Christopher Hitchens Buddhism Sam Harris

5 Myths Atheists Believe about Religion

I’m not saying that atheists aren’t knowledgeable when it comes to religion. To the contrary, atheists in general know more about the particularities of religion than most religious people do. A recent study confirmed it. I have no doubt that they can rattle off all of the myths, falsities, fanciful claims, dangerous ideas and barbarous actions committed by the religious. It makes sense as a targeted group will generally know more about the dominant group than the other way around. But of course simply knowing more than other religious people about their traditions doesn’t preclude holding to false beliefs of their own.

There are certainly more than five myths about religion that are perpetuated by some atheists (and in some cases the religious). However, I’ve chosen what I feel to be the most significant false claims made by atheists to help provide a more accurate understanding of religion and to pave the groundwork for dialogue between these seemingly two opposing groups.

Now, let’s examine these myths.

5. Liberal and Moderate Religion Justifies Religious Extremism

While this often repeated claim seems logical at first glance, upon examination it is nothing more than another simplistic idea that provides a feel good rallying cry for those who want to denounce religion in its entirety.

Sam Harris states that moderates are “in large part responsible for the religious conflict in our world” and “religious tolerance–born of the notion that every human being should be free to believe whatever he wants about God–is one of the principal forces driving us toward the abyss.” And Richard Dawkins states, “The teachings of ‘moderate’ religion, though not extremist in themselves, are an open invitation to extremism.” Christopher Hitchens has called liberation theology “sinister nonsense” and compared the liberal Unitarian tradition to rats and vermin.

..........Pastor Dale K Whangke: Christian School Library Cleaned

A special thank you to librarian Lyn Bogge for censoring all the naughty bits out of books in our Christian School library. There are now no photos of, or positive references to, sex, evolution, liberal theology, Harry Potter, rock music, abstract art, bible contradictions, pagans, new agers, atheists, agnostics, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, skepticism, biology, astronomy, geology, cosmology, Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris, Barbie, SpongeBob Squarepants, fantasy, comics, Renaissance nudes, dinosaurs, fossils, Satan, demons, kissing. petting animals, the internet, the mark of the beast, barcodes, the International monetary fund, the Illuminati, Obama, Julia Gillard, the Labor Party, left-handedness, gays, Fred and Barney having a gay time, gun control, witches, fairies, smurfs, Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, contemporary biblical scholarship, Facebook, Twitter, Google, etc. What an awesome anointed minastry!

God Is Not Great, How Religion Poisons Everything

Worship and the Reality of God, An Evangelical Theology of Real Presence

Progressive & religious, how Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Buddhist leaders are moving beyond the culture wars and transforming American life

The Irrational Atheist, Dissecting the Unholy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris, and Hitchens

Sam Harris and the End of Faith, A Muslim's Critical Response