(January 25, 2017 at 11:16 am)Jesster Wrote:(January 25, 2017 at 11:05 am)phoenix31 Wrote: What do you say to those who make the argument that more atrocities have been committed by atheists than by religions?
Even if I accepted that claim (which I don't), atheism absolutely 100% cannot lead you to any conclusion or action for good or for ill. How could it? How, also, could religion have improved on the actions of the atheists who have committed atrocities any better than other secular methods, especially considering the sea of atrocities committed by the religious?
If there is no God then there is no divine consequence for actions. Power hungry people can take advantage of others and get away with things like murder and genocide as much as society allows them to. I'm not saying atheism itself leads one to ill will, but that some people are predisposed to a thirst for power and will pursue these ends if they believe they can without consequence, whereas the majority of religious teaching is centered around peaceful actions and instills fear of divine consequence for wrongdoing. So possibly those brought up with this worldview are less disposed to things like murder and genocide.
