Atheism 3.0: God, bad; Religion, perhaps not
October 21st, 2009
Atheism 3.0 finds a little more room for religion : The New New Atheism seeks to separate God and Religion. One doesn’t exist, the other provides practical benefits.
The old atheists said there was no God. The so-called "New Atheists" said there was no God, and they were vocally vicious about it. Now, the new "New Atheists" — call it Atheism 3.0 — say there’s still no God, but maybe religion isn’t all that bad.
Faith provides meaning and purpose for millions of believers, inspires people to tend to each other and build communities, gives them a sense of union with a transcendent force, and provides numerous health benefits, Sheiman says. Moreover, the galvanizing force behind many achievements in Western civilization has been faith, Sheiman argues, while conceding that he limits his analysis, for the most part, to modern Western religion.
I remember seeing comments from an atheist on Reddit last year that said he didn’t believe in God but had gone back to church because he missed being associated with an institution committed to “goodness.” He had learned that church provided a social and community aspect to his life that vanished when he renounced God and stopped going.
As for me, I believe in God.