A Prayer for the Soul of an Argumentative Atheist
A Prayer for the Soul of an Argumentative Atheist
I offer a prayer for your wounded soul,
…the soul you do not believe in.
I offer a prayer to the God you believe is but…
…a manifestation of my wounded imagination.
I offer it in the poetry I speak, that you “just don’t get”
…and I do so freely, of my own will, without coercion.
In the name of the God of Love
…illuminate him, for to him love is but a biological reaction
In the name of the God of Hope
…illuminate him, for to him hope is but irrational thinking
In the name of the God of Truth
…illuminate him, for to him truth is subjective
I am exhausted by the anger your comments contain
You are like a bottomless hole of contrariness.
I am tired of the pain you have asked me to address
You are deeply hurt by the idea that God exists for some of us
I am fatigued that nothing I say has any effect
You are in a way admirable, in the way one can admire a bottomless abyss
In the name of the God of Abraham
…illuminate him, for to him Abraham was a dangerous lunatic
In the name of the God of Moses
…illuminate him, for to him Moses was a cynical politician
In the name of the God of John the Baptist
…illuminate him, for to him John was a mere rabble-rouser
I draw upon strength from the wellspring of my own soul
You are a clear representative of that portion of mankind
…who wish to tear down all of our childhood ideals
I draw upon the strength of the Romantic nature of the Human Heart
You wish to bring everything down to biology and mathematics,
…science and statistics. You wish to explain everything away.
In the name of the God whom he views as an invention
…illuminate him, for the event of his soul has ceased to move
In the name of the God whom he views as a delusion
…illuminate him, for his Heart has become a mere cardiac muscle
In the name of the God whom he views as a convention
…illuminate him, for his anger has clouded his sight, and he is blind
I too have been arrogant God, in that I thought I could do it alone
…for what could possibly motivate me
…to have this conversation on a public forum if not arrogance?
I claim the following as an excuse: Maybe I served as a mirror for him.
…for what could possibly be the meaning of the argument
…if not to clear the path of the egos that stand in the way.
In the name of the infinite and unending Love
…please illuminate me, so that I can be less arrogant
In the name of the miraculous and fragile Hope
…please illuminate me, so that I can be less argumentative
In the name of the one and only objective Truth
…please illuminate me, so that I can be less angry at the disbelievers.
October 5, 2011
