WHAT I'M ON ABOUT

This blog intends to provide some balance in the religious debate by providing a counterpoint to Billy Graham's religious advice. On his website http://www.billygraham.org/ he responds to readers' questions by quoting from the bible. I am attempting to respond to those same queries by resorting to reason and rationality.







I must acknowledge a debt here to Jeff Hope who started in this vein but who has unfortunately taken a hiatus. His blog is http://atheistsanswer.wordpress.com/. Jeff has inspired me to continue.







Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Deteriorating Health

QUESTION: Today's comes from QR...
"My husband retired a couple of years ago, and now all he does is worry about his health. He only has a few minor problems (like anyone his age) but all he can think about is how he might become disabled some day, and things like that. How can I change this? Or should I even try?".

IRRELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVE:
They say that the only certainties in life are death and taxes. It is inevitable that as we age our health deteriorates as our bodies slowly wear out. This is a reality that everyone has to face, as the human body is having to live longer than our ancestors' did. Your husband needs to come to terms with his mortality. It is not a topic that sits easily with our desire for life, but is an unfortunate reality. The human lifespan is tiny in relation to the totality of time and it is hard for us to accept how fleeting our life really is. It is normal to want to live forever, and religions often pander to our insecurity about death, but being philosophical about our demise will make it easier to accept and easier to accept our deteriorating health. Furthermore praying about health has never been proven to make any difference, and worrying about it can actually have a deleterious effect. Staying interested in other people and active in mind and body will help you maximise life's enjoyment.

BILLY GRAHAM'S ANSWER:
http://www.billygraham.org/articlepage.asp?articleid=6127
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2 comments:

  1. Teenage AtheistJune 30, 2010 at 5:01 AM

    Very good response. It's actually useful and meaningful too, unlike Billy Grahams.

    Accepting eventual death and the progression that leads to it is never nice to ponder. However, you can deny it by concealing and masking your insecurities with the prospect of eternal life and religion, but this doesn't alter the inevitable.
    Although this may be difficult to accept, the only thing one can do is to spend the time appreciating their "fleeting" moment on the Earth. With atheism, you get to celebrate life. With religion, you celebrate death.

    Nice post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ModeratorJuly 2, 2010 at 1:56 AM

    @Raithie...
    Thanks for your thoughts. It was actually a hard post to write as the topic of death is a difficult one for us to accept. Unfortunately our demise is inevitable.
    Have fun, Bavin.

    ReplyDelete

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