Silent no More: The Rise of the New Atheists

[Jagella]

I read some very good news in the April 2018 Scientific American. Michael Shermer writes in his Skeptic column "that 23 percent of all Americans have forsaken religion all together." The 23 percent figure is based on a 2013 Harris Poll and corroborated by a 2015 Pew Research Center poll. It is a "dramatic increase" from 2007 when only 16 percent of polled Americans said they were affiliated with no religion.

Why these poll results are so important to me is that the real good news is that America has a chance to lead the world with a new sense of social responsibility. We atheists can succeed where religionists have failed. As religion and superstition decline; science, critical thinking, and true morality can increase. We can level the playing field for all Americans granting everybody a chance to make something out of themselves. Let's leave religion and all its "bad fruit" behind forever!

Our efforts to turn the tables on Christianity appear to be working. Do you agree?

[Divine Insight]

The way I see it, Christianity and other Abrahamic religions, are simply collapsing under the weight of their own hypocrisy and obviously false dogmas and doctrines.

Atheism is on the rise because of this natural collapse of these indefensible ancient religious myths.

Science, education, and common sense, are no doubt playing a major role in the collapse of these ancient superstitious religions, but I don't see these things a being the cause of the collapse.

Theses religions were doomed to failure from the moment of their inception. They are on their way out. Atheism is simply what will be left over as these religions die off.

So the rise of atheism is a natural result as religions die.

Atheism isn't driving the death of religion.

The death of religion is driving the rise of Atheism.

At least that's how I see it.

[jgh7]

Your bad blood towards Christianity is a bit disconcerting. Kinda like the animosity Christians had towards non-Christians in the middle ages. I guess history repeats itself.

[William]

[Replying to post 1 by Jagella]

I applaud your hope in atheism. I myself fail to see that any significant world changing event will unfold because of this because the problem isn't religion in general but that which is able to infect any aspect of social cohesion. Greed, war, lack of common sense, politics, hypocrisy, education, and even the way science is used.

It would be interesting to see the results of atheism taking over from theism should we as a species should long enough to see this happen, just to see what world-changing results might actually unfold as theorized by individuals such as yourself. I do not believe it will be as simply as the OP implies.

[Divine Insight]

Your bad blood towards Christianity is a bit disconcerting. Kinda like the animosity Christians had towards non-Christians in the middle ages. I guess history repeats itself.

The problem is that non-Christians are people. Christianity is a religion, it's not a person.

Atheists aren't out to destroy Christians. Atheists are out to expose the fallacy of Christianity. A non-person clearly false mythology.

In the middle ages Christians were killing actual living non-Christian people.

BIG DIFFERENCE!

So this is hardly history repeating itself. Christians were murderers, atheists are not.

[Jagella]

Your bad blood towards Christianity is a bit disconcerting. Kinda like the animosity Christians had towards non-Christians in the middle ages. I guess history repeats itself.

jg, I have "bad blood" indeed! Only my bad blood will greatly decrease bloodshed, and that's the essential difference between myself and Christianity. It's unfortunate that you apparently missed what I said in the OP about social responsibility and justice.

It's always bad form to twist a person's words hoping to win an easy rhetorical victory.

[jgh7]

[Replying to post 6 by Jagella]

It's mainly your last sentence from the OP, which sounded more like a slogan or battle cry. Rather disturbing to me. Like youre in a war to eliminate the "inferior" religious mindset. I could be wrong.

[Divine Insight]

It would be interesting to see the results of atheism taking over from theism

This is yet again a display of how people mistakenly view atheism as being some sort of religion itself.

Like as if atheism is going to 'replace' theism. It's not a going to replace theism, it's simply going to be what's left after theism has finally died.

Kind of like how stamp collecting will eventually die when they quit printing stamps.

To say that "a-stamp collecting" will replace it is kind of silly.

[historia]

Why these poll results are so important to me is that the real good news is that America has a chance to lead the world with a new sense of social responsibility. We atheists can succeed where religionists have failed.

Perhaps you can expand this comment.

What are you thinking of here in terms of social responsibility? And how have people who are religiously affiliated failed in this regard?

[William]

[Replying to post 8 by Divine Insight]

there is also the thought that while some theist cultures are dissipating, others too are on the rise. Thinking that the decline in Abrahamic religions represent the decline in theism (or the rise of atheism as the OP indicates) may itself be a false interpretation.