by Philip Settels

Created on: October 22, 2007

The Irrelevance of Proving God

"Cuz I gotta tell you the truth, folks. I gotta tell you the truth. When it comes to bullshit big time, major league bullshit - you have to stand in awe of the all time champion of false promises and exaggerated claims, religion." Zeitgeist, the Movie

I was about five minutes into the film when I heard the above-mentioned statement. I shrugged and rolled my eyes, and decided to give at least a few more minutes to the movie that a good friend had recommended. My patience and determination were quickly squandered, and I substituted the film for the first review blackle (easier on the eyes than google, and it saves energy too!) could provide. My understanding of the movie's premise is this: the masters of the world gave us religion, destroyed the WTC towers, and control the banks and other institutions that dictate the conditions of our lives, so that they, in turn, may continue to rule the world. For years I've been reading books dealing with the military industrial complex, the influence of international corporations in the development of national foreign policies, and the ties between elite decision-makers in various stations (governments, NGOs, industries and corporations) that allow them to exert tremendous influence on the lives of every person (and non-person) on the planet. I generally seek this stuff out. I'm usually the one my friends accuse of being a conspiracy theorist. Why, then, did I turn off the movie? That's the question I was left to deal with.

As a member of an established religious community, I wanted to convince myself that I hadn't stopped watching the movie out of fear it would shake my faith. While I recognize that there is a difference between faith and religion, and that all human institutions are subject to human imperfection, to claim that a religion is based on lies is to challenge the very foundation of some group's faith. It's obvious we can't protect our faith by deliberately avoiding the things that challenge it. Faith itself is a challenge ("Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief." - Mark 9:24) and I know that the desire to render it easy by actively not testing it can only be harmful. The change I have undergone in the last few years, though, is that the doubt that coexists with my faith is internal. It is no longer based upon my knowledge (or ignorance) of history, or abilities (or inabilities) of logical argumentation or reason. I'm no longer concerned with "proof" of God's existence, and to pursue

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