2006 was a good year for atheism. Every good ideological argument needs a proxy war, and last year saw a few key battles won by atheists in the 100-year fight with theism over science education in US public schools.
That debate stemmed from the release of Darwin’s Origin of Species in 1859, began in earnest in the early 20th century with the banning of teaching evolution in several US states and has been fought vigorously in the classrooms and courtrooms of America ever since. In the past year or so the tide has turned the way of the evolutionists with a number of high profile cases going in their favour:
- In 2002 parents sued a school in Georgia to have a sticker removed from science textbooks which branded evolution as “a theory, not a fact”. The court found in favour of the parents, and the subsequent appeal by the school was dropped in December last year. The sticker has been removed.
- In 2004 the Dover School Board voted that 9th grade biology students be read a statement mentioning Intelligent Design. A year later the board members were voted out and a federal judge found that they had violated the US constitution.
- In November 2005 the Kansas State Board of Education approved new standards that required teaching of “scientific evidence refuting the theory [of evolution]“. In August last year the Kansas state Republican primary elections saw a shift of control away from anti-evolutionists to moderates, with an expectation that the aforementioned standards will be repealed.
However the fight for the atheists is far from over. While select groups of parents and the courts involved in these cases have found that teaching creationism in school science classes is wrong, the majority of adult Americans are not so sure:
- 53% believe God created humans in their present form (nationwide CBS News poll, April 2006, N=899).
- 46% believe God created humans in their present form in the past 10,000 years or so (nationwide Gallup Poll, May 2006, N=1002).
- 58% favour teaching creationism alongside evolution in public schools (nationwide Pew Research Center poll, July 2006, N=996).
While this proxy war continues to be waged, the broader atheist battle has been taken up in 2006 via direct attacks against religion by mainstream scientific groups. In response to the strength of religion as a geopolitical force and the growth of fundamentalist movements – and their sometimes violent expressions – a bunch of scientists and philosophers convened in November 2006 for the Beyond Belief conference to explore the future of reason and religion. Many of the speakers are both vibrant and coherent, and you can watch or download the full session videos at the conference website. Or, even better, mosey on over to OneGoodMove where the good bits have been selected for you…
A speaker at the conference, Richard Dawkins is perhaps one of the most outspoken atheists of our time and in 2006 released The God Delusion in which he rabidly attacks arguments for the existence of God and derides religion as divisive and destructive. While his style is certainly antagonistic, his book has proven damned popular with 2006 readers:
- #3 on the Booksense Hardcover Nonfiction Bestseller List for the week ended December 31st, 2006.
- #6 on the New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction List for the week ended December 30th, 2006.
- #7 on the Amazon.com Bestsellers List as at January 7th, 2007.
- #17 on the Barnes & Noble Sales Rankings as at January 7th, 2007.
Dawkins is at the forefront of the debate between theists and atheists and, as part of his book release, has been trotted out in front of cameras and microphones all over the US and UK in recent months espousing his arguments. His intent is not only to ‘raise the consciousness’ of readers by refuting arguments for the existence of God, but also to encourage atheists to be proud and collectively organised.
The debate between evolution/atheism and creationism/theism crosses into the political sphere often and scientists such as Dawkins recognise this. In essence, he is appealing to the ‘undecided voters’ of agnosticism and compelling atheists to recognise their collective political strength and organise themselves in the way that theist groups such as the Jewish and Evangelical Christians have done in the US.
However, while encouraging the development of a collective atheist group will have powerful ramifications in many political areas (e.g. gay marriage, stem-cell research, abortion rights, the ‘Crusade‘ against Terror) the impact on a personal level for an individual could be even more so. There is a comfort shared by theists in the promise of eternal life; agnostics, who are undecided about the existence of a God may unconsciously feel comfort in that also. However ‘converting’ to atheism relinquishes this comfort altogether.
Which is, not to put too fine a point on it, a hell of a change in consciousness. It can be somewhat discomforting to suddenly realise that life is finite when you have felt the security of eternity all your life. And what’s more you certainly adopt a very, very different world view to the person next to you who believes in the possibility of a heaven granted and hosted by a deity.
So while 2006 was a year in which atheists stepped out of the shadows and made their arguments known to the mainstream, it’s going to be damned interesting to see the effect, not only on public policy, but on a collective group consciousness if 2007 proves to be a year in which they begin to attract more ‘converts’ to their ranks.
The battle for your heart and your mind wages on…
[Update: Simon has started a new discussion thread related to this post on FlatWhite Banter! which you are welco
me to contribute to]
I can see how Atheism can challenge those political viewpoints based on the absolutism of religion.
I don’t see how it can form the basis of a new political ideology. The communists use it as a tool to destroy the old ways of thinking so they can subsequently lay down new ideology.
I see science theory as the new political movement – a substitute for the religious belief system.
I’m keeping my eye on Environmental science – its my hit pick to sweep up the hearts and minds of humans once atheism has knifed religion.
I think you’re right Savvy. Atheism is unlikely to be the foundation of a new political ideology in itself (imagine the slogans though!) but it’s damn useful at the moment to consolidate rational groups into a single counter-argument to belief-based political groups. At the moment it is all-too-easy for those groups to attack diverse areas of scientific and social progress simply by invoking their beliefs. The rational argument needs to focus on the source of those beliefs rather than responding to them in a piecemeal fashion according to the current issue of the day.
And once that is done Dawkins’ metaphorical burka (I’ve got a copy of the book to lend) can be opened even wider.
FYI, Simon has started a new discussion thread on this over at FlatWhite Banter! which anyone can contribute to.
I grew up in an agnostic household, and was a committed atheist at about age 10. I have never felt the lack of a higher power, the lack of purpose, the lack of eternal life or the lack of an absolute moral compass, because I have never had these things. I consider myself lucky in this.
The guilt and anxiety produced through theism produces endless adult suffering, and lays the ground for exploitation and abuse.
o-o I too feel lucky to be without religion. I have to say though that I have met alot of happy religious people and exploitation and abuse exists everywhere regardless of religion – are you being a little harsh?