Posted on 07/25/2007 10:02:49 AM PDT by GMMAC
The God that whined
Barbara Kay, National Post
Published: Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Back in the day, the many atheists I knew went about their unbelieving lives in a quietly sardonic, but non-combative way: They'd abandoned organized religion, but sought no quarrel with those who stayed. They explained their non-belief to their children, but let them join the boy scouts.
Everything old is new again, but ? different. Yesterday's live-and-let-live atheism has morphed into today's truculent "atheism with attitude," where God is not only dead, but --postmodern glee having replaced Nietszchean gloom regarding His demise -- with good riddance to Him.
The new atheists call themselves the "brights," which makes believers and even agnostics the "dims." I daresay deist Albert Einstein would raise a shaggy eyebrow at being so characterized. But he's not alone: About half of scientists believe in God, and they are dismissed as Uncle Toms by the swaggering brights.
A feature article in last Saturday's Post detailed some of the movement's infrastructure: the new atheism's high priests (whose Eureka! tone suggests they invented atheism, though it's as old as religion), Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitch-ens et al.; their Bibles: The End of Faith, The God Delusion, God is Not Great and other books, as well as magazines such as Canadian Free Thinker; their houses of anti-worship, like Toronto's "Centre for Inquiry" and the American Atheist Alliance International; and even their agitprop for kids: CDs such as Friendly Neighbourhood Atheist (roll over, Mr Rogers!) and Beware of Dogma.
Brights have even opened summer camps. Old-style atheists sometimes sent their children to socialist camps. But summer camps specifically devoted to indoctrinating children in anti-religious faith rather than instilling a positive secular faith? This is something new. (Memo to Johnny in cabin #7: A copy of the Psalms was discovered under your mattress. Report to the re-education tent at once!)
The brights' most potentially consequential political thrust, though, is their sly appropriation of martyrish victimspeak, the kind that other collective rights groups have successfully leveraged for political gains.
Atheist Daniel Dennett, author of Breaking the Spell, says that it takes considerable courage to attack religion these days: "I risk a fist to the face or worse. Yet I persist." Others speak of feeling "marginalized."
But the political handwriting on the wall is especially evident in this statement by American activist Herb Silverman: "What I would really like is for atheists to come out of the closet because we are so demonized in our culture."
"Culture"? "Closet"? Uh oh. The ideological appropriation of "rights" vocabulary is the canary in the identity-politics "equality" mine. Once gay persecution is adduced, can the cry for official atheist equity be far behind?
In grievance-collecting, it's a case of "say the right word, and you'll be heard." True, atheists in democratic countries can't conjure up grim tales of the truncheon's midnight thud on the door, but in our politically correct culture, "feelings" of disempowerment or victimization often achieve moral parity with the real thing. So I'm betting it won't be long before our heartstrings will be tugged by activist atheists who claim that Stephen Harper's saying "God bless Canada" makes them feel "violated," or complaining that reading Christianity-stuffed Heidi makes their children feels psychologically "abused."
In a society where the rights of perceived victims are morally privileged over traditional cultural elites (in this case, believers), political influence accrues to those who can make the best case for bias-based collective past suffering and current defencelessness against those perceived as powerful.
Aggressively marketed grievance has worked for women and gays. The same strategy for brights will doubtless end in a government-funded Status of Atheists Council to undo the iniquities of 10,000 years of theocratic hegemony and repression. After that, we may yet see -- don't laugh until you're sure it can't happen -- demands for reparations payout by churches and synagogues to redress the ignominy and shame now-atheist, former (involuntarily-designated) Christians and Jews suffered as children when force-fed the Ten Commandments in Sunday and Hebrew School. (Somehow, I do not envisage a similar campaign by Muslim atheists directed against the madrassas, not sure why ?)
When bullets whiz overhead, there are no atheists in foxholes. What the bitter, bloviating brights fail to realize is that the whole world's a foxhole nowadays, and that their upthrust swollen heads make a better target for our mortal enemies -- religion's cancers and other, secular but equally totalitarian triumphalists -- than those humbly bowed in gratitude for mankind's loftiest ideals and supplication for the courage to defend them.
bkay@videotron.ca
© National Post 2007
One of Einstein's most eagerly quoted remarks is "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind." But Einstein also said,
It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expessed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it.
It is nice sounding theory that when you separate the Christian Church from the state, you get stability, but it does not pass the common sense test.
For instance, I know it is the first words out of any atheist mouth when you try to talk with them about Jesus, “Explain the Inquisition,” and “Look how evil the church was!” and “Look what they did in the name of Jesus!”
It is true that about 500 years ago, Christian fanatics killed about 10,000 people over a 100 year time period (about 100/year) in the name of the Roman Catholic church. It is a shame on the record of an organization that claims to be promoting the ministry of Christ. Now compare this record to the example of the countries that have officially done away with religion. To the countries that have outright banned religion and imprisoned those who try to practice it (the ultimate test of the theory of separation of church and state).
Yes, I am talking about Communist countries. In the Communist Manifesto, Engel and Marx declared, “Communism abolishes all religion.” In my father’s lifetime, the numbers of people that officially atheist countries have murdered in the name of no-religion is staggering; the USSR slaughtered 20 million, China slaughtered 10 million, Communist Cambodia slaughtered 2 million, Communist North Korea has/continues to murder untold numbers, Communist Cuba has/continues to murder untold numbers, the list goes on.
The grand total is over 50 million dead in the last 80-year time span (over 600,000/year). Even comparing the worst time of “Christian Persecution” to an average time of a just one country that has officially and forcefully separated church and state, the conclusion is obvious: Christianity has a huge calming influence on government.
“that [atheists] make a better target for our mortal enemies than those humbly bowed in gratitude’
Don’t kid yourself, Barbara. The Islamists will take your head as quickly an that of an atheist.
Your numbers may be too low. Estimates that I have read exceed 100 million.
What a cold, cold life atheists live. They have absolutely nothing to look forward to after death but hell. The fact that they do not believe in hell carries no weight at all.
Afterall, they are mere ants in the universe with absolutely nothing but the power of a man (a mere ant). Nothing will save them, nothing will comfort them. How could they possibly live in this world and not see the creation and the beauty in it and not see that a loving God is showing them His handiwork?
How can they look at a rose, an azalea and not see the love of the Creator but see only evolution? Evolution does not create utter beauty and utter miracles.
But, they have no God - so this is all they will ever have. How do they bear the deaths as for them it is totally the end and they will never see those people again?
Such a cold, cold life when you deny Jesus and His gift to mankind, when you deny God and His handiwork in the world you were born into.
All they need to do is look at any of the insects and see how uniquely they are made for their lives, look at any of the flowers and see the uniqueness & the beauty. Look at the birth of a newborn and how nature’s systems work together to bring about a new person into the world. Not man’s efforts but nature (God). Men were born long before hospitals and doctors.
How dumb can you be to think your own power exceeds that of a loving God who sent His own Son to die for us and pay the price of our inability to be pure enough to reside with God for eternity.
What could possibly make them think that this world and everything in it has no purpose but to provide them a place to sprout their unbelief for 70-90 years? What about the many, many generations of this earth and all the peoples that have lived out their lives here? To no more purpose than denying Jesus and unbelief? Give me a break.
And, they have nothing better to offer than a life of eternity with God.
Such utter, utter stupidity and vanity.
Thanks, but I've never wanted or needed anyone's "pity."
That’s Einstein being quoted. Argue with him at your leisure.
I don’t know what in my comment required such an outpouring of pious dreck, but I feel the need for a shower after reading it. Hand me that bottle of Superstition Away, please.
Don’t compare Christ to some Christians. We are to live like He lived - He’s the example. In other words, don’t look to man but Jesus for Truth - His Truth, His Word. If man was so perfect, so good - we wouldn’t need a Savior. No one can enter into heaven but through the saving grace of Jesus and it’s a gift. God made it simple, man makes it complicated. God’s Word is true and every man a liar.
Hand me that bottle of Superstition Away, please...
...such a rapier wit...
Satan and his minions are growing in confidence — but the victory belongs to the Lord.
atheist is short for autotheist
what I don’t understand is why atheists seem to get along with islamists while directing most of their attacks on Jews and Christians. We’ve seen this with muslim congressman Ellison in our own country but there is an amazing tolerance for Islam in secular europe.
All I can think is, "Yeah, and homosexuals call themselves gay, but they aren't."
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