|
Zonie63 -> RE: Agnosticism (11/30/2011 5:23:20 AM)
|
quote:
ORIGINAL: GotSteel
quote:
ORIGINAL: Zonie63
We can visit the North Pole and explore our own planet sufficiently to reasonably confirm the absence of any elves or Santa Claus, but when we're talking about "god" and its myriad interpretations, then there's no way that any reasonable person can express certainty.
You've talked about the checking the North Pole in reference to Santa a couple of times now but is that what you actually did?
I used to believe in Santa like most of you probably did. When I got a little older and became skeptical I figured out a test for Santa Claus like most of you probably did. So here's the question, did anybody test for Santa by pouring over aerial photos or mounting an expedition to the North Pole or did you come up with a way of testing for Santa where you didn't even have to leave your living room?
To be honest, I don't remember exactly what I did. I do recall a few conversations with other kids about the subject, and part of what I recall is that ceasing one's belief in Santa Claus was part of maturing and growing up. When I got presents which said "From Santa Claus" in handwriting which looked an awful lot like my grandmother's handwriting, then I started to figure out that someone was pulling the wool over my eyes. But I didn't mind all that much, since I got presents out of the deal. Of course, when seeing multiple Santas in different places around town, I initially fell for the old "those are Santa's helpers" line.
I think I actually did ask my dad some questions about expeditions to the North Pole in relation to Santa Claus. When I realized that he couldn't come up with any straight answers, I was sensing that the whole Santa Claus routine was BS. I didn't actually pore over aerial photographs, although I did have an avid interest in geography and maps at a young age. In the TV program "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," they showed representations of Santa's workshop and the surrounding area showing rock caves, mountains, and trees at the North Pole, which do not exist there, since it's above the tree line and there's no actual land; it's all ice. So, at that point, the story shifted to where Santa's Workshop wasn't actually at the North Pole, but somewhere in northern Alaska. It was also during the Cold War, so I was looking at maps which showed the DEW line, prompting even more questions about that.
Another aspect of this also related to my early religious influences, and the fact is, believing in Santa Claus is really just an indulgence the Church allows for small children. Once you reach a certain age, the Church would expect its adherents to cease believing in Santa Claus, just as they demand disbelief in Zeus, Apollo, Thor, and other such "false gods" as deemed by the Church authorities. I find that somewhat ironic in that the Church not only tells us what to believe, but what to disbelieve as well. That may be one reason why atheists tend to ridicule religious beliefs by equating it with beliefs in Santa Claus, although I'm not sure if it has the desired effect, since it's really apples and oranges.
|
|
|
|
