What's bad about atheism?

Question

Someone just made the very interesting point that it is not necessarily logical to assert that religion is bad just because some bad things have happened because of religion. I noticed someone answered by adding that it isn't fair to say all religion is bad, because if we were to say that, we'd also have to say atheism is bad, because of bad behaviors that atheism has produced.

So.. let's talk about what's negative about atheism. This question is out of honest curiosity.

Aww (((((Poppy))))) thank you. :o)

Answer 1

I'm an atheist, but I admit that there are some really nasty atheists. Even I belong to that group from time to time. But look at it this way. When I say something that is contrary for example to the majority of atheists on this board (while answering a question), do you feel ashamed because I said so or do you feel like you need to educate me and set me on the right track? Of course not. You just let me be and that's what I do as well. What I love most about atheism is that we don't have that urge to have a community or to belong. When one atheist goes out and commits a crime, I don't blush for him.

So I really don't see their argument as a valid one.

(((HUGS))) Just because you're cute.

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Answer 2

That is precisely my point. Good or bad behaviours can come from a belief system depending on the person. The belief system can be abused and used to serve the person and their selfish desires and in some cases extreme mental disorders. The extreme form of atheism produced the communist regimes who slew millions in China, the Soviet Union, Cuba, and also produced totalitarian regimes which those living under had no way of electing out of power.I don't suggest all atheists were or are like this but neither have all Christians participated in Crusades and witch burnings. My point is few people want to apply the standard fairly for some reason and seem to like to demonise all Christianity because of the actions of some of it's professors. Is it fair to make Christians carry the responibility of it's past while denying responsibility for the monsters it created? What I feel is negative about atheism is it removes hope and meaning from life. We are no longer here for a purpose but by a cosmic accident. We gain self awareness and the we lose it. Some people say athesits take responsibility for their actions but I am left wondering to who? Certainly not the God they say doesn't exist. Then to who do they take responsiblity for and how? Not only do they have no foundation for meaning for their own life but they have no foundation to view others as special or important as well. (Note I am not suggesting that atheists murder for this reason but simply that they have no standard which says they shouldn't either). They may be fine moral people but again the have no basis for their morality. Just simply whatever is conveniant to themselves.

Answer 3

I'm not sure, but I think statistically you might find that an atheist is more likely to go postal and kill people when he hits a low point telling him to do so as opposed to a religious person who fears God's judgement.

I also think being an atheist is like living inside a box. Not feeling that anything is outside the box would make me feel very clostrophobic. I can talk openly like this because I have seen ghosts. I am a ghost hunter, and I have seen the life that exists after this one. I have felt it and even been in it. I had an out of body experience once. It was great.

I think the only person who minds an atheists opinion is someone who isn't sure if they believe in their religion.

Answer 4

I think the bad "behaviors" that person was talking about were probably things like the murderous regimes of Stalin and Pol Pot, etc. That seems to be the counterargument against Christianity producing the Crusades or Islam producing jihad, etc. The point being if you're going to apply the fact that an ideology produces massive violence, then you have to be consistent about it.

As far as on an individual basis, I don't see anything inherently negative about atheism. It can lead one to make the most of the life you have, because that's all you get. But it can also lead to indifference or despair. It's all kind of how you look at it. I think the same thing applies to religion, too.

Peace to you.

Answer 5

Just ignorance Why do BAD Christians try these lies? Stalin was raised a Catholic and completely controlled the Russian Orthodox Church! Fidel Castro was at the worst agnostic and actually protected religions! Kim Jong-Il is a god head for his own religion and is very pro religion and encouraged the building of Russian orthodox churches in North Korea! Napoleon Bonaparte had a strong belief in God, but he voiced many criticisms of organized religion! Ho Chi Minh was a Mahayana Buddhist! Che Guevara was raised a Catholic and although he left the catholic church he remained a Christian! Benito Mussolini Converted to Roman Catholicism in 1927 and encouraged the building of Catholic churches! Mao Zedong was a Buddhist! Pol Pot is the only one who might have been an atheist but all the historians will say is that he saw the dreadful things done to his people in the name of religion and that is why he banned it! But what silly claims like yours do is draw attention to the fact that whilst there has never, EVER, been a war in the name of atheism there have been many in the name of Christianity! Take recent history for example:- WWII - Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord. - Adolf Hitler My feelings as a Christian points me to my Lord and Savior as a fighter. - Adolf Hitler George W Bush started FIVE wars in less than eight years stating each time that it was his "God Given Duty” and on September 16th 2001 even called it a Crusade! Not his duty to the electors! Not his duty to America! Just his duty to keep slaughtering heathens for his god!

Answer 6

I may not be an atheist myself, but I find nothing wrong with someone being an atheist. I feel that people should chose to believe or not believe in what they want. Atheism is not a religion in most modern or old ways of thinking. It is not believing in any type of religion. I feel that atheism is not bad because, you don't have all those problems you do with religion now a days. If Hilter and Germany were atheists, there would have been no Holocaust. That's how I view it.

Answer 7

Whats bad about atheism? Whats so goodie goodie about it? Seriously. Religion and Christianity are two different things. If a group is religious, it means they worship someone or some thing. ( Not necessarly God. ) Christianity people worship God. I hear in some countries they worship cows, but I don'r hear any of them complaining. In the USA it seems that every religion has it's place and is excepted except for "Christianity". They don't care who you worship, just don't say anything about Jesus Christ or people will want to sue you! Well, I'm saying it wheather anyone likes or not! Power to Jesus! LONG LIVE JESUS! Hip-hip hurray! hip-hip hurray! hip-hip hurray! There, that ought stur up a hornets nest!

Answer 8

Sounds to me like the whole "guns don't kill people, people kill people" argument.

However, if we didn't have guns (or religion), a lot less people would have wound up dead, correct?

So you can call religion bad or good or blue-with-purple-spots; the end result is the same. If it causes more harm than good--regardless of whether it is itself good or evil--it's probably best just to do away with it.

And now, my answer to what's negative about atheism:

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Hm. I'm having difficulty with this; as an agnostic the only thing I can say that's bad about it is that it really is impossible to disprove the existence of God--and it's not as if it's logical to assume that if a God exists he must necessarily have left evidence of himself behind. So it's a little too self-assured, but I can't think of anything really *bad* about it.

Answer 9

there are plenty of atheists out there who Chrisitans would consider to be decent, loving, etc

only difference between them and atheists is that Chrisitians say Jesus is God

From the atheist point of view, there is no nweed for relgion or for Jesus, as they already live by the moral code which is the law of the land

From the Chrisitian point of view, it is good they live by the moral code, but this will not reunite you with God, who has an eternal purpose for you which was laid out before the beginnig of time

For Religious people it's about a bigger picture, a higher purpose, one which they beleive many institutions, have treid to destroy

there should be no moral high ground between chrisitians and atheists, only that christians wished you see that thwere is a god, and that way your life is worht a lot more than returnnig to a primordial soup which never was

Answer 10

((((Linz))))...I would say atheism is bad because it encourages the idea that people can actually live outside institutions, without acting immorally or acting dysfunctionally.

Religion is the central institution upon which states are founded, so there is danger in people turning away from religion, since the next illusion to be disposed of will be the state.

It will happen...probably not in our lifetimes but what we do and say can help put the final nails in the abomination called the state.

Answer 11

I don't know that there's anything inherently negative about atheism. With regard to the question that you mention, atheists murdered over 180,000,000 people in the last 100 years, and one of the primary reasons they cited was a desire to crush religious superstition (the Soviet Union even added a line to that effect in their national anthom). That's 360 times more people than were killed in Crusades (on both sides of the conflict), the Inquisition, the witch trials, and all the heresy hunts propagated by Christianity over the course of 20 centuries. It's 30 times more people than Hitler killed in the Nazi concentration camps. So, if people are going to cite the violent history of religion as evidence that religion is evil, they also have to accept the same argument against atheism.

Now personally, I don't think either religion or atheism promotes genocide, or any other violent or evil behavior. On the contrary, I believe that government is inclined to murder its citizens, as has happened for thousands of years. The problem is not religion (or lack thereof), it is the ability of a corporation of individuals to act in concert to comit atrocities without any single individual bearing personal responsibility. A group of 1000 people divided into 20 compartmentalized groups can murder millions and still sleep well at night.