Really. Not some bullcrap answer.
2006-12-02 12:33:20 · 18 answers · asked by Qwert 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The thing is, it's hard to say. You can easily show that atheists are more educated, get in less trouble with the law, etc. But that doesn't mean they are that way because they are atheist -- it's probably because they are more educated.
I think only a handful of things would change. Most people, even if they are religious, don't walk down the street thinking about what God is going to think. They just live their lives. But the handful of things I think would change are:
* Socially, the country would be more liberal, obviously. Gay rights, abortion, etc would move to the left.
* There would probably be less violence. Religion is one of may divisive labels, but it is truly uniquely divisive.
* People would value life itself more, because without this "passing through on the way to heaven" mythology, everyone would have to value THIS life even more. This, I think, would lead to a greater respect for life.
Really, if you want to take a look at PostChristian society, look no further than Western Europe. It's not totally secular, but it's getting there.
2006-12-02 12:44:31 · answer #1 · answered by STFU Dude 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Nobody knows, but there are three lines of thinking:
1. There would be no more religious wars so the world would be a much more peaceful place.
2. Since people were not concerned with preparing for the afterlife they would focus on accumulating wealth/power/etc. in this life no matter what the cost so the world would be a more dangerous place.
3. The world would be no different than it is now. Rather than fight over religion individuals would find other things to fight over because it's human nature, rather than a particular reason.
Number 3 would be my guess.
2006-12-02 20:44:57 · answer #2 · answered by AirDevil 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The suicide and murder rates would go up for sure. Take away the promise of heaven or threat of hell, and many will do anything because they won't face any retribution except the law, and a lot of people can get around that. From some of the rabid atheists on YA, I gotta tell you, you can't go by their moral/ethical codes, many of them don't seem to have any, they're some of the angriest, most vindictive people I've ever encountered. Not all of course, but quite few. Nope, that would definately be a very bad thing. Everyone needs a moral compass, and sometimes that compass is driven by a need for beautiful eternity, or a fear of a long, painful punishment. People are more likely to get thru bad times with the promise of heaven, and less likely to commit murder if they might have to pay for it after death.
2006-12-02 20:47:00 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋
We would be fighting over the different kinds of scientific theories for how the world started. Different kinds of "Science" similar to the way we argue religion now. We will always be arguing over something that we can not answer.
OR:
We'd be at war with the sea otters and disputing the actual appearance of the flying spaghetti monster!
2006-12-02 20:39:03 · answer #4 · answered by ur a Dee Dee Dee 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I hate to say it, but I think it would probably be a bad idea. If no one believed they were going to be punished for their actions by a higher power, imagine the crime and lawlessness that would plague the planet. There are plenty of people who are only "good" people because of their fear of God. Some people can handle not believing in a higher power and get along fine, but I believe that the majority could not.
2006-12-02 20:40:16 · answer #5 · answered by The Wired 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Well, all the ********* in the middle east would instantly lose all excuse for turning their corner of the world into a mess. And the gay-bashers would lose their justification. Secular humanism wouldn't cure all ills, but at least there isn't a higher power to blame.
http://www.secularhumanism.org/
2006-12-02 20:39:50 · answer #6 · answered by Wise1 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
most people in the UK seem to be atheists, church attendance is just 2%. there seems to be no real difference to anywhere else. religion is just a vehicle to humanity's natural propensity for both good and bad, a very effective vehicle, but one none the less. oh! i just thought of one thing, the stench of sanctimonious hypocrisy would disappear.
2006-12-02 20:47:47 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
There would be no balance. Really. That's not bullcrap.
2006-12-02 20:41:08 · answer #8 · answered by MyPreshus 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
There would probably be a lot more science going on and we'd be advancing faster than we currently are since no great minds would be wasted on religion. We'd still have wars, arts, culture, etc.. but I like to think that reason would be much more prevalent.
2006-12-02 20:38:19 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 2⤋
Then survival of the fittest would be law of the land.
To all of you people saying we would have more science without Christians. The founders of most of the scientific fields were CHRISTIAN
2006-12-02 20:43:08 · answer #10 · answered by Mad Maxine 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋