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Atheism and Religion

Atheism and Religion. James Fodor. What is Atheism?. What is Atheism?. ‘Atheism’ from Greek ‘ atheos ’, meaning ‘without god’ Atheist: “I do not believe in god/gods” Agnostic: “I don’t know/I don’t know if we can know if god/gods exist” Atheism has no positive beliefs of its own

JasminFlorian
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Atheism and Religion

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  1. Atheism and Religion James Fodor

  2. What is Atheism?

  3. What is Atheism? • ‘Atheism’ from Greek ‘atheos’, meaning ‘without god’ • Atheist: “I do not believe in god/gods” • Agnostic: “I don’t know/I don’t know if we can know if god/gods exist” • Atheism has no positive beliefs of its own • Related movements like Skepticism and Humanism do have positive beliefs

  4. Related Schools of Thought

  5. Why be Atheist? • Two main categories of reasons: • Religion is harmful • Religion is wrong • Not mutually exclusive

  6. Caveat: there are always counter-arguments!

  7. “Religion is Harmful” • Religious war and terrorism • Suppression of science and art • Treatment of women • Indoctrination of children • Destructive practices (faith healing, genital modification, witch hunts) • Corruption and excessive power

  8. “Religion is Wrong” • The problem of evil • Argument from many faiths • Argument from poor design • Science is sufficient (Occam’s Razor) • Free will/divine omnipotence paradox • Absurdities & contradictions in holy texts • Ignosticism: the concept of ‘God’ doesn’t make sense 

  9. My Experience

  10. My Experience

  11. My Experience

  12. Why I Left the Mormon Church • Problems with the Book of Mormon • Issues in church history • Contradictions with science • Dishonesty and secrecy of the church • Incoherent and unreasonable doctrines • Anti-intellectualism in church policy

  13. Leaving Religion Isn’t Easy • Family • Friends • Community • Culture • Beliefs

  14. Part of the Problem

  15. Why Genuine Dialogue Matters • Increase understanding of other beliefs • Critically analyse your worldview from new perspectives • Avoid misperceptions and stereotypes • Reduce hatred and bigotry • Build a common front against radicals

  16. Why Genuine Dialogue Matters

  17. Why Genuine Dialogue Matters

  18. Why Genuine Dialogue Matters

  19. One thing we can Agree on?

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