Are some theists afraid of atheists?

[emjay]

Well FWIW I wasn't thinking of you, or any other theist on this site for that matter, in my own reply to this thread... I was thinking of the sort of theist that wouldn't dare set foot on a site like this and engage with atheists, like some I know.

As to your cultural problems with atheism... how do you figure all of those?

Because I believe none of those values can be sustained by paradigms that devolve into nihilism, which is where atheism leads. Without some kind of transcendent reference point none of those values can be rationally justified.

By nihilism, you mean the view that life is meaningless? I guess I am a bit of a nihilist... evolution has no goal... we're here because we can be, nothing more. But that doesn't change the fact that we are here and everyone, theist and atheist alike, have their own crosses to bear, challenges to overcome, moral decisions to make... everyone has a conscience... everyone has empathy for others. Are you saying it's all rendered moot... being human regardless of how we came to be human... if our 'worth'/'purpose' cannot be rationally justified in dry philosophy... ie if we come to a nihilistic conclusion?

By corroding human dignity do you mean in this nihilistic sense (as in the view that I have... that we're ultimately just biochemical machines, our reactions governed by the clockwork universe) or do you mean in a more Biblical sense where humans are placed at the centre of the universe, better than, and with dominion over, all other forms of life?

As for civil rights, what do you mean by civil rights? Everyone fights for civil rights, where they see injustice... that's not the preserve of religion. And where atheism is concerned, that fight is based on principles of fairness to all, equality, and empathy for others, unfettered by the prejudices and conformity of religion.

Finally, as for 'aesthetic hierarchies', I have no idea what that means