With all this talk about various religions and their interactions with mass media, I think it is time we take a look at how the non-religions make use of modern technology: particularly the Internet.
Atheism is a broad term used to describe both (a) people who do not possess a belief in the existence of deities, and (b) those who actively disbelieve in deities. Most phenomena that you find on the Internet are generally manifestations of the latter group.
Two prominent examples include: www.atheists.org in the US and www.atheistbus.org.uk in the UK.
Atheists-dot-org is a web-based organization of American Atheists promoting atheist ideals. Features include headline news about atheist issues, blogs endorsing an increased separation of church and state in order to protect the non-religious freedoms of non-believers, and announcements of calendar events such as “Blasphemy Day” (the highlight of which is, of course, the opportunity for de-baptism).
Atheistbus-dot-org is the official website of the atheist bus campaign, courtesy of the British Humanist Association (BHA) in the United Kingdom. Their main contribution to the atheist cause is the slogan-ads reading “There’s Probably No God. Now Stop Worrying and Enjoy Your Life” that appear on the sides of buses in London:
The website urges visitors to take pictures of these buses and post them online, supposedly so the world can see the impact that they are making.
Common themes on these and similar sites include the debate between Creationism and Evolution; discussions about whether or not atheists possess any sort of moral compass and if so, where it comes from; and how to break free from the oppression of religious tradition and dogma.
This kind of organized un-religion stands in contrast to the modern cyber-churches like the Church of Fools. And yet, maybe atheist websites such as these actually work toward the same end as online Christianity or virtual Islam.
Greg Peterson writes about the effects of the information age on organized religion. For years, some clergy have fought to use religious dogma as a way to keep the common man in control. Before Gutenberg invented the printing press and Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses, people had to rely on the word of their priests in their search for truth and enlightenment.
Today, almost all information that mankind has discovered has been uploaded to the Internet, and is available at the click of a mouse. Peterson highlights those whom C.D. Batson calls Questers: those who seek after more truth than their organized religious communities have been able to offer. In short, Peterson argues that through online communities, the Internet has empowered the individual to question traditions and seek for further enlightenment.
True, the atheists may be jumping to conclusions about the extent to which people are oppressed by religion. But if there is an Absolute Truth out there, how do the blogs and news feeds from atheist websites contribute to our Quest to find it? Does their constant encouragement to look beyond the status-quo effectively persuade people to denounce belief in the Divine, or does it actually lead the honest-of-heart closer to discovering the true Web Designer behind the universe?
Atheism is a unique belief because of a person's un-belief in something. I find the whole way of thinking very difficult to justify because of contridictions.
ReplyDeleteFor example, the video clip compared organized religion to a cupboard and how different religions have drawers in different places. If your drawer is out of place, then you do not belong. If you choose to make your own cupboard (atheism) then you are expressing your unique individualism.
The contradiction comes when you look into the official websites for atheism. These web sites are organizations, exactly what those in athesim try to avoid. This underlying message illustrates that it is a common human need to belong. We need to fit in somewhere. If you do not believe in the Divine, you need to fit in with all those who do not believe in the Divine.
In connection with the next post, they even have places to register as a member or give money. The events, news stories, scholarships, discussions, etc. are all things that organized religion have as well. It seems contradictory to join together in a belief of non-believing.
In response to the questions, I feel like the posts by atheists will lead the honest seeker closer to the Divine.
To explain, let's examine one of the quotes on the atheist website from Mark Twain.
"A man is accepted into a church for what he believes and he is turned out for what he knows."
I feel that atheism is a backlash religion. Those that are offended or disagree with a religion often "convert" to atheism. I feel that the majority do not proclaim atheism until after they have had some experience with organized religion. Often, those that have had no experience with God or religion claim "angosticism."
This is a person who holds that the existence of the ultimate cause, as God, and the essential nature of things are unknown and unknowable, or that human knowledge is limited to experience.Or more clearly, a person who denies or doubts the possibility of ultimate knowledge in some area of study.
This means that if you don't belief in God and have not been in an organized religion before, you will most likely find an organization that you will try out. If you disagree with teachings, then you might become an atheist.
After analyzing the discussion, atheists presence online is just a way to gather together. No matter how "alone" someone wants to be in their beliefs, they always find someone else who also wants to defy the norm and be unique.
In reality, each person in an organized religion can be unique. The drawers can fit in different places, as long as the structure is the same. The religious structure is what frames us, and our drawers are the personality traits that make us who we are.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeletefrom my perspective i obviously believe in an absolute truth, and that our church provides it more completely than does any other organized religion, or organized "unreligion." we also believe that truth can be found in many places. so to the degree that these atheists encourage the search for truth, then yes, i do believe they can help the honest person who has questions about who they are and where they came from come closer to the truth.
ReplyDeletebut on the other hand, they are a group of people who still want to spread their particular belief system, that is- there is no God. otherwise, why would they buy advertising spots on buses to showcase their nonbelief in Deity? if they simply wanted to encourage the seeker of truth that there is a possibility of there being no God, why didnt the sign say something along the lines of that, instead of "there's probably no God."
it seems they want people to accept the idea that there is no God regardless of the "possibility" that there actually is a God. in our church we stress the importance of finding out for oneself whether or not what our leaders teach us is true. we dont want people to accept anything on blind faith, which is kind of what it seems like the atheist groups want you to do. if they truly wanted a person to know for themselves whether or not God exists then they would help the person in that process, rather than simply state "there's probably no God"
so i guess my opinion is that they dont do much at all. religious people will be reinforced in their belief in God when seeing things like those buses, while those who may be fence-sitters probably already have a reason for their professed "nonbelief"
I think that atheist blogs and Web sites are instrumental in helping people consider what they do in their faith because they believe and what they do because of a tradition. By helping people loosen the bands of tradition and consider something beyond their narrow view of the world, they become free to consider bits of the truth as they come their way.
ReplyDeleteI noticed repeated references to certain descriptions of religious peoples in many such sites, in particular the qualities of hypocrisy, arrogance and bigotry. I think that when religious people see these things, they will be forced to examine themselves, to see if they display these qualities that undermine the power of the Spirit to guide people to the truth. For instance, in the Youtube video shown, the “Instruction manual for life,” I was reminded to not reject people of other religions or tell them they are wrong. Rather, I took from the video to see the good things others do, to try to emulate those things in my life, and to show the truth and goodness I know by my example.
I think that some will be swayed and convinced by the persuasive arguments made in these atheist forums. But I also think they will have many opportunities to feel the Spirit and be guided towards the Absolute Truth.
I don't see that much difference between an atheist or someone who has an organized religion. To me they are both searching for ultimate truth as was commented. The atheists that are trying to destroy religion are much like any radical sect of religion that casts a bad light on the whole. I have many friends that are atheists and they have nothing against organized religion they just don't believe in God. I do think that their websites do contribute to the questers search for their ultimate truth. I think it's good for atheists to have information online, that way all view points are out there for everyone to see. There needs to be something from every perspective to be completely fair and I think atheism brings up questions that will inspire someone to search more diligently. I don't think that their efforts cause more people to denounce their belief in the divine, generally peoples basic beliefs are forever ingrained, I think their idea of looking past the status quo will lead more individuals to look within and find out what they truly believe. I do however find it strange that they want to encourage people to not believe in God because they seem to be against religious conformity, but I guess they want the idea to be out there.
ReplyDeleteI have my own opinions about atheism in general, but for the purpose of this discussion I’ll focus on the effect of the atheist presence on the internet. To me, even an “un-belief” is a belief. So the atheist websites that announce there is no God, organized religion is bad, etc, etc, are just as valuable to internet questers as any other religious sites. If I were a quester, I think looking at an atheist site would make me so depressed that I would be eager to find other options. However, atheism obviously appeals to some people so it deserves a presence on the internet, whether it’s just a pit stop or a final destination.
ReplyDeleteI would just like to add my statement of agreement with Paige D. I believe that most people are sincere in their beliefs- whether they believe in God or something else. The Book of Mormon prophet-kings made sure to not make any laws that restricted beliefs or punished anyone for their beliefs, as long as they were honest. An integral part of the search for truth is that multiple sides of an issue are available for examination- this includes the variety of opinions about the existence of deities.
ReplyDelete