While making dinner last night I listened to NPR’s All Things Considered as I often do. This story piqued my interest and set me to reflecting. There are many interesting facets to Mr. Walters and his legacy. The one 
that seemed most paradoxical to me was the fact that Mr. Walters was an atheist who did a very Christ-like thing, namely selling all he had and living and giving to the poor about him.
One of the lines that intrigued me most in the piece is when Rita Belle, his nurse, friend and executor of his estate says:
He just gave up all of the material things that we think we have to have. You know, I don’t know how we gauge happiness. What’s happy for you might not be happy for me. I never heard him complain.
I have yet to hear this particular funding credit, but I’ll smile and wonder when I do and not take the others for granted.
Though Mr. Walters did not profess a faith in God in life, I see his life and legacy as a sign of the Kingdom of God breaking into this world.
Whatever the reality is, I’d like to thank Richard Leroy Walters for having lived, in my view, a Kingdom of God kind of life.
Amen, brother. Mr. Walters didn’t have to profess a faith in God in life because he ‘did’ a faith in God in life.
I don’t think faith or God had anything to do with Mr. Walters behavior, considering he was an atheist.
He possessed qualities I aspire to, which is to do good works for the sake of others. If God or Jesus inspires someone, that’s terrific, but it’s certainly not necessary.
And Sarah, not to be combative, but according to The Bible Mr. Walters was sent to hell for not believing. It’s not ambiguous about it, either. How do you reconcile his Christ-like nature with his eternal damnation?
Eric,
Thanks for your comment. Whether faith in God had anything to do with Mr. Walters’ action was not initially my point. More to the point, at least for me, was his belief in goodness and his unwillingness (in the case of the Catholic Clinic he remembered in his estate) to let labels obstruct the pursuit of goodness.
As to Mr. Walters’ alleged eternal damnation, I don’t see in the reading of scripture, a basis for Mr. Walters being ‘sent to hell for not believing’. I do see in Jesus saying ‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only one who does the will of my Father in heaven.’ (Matthew 7:21) less of an inclination toward damnation from Jesus that might be found in some Churches.
Eric, what biblical texts would you contend declares Mr. Walters’ damnation? Like you, I’m not trying to be combative but rather to be clear.
Ghandi once said, “”I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ” It seems to me that Christians are more inclined toward declarations of condemnation and damnation than was Jesus. We (who are Christians and who lead Christian communities) would do well to remember and imitate the Jesus of Matthew 7 and John 4 when it comes to judgment and condemnation.
Historically the Church (particularly the catholic and other liturgical churches) has been very hesitant to declare anyone definitively in hell, or eternal damnation. Thanks for you comment and for stopping by.
You insult all of us Atheists by ‘claiming’ that he acted ‘Christ-like’. He didn’t slaughter people who choose a different religion, he didn’t destroy hundreds of cultures around the world, raping and enslaving people. He didn’t demonize other religions, turning their respected icons into Christian ‘demons’ and ‘devils’. He didn’t try to destroy science or any other free-thinking that didn’t comply with Christian mythology or dogma.
So, you see: He didn’t act ‘Christ-like’ at all.
‘Christ’ is an imaginary being. Mr. Walters was very real…and a Atheist, like me.
Dear Tom Vincent,
I am sorry if you view the comments made here to be an insult.
I would also like to point to a flaw in your logic.
I don’t believe Christ, and by that I mean Jesus of Nazareth, did any of the things your rightly condemn those who professed belief in Him to have done. Further, if, as you assert, Christ is an imaginary being, it is impossible for him to have accomplished all of the mayhem you attribute to him.
To suggest that it was Christians and Christians alone who have done such things is simply inaccurate historically. I would ask you to consider the possibility that there has been some good done in Christ’s name as well in this world.
That being said, many have perpetrated unspeakable and horrific acts in the name of the Church. For that I am ashamed, but I will not be held responsible for the choice they have made. I neither am interested in forcing anyone to believe or demonizing their beliefs. I am interested in a Kingdom of God where the ideals of Truth, Beauty and Goodness are not pawns in a zero-sum game of Good v. Evil. The world, it seems to me, has many more shades of grey.
I value your comment and appreciate you taking the time to make it.
padrewarren,
Thanks for the pleasant response. It’s been ten years since I read the Bible so my familiarity with the scripture has waned. I do, however, remember being preached to about the dangers of a lack of faith and that only those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ will be allowed to enter the kingdom of heaven.
Is that not true? Will I, and countless other charitable and moral atheists who lead “Christ-like” lives, be allowed into heaven despite not having believed?
Or is it more truthful that while the Bible does hold large portions of kindness and morality in its pages, it equally holds portions of fear, condemnation and punishment?
Dear Eric,
As to heaven, the question of who gets in and who doesn’t, for me as a Christian of my particular believing, is not something I spend time thinking about. I am more interested in how faith, charity, truth, beauty and goodness can transform the world and the people in it. For me, the best way I’ve found of living into that, albeit haphazardly, has been to try and follow Jesus and to do so with others who take his teachings seriously.
I will probably draw the ire of some of my Christian brothers and sisters by saying this, but I believe the Bible, as I think your are referring to it, is Divinely inspired but subject to misinterpretation and misuse base upon what folks want it to say. Simply put, I believe that God inspired the Scriptures and human beings wrote them down. That being said, it seems to me that cultural, economic, gender, racial and any number of other biases have crept in. No question all of the baggage of the Bible (slavery, violence against women, racism, class issues) is very real and something that people of faith and reason must struggle with. All of that being said, I’m not ready to throw the baby out with the proverbial bathwater with regard to scripture and it’s power to inspire, transform and redeem those who take it seriously (not literally).
I appreciate the candor and respect of our conversation. What a breath of fresh air.
Be well…..
“I am sorry if you view the comments made here to be an insult.”
I note that you do not admit to being wrong when you insult Atheists, comparing them to imaginary religious figures. hmmm.
“I would also like to point to a flaw in your logic.”
And I will point out the *many* flaws in *yours*
“I don’t believe Christ, and by that I mean Jesus of Nazareth, did any of the things your rightly condemn those who professed belief in Him to have done.”
The bible is full of bloodthirsty acts committed, encouraged and celebrated by ‘believers’ against those who choose other paths. I doubt any of them actually occurred, but what a horrible book of hate and intolerance!
“Further, if, as you assert, Christ is an imaginary being, it is impossible for him to have accomplished all of the mayhem you attribute to him.”
You are correct. The bible attributes and promotes horrible acts of cruelty done, even though they are imaginary. I agree that your imaginary ‘Christ’ never actually did any of those things.
“To suggest that it was Christians and Christians alone who have done such things is simply inaccurate historically.”
I suggest that exactly *where*, pal? Your logic is awful. Do not put words into my posts that did not exist (like your ‘God’ :) ).
“I would ask you to consider the possibility that there has been some good done in Christ’s name as well in this world.”
Yes, ask the dozens and dozens of cultures and religions that have been wiped out of existence due to Christianity’s reign of terror throughout the Americas. Ask the millions slaughtered, raped and enslaved by Christians, encouraged and rewarded by a rapacious, greedy and power-mad Catholic Church. Ask the Jews murdered by Medieval Christians who would not even tolerate another faith to prosper in Europe.
Show me how Christianity has respected *any* other religions, where Christianity hasn’t insulted the deities of other religions or turned them into ‘devils’, destroyed their sacred places and writings, encouraged science even when the proven results clearly contradict biblical scripture.
Show me a biblical passage that show respect for other faiths. Just *one*.
“That being said, many have perpetrated unspeakable and horrific acts in the name of the Church.”
Yes, completely supported by the bible. Those acts are an accurate and perfectly expected result when a book the promotes cruelty and intolerance is embraced as ‘scripture’.
“For that I am ashamed, but I will not be held responsible for the choice they have made.”
No, of course not. But lie down with dogs, get up with fleas. :)
“I neither am interested in forcing anyone to believe or demonizing their beliefs.”
Well, then, you aren’t a true Christian then, are you?
“I am interested in a Kingdom of God where the ideals of Truth, Beauty and Goodness are not pawns in a zero-sum game of Good v. Evil.”
hmmm…there certainly isn’t any ‘Truth, Beauty or Goodness’ in the bible…where are you getting these ideas *from*?
No monarchies for me, especially headed by imaginary kings. I believe in democracy, in open debate of issues, of voting. Who voted for your imaginary God? Who put *it* in charge? Where’s your proof that this imaginary God exist? An old book of bloodthirsty brutality? That’s it?
“The world, it seems to me, has many more shades of grey.”
Yes, though you’d never know it from the bible.
“I value your comment and appreciate you taking the time to make it.”
Likewise. I like how you casually dismiss the crimes against humanity Christianity has committed for centuries and then attempt to redefine the religion to meet your clearly more ethical sensibilities. Good luck with that. Perhaps you should explore more intellectually honest religions or philosophies? Just a suggestion.
Tom,
Thanks for setting me straight. Have a nice weekend.
Tom,
What a wonderful display of twisting; 1)people’s word’s; 2) the word’s of the bible, and 3) history; to justify your own twisted beliefs.
If sanctimonious can be used to describe an athiest, it is the word that comes to mind when I hear an athiest condemn
Christianity, act as though athiests have come through history as harmless free thinkers who are intellectually and ethically superior to the rest of humankind. That athiests have never caused any pain and suffering to the human condition. On the other hand, I remember Communists declaring that religion is the opiate of the masses, and there was no God except the state. Now take a look at all of the Communist revolutions throughout history and tell me just how blameless atheiest are for any human suffering.
Tom , “You insult all of us Atheists by ‘claiming’ that he acted ‘Christ-like’.”
How can you claim insult for “all” atheists . I guess the same way you can place all the blame on “Christians” for the worlds sufferings.
“He didn’t slaughter people who choose a different religion, he didn’t destroy hundreds of cultures around the world, raping and enslaving people.”
It seems like you are trying to again place blame for all the atrocities commited in the world on one religion when all certain factions of “religions” are to blame at some point.
“He didn’t demonize other religions, turning their respected icons into Christian ‘demons’ and ‘devils’. He didn’t try to destroy science or any other free-thinking that didn’t comply with Christian mythology or dogma.”
How do you know this to be fact.? In fact ,by being an athiest you are demonizing all religions .Being “Christ Like ” is not religion.Everyone doesn’t think alike.The multitudes that do are easily led.I use science and nature to tell me there is a God.I look at the complexity of all things around me and cannot begin to understand how someone could think all this wonder came from nothing.Just an explosion.A forming of matter in the vast universe on this little planet.Everything just happened ….
yea right.I also don’t see how you can use mythology and dogma in the same sentence.
“So, you see: He didn’t act ‘Christ-like’ at all.
‘Christ’ is an imaginary being. Mr. Walters was very real…and a Atheist, like me.”
So ,Tom… What does your life mean? What is the purpose of your life?
Thanks, Tim.
“What a wonderful display of twisting; 1)people’s word’s; 2) the word’s of the bible, and 3) history; to justify your own twisted beliefs.”
Yes, that’s why I objected to *ALL* of that. Christians need to face the bloodthirsty brutality and dishonesty of the bible, their own brutal history and twisting the words of others to justify their unintelligible and intolerant beliefs. Thanks for the support!
“If sanctimonious can be used to describe an athiest, it is the word that comes to mind when I hear an athiest condemn
Christianity,”
Hardly. Atheists don’t destroy other cultures, enslave people and murder people because they won’t accept our perspective. That’s something Christianity has a long and bloody history in.
” act as though athiests have come through history as harmless free thinkers who are intellectually and ethically superior to the rest of humankind.”
You mean when we’re not persecuted by Christians, Muslims and other theists? When we’re not viewed as immoral or unethical just because we reject your imaginary invisible man in the sky and your book of blood and lies? Let me know when that happens, will you?
” That athiests have never caused any pain and suffering to the human condition.”
I see. So now you’re into one-upmanship, huh? Christianity’s brutal reign of terror is someone okay so long as you compare it to other brutal reigns of terror, is that it?
” On the other hand, I remember Communists declaring that religion is the opiate of the masses, and there was no God except the state. Now take a look at all of the Communist revolutions throughout history and tell me just how blameless atheiest are for any human suffering.”
Communism is not Atheism. Try again. But first, tell me about Christianity’s blame for human suffering, since it has existed for much longer. But Communism is not Atheism. In fact, it is clearly much closer to Christianity in structure and action.
“How can you claim insult for “all” atheists . I guess the same way you can place all the blame on “Christians” for the worlds sufferings.”
I doubt any Atheist would want to be compared to an imaginary being. How Invisible-Pink-Unicorn-ish are *you*?
“It seems like you are trying to again place blame for all the atrocities commited in the world on one religion when all certain factions of “religions” are to blame at some point.”
The topic of conversation was Christianity and its crimes against Humanity. Certainly other religions have been likewise a poison on the planet. Best to get rid of all of them and think freely and rationally, wouldn’t you say? Examine evidence, reject dogma, embrace open dialog and democratic processes, that sort of thing. Sound good?
“How do you know this to be fact.? ”
Examine the evidence.
“In fact ,by being an athiest you are demonizing all religions .Being “Christ Like ” is not religion.”
Atheists (learn to spell, would you?) don’t ‘demonize’ *anything*. We criticize based on evidence that lead to conclusions demonstrated by *facts*.
“Everyone doesn’t think alike.The multitudes that do are easily led.I use science and nature to tell me there is a God.”
Then prove it, using science.
“I look at the complexity of all things around me and cannot begin to understand how someone could think all this wonder came from nothing.Just an explosion.A forming of matter in the vast universe on this little planet.Everything just happened ….
yea right.I also don’t see how you can use mythology and dogma in the same sentence.”
So the only possible solution is your imaginary invisible man in the sky? Wow. That’s pretty impressive. You have no evidence of a thing (‘god’) and have not looked for any other solutions or possibilities and have not tested any alternative postulates or theories, yet you have decided that your ‘god’ exists because of a collection of primitive writings over 1,500-2,000 years old. Well done.
“So ,Tom… What does your life mean? What is the purpose of your life?
Thanks, Tim.”
Why do you care? You’ve done nothing but make dishonest, grammatically inaccurate and poorly spelled statements…why would I care to share my personal philosophy with you?
I am closing comment on this post. If we cannot have respectful dialogue on matters upon which we disagree then I’m not interested in it continuing. This is not the result of any one comment but the tone of many. If you all choose to talk to one another in this tone, you can do it privately.
This might be against my better judgment, but this post is still generating some traffic. I’m opening up comments again as long as the exchanges are respectful and don’t degenerate into name calling.
I just read about Mr. Walters in an IndyStar article from 8/3/09. I hope he had attained in life what he set out to attain. Since he was not religious, I think his actions were based on how he liked to challenge himself. I found it interesting that he was making calls from a community center phont to make investment decisions and move money around. Despite his convictions, I think we could all learn a lot from selfless acts by people like Mr. Walters.
Thanks for the thread. God bless.