(August 22, 2013 at 5:19 pm)Faith No More Wrote:(August 22, 2013 at 5:06 pm)Sword of Christ Wrote: They may be more prone to certain kinds of mental illness like depression perhaps, if for instance whatever they decided to invest all their happiness into lets them down say family, career, wealth, relationships and so on. Not to say that a theist wouldn't be upset by these things going pear shaped but would be less prone to absolute despair or suicide.
That fact is debatable(although, my experience tells me it is quite possibly true), however, the point of the article was that atheists are mentally ill for being atheists.
And it is a misconception that atheists have to invest their happiness in anything, which seems to stem from the theist view of materialism. It is very possible for an atheist to find internal happiness that isn't completely dependent upon worldly things.
This is a reply to what both of you said.
I'm less inclined to conclude that atheists are more vulnerable to mental illnesses/sadness/depression. Atheists are more likely to invest into their present life than a theist who believes in an afterlife. The more you invest into your afterlife usually results in less investment in your present life. A buddhist monk invests very much into his afterlife/next reincarnation by chanting in the temple everyday and then taking a bowl out on the streets asking for charity. He gave up the chance to see the world. I invest in things that make me happy, if it doesn't make me happy right now, or it won't make me happy within this lifetime, I don't invest in it. Since I'm always picking the option that will make me happy within this lifetime, I have a greater chance of being happy, while the monk's chance of being happy is just the byproduct of his action (which was not done to make him happy).
Bad things happen to everyone, whether or not it's easier to cope if you believe in god is highly debatable. A monk's investment and an atheist's investment can both turn south. I think it's easier to deal with that without the nagging thought that it was a punishment from god.
