Why do atheists equate Christianity with "not thinking for yourself"?

Question

The tag line on hundreds of comments I have read either begin with or end with - think for yourself, don't be a mindless follower, or some other similar variation.

However, if you try to disagree with many of these people they will go on a profanity laced tirade at the mere suggestion that you think they could possibly be wrong.

Furthermore they seem to be operating under the false assumption that Christian beliefs are uniform throughout the entire Christian population, rather than wildly diverse and from every concievable political and theological perspective imaginable.

Isn't what they are really saying, "Be a free thinker and agree with me?"

Ah yes Truth Hunter

Good Ole Ricky Dawkins... The Atheist High Priest

No I don't Dialecti...

I was very specific. I am only talking about the atheists who make the "zombie mob mentality argument".

Dave A...

You have got to be kidding! Where on Earth are you getting the numbers for that assertion? I have never seen a single survey like that in my entire life and in fact every survey of that nature I HAVE seen suggests the exact opposite.

Warumono,

The only time I quote scripture is when I am debating with someone who accepts it as authoritative or with someone who tries to claim that it says something it doesn't. There are certainly people who do that, but it isn't everyone... Not even most I would think. Avoid making such sweeping generalizations.

Who said my faith was "blind" Jonny Cage? I've read all the literature, the Bible, the Atheist Bible (i.e. complete works of Richard Dawkins) Christianity just made the stronger argument to me.

Of course you do Atheist Machine and thank you for proving my point.

Annunaki,

The fact that you make that broad a generalization just proves my point. You are operating on a stereo typical view of christianity that is not true in all or even most instances. It is only the extremeists who despise questions.

Joe Citizen,

I never said that christians don't sometimes do the same thing. It's wrong either way. You should look at my posts sometimes. You'd realize I jump on self-righteos, obnoxious "christians" harder than anybody because they make the sane among us (the majority by the way) look incredibly bad.

Parrot,

I don't pretend to speak for anyone but myself, but you'll never find a post like that from me.

Big J,

You are EXACTLY who I am talking about. You think that by virtue of the fact of someone disagreeing they must OBVIOUSLY be deluded or brainwashed somehow. There are PLENTY of instances were totally rational people are show the same information and come to different conclusions. I hardly think that either you or Richard Dawkins have the monolpoly on truth and to assert otherwise just demonstrates to everyone here your incalculable, pompous arrogance.

Answer 1

Atheists, not all, but certainly many need the hostile argument because at the center, and this is it make no bones about it--is GOD.

The most intelligent, free thinking, people I know are Christian. They do know how to 'think' out of the box and can reason within the framework of 'faith'. Faith does not put one in intellectual chains. I myself have debated with atheists and it always seems to come down to attacking me personally, or playing the Christian stupid card. Bring your issues to the table, lets talk.

Answer 2

"they will go on a profanity laced tirade at the mere suggestion that you think they could possibly be wrong."

Um... what? Haha. Where exactly does this happen?

Look, it's pretty clear from reading posts on this site that some people don't think for themselves. Every day someone comes to this section acting all upset and confused, because they're doubting God and they feel completely ashamed about it. And they ask everyone how to push those doubting thoughts out of their head, and go back to the days when they just accepted everything in the Bible without any problems. These people act completely ashamed... and why? Because they're thinking. They're asking questions. They're analyzing Bible verses in their head to see if they REALLY make sense. (And don't try to say that people haven't said things like that; I read that all the time here.)

That's the attitude that some people seriously have -- that "thinking = bad". That's where the "Christians don't think for themselves" line comes from. Do some Christians think for themselves? Yes, of course. But when so many people come to this section, confused and upset simply because they're asking questions in their mind about God, what is a nonreligious observer like myself supposed to conclude, other than that apparently some Christians feel that thinking is a bad thing?

Edit: Let me also add that I have literally seen "Don't think! Just trust God!" given as an answer to questions here before. I'm not trying to say that ALL Christians would give an answer like that, but it obviously contributes to this idea that some Christians don't think for themselves.

Answer 3

I wish Christianity would change in that it would be more centered on personal belief than universal truth. What I mean is, Christianity emphasizes the importance of having specific beliefs, and having beliefs contrary to those is a sin. It also speaks of the truth being outside of one's self in God. Many eastern religions, like Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism, however, are very different from this. They stress finding truth in one's own self, meaning that it is different for everyone. This aspect has made them far less missionary of a religion. As finding personal truth is integral to their beliefs, it doesn't matter to them if others believe something different. Christianity, and Islam too, hold that there is only one truth that all must believe. If you don't believe this, you are automatically a bad person, and on some occasions, you are condemned to death. This attitude has led to the Crusades, the Spanish Armada, the French Wars of Religion, Charlemagne's Saxon Campaigns, and many other violent acts.

Answer 4

Most are fed up with the Christians that try to present proof to an atheist by quoting the Bible or presenting anecdotal evidence as scientific. An atheist will never accept a holy text as proof. It is like two people separated by a thick wall--they beat on it and yell through it, but there is no connection. Evidence to one is circular reasoning to the other. The rational cannot meet the faithful on common ground. But there are people from both camps who are name-callers, and they usually speak loudest and are remembered. I know very well that Christianity is a splintered collection of denominations with a long history. That is one of the things that leads me to believe that religion is a separating force, rather than a unifying one.

The "not thinking for yourself" tag line is usually given to those who quote Bible verses in response to a serious question, rather than giving a thought out response. The person may understand what the verse means, but the questioner does not always. Or the many Christian responses of "repent before it's too late" or "you're going to Hell." There are pat responses on both sides, and it is a pointless conflict. But keep in mind this is often a frustrated atheist, tired of being condemned for not being Christian, lashing out. It is human.

Answer 5

My deal is Christianity implies belief in the Bible, which is equivalent to belief in any ancient text (and there's a ton of them). The main difference between the Bible and every other religious text is that you were probably raised with it and many of your friends/family believe in it, so maybe there's a slight chance of group think here?

But if you claim to be a Christian but don't believe in the Bible (which I could understand, I mean Paul basically proclaimed himself God's messenger), then you should really specify that or come up with a different name. There's this kind of soft Christianity that a lot of people practice, where it looks to outsiders like they pick and choose parts of the Bible to believe, which gives the impression that they have moral qualms but find it difficult to give up the relationships they've formed through worship. Hence the emphasis on "think for yourself."

Answer 6

I don't think they mean think like me. I do however believe that the "misconception" that Christians are of a single mind set is that is the vibe that "the church" puts out. Organized religion and uniformity are tied to eachother, infact the basis of some organized religions is "Community by Uniformity in our beliefs" It is mostly uniform throughout Christianity that there is a god, and that god tells you what to do through the bible or apostles or whatever. I think the "be a free thinker" statment has to do more with belief in god and in what god "says" to do or not to do and less with agree with me.

Answer 7

Do all people who believe that elephants exist believe the same things? Of course they do, because that truth is obvious to everyone.
To say that there are many kinds of Christians is ridiculous.
Either you believe in Christ or you don't.
No intelligent and fair minded person could ever read both the Bible and Richard Dawkin's book and walk away believing the Bible to be true.
I believe that you've convinced yourself that you're clever enough to become a leader of the simple-minded "believers", and that you can invent "logical" reasons for "believing" in invisible creatures.
Sorry Charley, but you've failed miserably.

EDIT:---Hogwash. Turning your nose up to people who believe in invisible creatures, talking animals, and implausible stories doesn't make one pompous or arrogant,---it makes him sensible.
If you chose to play with your own sanity,---fine, ---but don't delude yourself into believing that your qualified to lead anyone who has more intelligence than a grub worm.

Answer 8

I wonder why you're considering the opinions of people who "go on a profanity laced tirade" at the first sign of disagreement.

Pick your conversational partners wisely.

The answer to your question, however, is that these particular Atheists are making generalizations about what Christians do or do not believe. Interestingly, you do the exact same thing by referring to Atheists as one big group who believe, say or do the things you're describing in your question.

I'll admit, you made an effort to be accurate. Just keep in mind that the ones who speak up are rarely a representative sample of your typical group member.

Answer 9

I'm not an atheist, but definitely not a fan of organized religion, which is filled with hypocrisy and ambitions. (I am not not saying all Christians are that way, of course.) I believe non-Christians and atheists are likely threatened by the power grabs by the religious right to assimilate government back into church as the England of old that our ancestors fought to escape. The need to force others into the "values" mold of one religious sect via government control is a very real threat we should be concerned deeply about. Freedom includes the right not to be squashed by the insecure maneuverings of the few.

Answer 10

i can not speak for all atheists, but i can tell you why i say it.

i don't care if you agree with me. i just want you, and everyone else, to be able to at least question the ideas that you believe (including atheists). if you are so set that your way is right and there can not possibly be any alternative, then you are blind. so i say, think for your self.

i say good luck to you in converting me. i like being shown different ideas. just down quote the bible or threaten me with eternal damnation. also, when you throw science questions attempting to prove your right, please be absolutely certain that your information is accurate. (i've seen tons of misinformation on y/a)