Introduction
Some people of a spiritual persuasion have asserted that atheism is a religion. Listening to this, Bill Maher mentioned, If atheism is a religion, then abstinence is a sexual place. Equivalent analogies rebutting the jejune thought that non-belief could be a faith are out there, these kinds of as, if atheism is a faith, then ‘bald’ is a hair color and ‘off is a Tv set channel. You get the notion.
By definition, those who follow a religion share a established of typical beliefs. The only thread atheists have in widespread is disbelief – in a god or gods. That is not considerably of a religion.
Wikipedia suggests there are about 4200 religions on earth earth. How are religions frequently comprehended? For starters, they are associated with structured, outlined sets of beliefs or worldviews. Religions have narratives, symbols and anticipations that members are envisioned to satisfy. Religions have supernatural characteristics, with perception in the existence of issues for which there is no proof or naturalistic clarification. Illustrations consist of beliefs in heaven and hell, an afterlife, miracles, peace in the Middle East or in the efficacy of prayers – or other ritual (e.g., rain dances, voodoo) created to alter the thoughts of an imagined Infinite or alter the training course of character.
Atheists by any title (e.g., freethinkers, secular humanists, infidels, agnostics and so on) maintain no this sort of religious perspectives. On this foundation, it looks that True wellness, a philosophy that embraces and extolls cause and all that science involves, would barely qualify as a faith.
A Surprising Statement
Well, that is what I imagined. Then I noticed the artwork and include designed for Wellness Orgasms: The Exciting Way to Live Nicely and Die Healthful, my most recent operate co-authored with Dr. Grant Donovan, the enigmatic philosopher from Perth, Australia. In a closing edit, Grant had prepared an odd sentence in the cover blurb that I recommended we rework. The sentence read through as follows:
Orgasms, wellness orgasms, that is, have never ever sounded so healthful, so desirable or so sensible as the authors current Genuine wellness as the only faith.
OMG.
Donovan’s Thinking in Labeling True Wellness A Faith
Considering that atheism by any name is not a religion, except if the definition of faith is so stretched as to be meaningless, the sentence seemed in need to have of fix. Surely we would not want to symbolize Actual wellness as a religion. I wrote to Grant and manufactured my circumstance.
The wonderful polymath defined the rationale for this unsettling explanation:
Au contraire, excellent Tzar of WO. The last sentence personifies irony, satire, sarcasm and hyperbole all in 1 tiny, small corner of infinite place. It will be the sentence they examine at WO universities and seminaries a hundred many years from now, and surprise in amazement.
I can also see a Fox reporter interviewing you when the ebook is launched.
Fox Reporter: ‘Dr Ardell, you denounce religion in your ebook but then you declare Actual wellness and WOs are the only religion. Is that not a tad hypocritical?’
Don: ‘Not in the the very least, Mr. www.wikipro.net/christ-the-king-ev-lutheran-church-palatine-il-thomas-j-schultz-mail-order-brides-gilded-prostitution-global-sexual-exploitation-and-a-form-of-human-trafficking . It has been confirmed during the total background of human meaninglessness that most individuals require head-altering medications and virgins in the clouds to make their miserable life experiences even mildly bearable. WOs and the pursuit of Real wellness provides indicating to wretched life in a quasi-secular, religious-type way. Aside from, ISUS (irony and satire in the U.S.) is a considerably outstanding spiritual motion to ISIS. We just need to have to carve out a WO-primarily based caliphate from Tampa to New York.’
Well, I do love irony, satire, sarcasm and hyperbole, even a lot more when it truly is bound in a little, small corner of infinite space. And, if this sentence will spark an job interview at Fox Television set and provide a bit of fodder for undergraduates in the twenty second century, why stand in the way?
Even if Real wellness is slightly connected with religion in this playful tongue-in-cheek fashion, handful of readers of WO will miscalculation both of us as enthusiasts for religion. After all, we equally think, together with Pat Condell, that faith (other than Genuine wellness) disapproves of unique imagined the way Dracula does sunlight.
Be effectively and look as considerably as you can on the vibrant side of lifestyle-and reason.
Postscript
A federal district courtroom in Oregon declared Secular Humanism a religion! Holy horrors, what was that about?
Not theology, philosophy or deference to common usage of English, it turns out. The selection by Senior District Decide Ancer Haggerty was rendered to manage the non-theistic group the exact same authorized rights as spiritual teams. The Plaintiffs in the circumstance, the American Humanist Affiliation (AHA) and Jason Holden, a federal prisoner, sought recognition of humanism in order that Mr. Holden could have the identical legal rights as prisoners of a spiritual persuasion. Humanism, more or significantly less like atheism and other kinds of affiliation like True wellness, is described by AHA as an ethical and daily life-affirming philosophy free of charge of belief in any gods and other supernatural forces.
The judge cited existing lawful precedent and mentioned that that denying humanists the identical rights as groups this sort of as Christianity would violate the Institution Clause in the U.S. Constitution (i.e., Congress shall make no law respecting an institution of religion).
The court docket finds that Secular Humanism is a religion for Establishment Clause reasons, the ruling read through.
Although most humanists and other godless types never want to be affiliated with any type of faith, in this instance, at minimum, the greater pursuit of equivalent legal rights trumped this sort of normal and authorized classifications.
Greg Epstein, the chaplain at Harvard, was quoted as follows relating to this abnormal verdict:
I genuinely never treatment if Humanism is called a faith or not. But if you’re heading to give special rights to religions, then you have to give them to Humanism as nicely, and I consider which is what this circumstance was about.