Reviving Atheist Living

I haven't posted on this blog in just over two years. Where did I go? Why did I stop? There isn't one simple answer. Family and work were taking up more of my time. I was getting tired of the harassment and hate mail. I felt like my posts were becoming more about reacting to upsetting things in the news than reflecting on secular living and my thoughts on religion.

But I decided to start posting again. Here's why:

1. The disturbing comments and emails haven't stopped just because I stopped posting. There are less of them, but I still occasionally wake up to comments/emails from strangers telling me why I'm a miserable person (who should die and go to hell) or why I should let god fill the hole in my life that they assume I must have. (I don't.)

2. The positive comments and emails haven't stopped just because I stopped posting. There are less of them, too, but it feels good to hear from someone who connected to something I wrote and felt supported by it. Hopefully, posting regularly again will let me make more positive connections.

3. I like thinking about philosophy, ethics, morality and how we can create a better society. That isn't what some people expect from an atheist (though I've found it to be a pretty common trait), and I think it's important to show that there is more to secular living than being an "angry atheist."

4. I'm not the only secular parent who has to navigate raising children in a predominately religious society. It creates some added challenges, yet many of the secular/atheist parents I know have been hesitant to seek support for fear of being ostracized, or worse, having their children ostracized. Maybe I can offer some helpful resources or at least share some of my parenting experiences.

5. People are still afraid of calling themselves atheists. I meet so many people who say that they do not believe in god, but still stick to terms like "secular" or "agnostic" because "atheist" is too extreme. It has a negative connotation. In my opinion, that needs to change.

Atheist simply means someone who does not believe in a god or gods. It doesn't mean someone who is immoral, untrustworthy, egotistical or a threat to society. Atheism doesn't preclude believing in something larger than oneself--however, that larger sense isn't a supernatural creator. It is more likely to be found in nature or by connecting with other people.

I don't know how often I will post, or what I will be posting about, but I'm going to make an effort to share regularly. As readers, I hope you will find something that speaks to you or, if not, at least find the courtesy to respectfully disagree.

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