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Let me begin with a simple sentence: I am an atheist. Within this tiny combination of four words of our language, I have stated much less than many people seem to think; unlike some believe, I do not follow a strict "Atheist's Creed" nor worship the nonexistence of god. Through my own conversations with former friends of mine who became quite upset upon learning of my "change", I have learned that people have as many opinions and beliefs about atheists as they do about god.

If I am not all of those things, though, what am I and why do I continue to have such an interest in religion?

To restate myself, I am an atheist. I believe that considering all of the evidence that I have ever seen, I can justifiably state that there is no god. I am neither bitter towards religion nor towards its followers; I simply have my thoughts and my deductions, and they form my beliefs.

To believe there is no god is not to say, however, that there is not a very important aspect to all religion. After all, religion - more so than perhaps any other cultural area - is the tie that binds all nations, all ages, and all people. Throughout history, humankind has been pestered by the questions of: "Who am I"; "What is my purpose?"; "What happens after I die?" and many, many more.

History has a pattern, though, of explaining the currently unexplainable by using that wonderful idea of the supernatural. Chemistry? In the Middle Ages, it was magic. Eclipses? Works of the devil. The Auroras? Signs from the heavens themselves.

Even today we continue this chain of thoughts, through "miracles" that we cannot explain. We see them on television being explained as charitable donations from god, it seems; as if god enjoys picking certain lucky winners of his grace while giving all of the other ones a fairly unfair hand of cards.

Before I digress further, however, back to my original train of thought. I am interested in religion for a number of reasons, one of which I just described: the history of it all.

If I had the choice to wipe all religion and religious history off the face of the earth right now, I would quickly and unequivocally deny that offer. To give up our past is to give up our future, and I have no interest in that, to be sure.

Secondly, there is the most intriguing effect that it has on people worldwide. Truly, otherwise logical and rational people become the most blubbering of fools when discussing topics of religion. Medical surgeons discuss the Virgin Birth as if it was common policy; nursery workers describe the topic of Original Sin as being fair and just; and scientists speak of a young earth as if the facts support it.

The power that religion holds on people is not a holy one; it is neither a sign of its validity nor an example of its falsehood. It is merely a truth; an inside look at the priorities that our brains use to justify our world. Perhaps most importantly, it is an example of our desire to want more out of life; to want more from this world than a mere 75-100 years; to have a wonderful mansion to look forward to after this frequently-hurtful time on earth is completed.

So why am I interested in religion?

I am interested because it is a part of my life, irregardless of my beliefs. It influences my government; the nation that I proudly call home; me, my neighborhood, my family, and my world. We are all linked to religion no matter how hard we try to separate ourselves, and until the day that the world wakes up, we always will be.

Learn more about this author, Michael Mikolajczyk.
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