Keep God in your heart (if you must)

I’m an atheist.

I don’t look down on theists with some kind of intellectual superiority like many of my fellow athiests do.

Or at least I try not to.

I’ll admit I find it hard to intellectually qualify the idea of a deity.

But I also understand for those who truly believe, they find it just as hard to disqualify the idea.

I respect and in some ways envy those that have something deeper they can believe in. A spiritual distraction, hope and faith they can cling to.

But, a series of geopolitical incidents involving religions, a devastating terror attack and now reprisals that are going sickeningly beyond the bounds of a rational response has meant now is the very worst time to be touting your religion on…

LinkedIn of all places.

And I’m going to explain why it can only be a bad thing to bring your religion to the forefront of your LinkedIn.

1. It can only ever be divisive.

Even the most ‘popular’ religion Christianity, is practiced by less that 1/3 of the global population.

That means that at best you will have alienated more than 2/3 of your audience when you start to use your LinkedIn to promote your faith.

2. Nobody converted from reading a LinkedIn post

So what are you aiming to achieve?

Of course, I get that you may be wanting to show the ‘whole’ you on your profile and if your religious belief is a key part of who you are, you don’t want to suppress that.

Just understand the difference though, between showing who you are and pushing your religious beliefs onto others.

One is okay, the other is borderline offensive.

I don’t try to push my atheism on anyone.

And I certainly don’t appreciate feeling judged for being a ‘non-believer’.*

*I actually believe in a heck of a lot of things so I hate that phrase.

3. It’s actually horrifically painful for many right now.

Like seriously bad stuff is happening. Thousands are dying due to no other reason than their faith, particularly in the middle east.

It’s such a sensitive time, and the least emotionally intelligent thing you can do right now is to start touting your religion, while families are being blown apart because of theirs.

It’s a serious rant this week, and one that I’ll steer clear of in future. I’ll keep my atheism off this platform (and LinkedIn of course).

I respect your beliefs, I respect your right to hold them close and be proud of how they shape you.

But please respect the fact that your religion and political beliefs can only ever be divisive.

So on a platform like LinkedIn, where connectivity and diversity should thrive, please keep God in your heart, and off the platform.