Atheists want the benefits of a secular society, but too many refuse to do the work. They are more concerned with a dictionary definition of atheism that they forget what is at stake.
Without atheists united in some form of community, the US would be lost overnight to a theocratic right. Ready to overturn whatever secular laws remain in the constitution.
While some atheists are worried about definitions, the right is worried about overturning women's rights, ending marriage equality and enforcing bad economic policies that drive more Americans into poverty. While we are busy infighting claiming, "no one speaks for me", the right is speaking and gathering followers. If we continue to run around unorganized, they will overtake this nation.
So there is, and should be a strong atheist movement, groups like American Atheists, American Humanist Association, Secular Coalition for America, Freedom From Religion, The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science and countless others are atheist based organizations all fighting to enforce secular laws in this country and around the world.
These are the groups who put the weight on their shoulders to make sure the theocratic right do not overtake the US and anyone who believes in upholding the secular history of this nation and the further secularization that rebuilds the wall that separates church and state that the right has spent decades taking apart. We should be thanking these groups and individuals in this fight, not chastising them for being "the face" of atheism as many have.
We may not elect atheist leaders, but many people shine through and stand up for all of us. We don't have to claim to agree with what every group does or says all the time either. Just as each atheist is unique in many of their own ways, so are groups.
Just so you know I am the king of the non-joiners.
Sure I can work as a part of a group for short periods of time, but after awhile things like clashing egos, mismatched ambitions, and attempts to define ourselves always force me to reevaluate why I joined and typically I walk away.
I identify as an Atheist simply becasue it is the label that best reflects my view of God, mankind, and the universe.
I have never formally joined any Atheist group and never really planned to in the future.
However there is some sense in what the author of this piece, Dan Arel, is saying.
As a group we are woefully unorganized, and we are often dealing with a group that is not only organized, but also well funded and with vast political connections.
As much as I hate to say it, the time may have come for those of us who want to keep religion from infiltrating our schools, and fight the oppressive laws that are dictating what women can do with their own bodies, as well as whose love is worthy of marriage, to get off our asses and start working together to help shape the world that we want our children to inherit.
Oh, and you're all letting me die out here; funny that you'll never know what that cost you, also too.
ReplyDeleteKeeping a secular America is a worthy goal, but I wish there was a way to do it without painting a target on yourself, because I think that’s what you’d be doing. However, Atheists have allies just as gays have straight allies.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, any organization will be seized and corrupted by the biggest egos.
The rightwing nuts are making clowns of themselves every day, but that clown school is well funded and it worries me as well. The best I can do right now is call out all liars on their lying, and I’m diligent about that.
Everyone is an atheist to all religions but their own. Like LGBT, coming out means making people realize that their friends, relatives etc, are atheist and it becomes more difficult to silence and ostracize us.
DeleteI "came out" as an atheist to two good friends I was having coffee with one morning, and it turns out that both of them are too! And, one of my daughter's best friends parents are as well.
DeleteI luckily live in an area where religion is not as big of a deal as it is in some places (*cough* the South), but most people still identify as Christian even if they never go to church.
It is nice to know people are as like minded as me :)
In Britain, religion has largely been secularised to a fuzy, feel-good proposition: there are flickers of faith but most accept a non-cognate creation with few thoughts about it.
ReplyDeletePerhaps because of this, atheism is evolving here in western Europe. Anti-theism is the (fire) brand today, with its proponents no longer willing to tolerate faith. They now call for its end.
It sounds like an echo of repression.
Would love to emigrate - anyone accepting college educated refugees?
DeleteI truly don't care what your views are in regard to religion, marriage, etc. (General you, not specific) It is SO low on my totem pole of important, I just don't know if I even see it on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I'm sure that my personal beliefs have nothing to do with your day to day life, either.
With that being said, I won't go about stating how wrong you are, or call you names, just because you have a different opinion. That being said, I do worry a little about some people from both sides, forcing their views on others. If you find a church that will marry you, have fun. But don't expect, or demand, that all churches will. I worry about legislation passing that will require ALL churches being required to marry same sex couples, without regard to religious temnants. And I feel that is wrong, and not what this country was founded on. Freedom of religion allow the individual to worship as they choose, not how the government dictates. If you choose not to, I don't care, it's your choice, but if I chose to follow Judaism, Christianity, Islam, or whatever, I shouldn't be forced to give up my beliefs, just because I walked out of church/temple/mosque. I won't berrate your life choices, no need to berrate mine.
That would be a reasonable argument if people were not passing oppressive laws based on their religious faith, or attempting to push their religion into public schools, or attempting to rewrite history in order to make it conform more closely with their fantasies of how this country was formed.
DeleteYou are asking people to remain passive while an orchestrated attempt is made, by a highly motivated group, to deny people unlike themselves the same rights that they demand for themselves.
That's really off base - no one is demanding that churches marry all comers. (Those who are part of a religion and want to change it from the inside, have at it.)
DeleteYou sound like you've been listening to faux spew and other bigotry. It's a far cry from a baker, who has an open to the public business, refusing to bake a cake fro a same sex wedding to churches being required to perform the ceremony. that would be like rabbis being required to perform marriage ceremonies for Christians, and the RCC to marry divorced (not annulled) people. FALSE PREMISE to your argument.
I actually have friends that are gay, and they have told me that there are some groups trying to do just that--to force acceptance. I do think that when a teacher belittles a student because of these beliefs, the opposite of what you have discussed is true. There are a lot of laws that have limited a person's ability to practice as they wish, that I can see that some religious folks want some of that freedom back. There is a happy medium, but no one wants to compromise anymore. I don't want to hear who started what, and what is in response to whom, because everyone is guilty of it! I want to take my country back---back from those who refuse to let each other do their own thing.
DeleteWe need a better name than atheist.
ReplyDeleteSecular humanist covers it well.
DeleteIt certainly does. And is less inflammatory than "atheist."
DeleteAlso, too, "realist," "non-Kool-Aid-imbiber," "scam-immune," "thinker," "brain-functionitive." (Is that even a word?) -:)
Since I was a very young Atheist my father always said it would be better if we called ourselves "agnostic", but I reminded my father that agnostic means "lack of spirituality" but Atheist means that we simply do not believe in god, but however, we might find our spiritual satisfaction in the natural world.
DeleteI've never wanted to waiver in what Atheist really means and I don't want to do some half-assed labeling such as agnostic. I'm Atheist. Proud, 3 generations. I don't believe in a god, any of them. I guess I actually lack "spirituality" as popularly defined, but I just hiked up a 3000 foot hill today and snowboarded down in the face of the rising sun and a vista that few ever get to enjoy, and it made me cry, and it reminded me that I, as one small human being, should simply enjoy the happy accident that is human life and grasp it, hold onto it and enjoy it!
I have a problem when politics get involved but then politics are also oppressing atheism when religion infiltrates our government. I also have a problem with survival in a 'crimson' state like MS.
ReplyDelete"I am the king of the non-joiners."
ReplyDeleteGryphen, you might want to check out the Non-Joiners Alliance of North America which has at least 4 chapters in Alaska. It's a fun group, lots of activities, weekly meeting and social events, etc.
And they've been growing really fast by adding other groups to the alliance. For example, in 2012, adding Loners, Unlimited and The Hermit Society more that doubled the size of the combined organization.
If you join before April 30, you'll be eligible to attend the convention in Las Vegas in September. They expect more than 10,000 fellow non-joiners to show up. The keynoter is Richard Hendrickson who shot to the top of the best seller list with "I'd Rather Die Than Join Your Stinking Club". I know. Awesome, right? It's just a really nice opportunity to bond with other non-joiners.
I know this is a defunct family blog, so I'll be discrete, but I gotta tell ya: those hermits can REALLY party! Know what I mean? Wink. Wink. Nudge. Nudge. Say no more. Know what I mean?
Just don't expect the Spanish Inquisition.
Delete@hrh
DeleteAs far as I'm concerned, nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition.
(nee)
Avid non joiner here as well. The problem is we can't organize. register and get a tax exempt number or we'd be joining a "church". And Religions obviously have the market share of "persecution" and there's none left for people who choose b) freedom from religion.. They're organized like a well oiled machine, and it's their way or the highway. Everyone else is low on their totem pole.
ReplyDeleteI'd be fine if we separate church and state and work on getting the best public school education possible.