The traditional arguments for the existence of God have been fairly thoroughly criticised by philosophers. But the theologian can, if he wishes, accept this criticism. He can admit that no rational proof of God's existence is possible. And he can still retain all that is essential to his position, by holding that God's existence is known in some other, non-rational way. I think, however, that a more telling criticism can be made by way of the traditional problem of evil. Here it can be shown, not that religious beliefs lack rational support, but that they are positively irrational, that the several parts of the essential theological doctrine are inconsistent with one another, so that the theologian can maintain his position as a whole only by a much more extreme rejection of reason than in the former case. He must now be prepared to believe, not merely what cannot be proved, but what can be disproved from other beliefs that he also holds.
J.L. MackieTags: reason philosophy atheism theology argument irrational problem-of-evil atheist-argument argument-from-evil atheistic-philosophy inconsistent philosophy-of-atheism rational-proof rational-support rejection-of-reason
Not only had I got rid of the theology and the supernatural, but I had found the truth of evolution.
Andrew CarnegieTags: science truth atheism atheist evolution theology supernatural
The spectacle of what is called religion, or at any rate organised religion, in India and elsewhere, has filled me with horror and I have frequently condemned it and wished to make a clean sweep of it. Almost always it seemed to stand for blind belief and reaction, dogma and bigotry, superstition, exploitation and the preservation of vested interests.
Jawaharlal NehruTags: atheism dogma horror superstition organized-religion bigotry india spectacle condemn blind-belief
I wish to declare with all earnestness that I do not want any religious ceremonies performed for me after my death. I do not believe in such ceremonies, and to submit to them, even as a matter of form, would be hypocrisy and an attempt to delude ourselves and others.
Jawaharlal NehruTags: belief death atheism hypocrisy delusion funeral religious-ceremonies
I cannot understand why we idle discussing religion. If we are honest—and scientists have to be—we must admit that religion is a jumble of false assertions, with no basis in reality. The very idea of God is a product of the human imagination. It is quite understandable why primitive people, who were so much more exposed to the overpowering forces of nature than we are today, should have personified these forces in fear and trembling. But nowadays, when we understand so many natural processes, we have no need for such solutions. I can't for the life of me see how the postulate of an Almighty God helps us in any way. What I do see is that this assumption leads to such unproductive questions as why God allows so much misery and injustice, the exploitation of the poor by the rich and all the other horrors He might have prevented. If religion is still being taught, it is by no means because its ideas still convince us, but simply because some of us want to keep the lower classes quiet. Quiet people are much easier to govern than clamorous and dissatisfied ones. They are also much easier to exploit. Religion is a kind of opium that allows a nation to lull itself into wishful dreams and so forget the injustices that are being perpetrated against the people. Hence the close alliance between those two great political forces, the State and the Church. Both need the illusion that a kindly God rewards—in heaven if not on earth—all those who have not risen up against injustice, who have done their duty quietly and uncomplainingly. That is precisely why the honest assertion that God is a mere product of the human imagination is branded as the worst of all mortal sins.
Paul A.M. DiracTags: imagination politics reality injustice natural atheism fantasy atheist control materialism nobel-laureate problem-of-evil church-and-state physicist false-assertions imagining-god
I am an atheist and that's it. I believe there's nothing we can know except that we should be kind to each other and do what we can for other people.
Katharine HepburnTags: kindness knowledge morality belief selflessness atheism atheist caring
I am not religious in any sense; in fact, I consider myself an atheist.
Subrahmanyan ChandrasekharTags: science atheism atheist physics views beliefs irreligious nobel-laureate
...if you ask me whether or not I'm an atheist, I wouldn't even answer. I would first want an explanation of what it is that I'm supposed not to believe in, and I've never seen an explanation.
Noam ChomskyTags: belief atheism burden-of-proof explanation atheist question
[When asked by a student if he believes in any gods]
Oh, no. Absolutely not... The biggest advantage to believing in God is you don't have to understand anything, no physics, no biology. I wanted to understand.
Tags: science biology atheism ignorance understanding atheist physics watson nobel-laureate dna god-of-the-gaps double-helix watson-and-crick
I simply would not accede to being forced into this, and would frequently be kept out of classes because of irreverent comments and mocking this religious stuff. Frankly, it stayed with me to this day. In fact, don't get me going. I'm almost as bad as Richard Dawkins on this issue.
Richard E. LeakeyTags: science biology atheism atheist evolution anthropology richard-dawkins dawkins paleontology irreverent mocking-religion
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