Celebrity atheists
The American Media Group wrote about celebrity atheists:
| “ | Celebrity atheists are everywhere and it’s not hard to wonder why. After all, with so much adulation and praise, entertainers have become their own religious figures in a sense. Their celebrity has become something to worship and actors such as George Clooney and Brad Pitt are at the forefront. These celebs have chosen to forgo a higher power in exchange for something a little more glamorous.[1] | ” |
Recently, the actor Brad Pitt confessed he was never an atheist and just pretended to be out of rebellion.[2]
Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia founded by an atheist and agnostic, has an entire article entitled List of atheists in film, radio, television and theater[3]
The Scientology cult uses celebrities to recruit followers (see also: Atheist cults).[4][5] Scientology is an atheist religion.[6]
Stratfor Advisory Services, which provide global enterprises predictive, customized intelligence assessments, wrote about violent ideologies and their recruitment methods:
| “ | A few weeks ago I wrote about how uncannily similar today's jihadists are to the anarchists who came a century before them...
For one, both types of terrorists rely on celebrity ideologues to recruit and radicalize new followers. Consider the modern jihadist movement, which has trotted out a procession of thought leaders to fill its ranks and fundraise.[7] |
” |
Secular leftism has a history of being violent and murderous (see: Atheism and mass murder).
Charles Louis Richter declared in his interview with the International Society for Historians of Atheism, Secularism, and Humanism (ISHASH) about atheism and anarchism and America and atheism:
| “ | The turn of the century ended the golden age of nineteenth century freethought with two events: the death of Robert Ingersoll in 1899, and the assassination of President William McKinley in 1901. The lack of a widely popular voice for irreligion, combined with the murder of the president by an anarchist, led to a backlash against not only anarchism but also atheism. From that point, Americans tended to see irreligion in terms of whatever ostensibly foreign ideology seemed most threatening. So for the rest of the century, we see atheism and atheists associated with anarchism, fascism, socialism, and of course Soviet-style communism. By the late seventies, secular humanism became the buzzword for a whole suite of threats not only to religion, but to Americanism. It’s important to note that this phenomenon is not limited to the political or religious right; liberals also framed irreligion as un-American.[8] | ” |
In 2011, Coyne said about the atheist conferences which he attended that they had an air of self-congratulation.[9] He also indicated about atheist meetings: "But to me the speakers and talks have often seemed repetitive: the same crew of jet-set skeptics giving the same talks."[9]
The atheist Jerry Coyne said about the atheist conferences which he attended:
| “ | But to me the speakers and talks have often seemed repetitive: the same crew of jet-set skeptics giving the same talks.
...a few things bothered me, most notably the air of self-congratulation (which I excused on the grounds of enthusiastic people finding like-minded folks for the first time), the “fanboyness” directed at some of the famous atheists (they hardly let poor Richard alone, and I’m not sure he liked that!), and the lameness of quite a few of the talks. Again, how much new can you say about atheism?[9] |
” |
Concerning atheism and groupthink, research indicates that atheists are less open-minded (see: Atheism and open-mindedness).
Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs within a group of individuals in which the quest for harmony/conformity within the group results in irrational and/or poor decision-making.
The atheist website Atheist Revolution declared about segments of the atheist population:
| “ | We've seen various cliques emerge, some of which have largely abandoned critical thinking for dogma. This mutual admiration society strikes me as being antithetical to free thought, as similar ideas are rewarded through promotion while diverse perspectives receive less attention. This sets the stage for a type of groupthink that runs counter to big tent atheism...
By elevating some in our movement to the level of celebrities, I fear we have cheapened it through irrational hero worship.[10] |
” |
In 2018, the atheist PZ Myers wrote:
| “ | I noticed the “troubling turn” about 8 years ago, as more and more atheists began to rally around two themes: the Glorious Leaders who were fonts of inarguable Reason & Logic, and a definition of atheism that exempted them from all social responsibility or ethical obligation.[11][12] | ” |
See also
References
- ↑ NO FAITH, NO PROBLEM! THE 21 MOST FAMOUS CELEBRITY ATHEISTS
- ↑ Brad Pitt says he's given up on atheism and 'clings to religion'
- ↑ List of atheists in film, radio, television and theater
- ↑ Sappell, Joel. "The Courting of Celebrities", Los Angeles Times, June 25, 1990, p. A18:5. Retrieved on 2006-06-06.
- ↑ Shaw, William. "What do Tom Cruise and John Travolta know about Scientology that we don't?", The Daily Telegraph, February 14, 2008. Retrieved on 2009-06-25.
- ↑ Scientology is an Atheist Religion
- ↑ To Kill an Ideology By Scott Stewart, VP of Tactical Analysis, Stratfor
- ↑ ISHASH MEMBER INTERVIEW: CHARLES LOUIS RICHTER, International Society for Historians of Atheism, Secularism, and Humanism
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Are there too many atheist meetings? by Jerry Coyne
- ↑ Feeling Disillusioned With the Atheist Movement, Atheist Revolution
- ↑ Get out of my head, Eiynah! by PZ Myers
- ↑ A shambolic atheist community faces some tough choices by Denyse O'Leary
