Atheism and Rejection of Medicine

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Atheism is the belief that a God does not exist. A true atheist does not deny simply a particular godimage, but the possibility of any existence of any kind of God. Since one definition of "God" is "the most important aspect of your life," most "atheists" are not true atheists at all.

They have simply exchanged the cosmic God of Mind or Love for the tiny "God" of their career, their intellect, their ego, house, car, music, books, stuff, sex, etc.

Almost everyone has a "most important" thing in his/her life. This can be considered a "god" in the widest sense of the word. But a true atheist could have no "most important" concern. She could not believe in Love. She could not even believe in Mind. She would not believe in intelligence, order, structure, or pattern in nature.

What most atheists deny, to be fair, is not a "most important aspect" to their lives. What they deny is belief in the sociocultural image of "god" popular in our society. This is the mad "Jehovah-myth" of nearly four millennia in the past. This "god" was monstrous, murderous, and psychotic. He is taught in much of the Hebrew Scriptures ("Old Testament").

As a mystic, I do not believe in this particular portrait of "god." For this reason, some have accused me of "atheism."

This, paradoxically, despite the fact that God is the most important part of this life. God is the first thought every morning, and the last every night, and pervades every day. Often, from six to ten hours a day are spent writing or speaking about God.

This misunderstanding is precisely parallel to the one in which early Christians were called "atheists" because they did not believe in Jupiter, Mars, and the other gods of Rome.
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None of the great, respectable spiritual traditions rejects medicine or doctors. One tiny cult does. This is "Christian Science." Critics argue that it is neither Christian nor science.

This cult maintains that every person should have the "faith" to heal her own body without the use of doctors, medicines, surgerry, or other medical facilities. They hold to the simplistic, unrealistic idea that if you simply deny the existence of any disease, it will magically "go away." This is similar to the four-year-old who believes that she can make all the "bad monsters go away" just by closing her eyes! Of course, this does not work, and thousands of members of this cult have died horrible deaths because they refused medical assistance either to lessen suffering or to cure their disease.

Any Christian Scientist who seeks medical aid is kicked out of the church, and shamed for her "lack of faith." But even the founder of the cult, Mary Eddy, wore glasses, and saw a dentist! So, even she did not have this "faith," which is actually dangerous. It is foolishness, because it does not demonstrate Love or respect for the body. And it ignores the obvious and welcome fact that God (Love) works through doctors and nurses.

Of course, God can heal any disease. But God usually heals, as God usually loves, through other people. In this case, God uses medical professionals, whether using natural or regular therapies, to heal. Turning our back on them is one way of refusing God's assistance. (It is like the old joke about the guy on the roof praying for help during a flood.)