--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Imagine a world in which generations of…" description: "\"Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him. Im..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/sam-harris-457_atheism_imagine-a-world-in-which-generations-of_2918710.jpg" --- # Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come… ![“Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him. Imagine a future in which millions of our descendants murder each other over rival interpretations of Star Wars or Windows 98. Could anything…” quote by Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/sam-harris-457_atheism_imagine-a-world-in-which-generations-of_2918710.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/sam-harris-457_atheism_imagine-a-world-in-which-generations-of_2918710.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/111/sam-harris-457_atheism_imagine-a-world-in-which-generations-of_2918710.jpg) > “Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him. Imagine a future in which millions of our descendants murder each other over rival interpretations of Star Wars or Windows 98. Could anything -- anything -- be more ridiculous? And yet, this would be no more ridiculous than the world we are living in.” [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns that humanity may idolize technology and entertainment as divine, leading to conflict over interpretations, highlighting absurdity of current cultural wars. **In simple terms:** People may treat tech and movies like religion, causing pointless fights. Key Takeaway Beware of treating media as sacred. Themes culture religion technology conflict Mood critical skeptical Type philosophical warning When to use this quote - religious debates - online fandom wars - political polarization - intergenerational values - media literacy Key Concepts idolatry media influence group identity Questions to Reflect On - How do we prevent media from becoming dogma? - What values can replace idolization? A Different Perspective It may overstate the inevitability of conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) [Atheist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Interpretation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interpretation/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Programming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/programming/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Rivals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivals/) [Software](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/software/) [Star wars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/star-wars/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [If you're going to be ridiculous, be over-the-top ridiculous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-nielsen/if-you-re-going-to-be-ridiculous-be-over-the-top-ridiculous/) [Rick Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-nielsen/) > [I don't believe that anybody has come to a conclusion on why something is funny. It's funny because it's ridiculous and it's ridiculous for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-mason/i-don-t-believe-that-anybody-has-come-to-a-conclusion-on-why/) [Jackie Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-mason/) > [My grandfather made films on God, I make it on the devil, so, I wonder what he would say if he was alive. He'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-rohit-shetty/my-grandfather-made-films-on-god-i-make-it-on-the-devil-so-i-wonder/) Vikram Rohit Shetty > [George Clooney had the web of celebrity from television and doing 'ER,' and he's able to parlay that into films. God willing, I'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bailey-chase/george-clooney-had-the-web-of-celebrity-from-television-and-doing-er/) [Bailey Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bailey-chase/) > [In feature films the director is God; in documentary films God is the director.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-hitchcock/in-feature-films-the-director-is-god-in-documentary-films-god-is-the/) [Alfred Hitchcock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-hitchcock/) > [I tend to sit around with my friends a lot and rant and rave about things I think are ridiculous in the world, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-green/i-tend-to-sit-around-with-my-friends-a-lot-and-rant-and-rave-about/) [Tom Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-green/) > [He's disappeared to Azerbaijan, or somewhere ridiculous in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-redknapp/he-s-disappeared-to-azerbaijan-or-somewhere-ridiculous-in-the-world/) [Harry Redknapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-redknapp/) > [I have seen the day, when, if a man made himself ridiculous, the world would laugh at him. But now, everything that is mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-baillie/i-have-seen-the-day-when-if-a-man-made-himself-ridiculous-the-world/) [Joanna Baillie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-baillie/) > [There is a god. Nothing as tragic and ridiculous as this world could have happened by random chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-viehl/there-is-a-god-nothing-as-tragic-and-ridiculous-as-this-world-could/) [Lynn Viehl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-viehl/) > [“The three of us stood there for a minute. I don’t know what Stew was thinking, and the filing cabinet wasn’t thinking anything. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemony-snicket/the-three-of-us-stood-there-for-a-minute-i-don-t-know-what-stew-was/) [Lemony Snicket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemony-snicket/) > [“If you can imagine the future being brighter, it lifts your energy and gooses the chemistry in your body that produces a sensation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-adams/if-you-can-imagine-the-future-being-brighter-it-lifts-your-energy-and/) [Scott Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-adams/) > [“A person who cannot imagine the future is a person who cannot contemplate the results of his actions. Some are thus paralyzed into inaction.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lightman/a-person-who-cannot-imagine-the-future-is-a-person-who-cannot/) [Alan Lightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lightman/) > [I'm not ready to die. Period. To begin with, I cannot imagine a future without me in it. Can't do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-schimmel/i-m-not-ready-to-die-period-to-begin-with-i-cannot-imagine-a-future/) [Robert Schimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-schimmel/) > [I am neither a sociologist nor a politician. All I can do is imagine for myself what the future will be like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/i-am-neither-a-sociologist-nor-a-politician-all-i-can-do-is-imagine/) [Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/) > [“The main benefit of memory for past events may be that it allows us to imagine future events.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-suddendorf/the-main-benefit-of-memory-for-past-events-may-be-that-it-allows-us/) [Thomas Suddendorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-suddendorf/) ## More by Sam Harris > [“Moderates in every faith are obliged to loosely interpret (or simply ignore) much of their canons in the interests of living in the modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/moderates-in-every-faith-are-obliged-to-loosely-interpret-or-simply/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [There is no question but that nominally religious scientists like Francis Collins and Kenneth R. Miller are doing lasting harm to our discourse by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/there-is-no-question-but-that-nominally-religious-scientists-like/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [We have Christians against Muslims against Jews, and no matter how liberal your theology, merely identifying yourself as a Christian or a Jew lends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/we-have-christians-against-muslims-against-jews-and-no-matter-how/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Your principal concern appears to be that the Creator of the universe will take offense at something people do while naked. This prudery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/your-principal-concern-appears-to-be-that-the-creator-of-the-universe/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. Whatever wisdom can be found in their pages is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/as-manuals-for-contemplative-understanding-the-bible-and-the-koran/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“If your golf instructor were to insist that you shave your head, sleep no more than four hours each night, renounce sex, and subsist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/if-your-golf-instructor-were-to-insist-that-you-shave-your-head-sleep/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The fact that one can lose one's sense of self in an ocean of tranquility does not mean that one's consciousness is immaterial or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-fact-that-one-can-lose-one-s-sense-of-self-in-an-ocean-of/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The second commandment is "Thou shall not construct any graven images." Is this really the pinnacle of what we can achieve morally? The second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-second-commandment-is-thou-shall-not-construct-any-graven-images/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“But the reality of consciousness appears irreducible. Only consciousness can know itself—and directly, through first-person experience.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/but-the-reality-of-consciousness-appears-irreducible-only/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Whether or not one likes Huntington's formulation, one thing is clear: the evil that has finally reached our shores is not merely the evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/whether-or-not-one-likes-huntington-s-formulation-one-thing-is-clear/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The problem is that religion tends to give people bad reasons to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-problem-is-that-religion-tends-to-give-people-bad-reasons-to-be/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Muslim moderates, wherever they are, must be given every tool necessary to win a war of ideas with their co-religionists. Otherwise, we will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/muslim-moderates-wherever-they-are-must-be-given-every-tool-necessary/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The idea that any one of our religions represents the infallible word of the One True God requires an encyclopedic ignorance of history, mythology,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-idea-that-any-one-of-our-religions-represents-the-infallible-word/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“What could possibly cause billions of human beings to reconsider their religious beliefs? And yet, it is obvious that an utter revolution in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/what-could-possibly-cause-billions-of-human-beings-to-reconsider/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) [Explore all 543 Sam Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## More Atheism quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [No philosophy, no religion, has ever brought so glad a message to the world as this good news of Atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/no-philosophy-no-religion-has-ever-brought-so-glad-a-message-to-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [You cannot ... transmute some incoherent mixture of words into sense merely by introducing the three-letter word "God" to be its grammatical subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/you-cannot-transmute-some-incoherent-mixture-of-words-into-sense/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Do you think that was kind? 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Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Honest investigation is utterly impossible within the pale of any church, for the reason, that if you think the church is right you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/honest-investigation-is-utterly-impossible-within-the-pale-of-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) [Browse all 4,769 Atheism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Imagine a world in which generations of human beings come to believe that certain films were made by God or that specific software was coded by him. Imagine a future in which millions of our descendants murder each other over rival interpretations of Star Wars or Windows 98. Could anything -- anything -- be more ridiculous? 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