This is from Martin Willet, one of the Brights. It is very good but some of the phrasing needs attention if it is to become universal. Judging from this offering, Willet is be far better qualified than me to do that. He calls it:
An Atheists Prayer
Let us take responsibility for our own actions, inaction's, strengths
and frailties and not project them onto ghosts, spirits, stars,
portents and gods unseen.
Let us have the courage to accept that one person's faith is another
person's bloody-minded pig-headed refusal to accept the obvious.
Let us have the courage to accept that the person at the front of all
crowds, including this one, doesn't know all the answers.
Let us have the wisdom to accept that if our ancestors had fared
differently in wars our communities would be holding different
absurdities up as sacred truths, and the willingness to accept those
absurdities would be seen as the badge of social trustworthiness or
even the right to be allowed to draw breath.
Let us accept that the difference between a prophet and a madman is
not what they say but whether the crowd accepts the story and tells
their children to believe it.
Let us have the courage to accept that wanting to believe in something
with every fibre of our being does not and cannot make it true.
Truth needs no help, no believers, no bowed heads and no amens.
As an atheist, I don't believe in prayer of any kind. This is just silliness.
ReplyDeletePerhaps meditation or introspective thought is a better way to think of it.
ReplyDeleteWordnet gives prayer as:
ReplyDelete# the act of communicating with a deity (especially as a petition or in adoration or contrition or thanksgiving); "the priest sank to his knees in prayer"
# reverent petition to a deity
# entreaty: earnest or urgent request; "an entreaty to stop the fighting"; "an appeal for help"; "an appeal to the public to keep calm"
# a fixed text used in praying
# someone who prays to God
Wikipedia gives:
Prayer is an effort to communicate with God, or to some deity or deities, or another form of spiritual entity, or otherwise, either to offer praise, to make a request, or simply to express one's thoughts and emotions.
Clearly a prayer may not require a belief in the supernatural but I would be more comfortable with something else.
Hi
ReplyDeleteI'm collecting Atheist Prayers to post to my Blog. Would you mind if I took this. I'd post a link back to your blog giving you credit in the Posting.