by P. Clifford

Created on: March 31, 2009

The real question here is whether debating something not provable with empirical evidence is a masturbatory exercise. Despite my having asked the question, I would gravitate toward no simply because it's fun to fan our intellectual feathers like a peacock. Well, I guess that's masturbatory. It is, nevertheless, fun.

Now that I've given myself permission to consider the question (so saintly of me), let's consider if angels are real. I've never seen one and I've never met a credible source who has. Of course, I've never seen a nebula or the answers to several vexing crosswords, but there are smart scientists and Will Shortz who assure me these things do exist.

So, as a philosophical matter, why would I believe Will Shortz but not Billy Graham or Rick Warren? I could, if I had the energy, study nebula and find out the answers to the crosswords, whereas angels appear alongside some pretty gruesome and spectacular passages in the Bible and their existence is at best (I can't resist) nebulous.' Many of the bible's passages are patently false. Sure maybe they're allegorical, but there's nothing allegorical about, "No one whose testicles are crushed or whose male organ is cut off shall enter the assembly of the Lord." (Deuteronomy 23:1)

The logic is, because there are so many fantastic, untrue and weird things in the bible, we should treat all of it with a fair amount of skepticism. If you had a friend who said untruths 5% of the time, you would likely question everything he said.

I will spare you the patter about worshiping a carpenter who lived two thousand years ago, because religion is a powerful tool. Compartmentalization of all of the things we don't understand, can't understand, and the worrying aspects of life into a 3rd floor spare room in our brain is comforting. This creates a giant pile of stuff in our brain we don't have to worry ourselves with explaining. From there, it is no giant leap to see how we create a peaceful freedom when we eliminate the need for worry.

Angels exist. An angel watches me and I am free from worrying about the cruel forces of fate that gave my mother cancer and crushed my legs in a car accident. This, although personally liberating, is a tough place to be. Does this mean if I don't put my child in a car seat, her injuries are something my angel or God gave me as a character building gift? Condoms and birth control are bad, and my syphilis and teen pregnancy are gifts from God to test me because of the weakness I showed in my indiscretion?

I would argue that morality and curiousness are part of who we are. A firm belief in these things will promote your understanding of the world and reduce the probability you will engage in self-destructive activities. Understanding risks and probabilities will provide some comfort to the agnostic, but accepting and loving a sometimes unjust, unfair and cruel world is the healthiest psychological tactic.

Learn more about this author, P. Clifford.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.