Many people have written essays on why they are not Christian, most notably atheist Bertrand Russell. This essay gives my version. I should start by saying that I am an agnostic with respect to the notion of God as cause of the universe (a Deist God). This view is many steps removed from the notion of a Swiss-Army-knife God adopted by Christians, which assumes that:

• the universe is a conscious purposeful creation,
• micromanagement over every detail for billions of years,
• humans have some sort of special place with him,
• humans look like him,
• we can interact with him through prayer (or mental illness),
• the Bible is anything more than myth,
• that heaven and Hell exist,
• that the Devil exists,
• he did some sort of alien abduction maneuver with a woman named Mary,
• he can create a child in the womb of a virgin,
• he created a child named Jesus,
• etc.

My view is based on acknowledgement that the evidence that the universe exists. I do not believe any of the other assumptions commonly made by Christians.

Many of my assertions could be adapted for other religions, especially the Judeo/Christian/Islamic variants.

The Christian concept of God makes no sense

The Christian God is supposed to be all knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent), and all benevolent. Not only are these three attributes incompatible with the reality of this world where people suffer needlessly, the Bible contradicts each of these attributes. (He is surprised in some places and changes his mind in others. He often kills innocents by mistake or by intention. He is often portrayed as a mass-murder.) Many Christians believe that the Bible is the word of God, or at least divinely inspired, which only makes the argument more irrational.

There are many other aspects of Christian belief that don't make sense. Some examples include:

• Why would a perfect being's imperfect creation (mankind) be considered to be his ultimate triumph?
• Why would God set up the dramatic play of good vs. evil if he desired an outcome over which he had complete control?
• Why would such a vain god enable so much murder, injustice, hatred, and strife be attributed to him?

The common retort to these questions, that "God works in mysterious ways," is an insult to common sense.

Christianity panders to selfishness

Christianity is fundamentally a con game so that people can (supposedly) cheat death. Praying to God is ultimately a power influence mechanism. Adopting Jesus as your "savior" produces a drug-like high.

The Christian God is the antithesis of a moral ideal

The Christian God is childish, insecure, and bellicose. He lies (broke his covenant to David). He is the creator of evil. He kills for fun and runs a concentration camp where he tortures people forever (Hell). He violates his own alleged code of ethics (10 Commandments)--a clear case of "do as I say and not as I do." The Christ character is merely a candy coating of a fundamentally repugnant creature.

Christianity provides a poor moral framework

We are not naughty children who will be punished by daddy when he gets home. A rigid moral code, which takes away thought and prohibits discussion, is far worse than no moral code at all. Promoting a love of God results in devaluation of human life. Religious wars are especially enduring and heinous. Religious institutions often make immoral decisions when they promote Christianity.  Those same instituions do what they can to dodge responsibility in those cases.

Christianity has almost nothing to contribute to our understanding

Whenever Christianity has strayed into areas where its claims can be verified, it has been shown to be false. Time and time again, Christianity has shown that it has no interest in truth and reality and every interest in preserving itself. Christianity's claim of promoting "truth" amounts to redefining the word. If Christianity is THE truth, then why can't Christians agree; why are there so many feuding sects? One can learn far more about truth and the nature of the universe by studying philosophy and science.

Christianity is an end to itself

This is another way of describing the Christianity Meme concept promoted on this web site. Christianity and the institutions it has co-opted are there first and foremost for creating more Christians and keeping Christians believing throughout their lives. The indoctri-tainment (indoctrination/entertainment) industry of the church is for its own self-perpetuation—it promotes myth and dogma while hiding the institution's history of lies (redaction) and evil (torture, oppression, and war). When forced to choose between a moral choice (by whatever measure) and promotion of Christianity, Christians will often choose the later. The Catholic Church has a long history of myth making, for example. Many other examples appear elsewhere on this web site. Saying that Christianity is a human institution and that humans are sinners is just a ruse for hiding Christianity's systematic problems. Christianity is largely about manipulation of its believers. The world would be a much better place if it had the resources and energy that has been wasted on perpetuating Christianity (or other religions).

Christianity is a plague on the human spirit

Christianity belittles human capabilities and accomplishments by attributing them to God. People are perfectly capable of doing all the things they do now without attributing their abilities to God. Christianity's attempt to explain natural disasters as the "will of a loving God," who, "we cannot hope to understand," is an insult to our sense of compassion. Christianity claims that God has given us each free will, but at the same time, it manipulates us into limited choices through fear of eternal damnation. Ultimately, Christians are valued for their belief in mystical things (and a corresponding lack of critical thought). It is their belief that allows Christians to be dupes of Christian institutions and other unscrupulous manipulators. Skeptics rarely suffer these problems.

In summary, Christianity strikes me as something that lies between a con game and mass delusion. It promises all sorts of things it can not and does not deliver. Those who believe don't seem to care about the broken promises and obvious lies. They seem happy being blissfully ignorant and want the entire world to follow in their path. Sorry. It's not for me and the world is most definitely not a better place because of it.