Would you like if all people became atheists?

[ideologue08]

Religious people say that always, if there are no punishments so why being good or abstaining from evil?
But if you ask them: How do you know that this is "evil"?

The knowledge of "good" and "evil" is, somehow, innate in the human race but not religions. When disposing of religion even deep religious people behave normally, if not better, without need to religious roles. That is, What makes them know the difference between good and evil without religion makes them also act according to their knowledge of good and evil.

yh, I agree with that. I would also say that the knowledge of God's existence is also innate. Religious scriptures are there to provide information we can't get for ourselves, because if we could get that information there would be no use for them. E.g the Torah tells jews not to break the sabbath, to kill the animal by invoking God's name over the slaughter etc. this is information which is not possible to find out except by divine revelation.

[max-greece]

...It's funny, but the Bible is the most popular book in Sweden...they don't believe in the religious aspects, but ...

I have a Bible that is permanently sited next to my desk. A very neat red-backed New International Version. I actually refer to it quite often - but then on this forum.....

Never even come close to converting me of course.

[ideologue08]

Didn't we just get a post showing that violent crime is falling in the States? That, at a time when atheism is at an all time high over there?

Correlation =/=> Causation

[LastPoet]

I wouldn't want a world without theists, who would we point and laugh at then?

Seriously, like wwjs said, If people conclude they are atheists on their own volition, that's ok by me. But people have all kinds of unfounded beliefs and if religion were to disapear, something else would fill the void those with existential problems have.

[Something completely different]

I just want to build my Reich.

[Simsim]

My favorite societies are secular...the Nordic nations, but the atheists in Europe tend to think more rationally than the ones I have seen come from America. It's funny, but the Bible is the most popular book in Sweden...they don't believe in the religious aspects, but they're not afraid to read it which is the vibe I get from certain atheists....though it's probably harder for a believer to read a religious book from a competing faith (I had a friend leave a class because it taught Ancient Israel [and by connection the OT...it's a reference point] from a secular standing).

Maybe because Sweden is more secular than the US. I mean that there are no fears about religion interfering with legislation and infringing others' rights.

I will tell you something, I live in Egypt, a very religious country. Our constitution was written by a religious group (the Muslim Brotherhood) and many articles are completely religious. One of them say that Sharia principles are the main source of legislation. Another article specify Sharia to be limited to the Sunni sect (This was intended not to allow even modern views of Islam)

This makes you very anti-theist ! btw, I am just an atheist and I have not aggressive attitudes towards religion itself. I even don't mind praying for social concerns for we are a very religious society. But when you see your country is destroyed by religion and religious aspects you feel very hostile towards evil represented in religion. We are on the edge of a civil war because of "faith", Islam, the Islamic project and the application of Sharia. So don't blame me or people like me when they become aggressive towards religions. I think this is the clue to understand the difference between the American and Swedish atheists' attitudes towards religions, specially dangerous ones.

Regards.

[littleendian]

Didn't we just get a post showing that violent crime is falling in the States? That, at a time when atheism is at an all time high over there?

Correlation =/=> Causation

[max-greece]

Didn't we just get a post showing that violent crime is falling in the States? That, at a time when atheism is at an all time high over there?

Correlation =/=> Causation

Agree 100%. The relationship was setup in the previous thread mentioned with the claim that American crime was worsening as a result of prayer not being enforced in schools.

Does rather beg the question - if religion does not offer any benefit to society - why have it?

[littleendian]

Does rather beg the question - if religion does not offer any benefit to society - why have it?

Very good question.

One idea that comes to mind is to have a laugh about it every now and then Few things make me laugh harder than Christian dogma in the 21st century.

[Simsim]

yh, I agree with that. I would also say that the knowledge of God's existence is also innate. Religious scriptures are there to provide information we can't get for ourselves, because if we could get that information there would be no use for them. E.g the Torah tells jews not to break the sabbath, to kill the animal by invoking God's name over the slaughter etc. this is information which is not possible to find out except by divine revelation.

I didn't 't know if you were serious or not so I searched for your threads

We don't "know" that God exists, we may "feel" that God exists. This is not knowledge but just a consequence of "feelings" of dualism.

Good and evil are not objective realities, so by saying that we "know" good and evil by nature we don't give them any independent existence from the human mind and we don't attribute any kind of absolutism to them. So your comparison, unfortunately, has nothing to do with the existence of God.