The atheist protagonist of the 2014 I Origins film is asked what he would do if presented with evidence of a spiritual realm or afterlife after being told that the Dalai Llama would embrace evidence that God did not exist. While no answer is provided in the movie, the matter is addressed in the "Ten Non-Commandments" published on Friday by Lex Bayer and John Figdor, authors of the atheist book "Atheist Heart, Humanist Mind".
Number one in the list of winning entries, chosen from over 2,800 submissions from 18 countries and 27 U.S. states, is the non-commandment, "Be open-minded and be willing to alter your beliefs with new evidence." Bayer, an executive at AirBnB, and Figdor, a humanist chaplain at Stanford University, included their own list in their Oct. 2014 book, but conceived of the ReThink prize to "encourage people to introspect about their beliefs."
Underpinning the non-commandment idea was the past experience of the humanist chaplain, who had fielded numerous questions from students who would approach him to ask, "What is worth believing in?", after letting go of their belief in God. Bayer added that the process of co-writing the book facilitated an inner exploration that he thought others around the world could also experience if they considered the ReThink question.
The pair offered prize money of US$10,000 to the winning entrant and, according to Bayer, if "it helped boost atheists' public image and drum up publicity for his book, all the better". However, the team of 13 judges ended up announcing more than one winner on Friday, when the compilation of ten was also published. The list, described as showing "a robust faith in humankind" by CNN, reads:
1. Be open-minded and be willing to alter your beliefs with new evidence.
2. Strive to understand what is most likely to be true, not to believe what you wish to be true.
3. The scientific method is the most reliable way of understanding the natural world.
4. Every person has the right to control of their body.
5. God is not necessary to be a good person or to live a full and meaningful life.
6. Be mindful of the consequences of all your actions and recognize that you must take responsibility for them.
7. Treat others as you would want them to treat you, and can reasonably expect them to want to be treated. Think about their perspective.
8. We have the responsibility to consider others, including future generations.
9. There is no one right way to live.
10. Leave the world a better place than you found it.
The TIME publication offered the two authors a chance to explain their view of ReThink in a Sunday article, and they clarified that each of the ten winners will win $1,000 each. They called the entries "wonderful" and identified "themes ranging from personal freedom, to open-mindedness, from critical thinking to compassion and empathy" in the final list.