My name is Trevor Steinke and I am an eighteen-year-old freshman at the University of Georgia in Athens. When not in school I live with my family in Roswell Georgia. I am currently studying for a major in chemistry. I was involved in Boy Scouts for many years(I just got Eagle this year) and through scouts I developed an extreme love of nature. I enjoy camping, hiking, caving, and rock climbing. My other hobbies include painting, “playing” the guitar, reading, and writing.
I, like many of you, developed my thoughts on theology independently, and then discovered there was a word to describe it and other people who thought the same way. Coming from an Irish/Italian family I was raised in a serious if not strict Roman Catholic environment. At first I took the ideas seriously but not the practice. This is how I first began to break away from the church. Over time I developed a deep loathing for the church and it’s ridiculous principles. Attending church was more likely to make me laugh than to make me feel any kind of connection. When I was confirmed it marked not my full acceptance into the church, but instead my escape from the hated theocratic system.
For several years afterward I became an orthodox atheist. If no one could give me a clear sensible answer about god I decided there must not be one. However, I soon realized that I was taking the easy way out; I would have to find my own answer to the question of god. I decided the most logical thing to believe is that god is the totality of existence, which as far as we now know is the universe. This single belief lead to others which eventually rectified every objection I had with other religions. Why pray to god to give you strength when you yourself are a part of god? Anything else can be answered by science because that is the way we study the universe.
So you can imagine how excited I was when I discovered the Sci-Pan website. Here was all the same ideas I had collected together and given a name. But Scientific- Pantheism also gave me some new ways to look at things. I had always felt deep respect and awe for nature but had never thought to include it in any religious way. So now I am here with a group of people who think, if not exactly, then very close to the way I do. However the important thing is that we all do think. I would be very concerned if everyone were nodding and agreeing on everything without any debate. It’s good to finally find some people to whom faith is a four letter word.
I look forward to talking to you all.