Difference between revisions of "Atheism"
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== Atheist morality == | == Atheist morality == | ||
| − | Although it is difficult to generalize about atheism because it has no creed in a way that Christianity, Judaism, and Islam do, atheists typically hold that no religious text can be the only source of morality. However, many atheists believe that religious texts contain useful ideas and principles, such as the [[Golden Rule]]. As atheists do not believe in any form of deity, books purported to be based upon the revealed words of such deities are not considered to have any more inherent moral authority than books written by people, as they consider them to be one and the same. | + | Although it is difficult to generalize about atheism because it has no creed in a way that Christianity, Judaism, and Islam do, atheists typically hold that no religious text can be the only source of morality. However, many atheists believe that religious texts contain useful ideas and principles, such as the [[Golden Rule]]. Such people would, however, assert that useful principles entered religion because they are useful, and not the other way around. As atheists do not believe in any form of deity, books purported to be based upon the revealed words of such deities are not considered to have any more inherent moral authority than books written by people, as they consider them to be one and the same. |
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| + | Virtually no moral philosophy since the Enlightenment has depended on religion. Rather than revelation from the divine, philosophers have tended to find the sources of ethics in passions, reason, utility, or absurdity- all corporeal objects. Both [[David Hume]] and [[Immanuel Kant]], for instance, were philosophically agnostic (Hume tending more toward atheism). They wrote about what they believed was "common morality" and, because they did so without using religion, were clearly of the mind that the ethical principles guiding ''both'' believers and atheists were, in fact, secular. Following them, [[Adam Smith]], [[John Stuart Mill]], and the rest of the [[utilitarians]] argued that morality dealt with the usefulness of one's actions in worldly matters. [[Jean-Paul Sartre]] and the [[Existentialists]], of course, saw morality as a completely human creation. | ||
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| + | Such morality is not necessarily the morality of an atheist, it is merely an ethical system built without God- equally used and useful (if Hume and Kant are correct) to theists and skeptics alike. As such, the misconception that atheists have no moral system is just that. | ||
== Origins == | == Origins == | ||
Revision as of 10:42, May 28, 2007
Atheism, as defined by the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy and the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, is the denial of the existence of any God. [1] [2]
Well-known atheists include Joseph Stalin, Bertrand Russell, Ayn Rand, Richard Dawkins and Douglas Adams.
Contents
Atheist morality
Although it is difficult to generalize about atheism because it has no creed in a way that Christianity, Judaism, and Islam do, atheists typically hold that no religious text can be the only source of morality. However, many atheists believe that religious texts contain useful ideas and principles, such as the Golden Rule. Such people would, however, assert that useful principles entered religion because they are useful, and not the other way around. As atheists do not believe in any form of deity, books purported to be based upon the revealed words of such deities are not considered to have any more inherent moral authority than books written by people, as they consider them to be one and the same.
Virtually no moral philosophy since the Enlightenment has depended on religion. Rather than revelation from the divine, philosophers have tended to find the sources of ethics in passions, reason, utility, or absurdity- all corporeal objects. Both David Hume and Immanuel Kant, for instance, were philosophically agnostic (Hume tending more toward atheism). They wrote about what they believed was "common morality" and, because they did so without using religion, were clearly of the mind that the ethical principles guiding both believers and atheists were, in fact, secular. Following them, Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill, and the rest of the utilitarians argued that morality dealt with the usefulness of one's actions in worldly matters. Jean-Paul Sartre and the Existentialists, of course, saw morality as a completely human creation.
Such morality is not necessarily the morality of an atheist, it is merely an ethical system built without God- equally used and useful (if Hume and Kant are correct) to theists and skeptics alike. As such, the misconception that atheists have no moral system is just that.
Origins
Atheism has probably been around almost as long as theism, although in recorded history it has been a minority view in the western hemisphere, although amongst literati in pre-modern China, for instance, it was the default position, with moral guidance instead coming from Confucian teachings. Some atheists - notably, Richard Dawkins - contest that all religious are atheists with regard to Gods of other religions, and that atheism is therefore not a minority, but a default.
Atheist Population
It is difficult to accurately determine the proportion of the population that is atheist because survey definitions, and even real life definitions, are often unclear. Some people are unsure of the existence of God, making them agnostic, but they are sometimes counted as atheists. Furthermore, surveys containing an option for "no religion" are not necessarily identifying atheists. Individuals may believe in some form of god but not subscribe to any particular religion.
Specific research on atheists conducted in 2006 suggests that the true proportion of atheists is 4% in the United States, 17% in Great Britain and 32% in France.
Concern about Atheists in America
A recent Gallup poll indicates that most Americans would be more willing to vote for a homosexual or Muslim presidential candidate than an atheist. Research in the American Sociological Review finds that atheists are the group that Americans least relate to for shared vision or want to have marry into their family. [3]
| This Group Does Not At All Agree with My Vision of American Society: | I Would Disapprove if My Child Wanted to Marry a Member of This Group: | |
|---|---|---|
| Atheist | 39.6% | 47.6% |
| Muslim | 26.3% | 33.5% |
| Homosexual | 22.6% | NA |
| Conservative Christian | 13.5% | 6.9% |
| Recent Immigrant | 12.5% | Not Asked |
| Hispanic | 7.6% | 18.5% |
| Jew | 7.4% | 11.8% |
| Asian American | 7.0% | 18.5% |
| African American | 4.6% | 27.2% |
| White American | 2.2% | 2.3% |
External Links
- Decline of Atheism -CreationWiki
- European Commission report on Social values, Science and Technology, includes info on Religious beliefs
References
- ↑ http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism/
- ↑ http://www.creationontheweb.com/content/view/1998
- ↑ Edgell, Gerteis & Hartmann 2006
