For the Love of an Atheist


The mid-day crowds at the ferry terminal were sparse because the next boat wouldn’t arrive for a while. Without anyone to engage, I watched a young woman take her protest sign, prop it up against a bench, and sit down in the shade.

One side of the sign stated in bold letters Seattle Atheists. The flipside read: Religion Causes War. 

Since I was waiting for the ferry, I decided to sit in the shade with her and ask what she meant. 




She was happy to talk and declared emphatically, “People are brainwashed by religion. Look at how many have been killed because of it.”

“Do you think atheism is the answer?” I asked respectfully.

“Look, people kill those that don’t follow their religion. You see it ALL the time.” She spoke loudly, although no one was close enough to hear.



I turned to face her. “So, is this a God problem or a man problem?”

“People do what their religion tells them to do.” She said, waving her hands dismissively.

“And atheists don’t do that?” I asked.

“Atheists don’t BELIEVE in God.” She said rather slowly, as if I didn’t understand what atheism involved. “They don’t kill people for religion, because they don’t have a religion.”  She sighed with a sense of satisfaction, having won the argument.

We sat quietly. A few people walked by and looked at her sign, but most ignored us sitting together on the bench.



I ventured a bit further. “Did you know that Stalin, Mao, Lenin, and Pol Pot killed over 100 million people? They weren’t Christians, they were atheists.”



This young woman, who cared deeply about the world’s injustice, couldn't see that atheism could do harm too.

She cocked her head to look at me more closely, “You’re religious, aren’t you?”

I smiled and said yes. “But I wouldn’t hurt anyone, nor would millions of other Christians. Someone once said that if your religion asks you to kill someone, it’s time to find a new religion.”


As I left to go buy my ferry ticket, I thought the one thing that makes a difference in the world is love—something Jesus told us to offer everyone. 

I looked back and saw that she was standing with her sign, waiting for the arriving ferry crowd. I smiled and waved at her. She smiled broadly and waved back. I hadn’t changed her mind, but at least I left her with love.  

 “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” 
         1 Corinthians 13:6


FYI: Throughout human history, 1763 wars have been waged. Only 123 of those were fought for religious reasons. And of those 123 wars, 66 of them were fought in the name of Islam. That leaves 3.23% that were caused by the rest of the world religions, including Christianity.     Encyclopedia of Wars

Popular posts from this blog

Counting the Cost

Image
Something big is missing in this photo. Let me explain. Here in my hometown, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe prepared a parcel of land for a new hotel. Plenty of planning and architectural designs were evaluated. A gemstone of a hotel would be built across from the waterfront—a beautiful, restful place welcoming travelers. A true four-star facility.   They cleared the aging brick structures that had been fading away between Front Street and Railroad Avenue. Then the pandemic hit, shortages of labor and supplies, add in the costly inflation that followed. Everything stopped.   But this is what I admire about the Elwha Tribe: they have counted the cost. They didn’t want to move forward and take on tremendous debt. They would rather move slowly and be financially ready, rather than begin building and then letting it sit unfinished.   Counting the cost is something I should have done earlier in life when I didn’t know what high interest rates would do to our farming cost...
Read more

Summertime Music

Image
During the summer months, in an outside seating area, a delightfully painted piano sits with a sign that says, “Play me”.   It was just before 8 pm as I walked past the piano. My bus would be arriving soon, and I still have another ten minutes to walk before reaching my bus stop. But no one is around. It’s a beautiful warm evening. I pulled out the piano bench and sat down. The sun was behind me, and the piano keys reflected its glow. I had no music in front of me, only the songs within me. Notes drifted into the air.  In those brief moments, the magic of music and summer came together. Isn’t that how it is? Summertime music has a way of lingering in our minds and lasting a lifetime. As I stood and grabbed my things, I heard distant clapping—I guess I wasn’t alone, after all.
Read more

Planting Good Seeds

Image
Harvest will always depend on what we plant and how well we care for our crop.    Looking over my seed packets, I notice they’re different than the ones I planted before. One package is called Word seeds. The directions say that each of my words is a seed, so it cautions me to think before I speak. Harsh words don’t produce sweet, nourishing fruit. These seeds will require thoughtful care in the garden. I see some Volunteer seeds. Those extra hours I tend to fritter away are going to be planted in a useful project.   It looks like time isn’t wasted in this garden plot. Next are some Love seeds—the directions are interesting: get up each day and love others. No specifics are given—just do something for someone every day. The seed package shows pictures of smiling faces. I smile back. As I’m ready to head to the garden with my seeds, a package falls to the ground. I open it. Inside are the tiniest seeds I’ve ever seen—but the directions s...
Read more