out of con-texts 2

people are my religion because i believe in them

One of my touchstone's as a humanist, in absolute earnest, is the YMIW w/ TJ Miller in which TJ talks about atheism without nihilism and Pete talks about how, when he first started dissenting from Christianity, he thought about stealing Cokes at a hotel because nothing was going to judge him for it. Kumail and TJ, both atheists, told him if he did, there would be consequences not for Pete, but for the person who worked at that hotel. This teeny tiny anecdote is important to me and something I always come back to as a person who does not believe in any reward or punishment after death.

We were put on this planet for who fucking knows why, and the only thing we truly have is each other. We must do good things not for our benefit, but for the benefit of others. I sometimes get these weird moments of paralyzing fear about things like picking up litter or holding a door for someone – that if I don't do this courteous thing there will be some sort of karmic retribution (how my humanism functions bits and bobs of other ideologies is another post in the distant future) – when really, I need to pick up litter or hold a door for someone not to avoid something bad happening to me but for the good it will do for others, whether immediate or hundreds of years in the future.  

Tonight, I worked with my least favorite manager who treats me, and others below us, so badly I only think of quitting when she's around. I started having intensely mean spirited thoughts towards her until I realized there are people who love her. At work she's drunk on power and talks down to people and treats me like a kindergartner, but she has a family. She has friends. I'm sure there are people who think of her as one of the best things in their life. Just because I see a side of her that is loathsome doesn't mean everyone does.

Anyway, I basically spent the rest of my shift thinking about how faith in the theistic religious sense can be transposed into faith in people. Though theists cannot seen their god, they still believe in his power and omnipresence. Though I sometimes cannot see the good in certain people, I believe there is good in them and that they are valuable to this world in some way. My faith lies in people and their inherent goodness. I am constantly trying to make this faith stronger. I try my best to do good things every day that will contribute to the faith of others.

I just want to die knowing I did everything I could to make this world better than it was when I came into it. Even if it's just a little bit. Even if it's just the litter I've picked up or the doors I've opened.

To conclude this rambly diatribe, here's another piece of audio I consider a humanism touchstone – People by Andrew Jackson Jihad.

"I have faith in my fellow man, and I only hope that he has faith in me."