The New Atheists
"Tolerance of pervasive myth and superstition in modern society is not a virtue.
Religious fundamentalism has gone main stream and its toll on education, science, and social progress is disheartening.
Wake up people!! We are smart enough now to kill our invisible gods and oppressive beliefs.
It is the responsibility of the educated to educate the uneducated, lest we fall prey to the tyranny of ignorance."
They even have videos, so the Atheists don't have to be able to read.
The Crusade of Non-Believers
"This is the challenge posed by the New Atheists. We are called upon, we lax agnostics, we noncommittal nonbelievers, we vague deists who would be embarrassed to defend antique absurdities like the Virgin Birth or the notion that Mary rose into heaven without dying, or any other blatant myth; we are called out, we fence-sitters, and told to help exorcise this debilitating curse: the curse of faith."
"The New Atheists will not let us off the hook simply because we are not doctrinaire believers. They condemn not just belief in God but respect for belief in God. Religion is not only wrong; it's evil."
""How much do we regard children as being the property of their parents?" Dawkins asks. "It's one thing to say people should be free to believe whatever they like, but should they be free to impose their beliefs on their children? Is there something to be said for society stepping in? What about bringing up children to believe manifest falsehoods?""
These atheists don't want us to have the right to believe in God. They think belief in God is a form of insanity. Read this amazing article by an agnostic dealing with the hardline atheists.
Another Perspective on The Church of Non-Believers
"The very fact that Wolf remains unconvinced by the arguments promoted by the New Atheists is itself significant. What Dawkins, Harris, and Dennett--along with the other New Atheists--really demand is that society must place itself in the hands of a new and militant atheistic priesthood. Science as defined by these new priests, would serve as the new sacrament and as the means of salvation."
Angry Apostles of Atheism Attack
"They're mad, and their not going to take it any more. There has been a spate of books, TV shows, NPR interviews, magazine stories and the like involving one or more of the angry atheists."
"Indeed, from what we can tell they have always been a tiny minority. Maybe that's why they are so angry. I mean we are supposed to be not only in the age of reason, we are supposed to be in the space age, 'boldly going where no one has gone before'. And maybe this is one reason for the proud man's contumely. They just can't understand why people are still bothering to believe all this 'religious' stuff."
Without God, Gall Is Permitted.
"For the new atheists, believing in God is a form of stupidity, which sets off their own intelligence. They write as if they were the first to discover that biblical miracles are improbable, that Parson Weems was a fabulist, that religion is full of superstition. They write as if great minds had never before wrestled with the big questions of creation, moral law and the contending versions of revealed truth. They argue as if these questions are easily answered by their own blunt materialism. Most of all, they assume that no intelligent, reflective person could ever defend religion rather than dismiss it."
An article from Wall Street Journal, of all places, defending faith in God.
Challenging the New Atheists
"...the New Atheists become more and more vocal in their opposition to faith in general and Christian faith in particular, they cannot help but draw upon the tenets of faith in order to make their points. And that, as rational beings should see, is telling evidence that they are wrong."
The Christian Worldview, the Atheist Worldview, and Logic
"Can the atheistic worldview present a logical reason for the abstract laws of logic? I think not. But, the Christian world view can." Imagine that. Christianity is logical, but the atheistic view is not. You don't hear that very often. Read the whole article.
There are also many other interesting articles which tackle Atheism from a Christian perspective at Christian Apologetics.
The above quote generator is from one of the atheistic websites. I really did think for a while about whether I should put this on our site. If this offends you, I am very sorry.
As I read several of the quotes, I realized how lame they are. The sayings may be clever, with a nifty twist and written by a famous person, but they have no depth, they have no ability to lift up the human spirit, they are not words of encouragement. They are mostly just pot-shots at man-made religion and selfish people. I take shots at man-made religion and selfish people, myself.
Sometimes, religion has little to do with God, and much to do with man's interpretations and understanding. Men make mistakes and do not fully understand. Atheists are no different, they make mistakes and do not understand, also. For God's part, He just wants to have a loving relationship with us, and that is not religion.
This also shows, above all else, that atheists believe they have superior intelligence. There are also many intelligent people of faith, and there are answers to all of these clever slogans. But it mostly seems that they have missed the most important concepts from God; love and a forgiving spirit, and the fullness and peace these add to our lives. Those things don't require intelligence, but you wouldn't be very smart to reject them.
What Is So Great About Jesus?
Be very careful what you read. This is another unbelievable article. This one, about Jesus, is from The "Freedom From Religion Foundation". From their viewpoint Jesus is not peaceful or compassionate, Jesus is anti-family values, Jesus is against equality and social justice, Jesus gave bad moral advice, Jesus was unreliable and a bad example. "Why is Jesus so special? It would be more reasonable and productive to emulate real, flesh-and-blood human beings who have contributed to humanity--mothers who have given birth, scientists who have alleviated suffering, social reformers who have fought injustice--than to worship a character of such dubious qualities as Jesus."
Be Very careful what you read and who you listen to. They are using Bible scripture to prove all of their points. He even admits after the article, that he took the verses out of context. But this just shows how some people will purposely bend and twist the truth without offering a shred of evidence to support their viewpoint. And they make references to sources which are not even a little reliable, but that source supports their viewpoint. There are lots of scholarly writings which prove the physical evidence that Jesus existed. In fact most skeptics accept that Jesus was a real person. Only a desparate person would argue that point. But the evidence that the Bible is a true and accurate document continues to pile up, using archelogy and contemporary historical documents.
These articles make me feel really bad for the people who believe these concepts. They seem to have a negative outlook and are desparately looking for something to be able to hold on to, something to believe in. I personally believe that, in context, Jesus is a trustworthy example of how to approach life and his words are true and uplifting.
Generally, I have found that skeptics don't have any problems with Jesus. Skeptics usually accept that Jesus was a real person and his moral teachings and spiritual concepts are at the highest level. But where the skeptic has problems is with religion, religious organizations and phoney Christians. Usually, those have nothing to do with Jesus. The religious are playing mental or power games. And the phoney Christians are trying to play the religious games, but they don't read their Bible enough to know what is right or wrong.
Mahatma Gandhi was asked by someone, "What is the greatest hindrance to Christianity in India?" His reply was, "Christians." Gandhi also said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ". Gandhi was no Johnny Sixpack who got his world view from the Daily Show. He apparently studied the teachings of Jesus. He learned what a disciple of Jesus should be like. And that is where it fell apart. Gandhi never met a "real" Christian.
I know some "real" Christians. They are not perfect Christians, but they desire to live by the teachings of Jesus and keep striving toward that direction. Could it be that the skeptics and non-believers are looking for examples of Christianity that actually works in a person's life? Walking the talk. The changed life. The new creation. Truely born-again.
I encourage everyone, especially you skeptics, non-believers and phoney Christians, to read the teachings of Jesus, again and again. I know I get something different everytime I read from Luke. Maybe the more we learn and understand what Jesus is talking about, we will get a different insight. A different understanding of what a Christian is supposed to be and who Jesus is. And you will definately question the misunderstandings in the article about "What is so great about Jesus".
By the way, for my skeptic friends, check out the Come Reason website. Their objectives are: Reduce misunderstanding of biblical texts and historic Christian beliefs, Answer skeptics and those critical of Christianity, Equip the church by helping Christians think more clearly and accurately about their faith, Show Christianity is a consistent world view by examining its non-contradictory nature, Show Christianity is the most intellectually satisfying answer to life's problems. That is a lot to live up to. See if it is real.
Available around November 24, 2007
