Guest Opinion: Atheism is a liberating world view
By Dr. Gilbert D. Shapiro
Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Arizona April 19, 2007
Atheists are "seen as a threat to the American way of life by a large portion of the American public," according to a national survey conducted by the University of Minnesota.
The research, reported in April's American Sociological Review, sadly confirms to me that many of our citizens are uninformed and undereducated. The conclusions are an insult to an estimated 30 million Americans who are honest, rational, moral and unfortunately far too quiet.
It is therefore time for atheists to "come out of the closet" and shout out loud the famous line, "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any longer!"
I certainly do not speak for all atheists, but I think I can briefly clear up some misconceptions and clarify a few atheist positions.
Let's first affirm that atheism is not a religion. It is quite simply a fundamental world view that asserts that to date there has been no evidence for the existence (reality) of gods. Logically, it is therefore incumbent on believers to support their claims rather than the reverse.
The evidence that we do have argues quite strongly that the Judeo-Christian deity does not exist. For example, God is traditionally described as all-powerful, -knowing, -present and -good and not of time or space. Like square circles and married bachelors, it is an incoherent statement on its face and proven so by a simple reality check.
Scientific research just published in the American Heart Journal has found that praying for someone's health to improve is ineffective. Miracles (events that violate natural laws) have never been documented. Indeed, there has never been confirmation of a divine intervention or, for that matter, anything supernatural.
Spirituality, regrettably for many, has never been shown to be anything more than just heightened human awareness. The suffering and misery resulting from tsunamis, earthquakes, famines, etc., are testimonies that nature is exquisitely indifferent to all living things.
Evolution, a nondebatable scientific truth (like gravity), denies the divine character of man as portrayed in the Bible. Faith, the underpinning and the engine that runs religion, is defined as belief without reason. In the rational world, if one has supportable reasons for a position, then one would not need faith. For atheists therefore, all belief has to be based on reason, logic and rational thought.
Atheists have observed that the deeper the religious belief the more there is a lack of intellectual integrity.
Whereas atheists would change their position the minute there was evidence for a god or for the supernatural, religionists are so hard-wired and vacuum-sealed in their beliefs that they freely admit that their position is not even open for discussion.
Atheism is the liberating view incorporated in the philosophy of secular humanism. Its central theme is that man alone is solely responsible for his destiny on earth. Morality has been shown to be a product of human development over thousands of years; no deity is necessary to counsel us about right and wrong.
Atheists are continually amazed that Americans can reason with such clarity and critical thinking on most aspects of life except when it comes to God and religion.
God, faith, religion, and the supernatural are, in the atheist's world view, the causes of the delusional wishful thinking that has at best, wasted man's time and at worst, been responsible for his most awful behaviors.
Dr. Gilbert D. Shapiro is a Tucson podiatrist. Reach him at .
