[3.14Pie]

(Original post by JordanR)
Of course atheism doesn't contribute to society since it's not a movement or anything, it's simply the lack of belief in Gods.

There are plenty of very, very moral and kind people who are atheists -- look at Bill Gates. He's personally saved millions of lives and donated billions to charity. Would he have donated money if he was a Christian? Probably. If you're a good person you're going to be a good person regardless of what you do or don't believe in.

One could argue that if an atheist does do good in the world, it's goodness purely for its own sake, whereas theists might be doing things like that to try and gain favour with their god.

I think this sums it up well

[oli_G]

Well it doesn't damage society like religion. Therefore, it contributes by helping eradicate the thing that damages society.

[JollyGreenAtheist]

Atheism is a lack of belief in God or Gods; it cannot contribute to society. Similarly, Christianity does not contribute to society because it is the belief in a God.

What CAN contribute to society are people. Many Churches run charity events and volunteer benevolently. Many secular and atheist groups do the same. You don't need to follow a religion to be a nice person.

If anything, in my view, religion offers a perverse incentive to be good. Religions seem to push the "be a nice person because the all-knowing, all-powerful, all-good fella in the sky wants you to. If you don't, you get eternally tortured by this nasty bloke, who used to be the good fella's mate, but they had a spat" line. Secular morality tends to follow the "don't kill people because it's not a nice thing to do" line.

[Patriot Rich]

(Original post by bestofyou)
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/show...3#post36855453

Right. So since no one wanted to comment on your boring poem you decided to post it in this completely unrelated thread in a desperate bid to draw attention to it. Well done.

On the subject of atheism I can name Bill Gates: a self declared agnostic and possible atheist (admitting to being atheist is corporate suicide in America). He's pledged to give away 99% of his wealth and has made good progress in doing so.

[Perseveranze]

(Original post by S-man10)
Something good coming out of atheism?

Lets see... How about the freedom to think for oneself?

Oh, I think everyone has the freedom to think for themselves. But it's not a bad setup for Atheists, no god, no judgement day, no one to answer to.

“What the communists have done to Christians surpasses … human understanding,” wrote Wurmbrand. “I have seen communists whose faces while torturing believers shone with rapturous joy. They cried out while torturing the Christians, ‘We are the devil!’” He called communism “a force of evil” that could only be countered by a greater spiritual force, “the Spirit of God.” He added:

The communist torturers often [told me], “There is no God, no hereafter, no punishment for evil. We can do what we wish.” I heard one torturer say, “I thank God in whom I don’t believe, that I have lived to this hour when I can express all the evil in my heart.” ^source

[GR3YFOXXX]

^ Yeah because Christians never took any interest in torture...seems legit.

[PierceBrosnan]

(Original post by Camel)
Hard line Baptists are as secular as they come.

So the Westboro Baptist Church in your words "as secular as they come?"

[Joinedup]

Christians do a lot of the heavy lifting wrt charities. Oxfam started by christians, world vision etc etc.

Also a lot of amusing, childish whinges about being oppressed by christmas trees paid for by the council etc.
It's not like it's a pillar of atheism but a lot of vocal atheists default setting seems to be an unsympathetic attitude to others feelings and an absurdly heightened sense of their own victimhood.

[saachi]

I wish Atheist meant 'non believer of religion', instead of 'non believer of God'. Then I would be able to call myself one. Religion and Science aren't such diverse things. They both speculate about the same things, in different ways. Like how the universe came into creation, for example. Religion isn't the only way to God, science is the other, better way, now that religious scriptures are so often misinterpreted. I suppose, one of the main things Atheism contributes to society is diversity. I think we need this diversity in beliefs to recognize the similarities in them.

[GR3YFOXXX]

Karl Marx said religion is the opium of the masses. I actually think its benefits are more substantive for the collective, it brainwashes idiots with no competent secular moral compass to "do good or else...". I have no problem with religion except when it asserts its moral "truth", when the religious try to cram it down my throat they can take note of all the f*cks I do not give.

[Aphotic Cosmos]

(Original post by Perseveranze)
Oh, I think everyone has the freedom to think for themselves. But it's not a bad setup for Atheists, no god, no judgement day, no one to answer to.

Except seven billion other humans.

I will never understand this insane line of reasoning made by most religious people on this board - why on earth do we need to answer to an invisible bloke in the sky who nobody can conveniently see when true morality evolves from our interactions with one another. I choose to not go out and kill, rape or torture people on the basis that I have at least some degree of basic empathy and no situation I can imagine could prompt me to do such a thing. Anyone who would do such a thing will answer to the international community or secular legal systems, as well as societal judgement.

Also pitiful how many religious people make exceptions for themselves, notably suicide bombers. "Oh yeah, they'll all be judged for murdering Taliban fighters in one part of the world, but I'm cool if I blow up this train right here, and I'll even get virgins to boot."

[The Phelps]

(Original post by SnoochToTheBooch)
A rational approach to life. Rational thought is the reason we are no longer toothless filthy peasants, burning witches and dying in a pool of our own **** aged 40. Religion isn't rational, it's believing often absurd beliefs in the absence of any evidence, and which often contradict our own first hand observations/research etc.

Couldn't have said it better myself sir. Atheism to me is the idea of scientific thinking. E.g. Making an observation and finding correlation until so much correlation has been found it's considered a constant result of certain variables so it's a fact!

Religion does also cause a serious amount of problems. If you doubt me try and name a war that doesn't have some form of religious motive and I bet you find it considerably harder (but not impossible) than you thought.

[Converse Rocker]

(Original post by Camel)
Do atheists feed the poor?

Yes? Not all charity workers and the like are there for religious reasons.

I don't remember the last time a war was fought in the name of atheism though. Or terrorist attacks for that matter; religion does provide a lot of good to the world, no doubt, but it also brings a lot of bad that atheism doesn't.

[Aphotic Cosmos]

(Original post by saachi)
I wish Atheist meant 'non believer of religion', instead of 'non believer of God'. Then I would be able to call myself one. Religion and Science aren't such diverse things. They both speculate about the same things, in different ways. Like how the universe came into creation, for example. Religion isn't the only way to God, science is the other, better way, now that religious scriptures are so often misinterpreted. I suppose, one of the main things Atheism contributes to society is diversity. I think we need this diversity in beliefs to recognize the similarities in them.

There's nothing wrong with being a deist/pantheist - somebody who believes in god as someone who set the ball rolling or that the universe is in fact a deity in itself (Gaia theory on a cosmic scale) - both are perfectly logical positions which don't presume to answer all the questions about the nature of the universe in one unbelievable textbook. But it's not the same as being an atheist who doesn't believe in any kind of god.

You can be without religion and still believe in a god - many great freethinkers, especially the Founding Fathers of the United States - can be counted amongst that number.

[saachi]

(Original post by Aphotic Cosmos)
There's nothing wrong with being a deist/pantheist - somebody who believes in god as someone who set the ball rolling or that the universe is in fact a deity in itself (Gaia theory on a cosmic scale) - both are perfectly logical positions which don't presume to answer all the questions about the nature of the universe in one unbelievable textbook. But it's not the same as being an atheist who doesn't believe in any kind of god.

You can be without religion and still believe in a god - many great freethinkers, especially the Founding Fathers of the United States - can be counted amongst that number.

I didn't even know there was pantheisim! Call me ignorant. But yeah, I guess I'm a pantheist now haha

[adamrules247]

(Original post by NYU2012)
When's the last time the atheist crusades happened? Or the atheist inquisition? The atheist witch hunts? The atheist religion that made human sacrifices to their gods?

Oh, right... None of these things happened - but religions have committed all of these atrocities. Atheism: 1, religion: -1,000

Well using the definition that you seem to be putting across we can count Lenin writing letters to local party soviets telling them to use the Russian famine as a cover for murdering priests, the persecution of Catholics in Spain in the 1930s, the persecution of Catholics in Mexico in the mid to late 1920s. Now I don't want to start the whole "you've killed more people" argument because neither side wins and only in a few rare cases is religion or irreligion behind it. Just pointing out you can't do the typical Christopher Hitchens' moronic argument of "religion has never done anything good while atheists only do good things like produce rainbows, feed children, and save puppies".

[jaxxa]

(Original post by Camel)
the societal benefits of religion - charity, compassion and hope.

That's not being religious, though, that's just being a good person. You can be atheist and still live by morals.

[NYU2012]

(Original post by adamrules247)
Well using the definition that you seem to be putting across we can count Lenin writing letters to local party soviets telling them to use the Russian famine as a cover for murdering priests, the persecution of Catholics in Spain in the 1930s, the persecution of Catholics in Mexico in the mid to late 1920s.

Really, the 'definition' I used was people did these things in the name of God.

I didn't know Atheists killed or committed atrocities in the name of God? Interesting view point you have there

I'd also like to point out that none of the things you mentioned happend in the name of atheism. Whereas, everything I mentioned happened in the name of religion or god(s)

A lack of a belief in God does not promote anything - a belief in God, on the other hand, has promoted many wonderful things.

[Glow in the dark]

(Original post by JordanR)

Top comment to the video is pretty good..

"The world would be a MORE peaceful place, at least without christian-ism, money is just as harmful as religion or at least the lack of it is.

"You say WE kill not religion but religion is a man-made concept, it's binding and repressive in nature and everyone knows what repression leads to. Tolerance and love are the kernel of a peaceful existence and atheists practice it more often than theists, take for instance the posture of most christians towards homosexuality."

[adamrules247]

(Original post by NYU2012)
Really, the 'definition' I used was people did these things in the name of God.

I didn't know Atheists killed or committed atrocities in the name of God? Interesting view point you have there

A lack of a belief in God does not promote anything - a belief in God, on the other hand, has promoted many wonderful things.

Stop making up your own definition of the word "atheist". Stanford correctly defines it as a denial of the existence of God and indeed no one who called himself an atheist 50 years ago would have used your definition.

So you refuse to accept that Lenin ordered the killing of priests because he believed that the notion of God was objectively false and thus damaging. Make up your own history if you like.........