by Matt Barr

Anti-religion

Dean Esmay has a fine recent post on "Atheism vs. Anti-Religion." A snippet:

Because I believe most people do crave spirituality on a very deep and fundamental level, I believe that atheism itself becomes the religion for some atheists. I call them "Power Atheists," whereas my friend Paul Burgess, a Presbyterian minister, calls them "Anger Atheists." They've made atheism (and sometimes science by extension) their credo, their religion to be zealously proselytized, mocking people of faith, and blaming most of society's ills on organized religion.

I was one of those guys during a brief period of my life--I gave it up for Lent. (j/k) Ultimately, they're sad little creatures, with small minds and small worlds. I could call out a few I know by name in the blogosphere, some of whom have been personally abusive toward me just for being Insufficiently Atheist or Insufficiently Darwinist, but why bother? We've all encountered these people, it's pretty obvious when you run across one what they're all about.

Yes, you do. And let me add what I can to explain how this smug superiority, the perfect word to describe which is unearned, rankles even the irreligious but basically God-fearing person like myself. You may believe in the non-existence of God. You have plenty of evidence on your side, and even more that if there is a God, He isn't quite the stand up guy the major religions make Him out to be. And that's great.

But you don't argue against the existence of God, you argue against belief in God. What's the difference? The difference -- beyond the conjecture on my part which I can't support but, well, believe strongly that this particular sort of vehement attack on people of belief is motivated by something quite other than a desire for truth or good, i.e., demonstrating your own superiority (quite unearned, as I say), which here it turns out is of interest to absolutely nobody but yourself -- is twofold.

One, the best way to convince someone that they shouldn't believe something is to offer contrary evidence. Mocking a belief doesn't accomplish this. Two, the hardest to swallow, probably, is that unless someone else's belief can in some way affect your own life, for instance, belief in a political policy when, theoretically, the proponent can vote and convince other voters he's right, what big fat hairy difference does it make what someone believes? It doesn't. Who gives a flying Wallenda if someone believes in God when you don't?

You object, reasonably: But we have contrary evidence! You said so yourself! It's overwhelming, and we offer it all the time, when we're not sticking our tongues out and going nyah, nyah! Indeed. And I understand your frustration. But the solution isn't to continue arguing but leave aside actual arguments, it's to shut the hell up.

But people who believe in God care that I don't! They're always all in my face about how I'm going to hell! Why not talk to them! Well, yes, you're right. It happens that the faithful believe it does matter whether you agree with them or not. But you can best demonstrate -- which is often the point, I gather -- that you're more together than they are by, again, shutting the hell up. So people will try to change your mind even though you yourself have no reason to try and change theirs. So what? Honestly.

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