Confused About Coincidences

By Herb --

I gave up Christianity back in 1973. Christianity always bothered me because of all the silly rules and regulations. I was overly scrupulous about it.

Image by doug88888 via Flickr

The means of my escape from Christianity was becoming aquainted with a well-read agnostic whom I met at work. He was my mento out of that monstrous religion. He introduced me to lots of books including books by Bertrand Russell and David Hume which sent me on my way to freedom.

But all has not been well with me over the years. I still worry about miraculous anecdotes that I read and hear. I worry that maybe there's something to them. I also worry about coincidences that I come across.

About 15 years ago, I was diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder. It's what caused my scrupulosity and is what causes my current worrying about religion.

A worry that is particularly bothering me now is this: In 1947, Israel was granted some of their old homeland back by the UN. When I noticed that Abraham was born in 1947 BCE, I checked to see if I could find a connection between Abraham and the events of 1947 CE and sure enough, I did. I made the connection of the Jews getting their land back with Abraham, the man whom God promised the Holy Land to his descendants. Naturally, the thought came to me, "Did God bring this about deliberately on this year to make a connection with Abraham, that is, to send a message? Or is it just a coincidence as I assume it probably is? It seems to me that it's more likely that it's just a coincidence than for Judaism or Christianity to be true. It's had for me to believe that such absurdities as Judaism or Christianity could be true. It's hard for me to believe that there can be an afterlife. How can a spirit think without a brain and neurons? How can a spirit sense anything without physical senses? The same things apply to a spirit supreme being. How does a spirit supreme being think without a brain or create without hands?

Can anybody out there help me with this obsession?

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