Lyrical Interlude 3

Why is it that I don’t consider atheism a correct description of reality?

I grew up in a communist (or socialist) country – Bulgaria. It was part of the Eastern European block that formed after World War II under the leadership of the former Soviet Union. Under its ideology of communism, religion was considered a deception – an invention of men by which a small group of the population can keep the larger other part under control and exploit them. So from 1945 on, religion was not taught in schools; it was not talked about in public other than to be denounced, and people were prohibited from attending religious worship and participating in religious rituals. So my parents’ generation and my own childhood were spent without any knowledge of spiritual, supernatural, invisible reality. Science was taught as the only true source of knowledge, and if something could not be explained and proven by science, it did not exist. The writings of Marx, Engels, and Lenin were the foundation for teaching personal conduct in life. It was a fully secular society, and it looked like this:

Everyone was taught that working for the society was good for them and for others. Evil was attributed to the uneven distribution of wealth. By the 1980s, most people had very similar economic situation. Yet, the result wasn’t a better society with happy and satisfied people. In reality, there were again classes of people – the privileged party leaders and their friends, and everybody else. And most of everybody else didn’t enjoy working for the state. Many stole and didn’t care about the well-being of others, and the honest ones felt betrayed.

There were no religious activities of any sort, yet the leadership had created many holidays and traditions that functioned exactly like religious holidays – there were rituals and symbolism, even though gods were not mentioned at all. There were songs that praised leaders, there were parades and dances. There was no Christmas, but there was a New Year’s tree (exactly like a Christmas tree here) and Santa Claus (called Grandpa Frosty) came on New Year’s Eve bringing gifts.

I was taught evolution at school. I was explained how little cells in the ocean became living cells that eventually created animals. And one kind of animal – a kind of monkey – eventually evolved to become a human – the bodies we live in today. I was also taught that humans created gods in their thoughts because of the need to control their environment – by attributing human characteristics to inanimate objects like rivers, mountains, trees, etc. But as I mentioned in my first Lyrical Interlude post, I gave human characteristics to the daily objects I interacted with – my toys, pen, pencils. I knew perfectly well what they were. I wasn’t fearful of my reality. All young kids did similarly.

Science classes taught me that procreation was the driving force in evolution. So if one had seen his grandchildren, he had fulfilled his purpose. Yet people were afraid of death – nobody wanted to die, and when someone close to you, even when a grandparent, died – sadness was always there.

It was wrong for anyone to believe in gods, yet I was taught to believe in the communist ideal and the people that represented it with faith that functioned exactly like religious faith elsewhere.

I don’t know that I’ve ever phrased those things like this before, but the way I lived under secular socialism in my childhood felt like an absurdity. I did things I was taught were right because they would bring about a better life for others and me, but my reality didn’t behave like the description from my lessons. I was working very hard to fulfill this reality taught to me by doing the ascribed actions, only to find that my actions simply didn’t produce those results or that I was unable to do the actions.

We, humans, look for principles that describe our reality so that we can interact with it in a way that nurtures and improves life – ours and around us. After all, that’s what science is all about. But we also know that if a principle is accurate, from the explanation of reality one would be able to make predictions about future reality. And once the actions prescribed are executed correctly, that future reality would become present.

The problem I have with atheism is exactly that. It gives a description of reality and ascribes actions to make it better, yet all its predictions fail. And you can’t blame that on improper execution forever! Eventually one has to admit there is something wrong with the principle. And I am fully convinced of that – the supposition of humans existing in atheism simply does not reflect the reality we live in.

There is something about religion, something about a greater reality that involves invisible substance and things that is part of humans, that has something to do with our motives, desires and emotions – and if emotions, therefore something to do with the arts. And I want to think, and know, and write about this.