Atheist Q and A

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You should read some Wittgenstein; he was largely responsible for the destruction of logical positivism of the 20th century (or so.. hasn't reached TSR yet)

Have any of you had a dream in which religious symbols appeared or were thought of?

Overall would you say you are optimistic about the future of secularism then?

One thing I forgot to mention is the effect of a rising middle class in China (and India to a lesser extent). They are rapidly gaining shares in the global consumer market, and is likely to exceed the American middle class as the dominant consumer market in the world (I am in no way an expert on this and have zero experience of working with global markets, maybe @leavingthecity can provide some input). However, I think they will have a big impact on the religious institutions and the way religion is structured.

You are right in saying there is a rise in Christianity in places like South Korea and this could have an effect, but again I don't see this as seeping through to education (something South Koreans value) and government.

Although the majority of the Chinese population have no religion (and the religion they do follow are less dogmatic like Buddhism/Hinduism/Protestant), the Chinese culture also involves a decent amount of tradition and orthodoxy. So the traditional nature of the culture will affect global consumerism (and hence global institutions and religious institutions), but in terms of secularism I think educated Chinese and Indian cultures value it (this is secularism and not religion in itself) and will want religion out of government.

However, on the other side, there is a rise of Muslims families and their consumerism (for e.g. the Halal industry is estimated to reach about $2 Trillion). The biggest worry, however, is the Saudi-backed Islamic banks (more prominently ISDB/IDB) making all sorts of investments in return of people supporting Islam and the Shariah. Most recently, the well-funded Muslim Brotherhood (allegedly financed by IDB) tried to change the constitution of Egypt to make it more "Islamic" and they got into power by promising all sorts of investments and money into their country. This is very worrying from a secular point of view, but it is important to remember that Saudi is heavily subsidised by the oil industry which can be very volatile.

I'm still my sure what effect that would have; the growth of consumer markets in these countries. Though as more people become middle class and educated and more distracted as a consumer , you'd think they would become more secular....

Although the majority of the Chinese population have no religion (and the religion they do follow are less dogmatic like Buddhism/Hinduism/Protestant), the Chinese culture also involves a decent amount of tradition and orthodoxy. So the traditional nature of the culture will affect global consumerism (and hence global institutions and religious institutions), but in terms of secularism I think educated Chinese and Indian cultures value it (this is secularism and not religion in itself) and will want religion out of government.

However, on the other side, there is a rise of Muslims families and their consumerism (for e.g. the Halal industry is estimated to reach about $2 Trillion). The biggest worry, however, is the Saudi-backed Islamic banks (more prominently ISDB/IDB) making all sorts of investments in return of people supporting Islam and the Shariah. Most recently, the well-funded Muslim Brotherhood (allegedly financed by IDB) tried to change the constitution of Egypt to make it more "Islamic" and they got into power by promising all sorts of investments and money into their country. This is very worrying from a secular point of view, but it is important to remember that Saudi is heavily subsidised by the oil industry which can be very volatile.

Now, obviously if we cut foreign funding, the funding for mosques, imam etc... has to come from somewhere. This is probably quite controversial, but I imagine this funding would have to come from the tax payers pockets which might not be popular.

It wouldn't. Not least because the funding for no other religion comes from taxpayers. All clergy are for paid by their own church, funded by the religion's adherents or by church investments.

If we were to cut foreign funding, I can see that causing some issues. Some might perceive it as an attempt to prevent mosques from being built. Hence why I feel some alternative would need to be offered to show that the intention is not to prevent mosques being built or imams being trained, but rather specifically to counter the influence of Wahhabi and Salafi influenced Islam.

The fact is that if we did adopt such a policy, and were to be consistent, we would also have to prevent foreign funding for Churches, Temples etc... But there doesn't seem to be as much of an issue there in regards to the groups providing the funding. But if we are to continue to permit foreign funding for other groups, then that would justify the absence of support from government, as there are plenty of sources for funding for these other groups. If we are going to cut a major source of funding, we need to ensure that it doesn't create further issues.

I hope so. However, as long as we have religious texts we will have disillusionment.

It is simple: ban foreign funding for all religious institutions, all political parties and all schools that don't have at least 75% expatriate pupils. The less foreign interference we have in our domestic politics and the smaller the foreign contribution to superstitious beliefs (which would wither on the vine if left alone) the better.

It is simple: ban foreign funding for all religious institutions, all political parties and all schools that don't have at least 75% expatriate pupils. The less foreign interference we have in our domestic politics and the smaller the foreign contribution to superstitious beliefs (which would wither on the vine if left alone) the better.

I'm not sure how viable that is in such a globalised world. I mean, the influx on Africans and Arabs keeps Christianity and Islam alive in the UK alone. I think immigration even stopped the falling church attendances and they have levelled out. This isn't the same as foreign economic support, but then foreign influence on religion in the UK was always more than economic.

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I mean, the influx on Africans and Arabs keeps Christianity and Islam alive in the UK alone. I think immigration even stopped the falling church attendances and they have levelled out

Though I do agree with you here, do you not think that will be difficult? I imagine a lot of big organisations such as the Catholic Church would oppose this.

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