Interview with the editor for Canadian Atheist

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope: “Axiological Atheism (which to most people would just seem like strong antitheism) can be thought to involve ethical/value theory reasoned and moral argument driven apatheism, ignosticism, atheism, anti-theism, anti-religionism, secularism, and humanism (secular humanism of course).” = which for your question amount to a “firebrand atheism.”

Well, I will put it better, or more expensive, so people understand better, it is like this, I am a rationalist axiologist that is also an atheist, which makes me an axiological atheist which is a value theory/value science atheist. I am of the philosophic value theory type of atheist. Though, I do use the scientific realism, that seems evident in formal axiology, which is value science (used primarily as a social science). Axiological Atheism (which to most people would just seem like strong antitheism) can be thought to involve ethical/value theory reasoned and moral argument driven apatheism, ignosticism, atheism, anti-theism, anti-religionism, secularism, and humanism (secular humanism of course).  As such axiological atheism’s ethically reasoning is constructive and pro-humanity. We who believe we are thinking rational, leading to opposition or hate of religion may that be limited to the nonfactual or oppressive ideology and not the people. Beyond just not being something lets be something, rational thinking should challenge myths but also prove our love for humanity and care for all living beings.

In most cases, Axiological atheism would assert the traditional concept of “Atheism” answers only a single question: Is there a creator god or not? That is an important question, but if your answer is “no,” it is only a starting point and not a way of life. You may have reached that viewpoint based on your respect for logic, evidence, science, and personal experience which to are vital values. Yet, after you have reached that initial “no god” answer, all the other important questions in life, all the options for mental and emotional wholeness and social and environmental harmony, ethics and morality, personal fulfillment, social values, philosophy, and psychology remain open. That is where “Axiological Atheism” holds a connection to both further challenging the god concept and devaluing religion and adding a value meaning and ethical axiological ideology to guide universally desirable secular ethical way of being or a value-driven life lived in this reality. I would think that most “Axiological Atheists” holding an ethical intensity against gods and religions would likely make them out atheists or atheist activists like me thus, “caring firebrand apatheism, ignosticism, atheism, anti-theism, anti-religionism, secularism, and humanism activism. So that amount to my “firebrand atheism” even if my style takes more than just one simple phrase.

Jacobsen: I do not know the personal story or the family history for you. Did religion influence personal and family life? If so, can you recall some pivotal moments?

AtHope: how did I come to atheism was college, I was Christian for 35 years, read the bible twice, and took two religious classes in college before realizing the conclusion of atheism. I was raised in first in a Christian cult called the local church until I was around 13 (we did not really celebrate anything that did not involve god, we did not watch tv, listen to the radio, or go to the movies/sports, etc.; like was oppressive for me as well as I experienced extreme child abuse and I blame religion for that as if my parents where not faith drunk on the fear, hate, and foolishness I would not have been so mistreated as a child. Moreover, I was then after 13 raised mainly in non-denominational evangelical/pentecostal christianity, once I could live with my mom, who had divorced my father for being abusive and controlling do to the cult. I was such until I was about 35 years old (2006), I never even doubted god and never had an atheist friend I knew of nor did I even want to know anything about atheism. How I changed was in college learning science and most of all taking a competitive religion class learning things about other religions I had never even cared to ask just beloved they where all wrong only Christian was right. Then I finally stopped believing in all religion with my class on understanding the bible. Halfway through that class, I stop all belief in god and though did not know it nor even understand the word I had become an atheist. I have been working hard at becoming informed since then. Yes, I was a undoubting Christian until the age of 35 years old, while in my second religious studies classes and so you know I have read the entire bible twice before I ever took the two college classes on religion and the bible before realizing I was an atheist; I was a very superstitious supernaturalist as well as a strong theist not even once did I think to doubt or even question. I am sad to say I was not much of a rationalist now that is my driving force. Now, I question everything and think through almost everything.

*One was a class on the top world religions using the book (Living Religions: A Brief Introduction) http://books.google.com/books/about/Living_Religions.html?id=ITnlAAAAMAAJ

*The other class on the bible using the book (Understanding The Bible) http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Bible-Stephen-Harris-ebook/dp/B005HXN098/ref=sr_1_16?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1428899981&sr=1-16

The event that turned my mind to the realization of atheism happened in the middle of the class on the bible the things I learned assisted me in turning atheist. So to explain further, I was raised in the Huntington Beach California “local church” who followed the teachings of Witness Lee / Living Stream movement: http://assemblylife.com until around 13. Then I was in Eagle’s Nest Ministries Gary Greenwald http://eaglesnestministries.org/ then other Christian churches. Mostly nondenominational. I was then asked, “would you say that your faith was shaky from the start? Or, were you well grounded in your faith through the scriptures and later on engaged in research that led to you leave Christianity altogether?” I was a devout believer not always a great follower, but I totally believed until learning facts in college especially on the devil. The Bibles clear teaching is that the wages of sin is death. “He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning…” 1 John 3:8 It is impossible therefore to have an immortal being who can sin. If we attempted to suggest that the Devil was a mortal monster then how is it that he has supposedly lived for thousands of years and possesses the powers of disease, deception, death, pain and torment and is permitted by an almighty god to challenge his authority. The devil is not satin. It is interesting to note that in the detailed record of god’s dealings with Israel in the Old Testament, nowhere is there given an indication of a personal devil who goes around tempting people. The hebrew equivalent of the word devil is only used 4 times and is in connection with false worship and idols of wood and stone – not an immortal being. It is impossible for a rebellion to happen in Heaven, think about it? Jesus himself proclaims that god’s will is done in heaven when he teaches his followers to pray for god’s coming Kingdom to be on earth in what has become known as “the Lord’s prayer”: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10

If god’s will is done in heaven then how is it that a rebellion was supposed to of taken place by the angels, one of which became the so called monster the Devil. So, if the bible teaches that man is responsible for his own sin and that this sin comes from within him, who or what is “the devil” or “Satan” which is spoken about in the bible scriptures? In essence the Devil and Satan is simply a “personification” of sinful desires of man’s rebellious lusts. There is nothing unusual about the scriptures using personification. For example:

Riches are personified (Matt 6:24)

Sin is personified (Romans 5:21, 6:16)

Death is personified (Revelation 6:8)

Nation of Israel personified (Jeremiah 31:4, 18)

Believers in Christ are personified (Ephesians 4:13, 1 Corinthians 12:27)

The Holy Spirit is personified (John 16:13)

Thus we shall see that the original words for “devil” and “satan” are descriptive and not titles and these words are simply used or personified to express this idea of sin in different forms.

For more on this read: http://www.the-gospel-truth.info/bible-teachings/the-true-identity-of-the-devil-satan/

And you should also need to know the serpent, Lucifer, and satan are not the same person. “The serpent was craftier than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made.” Genesis 3:1 Did you get that “wild animal” not supernatural being. And to one of the most popular misconceptions among bible believers which is that Satan also is designated as “Lucifer” also known as “the morning star” within the pages of the Bible. No… The name “Lucifer” is referring to the king of Babylon as “the morning star” not supernatural being and not the Devil or Satan. To read more on how “Lucifer” is not Satan: http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=11&article=1091 So, get this if I did not make it clear enough, even within the bible the serpent, devil, Satan, Lucifer, or whatever, as there is no supernatural being at all. lol

Jacobsen: You have tattoos. What is your favorite tattoo on you? Why?

AtHope: The atheist symbols on my wrists as I see them as a form of my “Firebrand Atheism,”because as a reality revolutionary, strongly standing up for reality is required in a world desperately trying to do the opposite, thus demanding my atheist activism response.

Jacobsen: As an activist and an anti-theist, what have been the successes and failures of the atheist movement, especially the new ones seen in the New Atheism?

AtHope: We need more open caring in our firebrand atheism. Not enough championing of kindness, we need to scream it from the rafters, I am doing what I do as I see the need it cries out to me all the suffering people, all the suffering children, all the suffering women, all the suffering LGBTQIA+, all the suffering….. etc. Once we stop seeing the dignity of others, we feel free to violate them with impunity. But when dignity is a friend respect has become once path. I am a firebrand atheist, but to me, there is no right way to be an atheist. Atheism is done right if it is stopping belief in gods and it is not for everyone to have to be outspoken to the world as if that is the only worthy atheism style. I have been helped a lot by atheists just being my friend and supporting me never even telling anyone they are atheist. If you can, and it is safe, and you want to being out as an atheist can be rewarding, but it is not an all or nothing. We all do a lot supporting each other in the cause of a reality devoid of god superstitions. I was asked if I was an angry atheist. No, I am not an angry atheist, but I am a firebrand atheist, so I am outspoken. Though my moto is attack thinking, not people. I believe in people I just don’t believe in gods or religions. If religious people comment on my page, I try to inform them not abuse them. I want to make a positive difference in the world with my atheism. But I am also not just limited to nonbelief as I am a humanist. So I try to inspire care for others as well not just rejection of gods and religion. Let’s do atheism with style. Caring firebrand atheism, is people standing up against the lie of god and the indoctrination of lies that is religion. We ignite excitement, action, and change in the cause of reality. Attacking thinking, ideas, or beliefs, not people. By challenging, exposing or insulting the inaccuracies and flawed reasoning, found in faith, gods, and other outdated untrue beliefs or methods. Like all reason-motivated atheism, firebrand atheists fight for freedom from the mental enslavement found in religious dogmatic-propaganda. Firebrand Atheism is a community of outspoken atheists with the goal of creating awareness, but we do this with strong challenge, free of aggression; knowing aggression is only needed when your argument is weak. When your argument is strong, as the truth of atheism is, its power has no need for aggression, and is only hindered by adding it. Firebrand atheists are reality revolutionaries; we will no longer be quiet, why, because we care too damn much. Never again will we close our eyes to the harms of religion or faith in imaginary things like gods. We heed the call, because we are firebrand atheists, won’t you join us. I am an Axiological Atheist, with a Rationalist Persuasion, who Supports Anarcho-Humanism. (No gods no masters as well as do no harm and do good = Anarcho-Humanism: which, to me, is atheistic humanism with an unconditional social awareness). What Inspires My Anarcho-Humanism:

*We are all one connected human family.

*No one owns the earth.

*If you can’t trust people with freedom how can you trust them with power?

Jacobsen: With reflection on axiology as the study of values, how does this connect to axiological atheism? Most atheism seems based on “The Problem of Evil” or the divides seen in some debaters’ minds between “Faith and Doubt,” “Science and Faith,” “Revelation and Evidence,” and so on.

AtHope: “The Problem of Evil” is a form of “axiological atheism,” The Problem of Evil (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy): 1.4 Axiological Versus Deontological Formulations for the Problem of Evil. Consider, now, the following formulation of the argument from evil, which, in contrast to the abstract version of the argument from evil set out in section 1.1, focuses on quite concrete types of evil:

There exist states of affairs in which animals die agonizing deaths in forest fires, or where children undergo lingering suffering and eventual death due to cancer, and that (a) are intrinsically bad or undesirable, and (b) are such that any omnipotent person has the power to prevent them without thereby either allowing an equal or greater evil, or preventing an equal or greater good.

For any state of affairs (that is actual), the existence of that state of affairs is not prevented by anyone.

For any state of affairs, and any person, if the state of affairs is intrinsically bad, and the person has the power to prevent that state of affairs without thereby either allowing an equal or greater evil, or preventing an equal or greater good, but does not do so, then that person is not both omniscient and morally perfect.

Therefore, from (1), (2), and (3):

There is no omnipotent, omniscient, and morally perfect person.

If God exists, then he is an omnipotent, omniscient, and morally perfect person.

Therefore: God does not exist.

As it stands, this argument is deductively valid. (Here is a proof: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/evil/validity.html)

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/evil/#AxiVerDeoFor

Axiology: the study of value; the investigation of its nature, criteria, and metaphysical status. More often than not, the term “value theory” is used instead of “axiology” in contemporary discussions even though the term “theory of value” is used with respect to the value or price of goods and services in economics.

Some significant questions in axiology include the following:

Nature of value: is value a fulfillment of desire, a pleasure, a preference, a behavioral disposition, or simply a human interest of some kind?

Criteria of value: de gustibus non (est) disputandum (i.e., (“there’s no accounting for tastes”) or do objective standards apply?

Status of value: how are values related to (scientific) facts? What ultimate worth, if any, do human values have?

Axiology, is usually divided into two main parts: Ethics and Æsthetics.

Ethics: the study of values in human behavior or the study of moral problems: e.g., (1) the rightness and wrongness of actions, (2) the kinds of things which are good or desirable, and (3) whether actions are blameworthy or praiseworthy.

Consider this example analyzed by J. O. Urmson in his well-known essay, “Saints and Heroes”:

“We may imagine a squad of soldiers to be practicing the throwing of live hand grenades; a grenade slips from the hand of one of them and rolls on the ground near the squad; one of them sacrifices his life by throwing himself on the grenade and protecting his comrades with his own body. It is quite unreasonable to suppose that such a man must be impelled by the sort of emotion that he might be impelled by if his best friend were in the squad.”

Did the soldier who threw himself on the grenade do the right thing? If he did not cover the grenade, several soldiers might be injured or be killed. His action probably saved lives; certainly an action which saves lives is a morally correct action. One might even be inclined to conclude that saving lives is a duty. But if this were so, wouldn’t each of the soldiers have the moral obligation or duty to save his comrades? Would we thereby expect each of the soldiers to vie for the opportunity to cover the grenade?

Æsthetics: the study of value in the arts or the inquiry into feelings, judgments, or standards of beauty and related concepts. Philosophy of art is concerned with judgments of sense, taste, and emotion.

E.g., Is art an intellectual or representational activity? What would the realistic representations in pop art represent? Does art represent sensible objects or ideal objects?

Is artistic value objective? Is it merely coincidental that many forms in architecture and painting seem to illustrate mathematical principles? Are there standards of taste?

Is there a clear distinction between art and reality?

http://philosophy.lander.edu/intro/what.shtml

Jacobsen: I hesitate on the term “hero” or “heroine” for an atheist because this implies an almost unquestioned authority rather someone admired and trusted in their authoritative authority on a subject based on expertise – or an ethical matter based on their actions in the, and/or writings about the, world. Anyhow, who is an atheist hero or heroine for you? Why them? Any recommended books by them?

AtHope: For me, a “heroine” is my wife Shayna, she is not known by anyone but me, but her thinking and ways are thoroughly enmeshed in all of my styles and thinking. As for the famous atheists that are known I admire there are several as I am inspired by anyone that uses rationalistic thinking. My three favorites are David Silverman, Aron Ra, and Matt Dillahunty. “Hero: a person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities.” Originally, women were the True Heroes. Often it is forgotten that Women are True Heroes. We must look back to see a new future. Women started out as the first hero now hidden by time and a desegregating of women’s true value. “Hero” became famous as a Greek female name. In Greek Mythology the origins of the word was “Hero” (do you see the often missed her in the word) “Hero” was a priestess of Aphrodite beloved by Leander. I wish all women were seen as heroes again, they offer such worth to the world and are a needed equal part of our shared caring humanity. I try to be this now and wish to inspire such new egalitarian thought in others, as both women and men can be and often are heroes. I am proud to say I see the Hero in women and value them for who they are. But in general who is My Hero is no one, as there was no one person who changed my life or gave me inspiration to be more. For me, it is everyone around me, ones who reach for the stars, as well as those who are still lying on the floor. To me the flight of the ‘human will’ is not a one-way trip, not a one-time journey, nor a one-time slip. I gathered whom I am from everyone around me from ones who struggle to ones who are strong. I can learn from ones who think they know little to ones who think they are never wrong. I strive to learn from children and adults alike for it is the goal of becoming someone I like. I strive to learn from the suffering who teaches me the need to understand, show compassion, and never forget how to cherish every happy moment to its end. I strive to learn from the sure and empowered who remind me to hope and see happiness is not pretend. I strive to learn from the ones who are arrogant, loud, and forceful to be heard for they remind me of the need to be humble and not to be so limited wanting only to be understood that I forget to actively work in understanding others. Most of all I try to learn from every child’s wonder. How their feelings of wonder guide their perception so even old things can be seen as new. May I be an eternal seeker and learner, willing to be a part of every good thing around me, giving back freely all of me where and when I can, and enjoy life as if it is a wonderment without end. May I become my own Hero.

Jacobsen: What arguments make the most sense for atheism to you?

AtHope: Theological Noncognitivist & Ignosticism (Atheist ontology challenge/argument) Axiological Atheism “Problem of Evil”, Atheistic Null Hypothesis: There is no God/Gods, My Methodological Rationalism: investigate (ontology), expose (epistemology) and judge (axiology), Justificationism (A General Thinking in all My Epistemology Theorizing is Justificationism), and the Ethics of Belief: sufficient evidence to support belief. In addition, I know the full history of religion and when and why gods were likely invented it was in the agricultural area around 12,000 years ago I have no more reason to ponder than real any more than Superman, an extraterrestrial living a hidden life on earth helping others with god-like powers. Goddesses (at least by 12,000 years ago in what is now turkey) were likely first after animals as god-like beings specifically seen 70,000 years ago with the first human worship of a stone snake in southern Africa. Well, it started female-centric but generally egalitarianistic and was so at least tell like after 7,000 and definitely by 5,000 and the birth of statism women fall in status but to me it’s 13,000 to 12,000-year-old proto-paganism goddess and animal gods that seem to come first I presume likely was drived from lesser earlier spirit beings/mythic ancestors, like a greater symbol of clan protectors in totemism which seems to go back like 50,000 to possibly 70,000 years ago which they already believed in from both proto-animism which seems to go back like 100,000 to ? years ago (possibly pre-human maybe as far back as 300,000? years ago) and further developed in shamanism which seems to go back like 30,000. Yes, you need to know about Animism to understand Religion

https://damienmarieathope.com/2017/10/atheistic-null-hypothesis-there-is-no-godgods/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2017/07/theological-noncognitivist-ignosticism/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2017/10/my-methodological-rationalism-investigate-ontology-expose-epistemology-and-judge-axiology/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2017/10/a-general-thinking-in-all-my-epistemology-theorizing-is-justificationism/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2016/02/addressing-the-ethics-of-belief/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2018/02/damien-is-it-possible-theres-a-god-you-havent-considered/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2018/01/understanding-religion-evolution-animism-totemism-shamanism-paganism-progressed-organized-religion/

Jacobsen: You make memes. What are your more cherished ones?

AtHope:  I have like 500 to 1000 memes made in several years I like many of them and cry when I read several of them I made them with passion and am moved again by that passion.

Jacobsen: Any final thoughts or feelings in conclusion?

AtHope: I am happy we got a chance to address so much. Also, I want to give a shout out, for my Caring Firebrand Atheist Activism Event: Indianapolis, In. May 5. Of which I was already threatened.

https://damienmarieathope.com/2018/02/caring-firebrand-atheist-activism-event-indianapolis-in-may-5/

https://damienmarieathope.com/2018/02/threatened-for-my-caring-firebrand-atheist-activism-event-indianapolis-in-may-5/

Jacobsen: Thank you for the opportunity and your time, Damien.

My website: https://damienmarieathope.com/

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

People don’t commonly teach religious history, even that of their own claimed religion. No, rather they teach a limited “pro their religion” history of their religion from a religious perspective favorable to the religion of choice. 

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Do you truly think “Religious Belief” is only a matter of some personal choice?

Do you not see how coercive one’s world of choice is limited to the obvious hereditary belief, in most religious choices available to the child of religious parents or caregivers? Religion is more commonly like a family, culture, society, etc. available belief that limits the belief choices of the child and that is when “Religious Belief” is not only a matter of some personal choice and when it becomes hereditary faith, not because of the quality of its alleged facts or proposed truths but because everyone else important to the child believes similarly so they do as well simply mimicking authority beliefs handed to them. Because children are raised in religion rather than being presented all possible choices but rather one limited dogmatic brand of “Religious Belief” where children only have a choice of following the belief as instructed, and then personally claim the faith hereditary belief seen in the confirming to the belief they have held themselves all their lives. This is obvious in statements asked and answered by children claiming a faith they barely understand but they do understand that their family believes “this or that” faith, so they feel obligated to believe it too. While I do agree that “Religious Belief” should only be a matter of some personal choice, it rarely is… End Hereditary Religion!

Opposition to Imposed Hereditary Religion

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Low Gods “Earth” or Tutelary deity and High Gods “Sky” or Supreme deity

“An Earth goddess is a deification of the Earth. Earth goddesses are often associated with the “chthonic” deities of the underworld. Ki and Ninhursag are Mesopotamian earth goddesses. In Greek mythology, the Earth is personified as Gaia, corresponding to Roman Terra, Indic Prithvi/Bhūmi, etc. traced to an “Earth Mother” complementary to the “Sky Father” in Proto-Indo-European religion. Egyptian mythology exceptionally has a sky goddess and an Earth god.” ref

“A mother goddess is a goddess who represents or is a personification of nature, motherhood, fertility, creation, destruction or who embodies the bounty of the Earth. When equated with the Earth or the natural world, such goddesses are sometimes referred to as Mother Earth or as the Earth Mother. In some religious traditions or movements, Heavenly Mother (also referred to as Mother in Heaven or Sky Mother) is the wife or feminine counterpart of the Sky father or God the Father.” ref

“Any masculine sky god is often also king of the gods, taking the position of patriarch within a pantheon. Such king gods are collectively categorized as “sky father” deities, with a polarity between sky and earth often being expressed by pairing a “sky father” god with an “earth mother” goddess (pairings of a sky mother with an earth father are less frequent). A main sky goddess is often the queen of the gods and may be an air/sky goddess in her own right, though she usually has other functions as well with “sky” not being her main. In antiquity, several sky goddesses in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Near East were called Queen of Heaven. Neopagans often apply it with impunity to sky goddesses from other regions who were never associated with the term historically. The sky often has important religious significance. Many religions, both polytheistic and monotheistic, have deities associated with the sky.” ref

“In comparative mythology, sky father is a term for a recurring concept in polytheistic religions of a sky god who is addressed as a “father”, often the father of a pantheon and is often either a reigning or former King of the Gods. The concept of “sky father” may also be taken to include Sun gods with similar characteristics, such as Ra. The concept is complementary to an “earth mother“. “Sky Father” is a direct translation of the Vedic Dyaus Pita, etymologically descended from the same Proto-Indo-European deity name as the Greek Zeûs Pater and Roman Jupiter and Germanic Týr, Tir or Tiwaz, all of which are reflexes of the same Proto-Indo-European deity’s name, *Dyēus Ph₂tḗr. While there are numerous parallels adduced from outside of Indo-European mythology, there are exceptions (e.g. In Egyptian mythology, Nut is the sky mother and Geb is the earth father).” ref

Tutelary deity

“A tutelary (also tutelar) is a deity or spirit who is a guardian, patron, or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture, or occupation. The etymology of “tutelary” expresses the concept of safety and thus of guardianship. In late Greek and Roman religion, one type of tutelary deity, the genius, functions as the personal deity or daimon of an individual from birth to death. Another form of personal tutelary spirit is the familiar spirit of European folklore.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Korean shamanism, jangseung and sotdae were placed at the edge of villages to frighten off demons. They were also worshiped as deities. Seonangshin is the patron deity of the village in Korean tradition and was believed to embody the Seonangdang. In Philippine animism, Diwata or Lambana are deities or spirits that inhabit sacred places like mountains and mounds and serve as guardians. Such as: Maria Makiling is the deity who guards Mt. Makiling and Maria Cacao and Maria Sinukuan. In Shinto, the spirits, or kami, which give life to human bodies come from nature and return to it after death. Ancestors are therefore themselves tutelaries to be worshiped. And similarly, Native American beliefs such as Tonás, tutelary animal spirit among the Zapotec and Totems, familial or clan spirits among the Ojibwe, can be animals.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Austronesian beliefs such as: Atua (gods and spirits of the Polynesian peoples such as the Māori or the Hawaiians), Hanitu (Bunun of Taiwan‘s term for spirit), Hyang (Kawi, Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese Supreme Being, in ancient Java and Bali mythology and this spiritual entity, can be either divine or ancestral), Kaitiaki (New Zealand Māori term used for the concept of guardianship, for the sky, the sea, and the land), Kawas (mythology) (divided into 6 groups: gods, ancestors, souls of the living, spirits of living things, spirits of lifeless objects, and ghosts), Tiki (Māori mythology, Tiki is the first man created by either Tūmatauenga or Tāne and represents deified ancestors found in most Polynesian cultures). ” ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref

Mesopotamian Tutelary Deities can be seen as ones related to City-States 

“Historical city-states included Sumerian cities such as Uruk and Ur; Ancient Egyptian city-states, such as Thebes and Memphis; the Phoenician cities (such as Tyre and Sidon); the five Philistine city-states; the Berber city-states of the Garamantes; the city-states of ancient Greece (the poleis such as Athens, Sparta, Thebes, and Corinth); the Roman Republic (which grew from a city-state into a vast empire); the Italian city-states from the Middle Ages to the early modern period, such as Florence, Siena, Ferrara, Milan (which as they grew in power began to dominate neighboring cities) and Genoa and Venice, which became powerful thalassocracies; the Mayan and other cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica (including cities such as Chichen Itza, Tikal, Copán and Monte Albán); the central Asian cities along the Silk Road; the city-states of the Swahili coast; Ragusa; states of the medieval Russian lands such as Novgorod and Pskov; and many others.” ref

“The Uruk period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BCE; also known as Protoliterate period) of Mesopotamia, named after the Sumerian city of Uruk, this period saw the emergence of urban life in Mesopotamia and the Sumerian civilization. City-States like Uruk and others had a patron tutelary City Deity along with a Priest-King.” ref

“Chinese folk religion, both past, and present, includes myriad tutelary deities. Exceptional individuals, highly cultivated sages, and prominent ancestors can be deified and honored after death. Lord Guan is the patron of military personnel and police, while Mazu is the patron of fishermen and sailors. Such as Tu Di Gong (Earth Deity) is the tutelary deity of a locality, and each individual locality has its own Earth Deity and Cheng Huang Gong (City God) is the guardian deity of an individual city, worshipped by local officials and locals since imperial times.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Hinduism, personal tutelary deities are known as ishta-devata, while family tutelary deities are known as Kuladevata. Gramadevata are guardian deities of villages. Devas can also be seen as tutelary. Shiva is the patron of yogis and renunciants. City goddesses include: Mumbadevi (Mumbai), Sachchika (Osian); Kuladevis include: Ambika (Porwad), and Mahalakshmi. In NorthEast India Meitei mythology and religion (Sanamahism) of Manipur, there are various types of tutelary deities, among which Lam Lais are the most predominant ones. Tibetan Buddhism has Yidam as a tutelary deity. Dakini is the patron of those who seek knowledge.” ref

“A tutelary (also tutelar) The Greeks also thought deities guarded specific places: for instance, Athena was the patron goddess of the city of Athens. Socrates spoke of hearing the voice of his personal spirit or daimonion:

You have often heard me speak of an oracle or sign which comes to me … . This sign I have had ever since I was a child. The sign is a voice which comes to me and always forbids me to do something which I am going to do, but never commands me to do anything, and this is what stands in the way of my being a politician.” ref

“Tutelary deities who guard and preserve a place or a person are fundamental to ancient Roman religion. The tutelary deity of a man was his Genius, that of a woman her Juno. In the Imperial era, the Genius of the Emperor was a focus of Imperial cult. An emperor might also adopt a major deity as his personal patron or tutelary, as Augustus did Apollo. Precedents for claiming the personal protection of a deity were established in the Republican era, when for instance the Roman dictator Sulla advertised the goddess Victory as his tutelary by holding public games (ludi) in her honor.” ref

“Each town or city had one or more tutelary deities, whose protection was considered particularly vital in time of war and siege. Rome itself was protected by a goddess whose name was to be kept ritually secret on pain of death (for a supposed case, see Quintus Valerius Soranus). The Capitoline Triad of Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva were also tutelaries of Rome. The Italic towns had their own tutelary deities. Juno often had this function, as at the Latin town of Lanuvium and the Etruscan city of Veii, and was often housed in an especially grand temple on the arx (citadel) or other prominent or central location. The tutelary deity of Praeneste was Fortuna, whose oracle was renowned.” ref

“The Roman ritual of evocatio was premised on the belief that a town could be made vulnerable to military defeat if the power of its tutelary deity were diverted outside the city, perhaps by the offer of superior cult at Rome. The depiction of some goddesses such as the Magna Mater (Great Mother, or Cybele) as “tower-crowned” represents their capacity to preserve the city. A town in the provinces might adopt a deity from within the Roman religious sphere to serve as its guardian, or syncretize its own tutelary with such; for instance, a community within the civitas of the Remi in Gaul adopted Apollo as its tutelary, and at the capital of the Remi (present-day Rheims), the tutelary was Mars Camulus.” ref 

Household deity (a kind of or related to a Tutelary deity)

“A household deity is a deity or spirit that protects the home, looking after the entire household or certain key members. It has been a common belief in paganism as well as in folklore across many parts of the world. Household deities fit into two types; firstly, a specific deity – typically a goddess – often referred to as a hearth goddess or domestic goddess who is associated with the home and hearth, such as the ancient Greek Hestia.” ref

“The second type of household deities are those that are not one singular deity, but a type, or species of animistic deity, who usually have lesser powers than major deities. This type was common in the religions of antiquity, such as the Lares of ancient Roman religion, the Gashin of Korean shamanism, and Cofgodas of Anglo-Saxon paganism. These survived Christianisation as fairy-like creatures existing in folklore, such as the Anglo-Scottish Brownie and Slavic Domovoy.” ref

“Household deities were usually worshipped not in temples but in the home, where they would be represented by small idols (such as the teraphim of the Bible, often translated as “household gods” in Genesis 31:19 for example), amulets, paintings, or reliefs. They could also be found on domestic objects, such as cosmetic articles in the case of Tawaret. The more prosperous houses might have a small shrine to the household god(s); the lararium served this purpose in the case of the Romans. The gods would be treated as members of the family and invited to join in meals, or be given offerings of food and drink.” ref

“In many religions, both ancient and modern, a god would preside over the home. Certain species, or types, of household deities, existed. An example of this was the Roman Lares. Many European cultures retained house spirits into the modern period. Some examples of these include:

• Brownie (Scotland and England) or Hob (England) / Kobold (Germany) / Goblin / Hobgoblin
• Domovoy (Slavic)
• Nisse (Norwegian or Danish) / Tomte (Swedish) / Tonttu (Finnish)
• Húsvættir (Norse)” ref

“Although the cosmic status of household deities was not as lofty as that of the Twelve Olympians or the Aesir, they were also jealous of their dignity and also had to be appeased with shrines and offerings, however humble. Because of their immediacy they had arguably more influence on the day-to-day affairs of men than the remote gods did. Vestiges of their worship persisted long after Christianity and other major religions extirpated nearly every trace of the major pagan pantheons. Elements of the practice can be seen even today, with Christian accretions, where statues to various saints (such as St. Francis) protect gardens and grottos. Even the gargoyles found on older churches, could be viewed as guardians partitioning a sacred space.” ref

“For centuries, Christianity fought a mop-up war against these lingering minor pagan deities, but they proved tenacious. For example, Martin Luther‘s Tischreden have numerous – quite serious – references to dealing with kobolds. Eventually, rationalism and the Industrial Revolution threatened to erase most of these minor deities, until the advent of romantic nationalism rehabilitated them and embellished them into objects of literary curiosity in the 19th century. Since the 20th century this literature has been mined for characters for role-playing games, video games, and other fantasy personae, not infrequently invested with invented traits and hierarchies somewhat different from their mythological and folkloric roots.” ref

“In contradistinction to both Herbert Spencer and Edward Burnett Tylor, who defended theories of animistic origins of ancestor worship, Émile Durkheim saw its origin in totemism. In reality, this distinction is somewhat academic, since totemism may be regarded as a particularized manifestation of animism, and something of a synthesis of the two positions was attempted by Sigmund Freud. In Freud’s Totem and Taboo, both totem and taboo are outward expressions or manifestations of the same psychological tendency, a concept which is complementary to, or which rather reconciles, the apparent conflict. Freud preferred to emphasize the psychoanalytic implications of the reification of metaphysical forces, but with particular emphasis on its familial nature. This emphasis underscores, rather than weakens, the ancestral component.” ref

“William Edward Hearn, a noted classicist, and jurist, traced the origin of domestic deities from the earliest stages as an expression of animism, a belief system thought to have existed also in the neolithic, and the forerunner of Indo-European religion. In his analysis of the Indo-European household, in Chapter II “The House Spirit”, Section 1, he states:

The belief which guided the conduct of our forefathers was … the spirit rule of dead ancestors.” ref

“In Section 2 he proceeds to elaborate:

It is thus certain that the worship of deceased ancestors is a vera causa, and not a mere hypothesis. …

In the other European nations, the Slavs, the Teutons, and the Kelts, the House Spirit appears with no less distinctness. … [T]he existence of that worship does not admit of doubt. … The House Spirits had a multitude of other names which it is needless here to enumerate, but all of which are more or less expressive of their friendly relations with man. … In [England] … [h]e is the Brownie. … In Scotland this same Brownie is well known. He is usually described as attached to particular families, with whom he has been known to reside for centuries, threshing the corn, cleaning the house, and performing similar household tasks. His favorite gratification was milk and honey.” ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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“These ideas are my speculations from the evidence.”

I am still researching the “god‘s origins” all over the world. So you know, it is very complicated but I am smart and willing to look, DEEP, if necessary, which going very deep does seem to be needed here, when trying to actually understand the evolution of gods and goddesses. I am sure of a few things and less sure of others, but even in stuff I am not fully grasping I still am slowly figuring it out, to explain it to others. But as I research more I am understanding things a little better, though I am still working on understanding it all or something close and thus always figuring out more. 

Sky Father/Sky God?

“Egyptian: (Nut) Sky Mother and (Geb) Earth Father” (Egypt is different but similar)

Turkic/Mongolic: (Tengri/Tenger Etseg) Sky Father and (Eje/Gazar Eej) Earth Mother *Transeurasian*

Hawaiian: (Wākea) Sky Father and (Papahānaumoku) Earth Mother *Austronesian*

New Zealand/ Māori: (Ranginui) Sky Father and (Papatūānuku) Earth Mother *Austronesian*

Proto-Indo-European: (Dyḗus/Dyḗus ph₂tḗr) Sky Father and (Dʰéǵʰōm/Pleth₂wih₁) Earth Mother

Indo-Aryan: (Dyaus Pita) Sky Father and (Prithvi Mata) Earth Mother *Indo-European*

Italic: (Jupiter) Sky Father and (Juno) Sky Mother *Indo-European*

Etruscan: (Tinia) Sky Father and (Uni) Sky Mother *Tyrsenian/Italy Pre–Indo-European*

Hellenic/Greek: (Zeus) Sky Father and (Hera) Sky Mother who started as an “Earth Goddess” *Indo-European*

Nordic: (Dagr) Sky Father and (Nótt) Sky Mother *Indo-European*

Slavic: (Perun) Sky Father and (Mokosh) Earth Mother *Indo-European*

Illyrian: (Deipaturos) Sky Father and (Messapic Damatura’s “earth-mother” maybe) Earth Mother *Indo-European*

Albanian: (Zojz) Sky Father and (?) *Indo-European*

Baltic: (Perkūnas) Sky Father and (Saulė) Sky Mother *Indo-European*

Germanic: (Týr) Sky Father and (?) *Indo-European*

Colombian-Muisca: (Bochica) Sky Father and (Huythaca) Sky Mother *Chibchan*

Aztec: (Quetzalcoatl) Sky Father and (Xochiquetzal) Sky Mother *Uto-Aztecan*

Incan: (Viracocha) Sky Father and (Mama Runtucaya) Sky Mother *Quechuan*

China: (Tian/Shangdi) Sky Father and (Dì) Earth Mother *Sino-Tibetan*

Sumerian, Assyrian and Babylonian: (An/Anu) Sky Father and (Ki) Earth Mother

Finnish: (Ukko) Sky Father and (Akka) Earth Mother *Finno-Ugric*

Sami: (Horagalles) Sky Father and (Ravdna) Earth Mother *Finno-Ugric*

Puebloan-Zuni: (Ápoyan Ta’chu) Sky Father and (Áwitelin Tsíta) Earth Mother

Puebloan-Hopi: (Tawa) Sky Father and (Kokyangwuti/Spider Woman/Grandmother) Earth Mother *Uto-Aztecan*

Puebloan-Navajo: (Tsohanoai) Sky Father and (Estsanatlehi) Earth Mother *Na-Dene*

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Sky Father/Sky Mother “High Gods” or similar gods/goddesses of the sky more loosely connected, seeming arcane mythology across the earth seen in Siberia, China, Europe, Native Americans/First Nations People and Mesopotamia, etc.

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Hinduism around 3,700 to 3,500 years old. ref

 Judaism around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (The first writing in the bible was “Paleo-Hebrew” dated to around 3,000 years ago Khirbet Qeiyafa is the site of an ancient fortress city overlooking the Elah Valley. And many believe the religious Jewish texts were completed around 2,500) ref, ref

Judaism is around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (“Paleo-Hebrew” 3,000 years ago and Torah 2,500 years ago)

“Judaism is an Abrahamic, its roots as an organized religion in the Middle East during the Bronze Age. Some scholars argue that modern Judaism evolved from Yahwism, the religion of ancient Israel and Judah, by the late 6th century BCE, and is thus considered to be one of the oldest monotheistic religions.” ref

“Yahwism is the name given by modern scholars to the religion of ancient Israel, essentially polytheistic, with a plethora of gods and goddesses. Heading the pantheon was Yahweh, the national god of the Israelite kingdoms of Israel and Judah, with his consort, the goddess Asherah; below them were second-tier gods and goddesses such as Baal, Shamash, Yarikh, Mot, and Astarte, all of whom had their own priests and prophets and numbered royalty among their devotees, and a third and fourth tier of minor divine beings, including the mal’ak, the messengers of the higher gods, who in later times became the angels of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Yahweh, however, was not the ‘original’ god of Israel “Isra-El”; it is El, the head of the Canaanite pantheon, whose name forms the basis of the name “Israel”, and none of the Old Testament patriarchs, the tribes of Israel, the Judges, or the earliest monarchs, have a Yahwistic theophoric name (i.e., one incorporating the name of Yahweh).” ref

“El is a Northwest Semitic word meaning “god” or “deity“, or referring (as a proper name) to any one of multiple major ancient Near Eastern deities. A rarer form, ‘ila, represents the predicate form in Old Akkadian and in Amorite. The word is derived from the Proto-Semitic *ʔil-, meaning “god”. Specific deities known as ‘El or ‘Il include the supreme god of the ancient Canaanite religion and the supreme god of East Semitic speakers in Mesopotamia’s Early Dynastic Period. ʼĒl is listed at the head of many pantheons. In some Canaanite and Ugaritic sources, ʼĒl played a role as father of the gods, of creation, or both. For example, in the Ugaritic texts, ʾil mlk is understood to mean “ʼĒl the King” but ʾil hd as “the god Hadad“. The Semitic root ʾlh (Arabic ʾilāh, Aramaic ʾAlāh, ʾElāh, Hebrew ʾelōah) may be ʾl with a parasitic h, and ʾl may be an abbreviated form of ʾlh. In Ugaritic the plural form meaning “gods” is ʾilhm, equivalent to Hebrew ʾelōhîm “powers”. In the Hebrew texts this word is interpreted as being semantically singular for “god” by biblical commentators. However the documentary hypothesis for the Old Testament (corresponds to the Jewish Torah) developed originally in the 1870s, identifies these that different authors – the Jahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and the Priestly source – were responsible for editing stories from a polytheistic religion into those of a monotheistic religion. Inconsistencies that arise between monotheism and polytheism in the texts are reflective of this hypothesis.” ref

Jainism around 2,599 – 2,527 years old. ref

Confucianism around 2,600 – 2,551 years old. ref

Buddhism around 2,563/2,480 – 2,483/2,400 years old. ref

Christianity around 2,o00 years old. ref

Shinto around 1,305 years old. ref

Islam around 1407–1385 years old. ref

Sikhism around 548–478 years old. ref

Bahá’í around 200–125 years old. ref

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Expressions of Atheistic Thinking:

• Around 2,600 years ago, Ajita Kesakambali, ancient Indian philosopher, who is the first known proponent of Indian materialism. ref
• Around 2,535 to 2,475 years ago, Heraclitus, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, a native of the Greek city Ephesus, Ionia, on the coast of Anatolia, also known as Asia Minor or modern Turkey. ref
• Around 2,500 to 2,400 years ago, according to The Story of Civilization book series certain African pygmy tribes have no identifiable gods, spirits, or religious beliefs or rituals, and even what burials accrue are without ceremony. ref
• Around 2,490 to 2,430 years ago, Empedocles, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of Agrigentum, a Greek city in Sicily. ref
• Around 2,460 to 2,370 years ago, Democritus, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher considered to be the “father of modern science” possibly had some disbelief amounting to atheism. ref
• Around 2,399 years ago or so, Socrates, a famous Greek philosopher was tried for sinfulness by teaching doubt of state gods. ref
• Around 2,341 to 2,270 years ago, Epicurus, a Greek philosopher known for composing atheistic critics and famously stated, “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him god?” ref

This last expression by Epicurus, seems to be an expression of Axiological Atheism. To understand and utilize value or actually possess “Value Conscious/Consciousness” to both give a strong moral “axiological” argument (the problem of evil) as well as use it to fortify humanism and positive ethical persuasion of human helping and care responsibilities. Because value-blindness gives rise to sociopathic/psychopathic evil.

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

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Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope’s Art

Damien Marie AtHope (Said as “At” “Hope”)/(Autodidact Polymath but not good at math):

Axiological Atheist, Anti-theist, Anti-religionist, Secular Humanist, Rationalist, Writer, Artist, Jeweler, Poet, “autodidact” Philosopher, schooled in Psychology, and “autodidact” Armchair Archaeology/Anthropology/Pre-Historian (Knowledgeable in the range of: 1 million to 5,000/4,000 years ago). I am an anarchist socialist politically. Reasons for or Types of Atheism

My Website, My Blog, & Short-writing or Quotes, My YouTube, Twitter: @AthopeMarie, and My Email: damien.marie.athope@gmail.com