Question For Fellow Atheists...

[robvalue]

Offhand, I don't know. If it wasn't, then... what? Give up?

Well it's like I've already said, as Atheists we need to stop affording Theism any respect or credibility.  We should collectively encourage the attitude that Theism is no different than any delusional belief. Instead of calling it merely a 'difference of opinion' we should all be regarding it for what it really is and that is bat-shit crazy nonsense. 

Remember when we discussed the medical definition of 'delusion' and that that definition excludes religious belief?  We should challenge that definition instead of accepting it.   Dr Peter Boghossian of PSU is doing just this.  He wants to see the medical definition for delusion in the DSM revised so that it does not exclude religious belief...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIaPXtZpzBw

Sure, informally, it is a delusion. I'm totally with you there. But medically, it has different causes, manifests in different ways and doesn't respond to the same treatments as delusions caused by mental illness. Religious people are not, on the whole, mentally ill. The only reason I can think of for making such a formal change would be to try and shame people into not being religious anymore. Personally, I think that's not going to work.

I'll check out that video soon though and see what he has had to say about it.