Two Sides of the Same Coin
The Parallels between Fundamentalists and Militant Atheists
By: Michael Palomino
Issue date: 12/15/09 Section: Editorial
Richard Dawkins, in particular, has spearheaded this new militant brand of atheism. Through his books he has encouraged his fans-turned-followers to confront people of faith; essentially encouraging his readers to proselytize atheism.
Moreover, what is witnessed among the most devout of these solipsistic materialists is a nihilistic desire to not just do away with religion (organized or otherwise) but with anything not based in verifiable fact in the stoic belief that this is what is best for humanity.
For many of these new atheists, you may as well toss Plato, Aristotle and Descartes on the pyres along with the Torah, the Bible and the Qur'an.
It seems these non-believers have forgotten or overlooked the insight of nineteenth century Russian anarchist and atheist Mikhail Bakunin who wrote in his treatise God and the State - "Science is the compass of life; but it is not life itself."
Bakunin understood that science, like religion, could easily be substituted in place of moral or political authority. As an anarchist Bakunin regarded any authority with suspicion and recognized the dangers of a society or state whose legitimacy was couched in science. He concluded: "the only mission of science is to enlighten life, not to govern it."
The new atheists, on the other hand, have elevated science and have turned it into its own belief system.
They have replaced one God with another; supplanting reason with dogma, and ultimately forgetting that reason and logic are a means to an end not an end unto themselves.
What we see then when we compare these two extremes side-by-side is that they share more in common than they would care to admit. Each side seeks to subvert the debate with arbitrary or reductionist arguments, in effect, they are trying to end the debate before its over.
To quote Shakespeare, much of the fault for this mess, lies not in our stars, but in ourselves. After all, each of us at one time or another have been tempted by the easy target that theist and atheist alike have created: the two-dimensional caricature of the "Superman" God.
Moreover, what is witnessed among the most devout of these solipsistic materialists is a nihilistic desire to not just do away with religion (organized or otherwise) but with anything not based in verifiable fact in the stoic belief that this is what is best for humanity.
For many of these new atheists, you may as well toss Plato, Aristotle and Descartes on the pyres along with the Torah, the Bible and the Qur'an.
It seems these non-believers have forgotten or overlooked the insight of nineteenth century Russian anarchist and atheist Mikhail Bakunin who wrote in his treatise God and the State - "Science is the compass of life; but it is not life itself."
Bakunin understood that science, like religion, could easily be substituted in place of moral or political authority. As an anarchist Bakunin regarded any authority with suspicion and recognized the dangers of a society or state whose legitimacy was couched in science. He concluded: "the only mission of science is to enlighten life, not to govern it."
The new atheists, on the other hand, have elevated science and have turned it into its own belief system.
They have replaced one God with another; supplanting reason with dogma, and ultimately forgetting that reason and logic are a means to an end not an end unto themselves.
What we see then when we compare these two extremes side-by-side is that they share more in common than they would care to admit. Each side seeks to subvert the debate with arbitrary or reductionist arguments, in effect, they are trying to end the debate before its over.
To quote Shakespeare, much of the fault for this mess, lies not in our stars, but in ourselves. After all, each of us at one time or another have been tempted by the easy target that theist and atheist alike have created: the two-dimensional caricature of the "Superman" God.
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