As more and more of us gain access to the internet, it becomes obvious that those who once thought themselves in an Orwellian ‘minority of one’ actually are not alone in the perceived rarity of their interests, beliefs and pastimes. Far from it.

There are forums out there for folks like me who collect rare briar and meerschaum tobacco pipes, for instance. There’s even an online club for those who have a passion for accumulating old lunch pales. Whole groups discuss the works of a single obscure novelist or poet and debate the merits of various fertilizers in the production of prize-winning leeks.

The internet allows warm handshakes between people a world apart in geography and thought and a vital meeting place for those, who would otherwise suffer solitude, to share what they are relieved to find is common ground.

One of the great bonuses of the net for me has been the discovery – after half a century – that I’m not the only atheist in the world.

Let me say right now that most of my best friends are NOT atheists; but having discovered, only a year ago, communities who share my deep interest in religion and religious history and philosophy without attachment to any particular deity, I am making new friends who welcome me into their company with warmth, insight and profound knowledge of the subject at hand.

At the risk of raising some hackles, I must tell you that I have discovered ‘We are legion’.

But, as large a part of the population as we make up, we are not the devils that ugly phrase has been used to imply.

I find atheists everywhere share one particular problem – misrepresentation. People of faith seem to know little or nothing about our stance as non-believers and jump to some pretty inaccurate conclusions (this is our fault – many atheists are afraid to ‘come out of the closet’ for several sound reasons). In the various lively forums, the same questions come up time and again.

So I thought I’d try to address some of the basics; some of the questions most frequently asked by theists in their first encounter with atheists.

I have provided here only the bare bones of likely atheist answers in an attempt to keep this article as short as possible. If you would like to raise other questions and be offered fuller replies, just key the word ATHEISM into a search engine and you’ll now find several sites and forums to visit and in which to debate.

On the whole an intelligent, civil and open-minded theist will be welcomed into an atheist forum and debate will be civilised and enlightening all round.

Please bear in mind that atheists are individuals with no spokesperson – let alone me –qualified to represent them as a group. There is no atheist creed, agenda or manifesto. Many might not fully agree with my selection of questions or with the wording of my replies. It has been said that getting atheists to conform is a little like herding cats, so please bear with me while I do my honest best to give fair answers to fair questions.

(I use he/him in its neutral sense below. This is merely for convenience and implies no sexist insult).

Q: Is atheism a religion in itself?

A: Atheism is not a religion. Atheism is merely the non-acceptance of the existence of divine entities and other supernatural influences. It has been said that atheism is to religion what not playing golf is to sport. That pretty well sums it up.

Q: What is the difference between an atheist and an agnostic?

A: An atheist absolutely rejects the notion of deities and supernatural intervention, an agnostic isn’t quite sure of the existence of gods but will not deny the possibility. There are several schools of atheist philosophy and those in atheist forums would be happy go into greater detail. Several terms are applied to atheism (which is from the Greek and simply means without theism): positive atheist, secular humanist, bright, free-thinker, non-theist. They’re pretty well interchangeable, but fine differences will be explained if you ask.

Q: What does an atheist believe?

A: You would have to ask him, and I hope you will. Each and every atheist, like each and every theist, believes many things. The only thought atheists share in common is an absolute non-belief in gods, afterlife (in the form of heaven, hell or reincarnation) and supernatural intervention in the cosmos and the affairs of man.

Q: What's to stop an atheist running riot if he has no God-given moral code?

A: An atheist is bound by the same moral codes of human decency and social responsibility as a theist. But he does not believe these codes are heaven-sent. In fact, some atheists feel that the theist notion of actions being rewarded or punished by a divine entity casts doubt on his inherent morality. An atheist’s motivation is conscience-driven rather than externally imposed and influenced by ideas of divine reward and punishment. In fact, evolutionary theory posits strong reasons for people to behave ethically. And, of course, we follow even the lesser laws of our lands and don’t double-park.

Q: An atheist can't prove there is no God, can he?

A: He does not feel the need to. The burden of proof is on the claimant. And extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. There is no empirical support for the existence of deities. What evidence is offered is ‘circular’ in that it relies upon partisan literature and/or is faith based. Faith is not admissible evidence. Earnestly believing something to be true does not make it so.

Q: Surely religion is about love and peace. What's so wrong with that?

A: Religion has, though the ages, proven to be divisive, destructive and has given rise to many a bloody conflict past and present. Jewish, Christian, and Islamic scriptures actively promote violence. As for love, the concept of eternal torment in hell for temporal human sin seems to contradict the ideals of love and forgiveness. This is such a broad subject that, again, it is wide open for much broader discussion if you visit a forum or two or happen to meet an atheist face-to-face socially.

Q: Are atheists so arrogant that they think they're above God?

A: As there are arrogant theists, there are arrogant atheists. However, an atheist does not feel he is above God; because no god exists. He knows mankind to be the pinnacle of currently known earthly evolution and feels great humility in the face of the majesty of time and space and the richness of all that is a natural part of the world in which he plays his tiny and temporary part.

Q: Why can’t religious people and atheists get along together?

A: We can. And we do. But an atheist may not necessarily accept that religion per se should command respect, any more than non-belief commands respect. Only people can command respect. Hopefully atheism or theism doesn’t actually define us. There are many more points on which the atheist and theist would agree than there are those upon which they would disagree. Bearing this in mind, the internet provides a platform for open discussion of differences and for showing that we all share human decency and love of our fellows, irrespective of gender, race, nationality, color, social standing … and creed.

Q: Do I risk conversion to atheism by mixing with atheists or visiting their forums?

A: Atheism is a non-belief, a non-establishment, a non-institution; it is not a club where we head-count membership. The purpose of debate is not to evangelize but to openly discuss matters of mutual interest. A knowledge-questing theist might well question some of his beliefs after careful consideration of other ideas, or he might – as many admirable theist friends do – stick to his guns and give the atheists food for thought. We’re not on a conversion kick … but we do try to promote common sense and education.

Q: Is the material universe the atheist’s God?

A: The atheist is, like any thinking person, in awe of the cosmos – what is known and what is yet to be discovered. But the universe is not his god. He has no god. The universe is innocent of its own existence, let alone ours. Such acceptance is the basis of atheistic humility and humanity and the reason most atheists support scientific and scholarly quest for answers that will enrich humankind.

Q: Why are atheists so hung up about a dividing line between church and state?

A: All past and present incarnations of theocracy have resulted in untold misery, warfare, poverty of spirit and ignorance. What atheists feel is that – especially in the USA – the west is seeing the thin edge of a worryingly broad wedge. This is another point that should be discussed more fully. I am not evading the question, merely suggesting that it merits more space than is available here.

Q: Science can't account for everything; ergo there must be a God, no?

A: No. Already the disciplines of science and scholarship have answered many complex questions and solved many hitherto insurmountable problems, opening up a magnificent vista of possibility. Science and Scholarship is ever-questing and self-critical. Where there might currently be a gap in scientific knowledge (and they’re working on it), to suggest that the gap be automatically filled by supernatural means is hardly realistic.

Q: God created everything; the universe and all that's in it is part of His plan. It says so in the scriptures, doesn't it?

A: This is an example of ‘circular’ argument, where support for a supposition comes from a source that is itself part of that very supposition. The scriptures of all religions are fatally flawed. They are riddled with inaccuracy and contradiction. Creation stories, from the sublime to the ridiculous, abound. None match and none offer the satisfaction and staggering beauty of scientific evidence in support of the development of the universe and life on earth.

Q: But evolution, for example, is just a theory, isn’t it?

A: It is important to understand clearly the definition of scientific theory. In this formal usage, the word theory has little in common with its casual everyday use to describe an unproven supposition. Evolution is a tried-and-tested scientific theory just like gravity is a tried-and-tested theory. Please don’t jump out of a window to prove that the theory of gravity is the figment of scientific imagination. The transmission of disease by germs is also a theory. But don’t have your tonsils removed by a surgeon who hasn’t washed his hands. Much, much more will be available to you on such subjects when you start to take part in debates.

Q: If there is no afterlife, where does an atheist turn to for purpose?

A: Ask him. Each of us has his own justification for living life as he does. Most atheists – more than content with their tiny spec of existence – try to make the very most of their time on earth and to make our lives productive and useful to those around us. An atheist must fulfil his perceived purpose in the here-and-now, or fail. There are no second chances through reincarnation; no purpose is left to him after death. Atheists face this fact and are comfortable with it. I will be meeting my children and grandchildren next week for our yearly gathering of the clans. I see all the eternity I could ever wish for in their faces.

Q: Why are so many atheists researchers into religions when they are so sure there are no gods?

A: Firstly, religion and history are fascinating subjects for academic research to anyone with an enquiring mind. Secondly, even though there is no divine basis to religion, one reality of religion is its influence upon the world in which we live. We have a vested interest in knowing as much about it as we can. And it often surprises us that so very few of those professing a faith have actually read the literature upon which it’s based and know anything about their particular religion’s history and structure.

Q: What about Pascal's Wager?

A: The French philosopher Blaise Pascal is popularly quoted by Christian theists when they argue against atheism. In a nutshell, Pascal said: Believe in God and you stand to gain everything. If you’re wrong in that belief, you lose nothing. Heads you win, tails you don’t lose.

There are two problems with this gambit. Firstly, you cannot with honesty choose to believe. You either do or you don’t. Secondly, which god is Pascal talking about? Who’s to say the theist (insert a religion here) has chosen to believe in the real one?

Think on this: If you are a monotheist (say a Jew, a Christian, or a Moslem), you believe in one god. You disbelieve in the hundreds and thousands of other gods worshipped in the world today and in the past. The atheist merely believes in one god less.

Another philosopher, Epicurus, writing 300 years before the birth of the Christian's Jesus Christ, composed what is known as the ‘Epicurean Paradox’. It is more likely to be quoted by atheists than the flawed Pascal’s Wager:

Is God all-powerful but unable to stop evil?
Then God is not omnipotent.
Is God all-powerful but not willing to stop evil?
Then God is malevolent.
Is God all-powerful and all-good?
Then whence enter evil?

I hope you’ve found this simple Q&A helpful and that it gives you a little to go on if and when you meet an atheist or visit an atheist forum.

My own feeling is that I am not at war with religion, but I would like to see it become irrelevant. My idea of heaven – long after my time – is a world united in a single good ideal. It is for future generations to help that ideal evolve through discussion, understanding and the steadfast application of reason.

END
Neil Marr (c) 2007

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