Whenever I see this question asked, I see atheists describe studies (such as the one below).
Christians tend to say things like "I'm a Christian and I have a PhD" or "Both have genuises and idiots." These don't really address the TREND that is shown.
Any theist care to respond to the general link between education level and being non-religious?
http://kspark.kaist.ac.kr/Jesus/Intelligence%20&%20religion.htm
2007-07-24 10:25:04 · 23 answers · asked by JWill 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
It is interesting. Seems the majority of people said "No, I would not care to respond."
They COULD have claimed that the same type of mind is more prone to atheism and higher education since coorelation is not causation.
They COULD have suggested that there is a liberal atheist bias in higher education.
They COULD have provided links to research that disagrees with your website.
Instead, they insult the question. They assumed this was an ad hominem attack when in reality you said nothing about the truth of their beliefs. They claimed that it doesn't matter, when most likely, if the chart went the other way, they'd be the first to show you.
2007-07-24 11:37:04 · answer #1 · answered by Eleventy 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Well there are some exceptions, but generally atheists study religions much more carefully than the religions' followers before denouncing them. Before I became an atheist I studied Christianity for almost a year, reading the entire Bible several times over, remembering what my own Christian upbringing was like, traveling Europe to study more of the history of the modern Church. I did all of that before I started to denounce the idea of a Christian god or Jesus.
2007-07-24 17:37:30 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
This seems to me to be simply a more sophisticated version of the old ad hominem argument. The intelligence of the believer is logically irrelevant to the truth of the belief. Propositions must stand on their own two feet. But this must work both ways. Believers cannot trot out these types of statistics, nor can unbelievers.
(If believers claim that religion increases the moral tenor of society, then statistics about the level of religion in prisons might be relevant. But these statistics say nothing about the truth or falsehood of any specific religious doctrine.)
Smarter does not equal more educated or vice versa.
2007-07-24 17:46:24 · answer #3 · answered by Darrol P 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think there is a bit of a correlation. Atheists often to me seem to be more interested in science and math than some non-atheists. I don't know if this can actually be proven or not. Part of the reason why certain people are atheists, though, is due to the fact that they simply refuse to believe anything that cannot be proven. That type of mindset is often found amongst science and math scholars.
2007-07-24 18:44:12 · answer #4 · answered by Linz ♥ VT 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Just out of curiosity why is it that these studies (and people in general) attribute "scientist" with "intelligent". LOL Granted, the one study focuses on "National Academy of Sciences" members but what happens if you survey members of other prestigious (non-scientific) organizations? I have no idea if the results would be the same or not but I don't think scientists should be taken as a reflection of the set of all "intelligent people". There is plenty of intelligence in other fields.
2007-07-24 17:43:55 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
I'm not being insulting but most of the time yes. Atheists (and agnostics) will question things, they are always asking and seeking out answers. Christians, in general, refuse to listen to reason and do not question anything that would damage their belief in their religion.
I'm not saying there aren't smart Christians or dumb atheists because there are both. But atheists and agnostics tend to be a bit more educated because they always question.
2007-07-24 17:31:56 · answer #6 · answered by spike_is_my_evil_vampire 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Did you notice that the ones that polled a larger group of people found no difference? The ones that polled a smaller group found a correlation between the two. Coincidence? I think not.
There has been NO comprehensive study performed that would prove a correlation between religiosity and low IQ or less education. There are just these smaller studies, that prove nothing.
2007-07-24 17:31:43 · answer #7 · answered by The_Cricket: Thinking Pink! 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Smart and educated are dissimilar terms.
As far as a personal God is concerned, the figures in your link are what I'd expect from any similar, separate studies.
I understand why people would want to believe in a personal God, and that want would outweigh independent thought, in the population as a whole.
I have met apparently intelligent people who believe in the Bible God, and they are in the minority. It could be a survival, and self gratifying motive behind this.
On the whole you have to be unsmart and uneducated to believe the Bible literally.
2007-07-24 17:51:16 · answer #8 · answered by hog b 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What matters is whether one is right or wrong with respect to the facts, of course. However, yes, atheists are on the average better educated than are religious folks. The variance among the religious is huge, though.
As far as "who is smarter?", that term is too vague for us to have meaningful evidence.
2007-07-24 17:33:06 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well I am not a "theist" but I laughed out loud at this one -
It is like saying men are smarter than girls, and every other possible combination you can come up with.
Get a grip - just worry about how smart you are and how you come off to others!
2007-07-24 17:32:56 · answer #10 · answered by ♥ ♥Be Happi♥ ♥ 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋