The Stigma of Atheism

Atheism is a scary word, but it shouldn't be.

After all, if you don't believe in something because you are unconvinced, then why should that be so evil?

In my missionary days, I used to look at atheists with such scorn. They were clearly rebelling against God, and more than anything, they were shortsighted. If God is above man, then why should man try to prove him with science? That would be like fish being convinced that monkey's don't exist because they haven't seen any in the ocean. God, it is said, exists outside of the human realm and must be taken on faith, not science.

Of course, the one glaring flaw in this argument is in the origin of said belief. If God exists outside of human knowledge, then how do we know about him in the first place? Did he break the rules of faith and make himself visible? Did he speak audibly? Did he possess someone so they could speak for him? Whatever it is, can you prove how you know that to be true?

And this is where atheism takes over. No, they can't prove it. None of them can, but nonetheless, it is I, or rather We, the atheists who are scorned. Just because you feel something and think it is God, does not make it so. Just because something cool happens in your life does not make it divine intervention. Cool things happen to atheists too, atheists also have good feelings from time to time (when we're not eating babies, that is). So again, one can choose to apply a cause or an explanation wherever they wish, but some of us need it to be more definitive than that.

Society frowns on those who are different. I don't think it's much different to be an atheist now than it was to be anti-slavery a hundred fifty years ago, in the south anyway. Take for example, the King of Douchebags:

This is an old video, but it supports my point, so deal with it. It's somehow "offensive" to have the opposite opinion of the majority. You're not even permitted to disagree without people demanding you be silenced. This is the limit of free speech, say whatever you want unless it pisses someone off, then they can shut you up. Fortunately for reason and free thought, they were not silenced on this occasion. But notice how King Douche demands that the Governor focus on this free speech issue instead of the working to get people's jobs back. Just because there is an atheist message. This is the power of the stigma.

Nevermind that they want a religious display (nativity scene) on state property, they get all huffy and pissy when someone tells them that they are wrong. Freedom means the power to decide for yourself. It's not a Theocracy, it's not a police state, and people are usually more than happy to proclaim freedom until it means someone behaving in a way they don't approve of. This is true on both sides of the fence.

My personal opinion is that such attacks stem from the personal insecurity of the believer. If you could somehow KNOW that you were right, then it wouldn't matter if people disagreed. You might roll your eyes, or be annoyed at their blindness, but you wouldn't need to silence them. Anger in this case is a reaction to being threatened. This, of course, only strengthens the atheist position. There really is no reason at all to believe, except the desire for their to be something bigger than ourselves. But wishing a thing does not make it so.

The extremes of fanatical belief and forcing your own fantasies on others is very clearly seen in Texas and North Carolina in their State laws. It is actually illegal to hold public office if you do not profess a belief in a Supreme Being. Freedom of Religion my ass. Apparently, religion is free as long as you have one, but should you decide that there isn't actually any reason to believe in a Supreme Being, well, then...Ostracized!

You don't really see this with anything else do you? For people that believe crystals have magic powers, you aren't condemned for not blindly embracing it along with them. If you say that you're skeptical that UFO's visited Joe Bob last weekend, you can still be open about it. Same goes for crop circles, cryptozoology, alternative medicine, etc.

So why then, is being an atheist so much worse? If it's the exact same principle of withholding belief until the evidence is in, then what can possibly be so evil about it?

My brief theory is that Christians don't actually hate atheists, they see it as a foolish thing in the face of, as far as they're concerned, overwhelming proof of God's supernatural existence. They don't mind the odd atheist here and there, what gets them up in arms is when we atheists band together and try to make changes. Freedom of religion is fine until someone believes something different and gathers a large group of support. Let alone place opposite viewpoints next to your mythical nativity scenes.

The good news is that atheism seems to be growing. There are many closeted atheists who hide from the very stigma I'm talking about, but more and more they find that there are groups of people like them, where they are safe to ask questions and not believe.

Anyone reading who is looking for places like this, here are a few that I like:

www.ffrf.org
http://www.atheists.org/
http://new.exchristian.net/
http://www.atheistalliance.org/