No one really cares about the atheist billboard that made its debut downtown today.
On the corner of North LaSalle Drive and West Grand Avenue, Chicagoans pass by silently, smoking cigarettes, chatting on cell phones and barely glancing up at the sign, which says: “Are you good without God? Millions are.”
Like the Indiana Atheist Bus Campaign ads on the CTA back in May, it seems the latest effort to publicize non-belief is a non-issue in the city of Chicago. No protesters. No angry glares. No immediate public response from the religious community.
Hemant Mehta, the coordinator of Chicago Coalition of Reason, the group that sponsored the billboard, thinks no reaction might be a good reaction.
“If Christians (or whomever) don't react, that means atheism is becoming more acceptable in society. Which is great. If they do react, then what exactly are they opposed to?” said Mehta, also known as the “Friendly Atheist, in an email.
More and more Americans are falling into the “good without God” camp—16 percent of adults don’t identify with a religious tradition and 4 percent call themselves atheists or agnostics, according to a survey by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.
Sam Younan, an Iranian-American Catholic who passed by the billboard on his way to church on Tuesday, said just because there are millions of people who don’t believe doesn’t mean they’re all right.
“I’m good, and I believe in God,” the 56-year-old said.
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Kate Shellnutt
I’m a freelance religion reporter and blogger for the Little Things. I majored in religion and journalism as an undergrad, and I'm now completing my master's in journalism at Medill.
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Regina Spektor's new song "Laughing With" may have softened the debate concerning whether there's a god & whether having one serves our best interests during those most trying of times.
"Sam Younan . . . said just because there are millions of people who don’t believe doesn’t mean they’re all right."
And that's the point of the billboard, to show other rationalists that just because they are surrounded by religious believers doesn't mean they're right.
It's ironic to see atheists being evangelical about their atheism.
On the contrary, those who don't believe are right. To "believe" in something is intellectually dishonest. If you don't have enough evidence to know it, withholding belief is the right response for any rational person.
So, I guess all those scientists who 'believe' in dark matter are being intellectually dishonest and are irrational? Who knew? Or is just that YOU get to decide what is "enough evidence"?
Theorizing and believing are very different things. But, yes, if they wholeheartedly "believe" in the existence of something without adequate evidence to support it, they are being intellectually dishonest.
DNarciso illustrates my point. Regarding his/her point, non-belief in God is also a belief, though neither belief in God or in God's non-existence can be proven objectively, at least to we subjective mortals. I'm sure we're wrong to say that someone is intellectually dishonest for weighing what evidence they see and coming to a conclusion that we might not agree with. We may not agree on what constitutes reasonable evidence, but perhaps that's an honest difference of opinion.
Yes, lack of belief in God is a belief in something else, typically anything else. Are you saying you believe in nothing. If so, you're being dishonest.
Lacking belief is a belief??? Give me a break.
That's just silly. My lack of belief in god is just that. I do not have any belief in any gods. There is nothing more to it. I don't know if there is a god and if you were honest yourself, you would admit that you don't know either. No one knows. So why would I "believe" one exists when it is not evident? That's dishonesty.
I try not to believe in anything. I try to find knowledge where I can, and honestly admit I don't know where I can't.
I get that you can't comprehend that simplicity. I get that it gnaws at you that people can simply not believe. I get that you have to try to ridicule them and claim that they MUST believe in something! Because you feel a lot better when you think everyone else is just as crippled by "belief" as you are.
And I admit that I try to talk to nuts because I "believe" that I can nudge them into just THINKING for once. Truly that is a "belief" because clearly there is no evidence that such a thing will EVER happen.
www.atheistview.com
More specifically, Atheists don't believe in the Gods that have been claimed. It's a disbelief and by definition cannot be a belief.
Well that depends on your point of view. Consider the question, "Do you believe in any god/gods?". If yes, well, great, you believe in something. If you answer no then logically that implies that you believe that no gods exist, which would be a belief. Follow?
If you place your faith in the proposition that there is no God, then you've placed your faith in a proposition that you cannot prove. Nonetheless, you've made a faith statement.
We all believe in something, otherwise we wouldn't try to communicate. The fact that you're trying to communicate suggests a belief in the thing that you wish to convey to others.
I have not placed my faith in the proposition that there is no god. You are not listening to me. I have no belief in gods. That's it. I don't "have faith" that they don't exist. I simply do not believe that they do.
I'm trying to communicate because I see misinformation. Not because I have some kind of belief that I'm trying to share with you.
I've experienced this "wall" effect before and frankly, don't care to expend much more energy on it/you.
www.atheistview.com
I'm saying that you have faith in something. We all do. I understand that you do not have faith in a god. You apparently have faith in your own intellect, perhaps, but nonetheless, this is a faith. You cannot prove that your presuppositions are true. You take them on faith. The irony is that you're self-righteous about being an atheist. Sweet.
If something is demonstrable it doesn't require faith. I only put my "faith" (as in loyalty) in things that are demonstrable and testable. Like my husband, for example. I never put "faith" (as in belief) in anything. I prefer to remain open to evidence and that kind of faith tends to pull down the shades.
Thanks for the discussion. But it's clear I'm not getting through yours.
www.atheistview.com
I hope your faith is well placed.
DNarciso, I'm willing to bet you've get this "wall" anytime this type of conversation comes up. The problem isn't your personal views,it is how you go about explaining them. You say you don't believe gods exist, yet you don't believe that they don't exist. A good example of reduction ad adsurdum. It's like saying you don't believe Elvis is alive, somewhere, but you don't believe he is dead either. It's got to be A or B, but you claim C. That he is not alive, but neither is he dead.
I'm not saying you're wrong, as I myself am athiest, but you might get farther if you re-examine the way you make your argument. As the above logic if clearly faulty. Though I've never known mere a conversation to radically alter somebody's beliefs.
That's very helpful. Thanks for suggesting this. I'll add that I never stated whether or not I'm an atheist. I was simply trying to point out an irony in the nature of the original article, and then that faith is a matter of where one places it, not whether one has it or not. One's "faith" can be as limited to the notion that "I still have another breath to breathe," yet this is still some matter of "faith," or at least I'd contend. Hopefully we can find something larger this to place our trust. It doesn't bother me that some people place their faith in things that I might consider to be unworthy of one's trust. It's their choice, but to say that they're not simply choosing where to place their faith seems erroneous to me. I'd contend that atheists live by some matter of faith as much as anyone else, though they may not like to think so.
Do you believe in the tooth fairy? Actually you know there is no such thing as a tooth fairy so it makes no sense to say that you don't believe in something that is a man made imaginary creature created to relieve a child's apprehension about losing a tooth. Actually you don't believe in most of the gods that have been popular throughout history. You wouldn't say that you don't believe in those gods, you would just say that they are myths. If you say that you don't believe in them then you are saying that there are other gods, but you don't believe in them. Do you believe that there are other god's? Be careful, the skies are looking like a lightning storm might be brewing and your god is very vengeful.