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Does Evolution require Atheism
Posted on: July 10, 2009 - 6:28am
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Does Evolution require Atheism
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I came upon this question ~ Does Evolution require Atheism ? Were do you stand ?
Evolution does not require atheism. Evolution has nothing to say on creation or any aspect of the divine.
Forget Jesus, the stars died so that you could be here
- Lawrence Krauss
No, it doesn't require atheism, it just contradicts a literal interpretation of many theistic creation myths. Theists can still hide in claims of poetry...
According to the current pope and the pope before him, "evolution is not incompatible with being catholic." On a personal note I do know religious people who DO believe in Darwin. My only problem with some of these people is that they talk about Darwin like he is a rival religion. We have evolution as a science but I am not aware of any religious sect called Darwinism.
"Very funny Scotty; now beam down our clothes."
VEGETARIAN: Ancient Hindu word for "lousy hunter"
If man was formed from dirt, why is there still dirt?
Not superficially. It is, however, problematic for many religions, to put it mildly. Literal creation myths are obviously contradicted by the evidence, but it also raises the question of the role of morality and sin. The concept of sin has no meaning in an evolutionary paradigm, as our behaviors are largely molded by evolutionary history. So, for example, the Christian mythology would lose both the genesis of a sinful nature and the need for a savior.
All that is necessary for the triumph of good is that evil men do nothing.
No. Evolution does not require atheism. Evolution deals with biological life. That's it.
Atheism isn't a lot like religion at all. Unless by "religion" you mean "not religion". --Ciarin
http://hambydammit.wordpress.com/
Books about atheism
No.
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
How about...
Does Atheism require Evolution ?
Atheism does not require Evolution, I know a few atheists that claim we are the products of aliens. However they do not believe in any gods.
As evolution becomes more and more accepted, many religious folk are backtracking and taking the stance that god created us through evolution. Then of course there's that idiotic "micro" vs "macro" evolution stance.
Free your mind.
I somewhat disagree with the opinion that evolution does not require Atheism. Atheism is just a lack of belief in the superstitious and fantastic claims without evidence.
Suppose you asked the question does passenger airplane design require atheism? What if the aircraft designers believed that if the passengers prayed really hard, this could compensate for any equipment failures? The designers could just say, we don't need a backup systems, the passengers can just be instructed to pray if a system fails. So, doesn't good aircraft design require an assumption that no god will intervene?
Same is true of all science, there is an assumption that no magical deity is messing with the experiment and observations.
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen
Actually, atheism is just a lack of belief in a god. You could still be an atheist and have superstitious beliefs, based nowhere in reality. You could believe that "the one ring" is out there and somewhere you have to find hobbits to take to Isengard, and still be an atheist.
Or you could believe in ghosts, witches, magical powers, psychics, orcs, goblins, faeries, reaganomics, under-the-bed and in-the-closet monsters, things that go bump in the night, zombies, vampires, angels, demons, magical people that live under your stairs, Narnia, and any number of other things, all entirely irrational and not based in reality...and still be an atheist.
Theism is why we can't have nice things.
No, it's just lack of belief in a God. You can still believe all kinds of other woo-woo claims.
Yes, but many people who work at Boeing consider themselves Christians, and the airplanes Boeing makes are still safe and aerodynamic. Sure, there might be some cognitive dissonance going on, but bottom line, these things simply don't require atheism. Plus, you forgot about deists, pantheists, and every religion that doesn't believe praying will prevent the plane from crashing into the ground. Remember? There's other types of theists too?
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
Requires part time atheism or at least a lack of total belief in magical dieties than can affect how a plane flies.
This is why I'm not 100% sold on this 'cognitive dissonance'. If a theist worked at Boeing and he held to contradictory beliefs, he might one day suggest they put in a prayer sign for the pilot to light up just like the seat belt sign. They don't do this because they know that their religious belief if BS. They know there is no coorelation between prayer and a safer plane. It's more like a phony act they put on than actually believing anything.
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen
The question of atheism requiring evolution is actually a little complicated. From a pure philosophical standpoint, no, it does not. However, there's a problem of infinite regress that needs to be addressed.
Did life get planted by aliens? How did the aliens come to exist? If they were planted by aliens, how did those aliens come to exist? If they came from another universe, how did the beings in the other universe come to exist, etc, etc.
The only scientific explanation for any life whatsoever is evolution. I suppose an atheist could believe in some other kind of natural process besides evolution that could result in life, but it seems like it would be dangerous territory. Any suggestion of "intelligence" of any kind being at the root of life is dangerously close to theism unless it proposes a natural way for that intelligence to have come to exist -- and then you have a problem of regress.
I do believe that naturalism requires evolution or a scientific alternative. Since no scientific alternatives exist at this time, it's safe to say that naturalism requires evolution. Since many atheists are naturalists, it is understandable that the two could become somewhat intertwined.
Atheism isn't a lot like religion at all. Unless by "religion" you mean "not religion". --Ciarin
http://hambydammit.wordpress.com/
Books about atheism
Okay, that's possible, but you still wouldn't need to be an atheist, which is the question posed in the OP. Again, you can be a deist, pantheist or any theist that doesn't believe in the power of prayer. Concerning evolution, you can even believe that God created the first self replicating life forms and allowed evolution to take over.
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
This was supposed to be one post.........
It has to be unconscious. If it was conscious, then all theists would lying. I don't think everyone is lying. So, they really do believe in prayer, but they also do everything they can, realistically, to ensure that the passengers are safe and the flight reaches their destination without incident.
Our revels now are ended. These our actors, | As I foretold you, were all spirits, and | Are melted into air, into thin air; | And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, | The cloud-capped towers, the gorgeous palaces, | The solemn temples, the great globe itself, - Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, | And, like this insubstantial pageant faded, | Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff | As dreams are made on, and our little life | Is rounded with a sleep. - Shakespeare
Yeah but the laws tell them that the airplanes need to haver certain things. These laws are atheistic or at least dont consider any magical deus ex machina god, coming in and saving everyone at the last minute, messing with things. This is true even in very religious countries like the United States.