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*[http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_dawkins_on_militant_atheism.html Richard Dawkins on militant atheism]</ref> Despite arguing for the position of militant atheism previously, Dawkins told the Archbishop Dr. [[Rowan Williams]] that he never said he was an atheist.<ref>[https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2105834/Career-atheist-Richard-Dawkins-admits-fact-agnostic.html 'I can't be sure God DOES NOT exist': World's most notorious atheist Richard Dawkins admits he is in fact agnostic], ''Daily Mail'', 24 February 2012</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfk7tW429E4 Richard Dawkins: I can't be sure God does not exist]</ref><ref>[http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_dawkins_on_militant_atheism.html Richard Dawkins on militant atheism]</ref> See also: [[Atheism and historical revisionism]]

*[http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_dawkins_on_militant_atheism.html Richard Dawkins on militant atheism]</ref> Despite arguing for the position of militant atheism previously, Dawkins told the Archbishop Dr. [[Rowan Williams]] that he never said he was an atheist.<ref>[https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2105834/Career-atheist-Richard-Dawkins-admits-fact-agnostic.html 'I can't be sure God DOES NOT exist': World's most notorious atheist Richard Dawkins admits he is in fact agnostic], ''Daily Mail'', 24 February 2012</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfk7tW429E4 Richard Dawkins: I can't be sure God does not exist]</ref><ref>[http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_dawkins_on_militant_atheism.html Richard Dawkins on militant atheism]</ref> See also: [[Atheism and historical revisionism]]

   

   

The historian Dr. Tim Stanley wrote that he believed Dawkins is taking a foolish gamble and Dawkins is risking spending an eternity in [[hell]].<ref>[http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/timstanley/100139859/id-go-to-church-just-to-reduce-the-probability-of-spending-eternity-in-hell-with-richard-dawkins/ ''I'd go to church just to reduce the probability of spending eternity in Hell with Richard Dawkins'' by Dr. Tim Stanley, ''The Daily Telegraph'', February 27, 2012]</ref> Dr. Don Batten, a scientist at [[Creation Ministries International]], wrote that despite Richard Dawkins' skeptical protestations, Dawkins appears to be a [[God]]-hater.<ref>[http://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-an-atheist Is Richard Dawkins an atheist? by Dr. Don Batten]</ref>

The historian Dr. Tim Stanley wrote that he believed Dawkins is taking a foolish gamble and Dawkins is risking spending an eternity in [[hell]].<ref>[http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/timstanley/100139859/id-go-to-church-just-to-reduce-the-probability-of-spending-eternity-in-hell-with-richard-dawkins/ ''I'd go to church just to reduce the probability of spending eternity in Hell with Richard Dawkins'' by Dr. Tim Stanley, ''The Daily Telegraph'', February 27, 2012]</ref> Dr. Don Batten, a scientist at [[Creation Ministries International]], wrote that despite Richard Dawkins' skeptical protestations, Dawkins appears to be a [[God]]-hater.<ref>[https://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-an-atheist Is Richard Dawkins an atheist? by Dr. Don Batten]</ref>

[[Atheism]], as defined by the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the ''[[Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]'', and other [[philosophy]] reference works, is the denial of the existence of [[God]].<ref>Multiple references:

[[Atheism]], as defined by the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the ''[[Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]'', and other [[philosophy]] reference works, is the denial of the existence of [[God]].<ref>Multiple references:

*Smart, J. J. C. (August 8, 2011). [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism "Atheism and agnosticism"]. ''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Spring 2013 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.).  

*Smart, J. J. C. (August 8, 2011). [http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism "Atheism and agnosticism"]. ''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Spring 2013 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.).  

*Sarfati, Jonathan, Ph.D. (23 June 2007). [http://creation.com/atheism-is-more-rational "Atheism is more rational?"].  See [[Creation Ministries International]], [[Jonathan Sarfati]].

*Sarfati, Jonathan, Ph.D. (23 June 2007). [https://creation.com/atheism-is-more-rational "Atheism is more rational?"].  See [[Creation Ministries International]], [[Jonathan Sarfati]].

*Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"].

*Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"].

*[http://www.reasonablefaith.org/definition-of-atheism Definition of atheism] by [[William Lane Craig]]

*[http://www.reasonablefaith.org/definition-of-atheism Definition of atheism] by [[William Lane Craig]]

[[Creation Ministries International]] reported:

[[Creation Ministries International]] reported:

{{cquote|A correspondent kindly let us know of a [[BBC]] television interview with Richard Dawkins which was first broadcast in Britain in September 2006, shortly after he’d published his latest book [http://creation.com/atheist-with-a-mission-critique-of-dawkins-god-delusion The God Delusion]. During that interview, Dawkins let slip a comment which, on the face of it, seems to be an amazing softening in his (formerly?) scoffing disdain for the idea that a ‘Supremely Intelligent Being’ is behind the laws of the universe.

{{cquote|A correspondent kindly let us know of a [[BBC]] television interview with Richard Dawkins which was first broadcast in Britain in September 2006, shortly after he’d published his latest book [https://creation.com/atheist-with-a-mission-critique-of-dawkins-god-delusion The God Delusion]. During that interview, Dawkins let slip a comment which, on the face of it, seems to be an amazing softening in his (formerly?) scoffing disdain for the idea that a ‘Supremely Intelligent Being’ is behind the laws of the universe.

He made the comment while being interviewed with [[Alister McGrath]] on the BBC Heaven and Earth television program, hosted by Gloria Hunniford.1 The interview opened with both men recounting how they’d arrived at their present views—McGrath from atheism to belief in a Creator, specifically the God of the Bible; Dawkins from ‘a Christian upbringing’ to atheism. Note the two ‘events’ that Dawkins cited as being pivotal in his slide into atheism:

He made the comment while being interviewed with [[Alister McGrath]] on the BBC Heaven and Earth television program, hosted by Gloria Hunniford.1 The interview opened with both men recounting how they’d arrived at their present views—McGrath from atheism to belief in a Creator, specifically the God of the Bible; Dawkins from ‘a Christian upbringing’ to atheism. Note the two ‘events’ that Dawkins cited as being pivotal in his slide into atheism:

He remembers thinking, ‘Since there are so many different religions, they can’t all be right’, so he says he became an agnostic. [Indeed, they can’t all be right, but it is logically fallacious to argue from this to ‘they must all be wrong.’ For a counter to this, see: ‘[http://creation.com/holy-books Holy Books]?’]

He remembers thinking, ‘Since there are so many different religions, they can’t all be right’, so he says he became an agnostic. [Indeed, they can’t all be right, but it is logically fallacious to argue from this to ‘they must all be wrong.’ For a counter to this, see: ‘[https://creation.com/holy-books Holy Books]?’]

Dawkins says the key atheism-inducing event was ‘really when I discovered Darwinism’. [And he’s not the only one to have unfortunately (and erroneously) been so influenced — see [http://creation.com/playwright-just-plain-wrong ‘Playwright just plain wrong’].]

Dawkins says the key atheism-inducing event was ‘really when I discovered Darwinism’. [And he’s not the only one to have unfortunately (and erroneously) been so influenced — see [https://creation.com/playwright-just-plain-wrong ‘Playwright just plain wrong’].]

Sitting next to the eloquently-spoken McGrath, and under some pressure from interviewer Ms Hunniford’s challenge that Dawkins had ‘no proof’ to justify his ‘there is no God’ stance, in his following comments Dawkins—though still clinging to his belief in a self-creating universe—appears to forget his past outspoken disdain for the concept of an Intelligent Designer:

Sitting next to the eloquently-spoken McGrath, and under some pressure from interviewer Ms Hunniford’s challenge that Dawkins had ‘no proof’ to justify his ‘there is no God’ stance, in his following comments Dawkins—though still clinging to his belief in a self-creating universe—appears to forget his past outspoken disdain for the concept of an Intelligent Designer:

‘You can’t prove the non-existence of anything, so it’s impossible to prove that God doesn’t exist. … None of us believes in Thor and his hammer, none of us believes in the Flying Spaghetti Monster. … The best explanation I could just about imagine somebody saying [would be] some sort of immense cosmic intelligence—that I could …—I mean, I don’t believe that but I could just about respect that.’

‘You can’t prove the non-existence of anything, so it’s impossible to prove that God doesn’t exist. … None of us believes in Thor and his hammer, none of us believes in the Flying Spaghetti Monster. … The best explanation I could just about imagine somebody saying [would be] some sort of immense cosmic intelligence—that I could …—I mean, I don’t believe that but I could just about respect that.’

On the face of it, that’s quite a concession, compared to Dawkins’ previous rants and disparaging railings against any such suggestion of an ‘immense cosmic intelligence’ being behind the laws of the universe.<ref>http://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-weakening</ref>}}

On the face of it, that’s quite a concession, compared to Dawkins’ previous rants and disparaging railings against any such suggestion of an ‘immense cosmic intelligence’ being behind the laws of the universe.<ref>https://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-weakening</ref>}}

== Richard Dawkins and misotheism ==

== Richard Dawkins and misotheism ==

So, is Richard Dawkins an atheist? He seems more like a God-hater than a genuine atheist. That’s why my colleague, [[Jonathan Sarfati]], invented the word ‘misotheist’ (hater of God), which he has applied to Professor Dawkins and other fanatical opponents of the God of the Bible.

So, is Richard Dawkins an atheist? He seems more like a God-hater than a genuine atheist. That’s why my colleague, [[Jonathan Sarfati]], invented the word ‘misotheist’ (hater of God), which he has applied to Professor Dawkins and other fanatical opponents of the God of the Bible.

George Orwell identified this sort of ‘atheist’ in the character of Bozo, in Down and Out in Paris and London: ‘He was an embittered atheist (the sort of atheist who does not so much disbelieve in God as personally dislike Him)’. Interestingly, in The God Delusion, Dawkins carries on about what he doesn’t like about the God he doesn’t believe in.<ref>[http://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-an-atheist Is Richard Dawkins an atheist?]</ref>}}

George Orwell identified this sort of ‘atheist’ in the character of Bozo, in Down and Out in Paris and London: ‘He was an embittered atheist (the sort of atheist who does not so much disbelieve in God as personally dislike Him)’. Interestingly, in The God Delusion, Dawkins carries on about what he doesn’t like about the God he doesn’t believe in.<ref>[https://creation.com/is-richard-dawkins-an-atheist Is Richard Dawkins an atheist?]</ref>}}

== See also ==

== See also ==