An Atheist Manifesto.

by Joseph Lewis.

Many ask what difference does it make whether man believes in a G.o.d or not.

It makes a big difference.

It makes all the difference in the world.

It is the difference between being right and being wrong; it is the difference between truth and surmises--facts or delusion.

It is the difference between the earth being flat, and the earth being round.

It is the difference between the earth being the center of the universe, or a tiny speck in this vast and uncharted sea of mult.i.tudinous suns and galaxies.

It is the difference in the proper concept of life, or conclusions based upon illusion.

It is the difference between verified knowledge and the faith of religion.

It is a question of Progress or the Dark Ages.

The history of man proves that religion perverts man's concept of life and the universe, and has made him a cringing coward before the blind forces of nature.

If you believe that there is a G.o.d; that man was "created"; that he was forbidden to eat of the fruit of the "tree of knowledge"; that he disobeyed; that he is a "fallen angel"; that he is paying the penalty for his "sins," then you devote your time praying to appease an angry and jealous G.o.d.

If, on the other hand, you believe that the universe is a great mystery; that man is the product of evolution; that he is born without knowledge; that intelligence comes from experience, then you devote your time and energies to improving his condition with the hope of securing a little happiness here for yourself and your fellow man.

That is the difference.

If man was "created," then someone made a grievous mistake.

It is inconceivable that any form of intelligence would waste so much time and effort to make such an inferior piece of life--with all the "ills that flesh is heir to," and with all the misery and suffering that is so essential a part of living.

If man is a "fallen angel," by the commission of a "sin," then disease and sorrow are part of G.o.d's inscrutable plan as a penalty imposed upon him for his "disobedience," and man's entire life is devoted to the expiation of that sin so as to soften the indictment before the "Throne of G.o.d."

Man's atonement consists in making himself as miserable as possible by praying, fasting, masochism, flagellations and other forms of torture.

This s.a.d.i.s.tic delusion causes him to insist that others--under pain of punishment--be as miserable as himself, for fear that if others fail to do as he does, it will provoke the wrath of his tyrant G.o.d to a more severe chastis.e.m.e.nt.

The inevitable result is that Man devotes his life, not to the essentials of living and the making of a happy home, but to the building of temples and churches where he can "lift his voice to G.o.d" in a frenzy of fanaticism, and eventually he becomes a victim of hysteria.

His time and energy are wasted to cleanse his "soul," which he does not possess, and to save himself from a future punishment in h.e.l.l which exists only in his imagination.

Religious hallucinations take on many forms.

Some do not wash themselves; some wash only their fingers; some think that the filthier they are, the "holier" they are; some cut off their hair, while others let it grow long; some refuse to stand up, while others refuse to sit down; some amputate their genitals, and some their b.r.e.a.s.t.s; some pull out their teeth, and others wither their limbs; some fast, and others gorge themselves; some cover their heads with sand, and others with sackcloth and ashes; some talk continuously, and others remain silent; some are celibates, and others are profligates; some stand on their heads; some brand themselves, while others pierce their nose, eyes and ears.

Nuns cut off their hair to make themselves as unsightly as possible--to make themselves repulsive to the opposite s.e.x; there are monks who have vowed never to look upon the face of a woman, and Franciscans still wear ropes around their bodies as a symbol of flagellation.

There is hardly a form of insanity or delusion that has not been induced by some sort of religious belief.

To laugh on the "Sabbath," at one time, was considered the sin of sins.

How rightfully Robert G. Ingersoll said that, "Christianity has made more lunatics than it ever provided asylums for."

On the other hand, we do not believe that Man is a depraved human being.

We do not believe that there is a tyrant G.o.d, or that there is a h.e.l.l, and that man will suffer the pains and penalties of eternal torment. We do not believe that you should make yourself as miserable as possible Here in the hope of securing some happiness "Hereafter."

We do not believe that disease is a punishment for sin.

We believe that disease is a natural consequence of the processes of life, and that the "ills of the flesh" inevitably follow where one form of life lives upon another, and where "at the banquet of life each in turn is a guest and a dish."

It is only by understanding the nature of disease that man has been able, even in a small degree, to protect himself from the ravages of its destruction.

The use of prayer to cure disease has been responsible for epidemics that have, on many occasions, almost wiped out the human race. Prayer has had no more effect upon disease than it has upon health. It merely permits the disease to continue its course and increase the suffering of the victim.

If priests--of all clans--were free of disease and immune to death, then there might be some basis for the claim of the religionists. But these "men of G.o.d" are victims of the natural course of life, "even as you and I." They enjoy no exemptions. They suffer the same ills; they feel the same sensations; they are subject to the same pa.s.sions of the body, the same frailties of the mind, are victims of circ.u.mstances and misfortune, and they meet inevitable death just as every other person.

They commit the same kind of crimes as other mortals, and especially, because of their "calling," many are notoriously involved in the embezzlement of church funds. Nor does their calling protect them from the "pa.s.sions of the flesh." The scandalous conduct of many "men of the cloth," in the realm of moral turpitude, often ends in murder. That is why there are so many "men of G.o.d" in our jails, and why so many have paid the supreme penalty in the death chair.

They are not free from a single rule of life; what others must endure, they likewise must experience. They cannot protect themselves from the forces of nature, and the laws of life, any more than you can. What they can do, you can do, too. Their claims of being "anointed" and "vicars of G.o.d" on earth are false and hypocritical.

If they cannot fulfill their promises while you are alive, how can they accomplish them when you are dead?

If they are impotent Here, where they could demonstrate their powers, how ridiculous are their promises to accomplish them in the "Hereafter,"

the mythical abode which exists only in their dishonest or deluded imagination?

The illusions of life are many and varied.

Things are not always what they seem to be, and it is well known that "appearances are deceiving."

That is why it is so difficult for some people to understand the nature of disease, and why it has taken man so long to comprehend the true conditions of life.

This deception prevails in matters of great importance, as well as in matters of little consequence.

There is no "voice of nature" to tell man that which is true and that which is false, nor to warn him of the dangers of life. He must find the truth for himself, and only after very bitter experiences.

The first piece of deception of man, after his so-called mental awakening, was his inability to conceive of any scheme of life except from his own primitive concept of limited intelligence.

He could not conceive the earth and the universe except as being "created," and from his own feeling of revenge, he could not conceive of the suffering of life except as a punishment for some "disobedience."

Primitive though he be, he did not inflict pain and punishment upon the innocent. This diabolical scheme could only come from a "merciful" G.o.d.

As an ill.u.s.tration of this concept of primitive man in this respect is the delusion he experiences when he believes that the sun "rises and sets," when as a matter of fact, it is the sun which is "stationary" as far as the earth is concerned, and it is the earth that "moves," as Galileo so courageously maintained--at the cost of his liberty.

There is a delusion that the sun shines and the water falls from the clouds to make the flowers bloom.

To the religionist this is an indication of the "beauty" in nature.