The Atheist Bus Campaign: Why it's Okay to Offend the Religious
First off, I have to admit that initially, the idea of an "Atheist Bus Campaign" made me cringe a bit.
I thought that the campaign, which has already been launched in Britain and Spain and is now coming to my hometown of Toronto, blurred one of the distinctions that I think separates non-believers from many religious groups -- an opposition to large-scale proselytization.
But seeing what the campaign consists of made me chuckle: it's a series of ads in buses, subways, and trains that simply proclaim, "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" -- an upbeat, somewhat tongue-in-cheek-sounding statement that can just as easily be translated to, "Don't worry, be happy!"
Also, although the word "probably" was placed into the statement to satisfy legal advertising standards, it maintains another distinction between the rationalists and the religious -- the rejection of absolute certainty in the absence of evidence.
The idea for this campaign -- which is very controversial and has outraged religious groups in Europe and North America -- was first proposed by Ariane Sherine, who saw two bus ads from a website called JesusSaid.org, that quoted Luke 18:8, on her way to work. She expressed her response in a column in The Guardian last year:
"[Apart from the Biblical quote], there was also a web address on the ad, and when I visited the site... I received the following warning for anyone who doesn't 'accept the word of Jesus on the cross': 'You will be condemned to everlasting separation from God and then you spend all eternity in torment in hell. Jesus spoke about this as a lake of fire which was prepared for the devil and all his angels (demonic spirits)' (Matthew 25:41). Lots to look forward to, then.At the end of the day, non-believers and rationalists will use words: they will question, challenge, and ask the religious for evidence supporting their beliefs and ideas -- applying the same standards to religious claims as they would to any scientific theory, political ideology, or legislative proposal. At the very most, they may satirize these beliefs and make jokes, all of which falls in the realm of non-violent free speech.
Now, if I wanted to run a bus ad saying 'Beware - there is a giant lion from London Zoo on the loose!' or 'The bits in orange juice aren't orange but plastic - don't drink them or you'll die!' I think I might be asked to show my working and back up my claims. But apparently you don't need evidence to run an ad suggesting we'll all face the ire of the son of man when he comes, then link to a website advocating endless pain for atheists."
But what do the holy books -- which billions believe contain the indisputable word of God -- say about non-believers or those who question religion?
Start with Leviticus 24:16 in the Torah/Old Testament, which states clearly that "blasphemers" who question the Lord are to be stoned to death. (Remember, for Jews and Christians, this is God speaking.)
In Islam, the blood of one who converts out of Islam is halal (the Islamic equivalent of "kosher"), and numerous verses in the Quran speak about a "terrible fire" awaiting non-believers, where they will dwell for eternity.
The view of Christianity towards non-believers is pretty clear in Sherine's citation of Matthew 25:41. And to Catholics who have been outraged and hurt by this ad campaign, is it really worse than what Pope Benedict XVI wrote in his Dominus Iesus?
"[Followers of other religions are] in a gravely deficient situation in comparison with those who, in the [Roman Catholic] church, have the fullness of the means of salvation."Another argument against the campaign from the religious right is that it is "hate speech". Again, there's no comparison.
It's well-known that the holy books advocate many forms of sexism, from saying that a woman's word (Quran, 2:282) or monetary worth (Leviticus 27:3-8) is half that of a man, to declaring that a woman who is not proven to be a virgin on her wedding night should be sent to her father's doorstep to be stoned to death (start at Deuteronomy 22:20 and read on), and that's just scratching the surface. Homophobia also figures prominently in the holy texts, and the Pope himself pulled an Ahmedinejad when he called homosexuality an "intrinsic moral evil" and an "objective disorder".
And again, what do the scriptures say about the non-believers?
Apart from being sentenced to death here on earth for simply questioning these beliefs and scriptures, non-believers are also promised eternal damnation in hell, and considered to be immoral, evil agents of Satan that have gone astray. Hate speech, anyone?
Which side over here should really be offended?
Let's get real. The ad may not be the best idea ever, but it's fun, it's satirical, and it's a smart, funny response to similar ads from the religious community that aim to use fear and guilt to make you feel bad about yourself and give them your support and money (that they don't have to pay taxes on, by the way). These are the people that persecuted Galileo for saying the world was really not flat, but round, and still reject evolution in the face of evidence like fossils, molecular genetics, and the innumerable species of bacteria that have evolved over the last few decades to become resistant to penicillin. Worse, these ideas frequently find their way into our legislation, foreign policy, and public schools.
Let's welcome the much-needed dialogue that the ad campaign brings to Toronto and other cities after it. When President Barack Obama acknowledged non-believers in his inaugural speech, he was acknowledging between 10% to 16% of the population of the United States (more than 25% of 18-25 year olds) -- that's more than Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists combined and doubled.
It'll be okay. Now stop worrying, and enjoy your life!
Follow Ali A. Rizvi on Twitter: www.twitter.com/aliamjadrizvi
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God is an idea. We humans made it up.
This *Fact* so elquently expressed is ehe bottem-line.
"Knowledge is a continuous fabric, in which ideas are connected to other ideas. Reason-free zones, in which people can assert arbitrary beliefs safe from ordinary standards of evaluation, can only corrupt this fabric, just as a contradiction can corrupt a system of logic, allowing falsehoods to proliferate through it." - Steven Pinker on Jerry Coyne's question "Does the empirical nature of science contradict the revelarory nature of faith?" @ Edge
the left needs someone to vent their rage on....they have boxed themselves in with political correctness until there is no one left except christian white people to go after with their hateful rants
thank god for God ...especially now that they dont have bush to hate on anymore
Many on the left (how many, no one knows) have made religion a metaphor for the neocon philosophy, a strategy astonishing in its utter lack of forethought and wisdom--I mean, who is stupid enough to imagine that all people of faith are extreme Cheney supporters? But there you have it.
There seem to be four main thrusts to the faith-bashing movement: 1) the diminishing popularity of "traditional" faith (think mainline churches and their services); 2) the adoption of Skeptical-Inquirer-style atheism by the left; 3) liberal disdain for Southern and lower middle-class culture, of which religion is a huge part; and 4) anger toward the religious right in particular, facilitated by the absurd myth that this group, by itself, put Bush in office. (No other demographics made it to the polls, apparently!)
All of these things make faith too delicious a scapegoat for many--and so they toss logic to the wind and condemn religion across the board as a fascist, hyper-right-wing force. Thus, they slander everyone involved with religion, including the many people of faith on THEIR OWN SIDE. Are they stupid? Or at least nuts? Again, these folks can't resist the opportunity to diss all of these things (1-4) in a single gesture.
These people are an embarrassment to the left. They're our equivalent of O'Reilly and Limbaugh.
Sorry to burst your bubble.The bus campaign is in Britain, Spain, and Canada. It really isn't about Bush or christian white people in America.
BTW - Every god is as absurd as the next.
"My God's better than your God,
My God's better than yours.
My God's better 'cause He..."
Whoops, it's supposed to be dog, isn't it.
Sorry.
there is one irony that I can't help but put out here. The pantheist way of looking at things is from a scientific, rational and impirical point of view, that does its best to remove emotions from discovery of the nature of The Universe. And it is the nature of the universe, and existance of Everything that brought traditional diety based religion into being.
But, though I am a strict secular pantheist, and denounce the existance of "God" as taught by the Abrahamic Religions, I am finding it more and more difficult to denounce the existance of SOME form of intelligent life having been the source of creating of everything. Despite what most militant Atheists will try to tell you (propoganda that is just as bad as Religious Propoganda), the universe is far from random, far from having been created by "luck" or "chance". There ARE specific rules and guidelines that every atom, every particle of the universe follows, and it is our destiny as humans to find and determine those rules and guidelines.
In a sense, it is the next evolutionary step in the Intelligent Design argument, which postulates that some force, some intelligence MUST be the source for all creation. But, without the judgements usually attached to the traditional concepts of God.
And, being an enormous Star Trek and Star Wars fan as well, it really is easy to see where some kind of energy field could have put in motion The Big Bang and led to evolution.
They can dish it out but can't take it
that's what this really is about
and it's quite entertaining!
"They"? Did the author give examples? Maybe I missed a link.
"Religious groups in Europe and North America." Well, um, yeah. Just the other day, I joined a march in protest of this ridiculous "campaign."
Now I remember. It's coming back to me. Hard to remember, you know, through the mind control. My church makes us stare at this revolving wheel that they bought at an auction of old "Man from U.N.C.L.E." props. After which, we do everything we're told to do.
Otherwise, God'll send us to Hell after we die. My room in Hell will play Madonna records 24/7. I've put in a request for eternal flames. Anything but Madonna.
God is just a human emotion, locked inside the psyche of a human being because of the Human condition and perpetuated by those that are illusional and those that seek control of others.
I like the campaign slogan. If someone is offended, it can be pointed out that mythology is daily shoved down the throats of all in the 'democratic' and 'diverse' nation. I agree with the person who said that the burden of proof is on them. If you are going to fight for the domination of either plagiarized holy book, then the least you can do is prove that father and son version 17 is an absolute truth. At least I got to see and hear Santa Claus. My mom took me to a store when He was there a long time ago. Rev. Bookburn - Radio Volta
To belive or not to believe is a matter of private choice and this is human rights but to impose your beliefs on to others is a vioation of these rights.
Whether seemingly almost the whole World or billions carry this belief does not mean it is the truth. At one time the whole World believed that the World was flat and the Earth is the center of the Universe.
Ignorance is when you chose not to reason out but to accept without question just because others say so, believe so or according to ancient texts. You have your rights to do that just don't force others into this situation. Even among believers they killed each other over their beliefs.
"As an atheist, I am treated as evil by people who claim that they are being oppressed because they are not allowed to force me to practice what they do." But, they try anyway. What can I do?
I am constantly reminded that no matter what I do on earth to make it a better place for those of us now and for the future of our children will be for not if I don't bow down and accept a god that is impossible to believe in considering that the book they claim is the word of god but written by men a few decades after this god/jesus is said to have walked the earth? I think not...nor will I stand idly by and let anyone try to make me! Cheers, Wiggins
Thomas Aquinas set out to prove that God exists with his "first cause" thesis. All the "causes" in the world are a result of the "first cause". This claim of Aquinas failed however to postulate on what "caused" the "first cause". Who made God is similar to the "big bang" because no one knows what caused the "big bang". To speculate on how we got to this planet and why we are here is great debate, but those who know for sure are not true to themselves or others.
I completely disagree that this is an atheist campaign, it is clearly agnostic. The addition of the word "probably" sealed that deal.
On that note, my cousin has an excellent bumper sticker that reads:
MILITANT AGNOSTIC - I don't know, and you don't either.
I have yet to find a more succinct definition of my views than that.
Peace
"De nihilo nihil est verum"
As the sophism above clearly shows, so it is with your cousin's bumper sticker... Sophism plain to see, fallacy on its face.
You may affirm that you do not know a thing, you can not affirm what others do not know, or cannot know, which brings us to weight and evidence of objective facts, including any and all quantum variables, anything *IS* possible indeed, yet objective weight will always ( yes I SAID always ) tip the scale to more probable than not and that is the best one can do, Ockham's razor, don't ya know!
Nice try though.
http://www.speedylook.com/Sophism.html
Agape (Love in fellowship of our shared fragile humanity)
So much of Christianity is based on myth and much 'borrowed from other religions--some pagan". The Aryans were an early Christian group but denied that Jesus was the son of God. The Council of Nicea organized under Constantine to combat the beliefs of groups similar to the Aryans came up with a political solution to a metaphysical problem--the Trinity- to put an end to the "bickering". This belief system of the Christians in the Trinity is man made and not "Biblical"
I'm very glad to see atheists getting the word out. My kids and I are atheists, but I don't go around knocking on people's doors on Saturday morning insisting that people switch to my philosophy. I don't put up giant billboards advocating women be forced by the state to give birth. I'm really tired of signs and institutions trying to intimate that somehow their philosophy is superior to mine because they have made up a god. Quit telling my kids in the schoolyard that they're going to hell, while you bully and ostricize them.
Consider what heights humans might have reached by now if they focused on the potential of each human instead of sitting around with the eyes closed wishing, or getting together for an hour once a week to reinforce a we/they attitude. We would probably have eliminated poverty and cured cancer. Hooray for the bus ads. Hooray for asking people to actually consider an alternate belief possibility.
Power and control. Anyone using dogma to separate people from each other should be viewed negatively. Faith is not a bad thing, neither is the lack of it. What is bad is to pretend that your faith or lack of it, is the only correct behavior. Choose yours and let others choose theirs. Defend your belief but only to the point where you are allowed to practice it freely and most importantly, defend the right of others to have their beliefs.
Hear! Hear!
I see that you're a Bible literalist. I'm not.
Consequently, I find both extremes funny--yours and theirs. Not so amusing is that fact that this farcical battle is raging on at a time when infinitely more important social and political issues face our nation. Maybe putting away childish things includes retiring the fundie vs. "brights" conflict, at least for the moment. Or maybe Obama was talking to the wall.
There are those who think we're on our way to theocracy. There are those who think their right to worship is being suppressed. And there are those who think intelligent doughnuts from Jupiter are on their way in shiny spaceships to obliterate our planet.
Of the three crank worldviews, I find the last the least unlikely.
I take it you're not a student of history.
Meaning?
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