Oh oh, treading on thin ice here! This quote makes sense to me because
the statement that you don’t believe there is a god is one statement, from
which all other statements or beliefs about God disappear. If there is a
God he/she might be offended, who knows.
A religion, meanwhile, goes to the opposite extreme. It tries to define
God to the nth degree. It explains the who, what, where, when and why
of everything. It explains the government of the after-life and the social
structure, what feelings you will and will not have, what emotions, etc.
It explains how long the after-life will last (hint; it is a LONG time). In other
words, it explains more than than it can possibly know. If there is a God,
he or she might be offended by that as well.
Which extreme is more offensive?
Having said that, what do you think? And just as importantly (to me) how do
you interpret the drawing?
“If there is a God atheism must seem to him as less an insult as religion.” – Edmond de Goncourt, 1822-1896, French writer
>Cool interpretation of the drawing and great evaluation of what God takes offense at. I certainly can't argue with it!
>It looks like the illustration of the saw represents that your beliefs (or non-beliefs) may cut out the possibility of gaining entrance to the door of the afterlife (if you believe it exists).
My opinion is the opposite. That if God exists, he/she is all-loving and that it doesn't matter if you believe God and/or afterlife exists or how you believe (or not believe) God exists. God takes no offense.
The belief or non-belief in God may matter to you in how you live your life and find fulfillment. However, imposition of the rigid interpretations of God and afterlife on others, whether the Pearly Gates, reincarnation and nirvana, or 72 virgins, has caused horrific strife from the beginning of time to this day. If there is a God, he/she certainly takes offense at that.