever you can name - are equal. All have the same essential power - consciousness.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that each of us has to decide for herself or himself what is right and what is wrong - if you think you need a God to order you that x is right and y is wrong you are wrong for you are still deciding what is acceptable and God is not deciding for you.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that nothing is ever absolutely or completely wrong and ethics means doing what you hope is for the greatest happiness of the greatest number.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that there is no such thing as wrongdoing or righteousness for it is affirming there is only shades of grey so there is no room for hate or rage.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must never blame ourselves or others - we simply must see that we are responsible for our own lives and what happens in them.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that blaming implies disapproval but declaring responsibility implies reminding a person that they are free to make changes if they feel they need to.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that education is to be cherished greatly and to be sought after as it frees us from the dangers of ignorance and helps us learn about ourselves and grow in confidence.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that we must influence our children to be good people and not indoctrinate them. Children tend to think they believe what authority figures such as parents tell them what to believe. They must be encouraged to realise it is our influence that indwells them not beliefs. We are helping them make our ideas their ideas.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that this teaching is all-good and we know that our hearts will burn within us and this burning will be a testimony that this is true.
 
We find joy in the knowledge that this message is true for believing anything different cannot make us as joyful!