Didn't the Soviet Union support the atheist ideology, how many deaths were they responsible for?

Question

This is not an attack on atheism, it's an attack on people who subscrive to the belief that religion is violent and all of its followers are war-mongering. Well even those who lack religion can be just as savage, perhaps the conclusion that should be drawn is that it's human nature and not religion or a lack of it. What about the People's Republic of China? Perhaps some people should consider these two examples next time they make sweeping generalizations about the violence that religion causes. Millions have died last century in fight between capitalism and communism, so why should that be any less horrific?

Answer 1

Religions don't kill people. People kill people. Religion just makes it easier to talk people into killing one another.

Answer 2

You mean fighting between Nationalism and the two forms of globalism; communism, capitalism. That is what WWII was all about. Nationalist Japan wanted to expand its empire. Germany and its 12+ allies fought to destroy Communism. Great Britan and France didnt want Germany to mess with their Empires so they declared war. England and France had land holdings all over the world oppressing various peoples in excess of 1 billion people. Russia killed 30+million of its own people. yet Germany gets the bad wrap because it was a symbol of Nationalism. Then the West takes on the same war Germany and its allies were fighting for the next 50 years (Korea, Vietnam, Cold War). Go figure. Politics kill far more than religion, in fact most of the religious killing is inspired by economic politics.

Answer 3

If some people argue that atheism is the lack of religion (even though it really means the lack of belief in a deity), then communism, by enforcing atheism, lacks a religion. (Thus cannot be a religion.)

"The fact that totalitarian dictatorships are also violent doesn't mean religion is innocent."

It also doesn't mean atheism is innocent.

Though communism may have its similarities to religion, it cannot be considered a religion because the very definition of a religion is: "a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs". Obviously communism does not have a set belief for the cause, nature and purpose of the universe.

Answer 4

Communism and atheism are not the same and it's ignorant to think otherwise. Communism is political and has nothing to do with religion. Communists leaders abolished organized religion because they feared it would threaten their political ideals. People in communist countries weren't atheists. They were simply denied the right to religious organization by their government. To blame the violence of Communist leaders on atheists is like blaming Hitler's holocaust on Christians. Christians as a whole are NOT responsible for the acts of one psychotic political leader, neither are atheists responsible for the acts of a Communist leader... in fact less so.

Stalin's possible lack of belief in a god has no bearing on his bloodthirsty rein. Religious people use their ideology and religious propaganda as and excuse to do the evil things they do. Like Hitler for instance. He truly believed that God wanted him to do the things he did.

Even George W. Bush thinks his preemptive strike on Iraq was "God's will". Coincidently the Islamic extremists believed the same thing of their attack on the WTC and pentagon on 9/11.

Communism and atheism are not mutually inclusive. A government denying it's citizens the right to organized religion isn't atheism. So this arguement lacks logic.

Answer 5

I don't necessary subscribe to what you said, however when I say "more people died in the mane of a religion than atheism" is because with religion people die in the name of X religion whilst on communist, socialist or nationalists states people die not in the name of atheism but in the name of that who's in power regardless of religion (ex. in soviet motherland Russia you would not be killed because you are a theists and the majority is atheist, but because you openly preach someone besides the dictator).

Yes, communist, socialist, and nationalism have the atheism in common, however they are not the justification of their violence.

Whether you are a theist or atheist on such regimes opposing the current leader is what motivates the aggression

Answer 6

In fact it's just the opposite: most of religions are peaceful and that's why hardliners like Stalin or Hitler didn't like them...The other reason for which religion was persecuted in states like USSR is, that religion was considered irrational and therefore a kind of "opium" for masses...Tragically so called "sanity of spirit in a body which is sane" brought peoples of the world to near extinction ( just try to imagine what could have happen if Hitler got an atomic bomb first and planted it on a war-head of a W2 missile, which he already had and was capable of delivering its load within 380 miles distance at an stunning speed of 2500 miles an hour !!! )

Answer 7

Communism was officially atheist. The problem with communism was that it was exactly like a religion. Marx suggested atheism because he didn't want religion to get in the way. He was possessive of his followers the same way that religions are. It demanded blind following the same as religions.

I just don't see that they are any different in the way they do business than any other religion. No wonder it lead to bloodshed.

Answer 8

There is no atheist ideology. Atheism is simply the lack of one ( A belief in gods ). Communism is metaphorically the replacement of one god by another ( the state ). It is the furthest thing from atheism ( A disbelief in gods altogether ).

Answer 9

I'd say that you have a valid point. Humans have often used violence to get power or whatever they want and just as often rationalized it by religion, ideology, or other excuses.

On the other hand, there are a few religions that espouse violence or religious segments that interpret their book as justifying violence.

Answer 10

The fact that totalitarian dictatorships are also violent doesn't mean religion is innocent. The fact remains that jerks like Stalin and Mao killed dissidents, as well as some minorities and anyone they didn't particularly like, all in the name of power and (to a lesser extent) communism. They didn't kill in the name of atheism. It wasn't their interpretation of the absence of gods that motivated them to commit such atrocities.
Their actions were motivated by extremism. In their case it was political and ideological extremism, but in other cases religious extremism has had the same effects.

Answer 11

I am glad that you are not attacking atheism.... CHRISTIANITY is responsible for most of the wars anywhere in the world! Ask Bush! He was elected by a Christian majority!