Question about Religion and Politics, from an Atheist?

Question

Atheists are saying that they do not like that the religious right is trying to legislate religion. Specifically this has to do with gay marriage, and abortion.

My question is, could an atheist be pro-life? And if so, is the atheist trying to force his/her religious beliefs on the country by wanting more pro-life laws?

Also, while I haven't met any, what if there was an atheist who was against gay marriage? Would that hypothetical atheist be trying to put their religious beliefs on society?

This question is specific to those issues, not to the intelligent design debate, cause no atheist would be for the introduction of a theory about a sky wizard inventing some secret decoder ring from dirt that becomes a human being.

Does this turn the debate upside down on its head?

Answer 1

The main arguement I think is not that Christians are 'pushing their agenda'

It's that others are pushing their own agendas (legalizing gay marraige, abortion, no prayer in schools, etc are fairly recent things) and the Christians, as a result, defending the original morals.

It amazes me that people are allowed to challenge the right to take "In God we Trust" off of the currency but Christians are scorned for trying to keep it there.

If you haven't noticed, the media is generally siding with the non-Christians, indirectly and directly.

One good example: MTV.

The owner of MTV doesn't let his family watch it.

Personally, I'm disgusted by that program.

I learned that MTV owns VH1, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and other TV programs.

It's like each generation is raised into a standard of morals that the media portrays--good or bad, Christians have a right to stop that.

Answer 2

Very,very good question! So if I am against anything it must be something to do with being a believer or not? I have voiced my opinion many times about this subject. Leftists in this country are the biggest name callers there are and if I am against "gay marriage" that can only be because I am a right-wing religous, nut case. Same with the abortion issue. Gay marriage, abortion, and many other issues have little to do with religion. What is right or wrong is a personal choice that people make. Rome just decayed away and our country is on the same path. Without morals and a sense of what is right or wrong where will our country end up? And yes, they are trying to force their beliefs onto our people and our way of life.

The United States was founded by believers. A Christian nation.
Today "everything" is a gray area. Up for debate. But even atheists are allowed to voice their opinions and be heard. As are the pro-abortion Catholics, which, of course, do not exist. Because if one is pro-abortion, then one is not Catholic.

Answer 3

A lot of people are saying that atheism isn't a religion; I think that depends on what you mean by religion. I guess there's no special place where atheists can go to worship nobody, and there's no hierarchical structure among atheists, no fancy atheist robes, no atheist cookies; but the belief that God does not exist is certainly a religious belief.

Atheists can be found on both sides of the abortion debate. I'm sure they can also be found on both sides of the gay marriage issue. However, neither of these issues is logically connected with the defining religious belief of atheism. I don't see how one would argue that an atheist taking a political stand on one of these issues would be pushing a religious belief.

I may be a little naive, but I think laws in the world should be based on things that we know. Religious beliefs are another deal entirely. It is fine for different people to adhere to different concepts of heaven-worthy behavior, but nobody should project the burdens of their religion onto others. Laws in the world should continue to make sense in the absence of religious context.

I'll save my own political beliefs for another time...but was it really necessary for you to write that semi-coherent sentence about the sky wizard? Sometimes this little room in Yahoo Answers looks like a bunch of zealots with their hands over their ears, trying to sing over the zealot next to them. (And since I just said atheism is a religious belief, I don't mind counting certain atheists among the zealots.) If there's going to be any progress, we have to stop flinging insults and start having real conversations about things that actually matter.

Which reminds me...Your question seems like the first half of an idea. What's the second half? Or, did you have a plan for where the debate would go from here?

Answer 4

Being pro-life doesn't automatically make you a Christian...nor does being anti-gay marriage. It is a delicate balance that people overlook...stereotyping people who believe one way or another based on their voting habits, etc. I am a Christian...but I believe that science is what we call things when we discover how it's done. The less primitive our thinking becomes as a race, the more science we seem to develop...it doesn't mean we have to leave our religion behind. The religion of human secularism is often what many atheists believe in...to call something a religion is merely to say it is a thought process or way of life.
In the larger sense, religion is a communal system for the coherence of belief—typically focused on a system of thought, unseen being, person, or object, that is considered to be supernatural, sacred, divine, or of the highest truth. Moral codes, practices, values, institutions, traditions, and rituals are often traditionally associated with the core belief, and these may have some overlap with concepts in secular philosophy. Religion can also be described as a way of life. Secular humanism is a humanist philosophy that upholds reason, ethics, and justice, and specifically rejects the supernatural and the spiritual as warrants of moral reflection and decision-making. Like other types of humanism, secular humanism is a life stance or a praxis focusing on the way human beings can lead good and happy lives (eupraxsophy). So you see...an atheist can very easily be pro-life, and anti-gay marriage, if they have that make-up in their background. I won't say anything about the last stuff you were talking about, cause it will get neither of us anywhere.

Answer 5

Well I'm not an Atheist and I think we should keep religion out of politics for a few reasons: 1) This country was founded on separation of church and state, and if every religious person were to vote based on their religion that would undermine the values our country was founded on. I think religion belongs in your heart, your personal life, and your home. NOT in our laws. 2) Way too many people of religion form their views solely based on what their CHURCH says, not what the bible says. For example if someone attends a church where the dietary laws of Leviticus are emphasized and a law was proposed that would ban pork and shellfish the members of that church would likely vote to ban those foods for ALL Americans or people that live in whatever state the law was proposed in. This would be unfair because I am not a Christian, so why should my right to eat pork or shellfish be denied? 3) Sour grapes and personal agenda! Of course some gay people are going to wish religious folk and homophobes wouldn't vote or wouldn't vote with their bibles. Would you want someone who opposes something that makes you happy voting using a book that opposes the thing that makes you happy? oh and by the way, Jesus never once mentioned homosexuality. Just sayin :)

Answer 6

Clearly, there are plenty of ethical reasons that would motivate an atheist to be pro-life and plenty of ethical reasons (and also prejudices) that would motivate an atheist to oppose gay marriage.

I mean, seriously, the fact that there are so many Gay Republicans working behind the scenes in Washington proves that there are lots of ways that people negotiate their values.

However, the key part to your question is that it does turn the debate on its head a little bit...

The legal debate surrounding abortion, as far as I'm concerned, is whether a woman, as an individual, has a right to make her own moral/ethical decision concerning the termination of her pregnancy or whether the state can ban such a choice. Personally, I think that such a decision should happen in an individual's own head--perhaps supported by her partner, community, or any clergy, counselor, or therapist who helps advise her, not in a state or federal legistlature.

Likewise, the gay marriage debate is about whether or not governments can regulate who can make a legally binding covenant with whom. I think definitions of marriage should belong to religious and other types of communities--the government shouldn't mess with that. The government should, however, treat all its citizens equally, and that does mean ensuring that same-sex partners get the same pension and insurance benefits as heterosexual partners, and that same sex gouples get the same sort of hospital vistiation and end of life decison making rights as heterosexual couples....

It's not about anybody's values, so to speak, it's about all parties having the legal space to exercise their values in the US.

Answer 7

A person can form opinions pro or con on anything they choose, whether they subscribe to 'sky-wizard' notions or not.

Your assumption is that by definition any opinion on abortion or homosexuality must spring from a religious foundation. That's incorrect. Religious people hold very strong views on those subjects because of their religious beliefs, but that does not preclude a person with no religious belief at all from forming an opinion on those subjects as well.

The desire to butt into other people's private lives is not exclusive to advocates of religion, you know. Busybodies come from all walks of life.

Answer 8

with atheism having "no belief" - it is basically saying that you have no opinion/no stand point as it relates to religious subjects. The pro life, gay marriage issues are being debated primarily in the political arena - with separation of church & state the religious views of any member of a political debate theoretically are to be left outside the chamber -

Answer 9

Unfortunately, legislating religion or religious beliefs in the disguise of social activism, social development, social community standards etc. etc. is not monopolized by the religious right, which I happen to hate, by the way.

An atheist can be pro-life, pro-choice, pro-gay marriage or against it, and none of the political positions he/she takes will necessarily be inconsistent with his/her atheistic beliefs.

The point is, that people are constantly trying to "make a difference" in the world by wanting to impact social consciousness such that it becomes a reflection of their ideals.

Answer 10

the questions you are asking have not to do with religion. it is politics, and believers and non-believers all have different opinions whether or not they are religious. being pro-life has not to do with religion or lack of, it is a personal political opinion that had been debated for decades. i am a pro-choice atheist, and there are many pro-life atheists. by the way, atheists do not have religion, so how can we try to 'put their religious beliefs on society"?

Answer 11

Sorry Jim but I do not think being pro-life or pro choice,for or against gay marriage is not a religious belief just a personal opinion