Evangelical atheism

Evangelical atheism is a term used to describe the world view or religion of those who aggressively promote atheism. Numerous people have described the characteristics of "atheistic evangelism" during the past century and a half.

History

Origins

Thomas Huxley is considerd be the first atheistic evangelist. Huxley himself denied that he was an atheist, preferring the term agnostic, which he coined in 1868.

The atheistic evangelism standard since then has been carried by many scientists and social theorists, including Ludwig Buchner, Bertrand Russell, H.L. Mencken, Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris.

Harvard botanist Asa Gray, a believing Christian and one of the first supporters of Darwin's theory of evolution, first noted the phenomenon in 1868 when he referred to "the English-materialistic-positivistic line of thought". Such thought was usually associated with Thomas Huxley at the time.

The religious nature of Huxley's beliefs were referenced in Janet Browne's biography of Charles Darwin:

Huxley was rampaging on miracles and the existence of the soul. A few months later, he was to coin the word "agnostic" to describe his own position as neither a believer nor a disbeliever, but one who considered himself free to inquire rationally into the basis of knowledge. . .

The term fitted him well . . . and it caught the attention of the other free thinking, rational doubters in Huxley's ambit, and came to signify a particularly active form of scientific rationalism during the final decades of the 19th century...

In his hands, agnosticism became as doctrinaire as anything else--a religion of skepticism. Huxley used it as a creed that would place him on a higher moral plane than even bishops and archbishops. All the evidence would nevertheless suggest that Huxley was sincere in his rejection of the charge of outright atheism against himself.

To inquire rigorously into the spiritual domain, he asserted, was a more elevated undertaking than slavishly to believe or disbelieve. "A deep sense of religion is compatible with the entire absence of theology," he had told [Anglican clergyman] Charles Kingsley back in 1860. "Pope Huxley", the [magazine] Spectator dubbed him. The label stuck."

The New Activism

Starting with Richard Dawkins, famed evolutionary biologist and Professor at Oxford, a group of intellectuals have recently mounted an aggressive challenge not only to promote atheism but to positively attack religious beliefs of all kinds. In addition to Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, the late Hitchens and Sam Harris are the most visible faces of this movement.

Dan Barker is a leading American evangelizer of atheism, and has written extensively on the topic. He is also the founder of the Freedom From Religion Foundation. In 1993, Barker wrote a ground breaking article on "Evangelical atheism" in which he provided advice to atheists interested in promoting atheism:

I am not suggesting that every atheist should be an evangelist. Some are better off temporarily keeping their views to themselves for job security or family harmony. Some freethinkers wisely wait until they retire, when they have little to lose, before they become vocal. In certain communities, open unbelief can be costly. [...]

If you decide to be evangelistic, then ask yourself what you hope to accomplish. Are you trying to win an argument? To simply end an argument? To demolish the enemy? To chase bigoted theocrats from your door?

We want to enhance self image, not squash it. You can't yank someone out of the fold. If your objective is to end up with a friend, then woo them, don't boo them. You may not respect their current views, but you can respect their potential to learn.

Edward Tabash, an attorney based in California, is also an American evangelizer of atheism. On his website, he states his purpose as follows:

The arguments against the supernatural are powerful both from a philosophical and scientific standpoint. These arguments must be put before the public so that everyone will have access to the compelling reasons for coming to an Atheistic worldview, before deciding whether to believe or not believe. [ . . . ]

My ultimate goal is to help Atheism become so widespread and universal that when people state that they do not believe in God, we will not be able to tell, from that statement alone, what a person's position may be on a wide array of political issues. I am hoping that people from all over the political spectrum and from many diverse points of view will be able to come together and agree on the naturalistic reality that prevails in our world.

It is long overdue for Atheistic arguments to be given a seat at the table of the marketplace of ideas in today's world. I have established this website in the hope of providing a platform for the dissemination of these arguments.

Paul Kurtz, editor in chief of Free Inquiry, has written an opinion piece about the criticism of Dawkins and Harris in which he discusses the usage of the term "evangelical" in this context.

See also

• Antitheism
• Antireligion
• New Atheism
• Scientism
• Secular religion

References

• Barker, Dan Evangelistic Atheism: Leading Believers Astray in Freethought Today, 1993
• Browne, Janet, The Power of Place, Volume 2 of the Biography of Charles Darwin.(Alfred Knopf, 2002)
• Segal, David, Atheist Evangelist, article in the Washington Post Thursday, October 26, 2006; Page C01
• Witham, Larry, By Design (Encounter Books, 2003)
• Wolff, Gary, in The New Atheism, The Church of the Non-Believers reprinted in Wired Magazine, November 2006
• Wright, N. T., The Last Word (HarperSanFrancisco, 2005)