Paul Kingsnorth's New Book, and an Atheist's Argument Against God

Do you know any atheists or agnostics? I am not so worried about those who say they are agnostics, which means they are saying they honestly don't know, which can simply mean they don't know God but since they admit not knowing, at least there is a glimmer of a "want to" know, a searching, even, perhaps. People who are self-identified atheists or agnostics have specific reasons they do not believe that may or may not be clearly articulated. I recently viewed a video by Tim Barnett, which begins with a woman asking an atheist why he does not believe in God. 1. The atheist said there was no proof or verifiable evidence for a God or gods. But he had no explanation for how all of creation came into existence. Perhaps he would have gone on to say he believed in Darwin's theory of Evolution, but the video did not say how he explained how all of nature evolved. Actually, I have little energy to debate this argument. Most children seem to believe in God by nature, unless their childlike faith has been corrupted. 2. The second reason the atheist presented for not believing in God was really just his opinion that people are free to believe in God if it gives them comfort, and Barnett argued that perhaps they believe that because there is a God who gives comfort. 3. The atheist said he believes that religion was a "holdover from the infancy of humanity," created to control large masses of people and only creates "division, hatred and death." 4. Finally, the atheist believes that "the millstone of religion" should be removed from humanity so they can "advance." That's interesting because throughout Western Civilization it has been Christians who have brought us "hospitals, universities, human rights, and modern science," as Barnett pointed out. I am reading Paul Kingsnorths new book, "Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity" in which he provides some clear explanation for the condition of Western Civilization, how we got here and what is the best way forward. I recommend the book or if you'd rather watch videos, he has spoken on many venues and his videos are available online. He speaks of the "Four Ps" which are: (most of these are my paraphrase or interpretation; quotations are from Kingsnorth.) 1. Past--our roots, "where we came from," our "history and ancestry." 2. People--"Who we are" as a people. On this one I read into it "our" people, who they are and our relationships with them. 3. Place--"Where a culture is. Nature in its local and particular manifestations." 4. Prayer--"Where a culture is going. Its religious tradition, which relates it to God or the gods. Kingsnorth argues that Western Civilization has been sabotaged by "the Machine"--: the anti-culture of the Machine" and, as I understand him, have replaced the Four Ps with the Four Ss: 1. Science--"Where we come from" "(i.e., measurable) nature of reality." I would add quantitative and linear. 2. Self--"Who we are. The highest good is to serve the self and ensure its longevity." 3. Sex--"What we do. Both the highest means of sacral pleasure and, through public expressions of 'sexuality,' an affirmation of individual identity." 4. The Screen--"Where we are going. The screen is both our main source of distraction from reality and the interface by which we are directed into the coming post-human reality of the Machine." So, that is a lot of theology or philosophical thought processes for one Friday night, and I share it in hope that it might stimulate some thought and prayer. Ever since I saw Kingsnorth speaking about this in an interview with Bari Weiss, I've been thinking about it and the book is much deeper than the talk, but in sum, the Four Ps are (in the interview they were presented as People, Place, Prayer and the Past, in that order, which I, personally, prefer) have been replaced by the Four Ss (Science Self, Sex and the Screen). How do we go forward? I understand this as focus on our relationships with our people (those in our circle of influence), our place, where we are and what we are doing--how we are serving our fellow man, prayer (our relationship with God), and the past (our roots, our history, our ancestry, how we have come to relate and respond to reality the way we do.) And there are some rich things to think about. I have always placed a fairly high premium on thinking. Maybe you and I can come up with the Four Ts. Think about it.