A myth, by definition is a traditional or legendary story, usually concerning some being or hero or event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation, especially one that's concerned with deities or demigods and explains some practice, rite, or phenomenon of nature (dictionary.com). This is how we come to dismiss any religion that doesn't correspond with our own beliefs. Yet why is it radical for one to believe that the Christian Bible might just be simple mythology? Did God create us in His image, or did we create Him in our image?

What if we don't know what God wants from us? What if He isn't what we think He is? What if you don't get to meet Him after you die and you simply just stop existing? If so, why shouldn't I use the mind I have been given to question life as I know it?

What if, in the beginning of time, the universe created itself? What if, in a feat of chance, all the cosmic epicness simply collided, and as a result, one thing got created from another? You may say that God made that process to be so, as it was a step in His 'plan' to be carried out. But what if it just happened? What if the world exists without regard to a supreme being that demands it to be so? You can say that it was God who granted free will. Why did He do that if the Bible gives so many rules to follow? What if 'he' didn't create us for the purpose of worshiping 'him'?

Setting aside all the wrongdoing that has been done in the name of religion and the Bible, would you steal, murder, or "sin" without your god telling you not to do so? Would you kill your own son if a voice in the sky told you to? On a loosely related note, how do you define sin? Homosexuality is a sin because it's written in Leviticus, and it absolutely must be so (the most popular being Leviticus 18:22; 20:13, which is even more revolting, but thankfully lesser known). By that logic, Leviticus also says tattoos are a sin (19:28), even if they are of your Savior, and not to eat bacon (11:7-8). A man MUST marry his brother's widower; however, if a man marries his brother's wife, it is an act of impurity (Genesis versus Leviticus).

That being said, how do you know something is immoral? The Bible condemns the questioning of God's Word; you mustn't depend on your own judgment. Trust the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, Proverbs 3:5 (NIV).

Religion is something that is taught. We are taught morals by the people who raise us. Often, we're led to believe that religion and morals go hand-in-hand. To say that those who don't believe what you believe, who were not taught the same things you were taught, or are worshiping the 'wrong' god(s), are not living how they ought to be living, you belittle the value of a human life.

I trust that people are capable of loving, and being thankful for life, regardless of a god's existence. I trust that morality is human nature, not something that need be guided using a collection of books, most of which are not pleasantly read by an audience of humanists (a go-to example being 1 Timothy 2:11-12 (NIV), A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or have authority over a man; she must be silent). Read Deuteronomy 22, and again ask yourself: what is morality, and why do you depend on the Bible for the rules of morality? Further, what is freedom?

However, some Old Testament apologists claim God didn't mean it when He said that, yet continue to defend the Bible and promise to give God their all. They may say that the word of Leviticus and Deuteronomy are outdated. Yes, yes they are outdated, as they ought to be.

These are some things I hope you bear in mind as we continue to coexist. However, I understand my ramblings against the Bible and its teachings won't make you change your mind. And if you do so continue to pick-and-choose the verses you identify your god by, I appreciate that you've decided to take to heart the ones about love and thankfulness and humbleness.

Maybe, just maybe, you can consider that we were nature's creation. Nature might not have created you with the selfish intent of worship, but do you not owe it to yourself to treasure life, regardless of why it is you were created, without fearing the uncertainty of where you go and who or what you see when you leave this world?