As an Atheist, I frequently get asked some really weird and interesting questions. Though most questions I get are not so pleasant, I find that it really isn't people being rude, rather it is more along the lines of negative stereotypes that the American public has about Atheists. So, here are some debunked myths about Atheists written by an Atheist:
1. Atheists have no purpose in life.
This assumption that religion is the only thing that gives purpose in one's life is a bit outdated. Sure, some people find purpose in life through religion, but it is by no means the only reason for living. I love the arts, writing and cleaning up after my ungrateful cats and that is enough to give my life meaning. So as a wise woman once said, "You do you!"
2. Atheists are Arrogant, Sad, and Angry:
For example, the Huffington Post reports that 7 states in the United States have laws on record that prohibit Atheists from holding public office. In addition, 13 countries worldwide can revoke citizenship, deny marriage and legally kill Atheists.
I won't even go into the countless amounts of war and discrimination being condoned by many different religions (that's because it would literally be a novels worth).
So if you meet an Atheist who is mad that "In God we trust," is on our money, just take a moment and reflect on how you would feel if the phrase was, "In Aphrodite we trust."
3. Atheists belong to the religion of Atheism:
First off, a quote from Bill Maher states that, "Atheism is a religion like abstinence is a sex position."
Secondly, if you believe in something it does not automatically make it a religion. For example, many people believe that orange is the best color ever, yet that does not mean that everyone who believes this is automatically indoctrinated into the "religion of orange."
With that in mind, atheists can believe in atheism and the arguments made for it without that making them subscribed to religion.
The Oxford Dictionary defines the term religion as, "The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods."
So by definition, atheism cannot be a religion because atheists do not worship or believe in any god or gods.
4) Atheists replace religion with science:
As an atheist, I get this question all of the time where someone asks me, "Didn't you just replace religion with science?" The answer to this is obviously no.
Again, going back to the previous misconception, the term religion cannot and should not be applied to science.
The Oxford Dictionary defines the term religion as, "The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods." While science is defined as "The intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment."
In other words, science is a tool used to understand the world around us. It is not a faith because faith requires that you believewhole-heartily in something; despite there being no evidence to support it.
Thus science is and should never be called a religion.
4) Atheists are Immoral:
I feel that this myth can be best summed up from the quote below by Penn Jillette.
"The question I get asked by religious people all the time is, without God, what’s to stop me from raping all I want? And my answer is: I do rape all I want. And the amount I want is zero. And I do murder all I want, and the amount I want is zero. The fact that these people think that if they didn’t have this person watching over them that they would go on killing, raping rampages is the most self-damning thing I can imagine. I don't want to do that. Right now, without any god, I don't want to jump across this table and strangle you. I have no desire to strangle you. I have no desire to flip you over and rape you. You know what I mean?"
6) Atheists Hate God:
Personally, I feel that this is a very silly misconception. However, the purpose of this article is to educate those who may or may not have ever met an "open" atheist so here is my answer to this statement.
Atheists do not hate any God or gods simply because we do not believe in it or them.
Sure, I will admit, I do sometimes get angry with things that religious people either say or do, but that does not make me angry with their deity.
7) Atheists were Never "Really Religious":
This myth is literally a straw man argument because there is no way to evaluate how religious someone is.
Before I became an Atheist, I believed in God with all of my heart. I prayed before every meal, gave thanks to God 5 times a day and attended church 3 days a week.
So when someone says something along the lines of, "you didn't really believe in your faith" they are just using that as a poor justification to why you left your religion. They are the people who usually will not question their faith despite the many criticisms, impossibilities and blatant immorality it contains when it comes to women and people of color.
8) Atheists Hate All Religious People:
Any rational human being can look at this statement and realize how ridiculous this is.
According to the Pew Research Center, over 70% of the United States population identifies as Christians.
Since atheists are still a minority group, many atheists know relatives, friends, and co-workers who are religious.
So to say that Atheists hate all religious people is completely idiotic!
Like I said before, we do not hate religious people but we dislike religion.
Judge the person individually and judge the religion as a whole.
9) Atheists will Change Their Mind:
Some of you may have heard the statement, "There are no atheists in foxholes."
This myth basically states that atheists will convert back to their prior religion or to a new religion, if they are either on their deathbed or have been in a near-death experience.
Though this sometimes happens, it is more likely the case that once a person is an Atheist they will remain an Atheist.
This is simply because it is hard to denounce a religion due to pressures from family, friends and community members. In other words, it is easier to say that you are religious then say you are an Atheist.
So for those who do come out as an Atheist, more than likely they feel strongly and passionate about who they are. So then why would they change who they are based on incidents that happen to everyone at some point or another?
10) Atheists are Atheists because of a traumatic event regarding religion:
Though some atheists have had horrendous experiences regarding religion, this is most likely not the case on why they became atheists in the first place.
Most atheists that I have met or have read about, usually became atheists through thinking critically and questioning their religious doctrine.
Before someone becomes an Atheist, they usually spend a lot of time deciding whether or not they agree with what their religion is telling them. Many Atheists have to choose whether to keep the peace among their families and stay religious or be who they want to be and live their life the way they want to.
Regardless, most Atheists leave religion on their own terms and not because of some cataclysmic event in their lives.
