A new typology of modern atheisms: pilgrim atheism versus tourist atheism

This paper distinguishes between two types of modern atheisms: pilgrim atheism versus tourist atheism. Pilgrim atheism is based on and firmly supports the religion/science dichotomy. New Atheism is today’s well-known representative of pilgrim atheism which is characterised by its hostility to all religions. However, their very atheistic conception of the human being as a cognitively privileged animal depends on a theological conception of humanity, i.e. the human being is a God-like creature who can attain God’s objective knowledge. The second part of the paper is dedicated to exploring an emerging modern atheistic discourse: tourist atheism, emblematised by figures such as Alain de Botton. The fundamental argument of that part is that tourist atheists approach religion as a cultural heritage which still contains some benefits for non-believers. Thus, their strategy of approaching religions is not absolute rejection but engaging with them as repositories of useful sentiments, rituals, insights and ideas. Thus, tourist atheists do not hold the religion versus modernity dichotomy. The paper argues that tourist atheism, which has greater concerns for human subjectivity and internal pleasure of humans, is also an extension of another theological conception of humans as created in the image of God: humans who reproduce God’s autonomy and singularity.     

新无神论

一股新的无神论潮流正在西方社会兴起。与传统无神论相比,它不但更具进攻性,而且它的倡导者说,是到了打破“宗教不可批评”的禁忌的时候了。新无神论还建议无神论者向社会公开表明自己的无神论者身份,并团结起来改变大众对无神论者的偏见。     

Friendly atheism revisited

This paper endeavors to explain what friendly atheism is and why it is reasonable to seek to be friendly toward those whose views about God differ substantially from one’s own.     

Plantinga and probabilistic atheism

Conclusion Plantinga underestimates the prospects for probabilistic atheism. He employs a flawed mathematical rendition of the atheist's crucial claim, (1) and he misunderstands the utility (1) would have for the atheist.     

Rethinking the presumption of atheism

Is there—or rather, ought there to be—a presumption of atheism, as Antony Flew (1923–2010) so famously argued nearly half a century ago? It is time to revisit this issue. After clarifying the concept of a presumption of atheism (which includes clarifying the concept of a presumption), I take up the evaluative question of whether there ought to be a presumption of atheism, focusing on Flew’s arguments for an affirmative answer. I conclude that Flew’s arguments, one of which rests on an analogy with the (legal) presumption of innocence, fail.     

无神论教育的必要和重要

本期刊载的几篇文章，大都谈到了无神论教育的必要和重要。中华人民共和国成立六十年了，《科学与无神论》杂志创办也十年了，我们还在谈无神论教育的必要和重要，似乎有些滑稽。然而这一方面反映了我们无神论宣传和教育的实际，一方面也说明此事日益引起更多人士的注意和重视。     

New atheism and moral theory

Over the past decade, New Atheists have campaigned against the influence of religion in public life and favored a more enlightened understanding of the world – one based on the methods and theories of the natural sciences. Although the leaders of this movement refuse to give religion, even moderate religion, any place in determining moral conduct, they offer few alternatives. Most define moral responsibility by referring to facts about human biology or natural moral intuitions, yet without adequately defending this or exploring the possibilities of non-naturalistic secular moralities. This essay argues that New Atheists' moral theories tend to be weak because of their naturalist assumptions. Its leading proponents seem to be unwilling to acknowledge that moral philosophy can play a role in developing secular moral precepts because philosophy fails to meet their strong criteria of scientific validity. This position is misguided not only because it has led New Atheists to defend weak moral theories but also because the methods of inquiry used in moral philosophy make it distinct from faith for many of the same reasons that the New Atheists think that science is distinct from faith.     

科学无神论和它的社会责任

科学无神论不是反宗教的,而是贯彻宗教信仰自由的;科学无神论不但是一种世界观和思维方式,而且也是一种人生态度和生活方式;科学无神论是马克思主义宗教观的基石和起点,与科学社会主义有血肉联系。它服从和服务于工人阶级政党的历史使命和国家的整体任务,着重为"科教兴国"贡献力量,让社会摆脱愚昧迷信的负担,家家过上健康和谐幸福的生活,每个人得到独立自由而全面的发展。     

科学无神论事业的可持续发展

如同一切事业只有可持续发展，才能长久存在一样，科学无神论事业也只有建立起可持续发展的机制，才能长期存在和坚持下去。一个无庸置疑的事实是，不论是作为一个研究学科，还是作为一项宣传教育工作，科学无神论事业在目前的状况都只能用“处于低谷”来形容。在这样的情况下，提出科学无神论事业的可持续发展问题，就更加具有迫切性和现实意义。     

宣传无神论的作用

<正>按:上一期我们摘登了任继愈先生《关于宗教与无神论问题》中一段,论述无神论宣传的必要。这一期,我们再摘登其中的一段,论述无神论宣传的作用。我们相信,这些论述,一定会给读者以应有的启发。