Re: The logic of atheism

Ron Peterson wrote:
Paul Holbach wrote:

THEISM =def
"the view that all limited or finite things are dependent in some way
on one supreme or ultimate reality of which one may also speak in
personal terms."

Definitions only go so far. Even materialists view that there is an
ultimate reality and can speak to it in personal terms.

Put simply, materialism is the view that everything is entirely
composed of matter.
If a materialist believes that God is a material person, then he may
call himself a theistic materialist. But I doubt that any materialist
really holds such a peculiar view, for materialism is normally
considered to imply atheism. So if a materialist addresses the ultimate
reality as a personal "thou", then he may do so only in a non-literal
sense.

The decisive difference between theism and atheism is that the latter
regards "the ground of being" as something impersonal, i.e. as
something that is not a self-conscious (rational) agent.

The difference is that an atheist is not a theist. There is no set of
beliefs that an atheist must follow (i.e. atheism).

The atheist must affirm the negation of what is affirmed by the theist.

"[I]f you ask what the most fundamental thing is about believing in
God, I would say that it is believing that there is a personal ground
of being, that the universe is in some sense grounded in a personal
reality. The universe is not the product of blind unconscious will, law
or accident. It is the product of a reality which we may rightly call
conscious, purposive, wise and good."

[Ward, Keith (2003). /God: A guide for the perplexed/. Oxford:
Oneworld. (p. 241)]

The atheistic counterpart reads:

"[I]f you ask what the most fundamental thing is about /not/ believing
in God, I would say that it is /not/ believing that there is a personal
ground of being, that the universe is in some sense grounded in a
personal reality. The universe is the product of blind unconscious
will, law or accident. It is the product of a reality which we cannot
rightly call conscious, purposive, wise and good."

When I speak of "atheistic humanism" I mean "irreligious humanism" in
the above sense.
(The label "naturalistic humanism" will do as well.)

Why add the "atheistic" label? Can't people of various beliefs
contribute to the dialog that constitutes humanism?

Theists and atheists may certainly share some fundamental ethical
principles (such as "Do as you would be done by!"), even though their
respective meta-ethical points of view are irreconcilably different. In
this respect a universal, i.e. interideological humanism is not
impossible.

There are beneficial arguments for theism (i.e. the view that one ought
to be believe in God because this belief brings about good deeds
irrespective of its being true or false); but an atheist will argue
that the positive practical consequences of religious beliefs there
might be are outweighed by the negative ones that occurred in history
and still occur worldwide.

The argument usually follows the argument that the commandent against
killing others in your tribe is a great principle that couldn't have
been thought of without religion. And you are right that many have
observed where those principles have caused great injustices to be
done. But what causes those injustices to be done? Is it the mythology,
rituals, or morality of specific religions?

The seed of intolerance and religious violence already lies in the
so-called holy scriptures.
For example, just one quotation from the Quran:

Surah 8:12. | Remember thy Lord inspired the angels (with the message):
"I am with you: give firmness to the Believers: I will instil terror
into the hearts of the Unbelievers: smite ye above their necks and
smite all their finger tips off them." | (transl. by Yusuf Ali)

Regards
PH

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