Austin's Atheism Blog

C.S. Lewis wanted to explain nature on the basis of his supernatural god; as a consequence, naturalistic explanations for nature represented a major threat - just as it does for contemporary apologists. Lewis argued against naturalism in a variety of contexts. It plays an important role not just in his discussions about morality, but also in his arguments about the nature of reason.

 

Read Article: C.S. Lewis and Naturalism

People seem to be able to identify what is making them happy in the present, but they have a lot more trouble identifying what will make them happy in the future. Indeed, people are wrong an awful lot about what will make them happy in the future. The implications for economics is pretty serious, given how much of modern economic theory depends on the "rational actor" premise and the belief that people will rationally choose the best products that will fulfill their wishes. There are also implications for religion, given how much of religion tends to be sold on the basis of what will supposedly make us happy in the future. Read more...

The labels "strong atheism" and "weak atheism" have become fairly standard among atheists, though it's not clear exactly why because they aren't as descriptive as some alternatives. The closest alternative is probably "explicit" and "implicit" atheism, but those labels just never became popular. Should we nevertheless try to change the terms people use, though? Does "weak" atheism communicate the wrong sort of implicit message? Read more...

What is the definition of atheism? How do atheists define atheism? How do dictionaries define atheism? A common theme throughout the definitions here is the primary use of 'disbelieve' when defining atheism. Some dictionaries drop this, but most comprehensive dictionaries do not.

 

Read Article: How Modern Dictionaries Define Atheism

Evolution is primarily about how species adapt to their environments and change in order to better survive. Usually the "environment" is the natural world, but as we humans change the world around us, we also create new conditions for evolution — including the evolution of our own species. We may be doing just that in the context of in vitro fertilization. According to a new study, freezing embryos before implantation is better than using fresh embryos because the resulting infants weigh more and have fewer abnormalities. Read more...

Many, if not most, atheists take it for granted that there is a lot of animosity, distrust, bigotry, prejudice, and even discrimination towards atheists in America. There is certainly an abundance of evidence for significant distrust of atheists, but not even all atheists believe that atheists have a problem. If atheists are going to promote skepticism and skeptical attitudes, then even this issue is worth looking at more closely. Read more...

Is gambling a sin for Christians? There's a lot of debate about this question in Christian circles, and not all Christians agree on whether there is something wrong with gambling in itself or if it is only a problem when done to excess. Why should atheists care? Because the answers to this question carry interesting implications for Christianity as a whole.

 

Read Article: Is Gambling a Sin? is Christianity a Gamble?

Chuck Norris is no scholar, but his opinions about legal, political, and constitutional matters are frequently published by right-wing sites looking for the illusion of credibility for ideologically-driven columns. It says a lot about a publication or site when they seek credibility through one-dimensional actors rather than through experienced academic writers.

Because Chuck Norris frequently writes about church-state separation — always to attack it and promote theocracy — it would be a good idea to understand how he approaches the Constitution. Apparently, his idea of "returning" to the Constitution involves deliberately and blatantly ignoring what it says. What might this tell us about how he "interprets" the First Amendment? Read more...

What is the American "Bible Belt" and how did it originate? Why did the most conservative strains of Christianity moved from New England down to the South? Much has been written about Southern evangelical and fundamentalist Christianity in America, but not a lot has been written about its very earliest origins: how a mostly Anglican region based upon money and commerce was converted to the Baptist and Methodist denominations based on authoritarianism and masculinity.

 

Book of the Week: Southern Cross: The Beginnings of the Bible Belt

I've encountered many different and unusual myths about atheists and atheism, most of which depend upon making assumptions about atheists without paying attention to who they are or what they do. This myth, however, may be the most absurd and ridiculous of them all. I'd concede that at least some myths have some tiny bit of misrepresented truth to rely upon, but this myth has absolutely nothing whatsoever to back it up.

 

Read Article:Myth: Atheists and the Atheistic World View Don't Allow for Forgiveness