GOSPEL OF ATHEISM, THE THEOREMS OF ULTIMATE TRUTH
Truth is our gift to the world and truth is the pearl of great price. We present
The Theorems of Ultimate Truth to you to learn off by heart so that the greatest
truths will always be in your hearts. We all need to stem error and be protected
from it and we can only do that if we remember the essential things. They are
best memorised word for word which makes it easier to remember them when you
need them and makes you clear in your mind. They must be recited at every
meeting. In some forms of Humanism, nobody can be admitted to membership without
understanding them and having proved that they have read The Gospel According to
Atheism in its entirety. We must not forget that many facts are like the truth
of mathematics and if we have to believe in maths and be taught maths then we
should be taught these other truths as well. Otherwise we end up irrational and
inconsistent. The truths that follow are as important as 2+2 being 4. And they
are just as strong and evident and conclusive.
THEOREM ONE
The only thing that can make me happy and make the world a better place is love.
Love makes me happy because it reduces fear.
THEOREM TWO
Love is cherishing myself in the form of taking what is best for me and helping
others because I want to and because I cherish myself. So when I love others it
is really myself I love not them. I know that this is love because there is no
such thing as sacrifice. Anything I do, I do because I want to even if I dislike
doing it for I want to do it under the circumstances. When I value God or
another it is myself that I value because I value the image I have created of
them so I value only my judgement and feelings for them not them. I do good not
to deserve happiness but to see that I am good and this will enhance my
happiness.
THEOREM THREE
I only do wrong because I am afraid of being unhappy. Fear is the cause of all
evil and incorrect thinking gives birth to fear. Fear makes me love myself the
wrong way.
THEOREM FOUR
Happiness is what emerges when I remove as many of the fears I have as I can.
All I need to do is see through the things that repress my happiness. Nobody can
allow anything to hurt my feelings except me. Recognising that I have found a
philosophy that can make me happy will give me hope no matter how depressed I
get.
THEOREM FIVE
All desires are painful in the sense that they crave something I do not have. So
I should be more interested in helping others for that desire is easier to
fulfil than in going after money or in hating anyone. The selfish person helps
others more not less and the selfish person delights in his or her faults if
they are not too bad for they make her or him more interesting.
THEOREM SIX
I will feel that there is good in every evil and that I can make an advantage of
every evil. I will see it as a challenge not as an attack and as an invitation
for me to grow and become stronger in self-esteem and wisdom for human goodness
is just self-esteem - I will see the challenge as a compliment to my ability to
overcome it!
THEOREM SEVEN
The only thing I and others deserve is to be happy no matter what evil we do.
Deserving comes from what I am not what I do. If I am not a deserver by nature
then how can I deserve anything from what I do? A bird is not a bird just
because it sings. It sings because it is a bird. When we do evil we are after
the good that is in it and don't mean to be evil. Thus the doctrine that our
choices are free in the sense that we can be intentionally evil or intentionally
good and we are not programmed to make them is false. The way to avoid holding a
grudge against anyone is to see that nobody is really responsible for what evil
they do. It is the programming inside them. I love my enemy and I bless those
who hate me. Rewards are mainly about wanting to encourage good work so we can
still give them and instead of punishing a criminal we want to purify them
through suffering. If you have to believe in responsibility, then why not
believe that instead of punishing those who do harm you just don't reward them?
Give the rewards to those who do good.
THEOREM EIGHT
When free will is out so is God for God can only be good if evil is our fault.
Evil is not our fault so the God belief is an abomination. It is wrong to accuse
human beings of being the cause of all that is bad in the universe if you do it
so that you can believe in God. That is mercenary.
THEOREM NINE
I am my own God and therefore nobody has any business telling me to serve
another. God cannot need me to do good if he is the reason I exist. He can do it
himself. God is self-sufficient if he is almighty and all-good. Rights come from
needs not wants. God does not need me to do good therefore he has no right to
order me to do good. Miracles are well-concealed evils produced by some evil
lying force if they happen.
THEOREM TEN
I must be as permissive as possible. Unnecessary rules are slanderous and
bigoted. No philosophy is perfect so I just go after the best one. Religion is
an evil because if I love myself it is unnecessary and a burden.
THEOREM ELEVEN
The right to life is the most important right. I cannot say people should be
happy unless people are more important than happiness so that means life comes
first. Realising that is more important than realising anything else. Thus
reason not God is the basis of right and wrong.
THEOREM TWELVE
Lying, stealing and cruel acts are bad because we have no free will and do not
deserve these things. Criminals are not to be punished but treated. Judge no one
but just stop them doing wrong for there is no need to judge yourself or anybody
else. Judge evil political systems and religious systems at every opportunity.
THEOREM THIRTEEN
I must acquire as much evidence and proof as possible for my main philosophical
teachings for if I love myself I will protect myself from wasting my time and
from getting hurt by error. Error is often treacherous. Except in an emergency,
I will not put myself down by letting another tell me what to think. I will
reason for myself and do it with caution. Since I am most sure I exist I come
first though in my putting myself first others will benefit so I have to
convince myself of and be an evangelist for the truths of Humanism with kindness
and gentleness for my own protection for I want the world to be the right place
for me and my children and family and friends to be.
DECISION
I pledge loyalty to the principles of Humanism now and always.
