Death … Religion vs. Atheism? Both sides have unsubstantiated R&S claims on death tolls. Who actually knows?

Question

Death - Who has caused more?

Theists point to atheists Stalin, Pol Pot, Mao and more, as causing far more death than *all* religion-based deaths alone.

Atheists point to the Crusades, the Inquisition, Hitler (who killed not just Jews, but socialists, atheists and almost anyone not tightly religiously aligned), Cortez and more.

I know neither side is complete by the above text. Does anyone have some well-researched, real (not Bible-related) numbers? A *link* seems mandatory, to me.

Answer 1

This one isn't great. It's just about the 20th century.

http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/war-1900.htm

Answer 2

I can't see how anyone could conceivably say atheism has taken anywhere near as many lives as ALL religion.... Among those you missed are the North Ireland/Ireland segregatioion/violence, terrorism, including 9/11, various abortion clinic bombings, of course various wars you left unaccounted for... I'll just give you a few of these numbers. The preasant's war alone can account for 100,000 deaths over religion by itself (Protestantism specifically). September 11th alone is another 3000, we also currently have 655,000 dead in Iraq, the majority of which were killed by a Sunni insurgancy, for, you guessed it, religious reasons.... Hey, I got caught up with Stalin and I didn't even get to the big religious killers....

Answer 3

I think there's a difference here: Stalin, Pol Pot and those like them happened to be atheists but were not killing in the name of atheism. That was all about politics and power. As you mention yourself, these were not "religious-based deaths." The Crusades, the Inquisition, etc.--those were strictly about religion, trying to convert people or kill those who did not practice the same religion as those conducting these atrocities. Atheists don't go around trying to force people not to believe in god or killing them because they do.

Answer 4

Why would you even care? Neither christians nor atheists have a monopoly on being cruel. It is usually rather all about money, isn't it, anyway?

And cruelty isn't dished out in the name of non-belief (atheists don't kill anyone because they DON"T believe) but plenty of christians have killed because they DO believe.

If you wish to real a really interesting book: The God Delusion. Now on the NY Times best seller list. The guy is a really tight writer, very exacting in language, and alas he could have dummied it down a little. Even very educated people might be scurrying to a dictionary for a word or two. And, admittedly, it isn't light reading if you wish to follow his logic.

Answer 5

I don't see that Hitler's crimes had anything to do with his religion. Similarly, the crimes of Stalin, Pol Pot, and Mao (who certainly killed even more than were killed by Hitler) had nothing to do with their atheism. I think that those examples are just simply silly and desperate.

The Crusades, Inquisition, and at least some of the Islamic terrorist killings are fair game. I can't think of any examples of anyone killing because they were atheists. I wouldn't be at all surprised to find that it had never happened - it'd certainly be a huge news story if it did.

The problem, of course, is killing, not one's stance on religion.
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Atheism is not a religion, of course. That claim is also just plain ignorant and desperate. Try honesty next time, hon.

Answer 6

I have lists of names that Christians murdered as "Witches" during the Burning Times. Most had nothing to do with witchcraft. Others were murdered because they were healers and midwives. Like the crusades,and the Inquisition, there is no question that such murder both took place in Europe and the "new World."

We don't blame Theists because Pagans believe in many Gods themselves . We blame Christians.

Answer 7

All religions have proselytized and killed unfriendly unbelievers. During the crusades religious leaders funded armies after that the Muslim moved for control and killed may people. The pope today has an army. The radical believers of religions are the biggest problem today. Natural disasters have provided events like the potato famine.
Atheist are not afraid of reality, education, debate, science, and all kinds of literature.

Answer 8

There's a difference, though. Atheism doesn't lead people to kill. No one (at least, no one that I can think of) has ever killed someone "in the name of no God" or "in the name of Darwin" or "in the name of science". Atheists HAVE killed, sure, but it has nothing to do with their being an atheist. Killing in the name of God, on the other hand, DOES happen and has happened all throughout history.

Answer 9

ok. There are some factors you raise. do we "comprehend" what takes place to us after dying? i think no longer, yet it rather is precisely like asserting that we don't comprehend what takes place as quickly as we close the refrigerator door. Do ghosts on the instant spring up and initiate up pissing on our nutrients? Is that conceivable? particular, on some point. yet is there any reason to have self assurance it? No. So what takes place as quickly as we die? do we survive? do we've something to examine dying to? sure. We see lifeless issues continuously. there is very in general a pile of flesh that maintains to be anyplace something dies, assuming that no longer something disturbs the corpse. yet what approximately our souls? Is there any reason to have self assurance that they exist? of course no longer. yet permit's look at it closer. Have we continuously had a soul? maximum people who have self assurance souls exist could say "sure." if it rather is so, we ought to continuously have continuously existed. properly, has there ever been a time that we've not existed? properly, sure. previously delivery. Are you hectic approximately what befell then? of course no longer. develop into it solid? No. develop into it undesirable? No. It develop into somewhat ordinary: non-existence. in case you're saying that per risk you or your soul did exist previously then, yet you in simple terms do no longer submit to in suggestions, what's the objective of it? isn't it purely a gamble? that's the deal: all of us comprehend what it truly is desire to no longer stay, by fact we've all executed it previously. in actuality, you and that i've got been fortunate adequate to have it sluggish here, and we could be properly served to delight in it. --------------------------------------... gar69azu... Please do no longer say which you're an atheist, then proceed to slam a textual content block down on the table.

Answer 10

well, you can't really blame all the atheists because of communist dictators. it is like blaming all the human race because of hitler. communism gives all the people a home and a salary yet in exchange they are supposed to work all day and shut their mouths up. so go figure...

Answer 11

Stalin, Mao etc. DID NOT kill in the name of a lack of belief in God. In fact, they killed in the name of their own replacement deities (the State, the Party etc.) This is crucial to understand. Theists, however, killed in the name of God. Anyone who does not understand this isn't worth regarding.