I love holidays. But I hate the
word "holiday". The reason must be obvious; I hate the origin of the
word itself, "holy day". An origin dripping with the very meaning
that this carnival stands against; god, religion, superstition, etc.. So, I
love celebrations, I enjoy the seasonal distinction associated with
celebrations, and I have strong emotional ties to them derived from fond
childhood memories. But, I still hate perpetuating their religious origins.
It's a nasty paradox for atheist. In preparing for this addition of COTG I was
faced head on by this paradox, and I pondered what I should do. Do I follow
with tradition, and perpetuate a holiday that originated from pagan religious
ceremonies, and was later subverted by Christianity, or do I ignore societal
expectations and dismiss with the Halloween trappings and focus simply on the
content that has been submitted?
Phil for Humanity suggests that
we should not only condemn out-dated religious beliefs, but we should also
refrain from bestowing upon those that hold those beliefs a respected place in
society. And, that instead, we should Support New Atheism a more stringent form
of atheism. I'll interpret this as one vote against Halloween tradition.
Daylight Atheism holds a similar view, and extends the thought to advocate
repealing tax exempt status for churches in Tax the Churches.
My support of a Halloween decor
would be a purely secular one, would that make it OK? If I don't attach any
spiritual meaning to it, does that make it acceptable? Salto Sobrius doesn't
know what spiritual means, and suggests that nobody else really does either.
Are You Spiritual? So, while Martin apparently can't recommend the use of the
word spiritual, he does recommend the most recent Roy Zimmerman album. Over at
10,000 Reasons to Doubt the Fish, olly suggests that "secular
spirituality" can be expressed through creativity and music, and begins A ‘Rush’ of Emotion from Sean Prophet with a reference to Black Sun
Journal's Rush 'Saved' Me (And My Kids). Olly thought it was worth a link, and
I thought so too.
Along a similar vein, Reason and
Rhyme serves up an article by Dan Barker discussing the agnosticism of Irving
Berlin: Patriotism Was His Religion. "Christmas, for Irving Berlin, was
not a religious holiday: it was an American holiday. [...] The words to 'White
Christmas' are not about the birth of a savior-god: they are about winter, the
real reason for the season." All in all, I'll take that as two votes for a
secular interpretation Halloween as a seasonal celebration.
However, I wouldn't want to force
anyone into a Halloween celebration that makes them uncomfortable, or makes
them feel unwelcome. Barry of Staring at Empty Pages discusses a similar
dilemma in The Dinner Game.
Perhaps a better way to approach
the holiday is to consider real horrors as opposed to imaginary ones. Rather
than discussing ghosts, or demons, or other make believe maladies, we should
instead consider the very real nightmares that our society has created.
Whether you agree with the Iraq
war or not, it would be hard to argue that what's happening there is not
horrible. Westminster Wisdom discusses one aspect of the very real problems
applying religious belief to government can create in Faith in Politics, and
references Tony Blair's purported faith based decisions regarding the conflict.
Part of Blair's justifications for the conflict, were assertions that he had
knowledge that was both secret and or "private". Richard of
Philosophy, et cetera isn't buying it. In Experience and Testimony he expresses
his dissatisfaction with the whole notion of "private evidence".
For those that have been slow to
enter the political fray, or may still be trying to get off the fence this
election season, Stephan of Fearless Philosophy for Free Minds offers up
several good reasons why he won't be elected to public office anytime soon in a
Personal Attack Ad….Against Myself!
Intentional misinformation is a
horror often perpetrated by religion. Hell's Handmaiden offers one example in
Evolution Isn't Theology, while The Greenbelt offers
another in Enter the Ark. Mojoey of Deep Thoughts exhibits another type of
horror, that of morality of personal convenience, in Abandoned Meat.
So where does this leave us? We
can't escape our history, as a society we are a fabric woven from the actions
of those that came before us. We can only hope to change our future. The fabric
of my past enjoys the Halloween holiday. So, (obviously) in deference to the
past, I have decided to use the traditional Halloween color theme for this
post. But, out of a desire to see a future decoyed of religion and religious
influence, I am leaving out the ghosts, goblins, and witches. They don't exist,
so why should we honor them. I do think pumpkins are OK, because they evoke the
flavor of the season.
If then we can only change the
future what do we have to look forward to? I'm left with two different takes on
our possible future: The Skwib takes a more pessimistic (though very literary)
outlook in The Empty Arches, while Wad's Place offers a more opportunistic
outlook in I Bring News.
Ultimately, it may not matter if,
as suggested over at Avant News, it Turns Out God Doesn't Particularly Care
About Humans.
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