TL;DR – Don’t be dick, no sky-fairy required. Read on for entertainment 🙂

Regarding sky-fairies and guilt. Yes, you only have to check some porn out and google “catholic guilt”, or talk to any of those who profess to talk to the sky-fairies… GUILTY… yes there are those out there who believe the lies in the books, the snake-oil salesman who says you’re guilty, and they can save you for a price! For us atheists, it’s less about ‘Thou shalt not’, and more like ‘I probably shouldn’t, but fuck it.’ But let’s not forget, atheists (mostly) follow society’s guidelines like everyone else. No deity required, we ain’t gonna murder/rape/pillage because we’re not constrained by ‘teachings’ of a sky-fairy, thank you very much.

The notion that godlessness equates to guiltlessness isn’t new. The less educated, and more guilable been carrying that can around for ages. As atheists brave the storm of religious indoctrination (frequently flipping off those mofos), it’s important to remember that just because we’ve tossed off the heavenly shackles, doesn’t mean we’re running around like guiltless, amoral hellions.

From the get-go, the indoctrinated masses are spoon-fed a hefty helping of sin and punishment. Every action, every thought, every bloody sneeze is scrutinised by the Almighty Eyeball in the sky. “Did little Tommy just swear when he stubbed his toe? Oh, that mofo is going to hell!” Did he just have a wank? – Go straight to hell, do not pass go, do not have a doughnut, have a serving of eternal damnation on a plate of fire. The constant fear of retribution for perceived sins seems, from the outside view, an utterly exhausting day to day experience, especially for the younger victims of religion. It’d be like having your mum follow you around all the time, tut-tutting at every false move!

The beauty of atheism? We get to sidestep this guilt-ridden bullshit. But before the lot of you start hollering, let’s get one thing clear: We’re not hedonistic anarchists living lives of rampant debauchery (at least, not on weekdays). We’re just humans who’ve realised the bullshit around “the omniscient twats judging everything everywhere” gig.

Atheists still have our own moral compass, being basic bitch humans model 1.0. We’re not renouncing guilt altogether; we’re just getting rid of the kind that comes with an extra serving of so called divine bullshit. We are humanity, in kindness, in doing the right thing – not because we’re scared shitless of eternal damnation bullshit, but because we understand the importance of empathy and mutual respect where deserved and earned.

In essence, we’re just replacing ‘Fear of sky-fairies’ with ‘Don’t be a dick’. Pretty reasonable trade-off if you ask me.

So, if you’re a guilt-riddled abuse survivor (remember, religious indoctrination is abuse!) teetering on the edge, wondering if atheism is for you, let me just say – come to the dark side; we have guilt-free cookies. But don’t mistake our lack of divine fear for a lack of conscience. We still feel guilt where appropriate, we just don’t let it dictate our lives.

Remember, it’s not about having no guilt, but rather having guilt that stems from a place of respect for others, not fear. After all, if there’s anything we should feel guilty about, it’s not the ‘sins’ we commit but how our actions impact those around us.

In the words of the great poet, “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” To which I say, “Bollocks. To err is human; to forgive is, well, also fucking human.”

Keep rocking the atheist life. Unless you’re a psychopath, embrace your guilt (the good kind), and tell the bad kind to fuck right off. 👿