Why do atheists use this quote?

Question

"Have you read Richard Dawkins' excellent book The God Delusion yet? It is to the 21st century what the bible was to the dark ages!"

A lot of atheists seem to use this quote, rather missing the irony of the comparison. As many atheists are critical of the Bible, are they saying that Dawkins' book is just as flawed and "detrimental to human progress" as they believe the Bible to be?

pagreen1966 used it in this question

http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AnUPqNO6sz.ayaTZjtLZRnxFLxV.?qid=20070829145406AAkslnu

I have seen it used on this forum many times since the book was published, and not just by one person.

Answer 1

Actually that book was made for believers, if you are already an atheists it is just 200+ pages of things you already know and thought by yourself. Therefore if you are a believer it might help you, to atheists it isn't transcendental(and to me it was plain boring).

"If i wanted to hear what i already knew, i would have done a monologue"
~Me

Answer 2

Yes, I am an atheists, and I agree that Dawkins book has become "to the 21st century what the bible was to the dark ages".

But that is not a problem, you see Dawkins is not trying to law down the 'truth' that can not be questioned, it is a scientific look at religious practise, thus it is allowed to be flawed, you use it as a starting point for the next argument.

The bible by comparison is not allowed to be flawed, it is supposed to be this perfect all singing and dancing answer to every question ever asked?

So they are compatible. In the Early Medieval era, what is termed the Dark Ages, the bible was the great revelation, that was supposed to be perfect, and used to enlighten lots of pagan's into a more modern age, which since history was re-written by a biased Roman Catholic church, was actually more backward than the barbarian cultures they supplanted.

Dawkins book is a revelation, in that it is supposed to be flawed, but is quite good in its line of discursive discussion, and is being used to switch on poorly educated individuals within this scientific era, who cling to a culture more backward than the rest of society - so it is enlightening lots of backwards folks, with ideas that in some ways are much older than the ones they currently believe.

Darwin published in 1859, and the ID concept is brand spanking new, but more primitive than this older scientific theory, proved fact. However, personally not having a problem with science, I found the book somewhat laboured in its use of concepts I had not needed explained, so it is a book written for people who are not used to rational deduction, and few atheists I dare say would have bothered to read it in full, it has no new information for us.

Answer 3

I think the difference between that and the Bible is that Richard Dawkins offers explanation for his thoughts and reasonings without merely stating "God works in mysterious ways" or "the Lord has a plan, who are we to understand his power?"

...and that Richard Dakins does not claim to have been told by a supernatural being to write his book, thats quite different. And Dawkins doesn't threaten you into believing what he says. And Dawkins most probably has a higher IQ than those men who wrote the Bible.

Oh and I completely agree with a previous answer, you are missing the analogy with the comparison.

Answer 4

You are misinterpreting the analogy. The analogy is about the IMPACT of the book to the time. You are looking for a literal translation, and missing the allusion. The impact the Bible had on the dark ages is that it ended them. The creation of the printing press and the translation of the Bible from Latin to English effectively ended the in intellectual winter of the dark ages. Looking at it in this light, they are saying that "The God Delusion - has the potential to impact the course of human history by ending the impact of religion on culture. Imagine the impact on the world if those in power did not ascribe to religion (some shudder, some grin) *grins*

Answer 5

I have yet to meet any atheists who believe the creator of the universe wrote Richard Dawkins' book. This is the first time I've seen that quote.

Answer 6

For all these Atheists who have supposedly used that quote - funny how no one has even heard it before! Have you just made that up?

You could never compare The God Delusion to the "bible". The former is well-written, with evidence, from a scientist. The latter is a badly written fairy tale book that promotes inequality, intolerance, bigotry, misogyny, homphobia, corruption, murder, incest, abuse. Its hardly a contest really!

Answer 7

I confess that i have never heard that quote, i consider myself an atheist and have come to the conclusion that most organised religions are just a way of keeping people down, just look at what is happening to our planet in the name of Religion.

Answer 8

So... one atheist uses that quote and you ask "why do atheists use this quote", and "a lot of atheists seem to use this quote."

I have never used that quote, nor have I ever seen any other atheist (aside from the one in your link) use that quote. In fact, I googled that quote, with quotation marks to make sure I got a good result... guess how many pages came up? http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Have+you+read+Richard+Dawkins%27+excellent+book+The+God+Delusion+yet%3F+It+is+to+the+21st+century+what+the+bible+was+to+the+dark+ages%21%22

Or, if we just google the last sentence, a whopping 5 results. Yep, that sure is "a lot" of atheists! http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22It+is+to+the+21st+century+what+the+bible+was+to+the+dark+ages%21%22

Good book though. You ought to read it.

Answer 9

I'm an atheist and i've never used it or seen anyone using it, just because a person used it or use it doesn't mean all the atheists use it.

Answer 10

Your problem is that you confuse "one" with "a lot." Just because one person makes a goofy claim and shows off how little they know about history is no reason to claim it is "a lot."

You know you're exaggerating, I know it, anyone reading the post knows it. Then again you Christians have a lot of gods don't you?