Nullifying The Nullifidian
Nullifying The Nullifidian
The nullifidian in this
context can be appreciated as a catch-all term or symbolic representative of
all those with an aversion to religion, and to some degree, God. This grouping
includes atheists, agnostics, freethinkers and other forms, combinations and
manifestations of supposed irreligiosity. These peculiar groupings have
manifested as a religion in their own right. For example, those who say they do
not believe in religion, belong to the religion of those who claim not to
believe in religion. Also, those who say they do not believe in God, belong to
the religion of those who claim not to believe in God. This extrapolative
definition is applicable to any group of people, wherever they may exist. From
the perspective of the nullifidian, the ‘religious’ dilemma becomes even more
problematic particularly because of the laxity or lack of articulated set of
rules. There are many human beings existing across the globe who can carry on
their daily activities without the seeming need for religion. If there seems to
be no apparent need for religion, typically, people can wake up in the morning,
brush their teeth, have a bath, eat breakfast, wear their clothes and go to
work – for those working, or go to school – for those studying, or lazing
around – for nothing-doers generally. In such quotidian scenarios, however
monotonous, everyone, in whatever category they may belong, returns home to
sleep and do it all over again the next day. These are just some examples of
daily activities, to highlight why some people question the need for religion
in their lives.
The questioning of religion
is often intertwined with the questioning of God, though these views are
sometimes distinct. Some people may decide to reject religion and God, whilst
some people may choose to reject religion, but do not necessarily reject God.
Some dictionary definitions
of religion state thus: the American Heritage dictionary of the English
language describes religion as, “Belief in and reverence for a supernatural
power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe”. Merriam
Webster defines religion as “a personal set or institutionalized system of
religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices”, “scrupulous conformity:
conscientiousness”, “a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with
ardour and faith”. The Cambridge dictionary describes religion as, “the belief
in and worship of a god or gods, or any such system of
belief and worship”, “an activity that someone is extremely enthusiastic about and
does regularly”. In view of these explanations, some of the foregoing
definitions can be applied to other non-conventional groups of people, or what
would not typically be classified as the conventional meaning of religion.
Also, it can be argued that through certain activities, some human beings
instinctively fulfil their human religious requirement. This religious
requirement is fulfilled by filling the associative spiritual void with an
alternative, even if done subconsciously. Anything that is valued, or any set
of values that are sacred to an individual, has essentially fulfilled the role
of ‘god’ to that individual. Those values could be science, tradition or
ancestry or anything at all. And when there is an assemblage of such people,
they are effectively a religion. There are certain scenarios where the vacuum
of spirituality–cum–religion, in its traditional sense, gets fulfilled. Based
on its definition, religion could be any cause or principle dedicated to with
ardour. So, atheism, for example, can be considered a religion. As a
similitude, there are atheists who believe in scientism and are proponents of
Darwin’s theory of evolution.
Based on this premise, an
atheist has faith in the works of scientists who developed and propagate
evolution and would also profess it accordingly.
As there is one atheist,
there are also groupings of atheists who share such beliefs among themselves
and with others. In this regard, those in this category are part of a belief
system. Technically, atheists in this category accept this belief as fact,
despite inherent infallibilities in the theory. The impediments faced in
proving its veracity, affirm its theoretical nature, and one can choose to
believe or reject the postulations of that belief system. This similitude is
applicable to any religion, because one can choose to accept or reject any
belief system. For instance, theists are sometimes challenged to prove the
existence of God. In some situations, some of those who choose to believe in
God might not actually be able to prove such an existence. In some other
instances, theists might want to prove the existence of God to an atheist,
through the utilization of the creations of God – the works of the forerunners
of that belief system. Similarly, when atheists are confronted with the
same challenge, they too cannot prove evolution; because neither did any of
those who propounded and developed the theory of evolution actually witnessed
evolution. For example, nobody witnessed man supposedly evolving from apes!
Despite not witnessing the evolution of apes, those who believe in this theory
present books about related studies. So, scientists, atheists, agnostics and
other forms of ideologies belonging to a similar spectrum of belief, can
present evolution and other theories as evidence for their belief. This is the
same manner theists present their arguments from their religious viewpoint.
Theory
of Natural Inclusion:
I posit the Theory of Natural Inclusion as a pragmatic explication of the
inclusivity process. Based on the inclusivity premise, various sets of people
with shared ideologies or beliefs can be collectively grouped and identified.
Furthermore, those within the same category do not necessarily have to formally
identify, acknowledge or admit being part of that belief system, because their
thought-processes and faith in whatever they claim to believe and profess, has
naturally included them within the associative belief system.
Ironically, in the field on
evolution, a prominent evolutionary biologist and proponent of the
Endosymbiotic theory, Lynn Margulis, in describing Neo-Darwinism, stated that
history will ultimately judge the theory “a minor twentieth century religious
sect within the sprawling religious persuasion of Anglo-Saxon Biology”.
In the world of
entertainment, music has a huge followership and somewhat fulfils a ‘religious’
requirement for certain groups of people. At times, fans of music artists
follow their favourite musicians around the globe, and some music festivals can
be likened to a religious pilgrimage.
The energetic atmosphere at
some music concerts is similar to a revered religious figure preaching from the
pulpit to ardent followers. Also, calmer atmospheres with operatic and soulful
music exist, with their respective fervid devotees. Interestingly, in an
archived interview of American artist, Kanye West, he stated: “Hip-hop is a
religion to a certain extent, and the rappers are the preachers, the music is
the scriptures, you know. It’s just like church, because you go to a concert,
you raise your hands in the air, you get dressed up, you sing songs, and
you definitely pay some money. It’s just like church”.
Evidently, man’s gregarious
inclination and the need for affiliation and affirmation is second nature. The
default human tendency to seek association, particularly with the like-minded,
can also lead to the congeniality of the faithless. In summary, a nullifidian –
including those with similar ideologies – can claim faithlessness or
irreligiosity in the conventional sense, nonetheless, a similar type of
devotion, as exerted by those who are faithful or religious, is comparably
expended on nullifidianism.
Note: This article is an
abridged version excerpted from the book, P.R.I.S.M: Primal Religious
Instruction Serving Mankind by M.B.O Owolowo.
©M.B.O
2021
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