A few months ago, I read a quote by a man named Christopher Hitchens that made my heart sink.
“I think religion should be treated with ridicule, hatred and contempt, and I claim that right.”
Hitchens, author of “God is Not Great,” has also been quoted describing religion as “sinister, dangerous and ridiculous” and saying, “If I said to a Protestant or Quaker or Muslim, ‘Hey, at least I respect your belief,’ I would be telling a lie.”
Hitchens’ words highlight something that has irked me ever since I abandoned religion a few years ago.
I am an atheist. However, when I hear of actions and mean-spirited remarks by close-minded nonbelievers, it makes me highly uncomfortable.
So long as the actions of believers do not harm greater society or infringe on anyone’s personal liberties, why must they be attacked? Besides, isn’t railing against something that is so harmless and important to so many people in extremely poor taste?
As someone who grew up in a Catholic school and has friends of many different creeds and religious backgrounds, I try extremely hard to respect their views and understand why it is they believe what they do. I can say from personal experience that few, if any, of these individuals are sinister or malignant in any way.
So long as people of religion are not espousing hatred, seeking to undermine science in a negative way or wishing to insert their dogma into law and politics, as indeed some do, I really couldn’t care less about what faith it is they choose to practice.
If it helps them live a decent life and see beauty in the world, let them be. There’s no sense in trying to make them feel stupid about it if it is something they feel is making them happier, better people.
I fully understand the negative implications of religion as a whole: the wars it has caused, the families it has torn apart and the increasing blur between church and state that, in my opinion, is eroding much of the secular, democratic bedrock upon which our country was built.
However, to assume all religion and its adherents have played a role in or approved of these negative events is unwise and irrational.
These sentiments also overlook the positive things religion has given to society, including art, music and a wide array of charities.
Atheism has helped me as an individual to live a more fulfilled and enlightened life. I am more at peace with myself, mindful of my actions and their effects on others and more committed to the welfare of humanity than I feel I ever was as a religious person.
However, I am one person, and I could hardly expect every other human being to find fulfillment and enlightenment in the same way.
I wish to tolerate and accept and, in return, to be tolerated and accepted.
Open-mindedness and respect for humanity are at the foundation of my atheistic beliefs, as I know they are for the vast majority of other atheists.
It’s the more virulent figures like Hitchens that are making us all look bad.
— kabeasle@indiana.edu
