I thought I’d toss in what I believe to be a fantastic quote on the ‘why’ behind atheism.
The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today are Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable. – Brennan Manning
I wish I'd read that before! Very thought provoking.
I guess, that anyone who did the Christian thing to the T, as in biblically correct, would be considered unhinged by atheists and the average Christian?!
I think it shows that hypocrisy is the greatest way to disenfranchise followers of any individual, and turn away observers of any group. In one reading, you could substitute the “Christianity” of that quote for any religion, or political party, or celebrity, and it would still ring true.
But yes, I wholeheartedly agree with you – if anyone was living their life today according to the example of Jesus and his instructions, rather than the culture of 2,000 years of church history, I imagine they would stick out quite a bit.
That sounds like something a pastor would say to their congregation. It is not a reason "why" to be an atheist.
As people, one of the most powerful motivators for us to change an idea, or take on a new one, is personal recommendation and proof. Marketers will tell you that the most effective form of advertising is word of mouth. If you have a friend, whom you respect, and they encourage you to try a new product, and they have used it themselves, and you can see the benefit it has brought to their life, you will be far more likely to try it yourself, than if a stranger simply told you it was good.
It is the nub of the “actions speak louder than words” principle, alongside “practice what you preach, and “physician, heal thyself.”
Just look at many of the arguments people will raise against a point – so many of them hinge upon the human examples of those who adhere to that point, rather than a philosophical assessment. To stick with religion for a moment, I have seen many people say, “I don’t believe in religion because of terrorists blowing other people / themselves up, the Crusades, paedophile priests, clashes in the Kashmir etc.” I see fewer comments along the lines of, “I have thoroughly examined the philosophy and doctrine of religion X, and I find them irreconcilable.” That isn’t to say they aren’t there; there’s just fewer of them.
Humans are a herd creature. We love to run with the crowd. When we see someone with something great, we’ll say, “I’ll have what she’s having.” Conversely, when we see hypocrisy, or even if we just see lives which don’t measure up to their claims, we become disillusioned, much as we do when the actual achievements of a political term don’t match up to the campaign promises.
Of course, I am making generalisations, and I’ll bet dollars to deutschmarks that there’ll be those out there who will post, or at least think, “That’s poppycock! My life decisions are based purely on my own experience, and my intellectual conclusions, not the actions of anyone else!” Without me knowing you personally, I’m not about to argue with you about your life. But I will say that I believe, with a degree of certainty, that whoever you are, whatever you believe, there will be a strong element of human influence that went into that personality and those beliefs you carry around today.
