Pope Benedict XVI on Atheism
The encyclical describes atheism as a moral enterprise that erred in blaming the world's woes on God rather than on human sinfulness. ..."The atheism of the 19th and 20th centuries is ... a protest against the injustices of the world and of world history. A world marked by so much injustice, innocent suffering and cynicism of power cannot be the world of a good God," he wrote.
"If in the face of this world's suffering, protest against God is understandable, the claim that humanity can and must do what no God actually does or is able to do is both presumptuous and intrinsically false. It is no accident that this idea has led to the greatest forms of cruelty and violations of justice. ... A world which has to create its own justice is a world without hope."
Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
In effect, what Pope Benedict XVI is saying that is atheism necessarily leads to "the greatest forms of cruelty and violations of justice." This is reinforced when he says that Marxism was well-intentioned, but turned "destructive" because it "denied God." Presumably a Marxism that was Christian in nature wouldn’t have been destructive — which means, once again, that destruction, cruelty, and injustice are consequences of atheism which can simply be avoided by being theist, Christian, or preferably Catholic.
This makes it easier to understand why Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor thought it was reasonable to describe atheism as the "greatest of evils." After all, that's completely consistent with the views of Pope Benedict XVI and, therefore, the official position of the Catholic Church on atheism.
There are a couple of things to point out about this position and encyclical. First, Benedict is unable or unwilling to try to offer any evidence or arguments on behalf of his claims. It's easy to claim that something is "intrinsically false," but much harder to make a case for that. I could claim that Catholicism is "intrinsically false," but I doubt that would convince Benedict to quit his current job and move to Britain so he could take classes with Richard Dawkins.
Second, if you stop to think about it for a few seconds it's clear that these are pretty extreme claims to make about atheists and atheism. Remember how often religious apologists complain that atheists are militant, rude, and extremists for some of the things they say about religion — but do atheists routinely say anything more extreme than this? I don't think so. When I see a Christian insist that Pope Benedict XVI is a rude, intolerant, militant fundamentalist for this encyclical, then I might take their complaints about so-called "new atheists" a little more seriously.
Yeah, what a world, plus there’s no convincing evidence of anything supernatural acting on it. Why are atheists the pope’s whipping boys?
“atheism as a moral enterprise that erred in blaming the world’s woes on God”
Does he even understand what atheism is? How can I blame the world’s woes on something that I claim does not exist?
He seems to think atheists think that god is a bad guy instead of a non-guy.
Interesting the pope seems to see modern atheism as primarily a result of the atheological argument from evil.
Exactly Gaius.
Where as I would imagine most modern atheists would argue more from a logical or evidential stand point.
It’s obvious that the Church feels threatened by an increasingly secular world, one in which the Church is even more powerless than it is now. Thanks to widespread communication, atheists can express their views to the entire world safely in the privacy of their own homes without fear of immediate reprisal. Even if the Church could push though anti-blasphemy laws, the anonymity of the internet would make it virtually impossible to enforce. Growing trends in information exchange is the greatest threat to those who wish to control the way people think. The Church is scared, and rightfully so. May the day come when Catholicism goes the way of the Shakers.
As we evolve and learn, it gets harder to deny reality in favor of the supernatural. Many of us have evolved passed needing religion/faith and are able to focus on what’s real instead of what’s imagined.
To all dear atheists:
Did it ever occur to you that the Church is merely looking out for the eternal welfare of your immortal souls? As a devout Catholic, I assure you that none of us – whether in the clergy or the laity – are “scared” of atheism. We know where we will be after this life ends, if we keep Christ in our hearts and live our lives as closely as we can to His teachings. We are worried about you ande your souls. And we continue to pray for your conversion. Please, we beg you, when you die and meet Jesus, bow down, kiss his feet and ask forgiveness. HIS mercy is limitless! God bless you all.
RE: MIKE
Aww, isn’t that considerate, if not condescending? Um, no, you think you know. That’s what you’ve been told your entire life, so you believe it to be true. Fact of the mater is, billions of people are just as sure as you are that something completely different happens when we die. Reincarnation is just as popular as the whole heaven/hell thing.
But when it all comes down to it, there is no logical reason the “soul” even exists. It’s just something humans have invented to make themselves feel more special than the rest of the fauna. Do the great apes have souls? The higher monkeys? The lower monkeys? The Catholic Church’s official stance on evolution isn’t as dismissive as the hard-line Protestant sects. At what point in the evolutionary line did souls come into the equation?
Mike said:
We know where we will be after this life ends……
No, you don’t. You are wrong. Absolutely wrong. Here’s why: You don’t _know_ any more about any aspect of your religion than I do. It’s your _beliefs_ that you rely on. Belief that you _believe_ is divinely inspired. Based on a book that you _believe_ was scribbled by the very hand of god himself. You believe. Because that book tells you so. For fear of damnation. Or of being left behind. Or something. Belief is not knowledge. Faith is not facts. Sure, you believe, but you don’t _know_, because knowledge requires facts, and facts require evidence. Belief requires neither. The bible furnishes no facts or evidence to make its case. Only myth. Belief is only a poorly informed, ill considered opinion, usually acquired after years and years of indoctrination. Furthermore, religious belief is a fable or myth based on fear, prejudice, bias, bigotry, more fear, and elitism. It is easy to see, with a cursory inspection of the bible, that it is simply a blatant, though historically highly successful attempt to utilize ancient primative prejudces to control whole populations and nations. These statements are easily proven to any cognatively critical, analytical, open-minded, free thinking individual. Unfortunately, that logic, I am sure, is completely lost on you.
Unless that’s a valid reason for promoting lies and bigotry, your question is irrelevant.
OK, so that common reason for spreading lies and bigotry does not apply. What is the reason?
Is that, in your mind, a good reason for spreading lies and bigotry?
Given the demonstrable uselessness of prayer, that’s a good way to ensure it never happens.
Mike,
Please don’t worry about me. I am just fine. And instead of praying, how about using prayer time to do something constructive to better humanity?
Mike: “”I assure you that none of us – whether in the clergy or the laity – are “scared” of atheism.”"
You speak for ALL of the tens of thousands of them all over the world?
RE: Jesus Saves
You know who else died on the cross? Thieves and whores. Crucifixion was hardly a unique method of execution for one person. If he was killed by the state today, would the official symbol for Christianity be an electric chair? Or what if he wasn’t killed outright and just “died for our sins” in another fashion? IE: choking on some bread. Like maybe he hiccuped while eating and the small bite accidentally miraclized into a whole lot of bread in his throat? Oh glory to the divine loaf, for he choked for our sins.
Oh please, I make fun of the bastard children of gods all the time and nothing’s happened. If mighty Hercules didn’t break my face for giggling at that little skirt thing he wears, what’s a pacifist like Jesus gonna do? Send me to Hell? All the masturbation has already seen to that, so a little blasphemy can’t dig me any deeper. Man, I have had to have spilled enough seed over the years to prompt Noah to build another arc.
No, that would be the aforementioned chronic masturbation that has led to my impaired vision.
Of course I think of the consequences of my actions. To not to would make me a sociopath. I just base my judgment on real-life consequences, not fairy tales. As far as if I’m wrong, like I said earlier, lots of people believe in reincarnation, so if my inclination to manipulate my genitalia angers the forces of the universe somehow, the worst that would happen to my is I’d come back as a case of crabs on some street walker. However, also like I said earlier, there is nothing other than superstition and mythology to support the idea of souls and an afterlife. So I disregard that and focus my moral dilemmas on how my actions affect those around me. And since my masturbatory habits affect no one save anyone unfortunate enough to walk in on me, I find no fault with it. Nor should I.
RE: MIKE
Have your faith, Mike. But in the future if you’d like to contribute something meaningful, you must first defer to the notion that “believing” and “knowing” are quite distinguishable concepts. The truth is you know nothing of what you claim to know. That you may “believe” certain things – things which may even bring you comfort – is really nice. We’re happy for you. As for what you know: do a little checking up on that word before you use it next time.
Great, thanks for deleting all of Jesus Saves’ comments, now I just look like I’m talking to myself. Talking about masturbation, to myself…
Hey, I just had a thought. All the priests that were caught (literally, seen by others) jacking off little boys, who went blind, the priest, or the boys?
Hmm, a deep philosophical thought coming from one who is involved in the worlds greatest injustices and cruelty. Hey, in my own defense I must add that I’ve never raped anyone or committed genocide, persecuted a race, condemned millions to death, etc. I did hit my dog once, but it was a 125 German Shepard and he didn’t know.
Joseph: sorry, but that was a new name for someone who was already banned from commenting here but thought that a new name was a clever way around this and no one would notice. They got banned because they refused to ever directly answer any questions ever put to them.
So, I suppose in a sense you always were just talking to yourself.
Well, I do other things by myself, one more won’t hurt, right?
After reading the article; and thinking about the Pope, and his vast number of repressed “minions”…and, of course, Joseph’s ‘revealing’ comments
(What!…keep that shtick in the act, Joe…ala “The Aristocrats”?)…
it occurs to me that there are a WHOLE lot of ‘monkeys’ (of BOTH sexes) on this planet who are in dire need a good ’spanking’!
Wank you very much!
I wore my Pope Paul and “Make Babies You Can’t Feed” shirt yesterday. I had three people say what a great shirt it is. It pays to advertise, people. The more closeted atheists see commentary and opinions like my shirt, they more they will be emboldened to do the same. And the edifice of religion, and all the harm it causes, comes tumbling down.
Drew: My t-shirts have become somewhat well known, and I’m sure not liked by all, but by many:
What day did God create the Fossils?
Dear God: Thanks for Nothing, Sincerely, Man
I Wouldn’t Believe in your God even if he did Exists
Though Shalt not Fucketh Little Boys in the Aseth…god
Ann Coulter Sucks
Not all Priest Molest little Boys, some Molest Teenagers
ATHEIST
Worship me or I’ll Torture you Forever, Your Loving God
Fox News Sucks
Abstinence Makes the Church Grow Fondler’s
Hey Palin, How’s that Abstinence thing Working Out?
My Catholic Priest Molested Your Honor Roll Student
“I believe in the absolute separation of church and state” John F. Kennedy
Christianity is Stupid. Give Up
I Love Black People
How dare you wear the godda** shirt in front of my fuc*ing kids?
Weapons of Mass Destruction (picture of the bible and koran)
those are the ones i can remember.
It shouldn’t really come as a surprise,I know,but this and O’Connor’s comment about atheism ,show that the catholic church is not just morally bankrupt ,but just how intellectually bankrupt it is.Here are two of its supposedly best contemporary thinkers,and they seem unable to construct an argument which withstands the slightest scrutiny.
Gee, Pope “Joey the Rat” don’t like us “evil” non-believers! I’m OFFENDED that he’s offended.
“Those who doubt most, know most”.