I think we atheists often tend to think ourselves (mildly) superior, though not to the extent the religious folks think of themselves as superior to non-believers.
One thing, though, is certain: the typical atheist has thought about religion a helluva lot more than the typical bible thumper. They're positions tend to be well thought out, usually independently. Religion is almost always a result of indoctrination, whereas Atheism is almost always the conclusion of long, deep reasoning.
This is evident when you read stuff
written by atheists.
It may be polished up and packaged as God and Country, but no matter what you call it, enough blood was spilt in the name of religion last century alone to fill Chesapeake Bay. And no matter how you try to get away from it, no matter where you go, there's another devious shyster, or worse yet someone who really believes this shit, pounding on your door, calling you on the phone, doing their best to overpower your faculties of common sense and drag you off into their personal, ridiculous, psychotic, supernatural drama.
Ok, so that was kinda rantish. A religious rant is usually met with bible thumping, amens, halleluyas, what have you.
Look at some of the responses this guy got:
The return to fundamentalism seen in the current monotheistic religions represents a return to the strategies that worked when it was just other gods whose asses were getting kicked. Unfortunately, now it is secularism and science and modernity in general that possess the threatening ideas which loosen the bonds of religious communities. There is a very clear reason that american mullahs are demanding the subordination of democracy to morality--seen in the demonization of homosexuals, liberals, and popular culture in general, and seen particularly in the battle against abortion and stem cell research. They idea that people can choose for themselves what is and is not moral is the death meme for traditional tribal religions.That almost sounds like a quote from a erudite book... and its a comment. And...
Fundamentalist leaders realize that their religions are in dire threat of extenction within a generation if they do not act against competing ideas. First, they specify the apostasy and heresy that is intolerable (homosexuality, abortion, evolution, liberalism); then, they sanction the ostracizing, demonization, and even killing of individuals, to get folks used to the idea. They embrace the killing of identified outsiders, and extoll the noble sacrifice of group members who die killing others. If they then have to sanction the killing of additional multitudes, well, they have history as their guide.'nuff said. Posted by carlosmorales at August 26, 2005 02:13 PM
ahh my dear sweet atheist friend,
yes there are a lot of dumb religious zelots out there...and prehaps not as many but there are dumb atheists too.
My dear atheist friend, I am a pro-choice, planned parenthood working, fornicating, queer activist, transgender alley, evolution believing, science loving, Catholic.
I've always thought of you as a wise man...but prehaps you haven't learned the valuable lesson I've learned...people are dumb and people are crazy. That crosses all religous and non-religous beliefs.
Posted by: elenamary at August 26, 2005 07:21 PMAbortion? Sin! Going to Hell.
Homosectsuality? Sin! Fire and Brimstone.
Fornication? Hellnication!
The Catholic church *officially* condemns all these things. Until recently, they also condemned the 'science loving' and 'evolution' parts too. Being from PR, I understand the double standard, go-to-church-to-pick-up-chicks run of the mill Catholic mentality. The average churchgoer doesn't give much thought to the deeper aspects of their professed religion. The were raise catholic, decided they believed in God, and decided to conveniently ignore the uglier majority of their religion.
I go to church occasionally, and the pastor (here in the liberal Bay Area) is awesome, harping on the Social Good, brotherly love, all that. Good stuff. I find myself nodding. Then I remember two things: (1) backing this guy up is a backward, dogma driven, political, *very* human and imperfect institution, that condemns condoms, secularism (not in the US, but ask a Philipino how politically involved the Church is back home), (2) many of the parishioners are proto-fundamentalist, hate-as-regilion zealots, and there *sitting all around me*. Creepy.
In my post, you'll note I kept referring to the 'typical bible thumper'. You, who refuses to condemn family planning, gayity, etc, are not one. By a long shot.
Try this mind experiment: imagine you're having a chat with the new ultraconservative women-in-their-place Pope-cum-hitleryouth. If you told him what you believed in, then asked him if he considered you Catholic... what would he say?
Posted by: carlosmorales at August 27, 2005 08:42 PMHe would most likely consider me Catholic albeit not a good one (and the feeling would be mutual).
A nun in school once told my class "Once you are baptised Catholic you will always be Catholic. It doesn't matter if you say you aren't Catholic, if you say you don't believe in God, or you join another Church, you are still Catholic".
On a completly different note I don't like for myself, those liberal hippy churches. There are a couple Catholic churches here in Ohio that I don't like going to because they are too liberal hippy. Not necessairly in their docterine but in their methodology.