God's Chosen People
I enjoyed this article by Michele Hanson in The Guardian because I used to ask the same question of myself as a young teenager when I was struggling to make sense of organised religion.
And of course it makes no sense whatsoever.
Because if God really is all seeing, all knowing and all powerful, then why does the Supreme Being prefer to save one life over another?
The daily killings which are taking place in the Middle East, for example, are being committed by people who believe there is only One God and they invoke this God as being on their particular side, often in a cruel and sadistic way, as they seek to end the lives of their enemies.
Which is why I decided many years ago that not only is 'God not Great', but that the notion of a Supreme Being is completely crazy and that God doesn't exist at all.
If God saved an American doctor with Ebola, why did he let 1,200 Africans die?
It must be lovely for people such as Dr Kent Brantly to be so sure of God's existence. For the rest of us, it's not so easy
By Michele Hanson - The Guardian
Ebola survivor Dr Kent Brantly. Photograph: Tami Chappell/Reuters
Lucky Dr Kent Brantly, the American doctor who has recovered from Ebola, having been given a dose of the experimental antibody serum Zmapp, whizzed home to the US, and given another dose. He is now thanking God for saving his life. Through the medical team and drugs, he admits, but ultimately, it seems, God was in charge. And he chose Brantly, not the other 1,200 mainly west African people who have died horribly, which seems a bit picky.
It must be lovely for Brantly to be so sure of things. I tried, aged 10, to work out whether God was around or not, but couldn't. "What was his actual shape?" I wondered. And how could he be everywhere, all at once? How big, for example, was his toenail? Did it cover Ruislip, where I lived? I imagined him constantly on the go, distant enough for an effective overview and able to home in on catastrophes and act. But it was very hit and miss. Would he be on the spot when you needed him, like Brantly did? On and on I went for years, trying to believe in him. I even went camping with a tremendously religious youth organisation, but despite the prayers and observances, even the devout did some frightfully rude things in their tents. And there was no divine retribution. I gave up on God, for ever.
Millions didn't. They seem to be obeying his instructions to the letter, which isn't doing the world any favours. But at last, a bit of good news. The Jehovah's Witnesses are mellowing. They have a new tactic. Instead of just knocking on doors, they're also allowed to stand beside their literature, smiling, near shops and stations, letting us approach voluntarily. Marvellous. It's a shame they didn't do this years ago, when my old friend was a Jehovah's Witness. She was terrified sick of being sent to knock on our door. Luckily it never happened.
If only all religions would take this hands-off approach and let us all believe whatever we like. No pressure. I hope that one day, that will happen. I would say "Please, God," but I can't.
