Atheist Adventures

deconversionmovement:

christusexemplar:

• Uni = One
• Verse = Spoken Word

Universe = One Spoken Word

BAM. Mind blown.

Someone actually said this in a sermon at one of the churches I attended.  Too bad it’s wrong.  The word derives from the Latin universum coined by Cicero — a man that predated Christianity by more than a century (106-43 BCE).  Thus, he didn’t have the so called word, Jesus Christ, in mind.  You interpret universe as meaning one word because it conveniently fits with John 1:1.  Unfortunately, the Gospel of John postdates the existence of Cicero.  Therefore, you must rely on the OT; however, it would be a stretch to say that Cicero was influenced by the OT when coining the term.  You’re just wrongfully connecting dots.  It’s a simple coincidence especially when considering that your “word” lacks a commonality with the universe — namely existence.  The universe exists; Christ does not.  Here’s a plausible thought though:  perhaps the pseudonymous writer of the Gospel of John was influenced by Cicero who was a Roman who was inspired by the Greeks who believed in the prime mover or the first cause, the source of “all-being” — “through [it] all things were made; without [it] nothing was made that has been made (John 1:3).  Simply put, the early Christians were influenced by the Romans who were influenced by the Greeks; thus, it may not be a coincidence.  However, it could have been written to serve a literary purpose and I think that is the more plausible conclusion given the details I have outlined.  Also, keep this in mind:  the writers of the Gospels spoke Greek and never mind that there’s a similar verse in Hindu scripture that predates John 1:1 by centuries.

1. An eye for an eye makes everyone blind.
The social justice circle jerk posse who don’t understand this are one of the reasons why I’m frustrated. No you don’t have to be nice to people who are oppressing you, but it does not really benefit you to attack people when you also want them to listen to you.
2. It is no great accomplishment to be better than anyone else, it is only a great accomplishment to be better than who you were.
Atheists who think their atheism is better than everyone else’s religion need to stop that. Atheism just means you reject a God or gods. It does not mean you’re smart, or always right, or exempt from criticism. Also see above if you’re the type of atheist who attacks religious people when making an argument for their religion.