New Atheism is a
relatively new philosophical position that emerged in the end of the twentieth
century and the beginning of the twenty-first century. Despite the fact that
this brand of atheism does not necessarily constitute anything new
philosophically, it does take a much more critical and aggressive stance
towards religion and religious belief. At the forefront of this movement are “The Four Horsemen of
the Non-Apocalypse”: philosopher Daniel
Dennett (Darwin’s Dangerous Idea), evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), neuroscientist Sam Harris (The End of Faith), and the late journalist Christopher Hitchens
(God Is Not Great). While these four have undoubtedly contributed
the most to this movement, several atheists such as Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Infidel), Lawrence M. Krauss (A Universe from Nothing) and many others have also made a substantial impact on New
Atheism and its views.
One of the key
differences between New Atheism and other atheists of the past century is the
conviction that there can be, and in fact is, a universal secular moral
standard. The argument continues that if we can accept this, then what use is
religion to us? In fact New Atheism a moral superiority in this right due to
the fact that these morals can be established and followed without having to
include the bad parts of religion. Even though it is accepted that religion may
have been helpful to our species in the past, the majority of new atheists
argue that religion in its present form is not beneficial to the world as a
whole because of all the problems and conflicts it causes.
Many have gone as far
to describe this new form of atheism as anti-theist and many of the movement’s
supporters would warmly accept that label as well. Most who take this position
condemn religion and religious people for the horrible things that happen as a
result of following some beliefs to their rational conclusion. They feel that
people in general should not be able to hold religious beliefs based purely on
faith, which Dawkins described as evil due to it not requiring justification
and not tolerating argument. Other members of the movement have described faith
as “wishful thinking,” “non-rational or irrational,” and “unreasonable.” The best
possible strategy then is to challenge people’s
religious beliefs in order to get them to change them. This position has drawn
a ton of controversy, especially due to the fact that a lot of Western
philosophy is built upon the idea that faith in a higher power is a rational
position.
Another distinguishing
characteristic of New Atheism is its use of the natural sciences to justify its
position. In fact many of its proponents have taken to highlighting the fact
that science is now able to explain many of the things religion were at one
time or another used to explain. Not only that, but Harris, Dawkins, and
Dennett have each proposed ways in which religion could have arisen
naturally through a complex interaction
of social, psychological, and social factors. All of their theories involve
applying evolution by natural selection to the belief in religion. For
instance, during our early history, children who are born with the cognitive
ability to accept what their parents tell them would have been more likely to
survive, but also more likely to accept commonly held beliefs such as religion.
The New Atheists have, however, been criticized for focusing more on the
science than focusing on atheistic and theistic arguments about the existence
or lack thereof of god.
A final way in which
New Atheism criticizes religion is by attacking the various holy books. They
claim that there is no way that a supernatural being could have inspired such
barbaric, atrocious and evil works. Instead, they claim these are merely the
works of flawed human beings that have led to an untold number of deaths
throughout human history. They also argue that if there is a god, he must be “the most unpleasant
character in all of fiction”
due to the fact that so many holy books portray
his actions as jealous, arrogant, and vengeful. This argument also brings into
question such a being’s priorities. For instance, it raises the
question, couldn’t a divine creator have given us something
better and more morally upstanding to work with?
Despite the
overwhelmingly anti-religious rhetoric, the New Atheists feel that people
should still try to find fulfillment in their lives. Harris and Dawkins
especially think that people can find meaning through science and maintaining
an open mind rather than a closed one. Hitchens feels that we should be
striving towards a more humane world where people are better able to understand
just how wonderful a world we have. Dennett feels that a humble attitude is the
best approach, and, in an almost Saganesque way, that we should better realize
just how small we are in the grand scheme of things.
Not without its fair
share of critics, the most vocal of which include Ken Ham and William Lane
Craig, New Atheism continues to grow and flourish in the world of today.
Throughout the world, and especially in the United States and Western Europe,
religiosity is decreasing dramatically and on an unprecedented scale. As church
attendance falls, people are looking for other ways to find happiness and a
personal philosophy that lines up with their new way of thinking. While not
everyone who turns away from religion necessarily agrees with everything the
four horsemen have to say, New Atheism definitely provides an outlet for people
who have decided that religion isn’t for
them. Not only that, but it encourages interesting discussions and promotes
debate even among the more religious. People no longer have to fear the dangers
of disbelief in the way they once did and can now find support through secular
organizations and other atheists. As a whole, New Atheism has drastically
changed the way the religious and the not so religious view atheism and
religion, and it will continue to influence the debate on the place of religion
in our modern world.
You may be interested in my Atheism & Philosophy course, due to return next Spring.
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