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"Atheists, agnostics most knowledgeable about religion, survey says."

jmvizanko

jmvizanko

Uber Tool
Atheists, agnostics most knowledgeable about religion, survey says - latimes.com

Based on all my online discussions and debates, it does not surprise me. However, one could argue that level of education plays heavily into it, as there is an inverse relationship between education and religiosity.

But more fundamentally, IMHO, I think the more people know about what they believe, especially if they believe in one of the major theologies, the less likely they are to believe it.

There is a certain irony, though, that the people that are most interested in religion are the irreligious. Perhaps it boils down to the fact that those who do not know their opponents arguments, do not completely understand their own.

And that's my arrogance for the day.
 
M

Meow Mix

Chatte Féministe
It seems to me apparent that the reason theists think that atheism has a specific paradigm is because many atheists do actually tend to hold similar positions.

In my opinion, atheism is just a symptom of something deeper in many cases. It's a result of a rigorous respect for epistemic justification. It certainly isn't always the case, and one can't make the claim that "Atheists believe X" because that wouldn't be true.

But it's certainly true that many atheists have knowledge of basic logical fallacies, have knowledge to a certain extent of the sciences, have knowledge of at least the religion popular in their particlar area, etc. As I said, atheism seems to me to be a symptom of someone who is curious about the world -- why it works, what really exists in it, how we can justify what we know. That is why I think theists have the mistaken notion that atheists have a paradigm.

It ain't so.

It just so happens that many atheists are rigorous in proper epistemology, even if they haven't studied epistemology. That's essentially easy because a lot of epistemology is basic reasoning, which many atheists excel at. My arrogance for the day may be to imply that perhaps the reason why so many atheists are versed in spotting fallacies and basic epistemology is because that very understanding leads to their atheism.
 
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MEMNOCK

MEMNOCK

Spiritual Tour Guide
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
 
Atomist

Atomist

I love you.
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...
because atheist care more about religion than religious people... since theology is interesting.
 
tumbleweed41

tumbleweed41

Resident Liberal Hippie
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...
Why would you find that odd in light of the survey mentioned in the OP?
Atheists and Agnostics are among the most knowledgeable concerning religion, so it follows that they would be among the most informed when discussing religious topics in a religious forum open to all beliefs.
Not to mention what they can learn from the variety of religious beliefs presented here.

Like myself. I am also a member of a few Deist forums. But to get true discussion and debate going, I prefer a forum that presents alternate beliefs. And there is none better than RF.
 
Skwim

Skwim

Veteran Member
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...
Considering that atheism, and to some extent agnosticism, is a position of denial, there isn't all that much to talk about.
"Ya know, I don't believe there's a god. "
"which one?"
"All of 'em."
"Yeah, know what you mean. . . . Hey, how about those Minnesota Vikings."

​
On the other hand, theists, Christians in particular, have insinuated themselves into a lot of nooks and crannies of society, some unacceptably so. The upshot is that non-believers find Christian beliefs worthy targets of criticism. Along with such dialogs other issues of faith inevitably pop up, which are sometimes so outrageous that they beg to be taken to task. And atheists, no dummies when it comes to religion, gladly jump at the opprotunity.
 
B

ButTheCatCameBack

Active Member
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...

I find it odd that people even ask this question. I tend to find it seems to involve a least a basic ignorance of all the subjects that interact with and are part and parcel of "religion." Any discussion of religion is not simply the discussion of any theology. It is a discussion on modern society, on sociology, on history, on morals ethics, science, epistemology and a ton of other subjects.

Even pushing most of that complexity aside. Religions have affect on the world. A glance at a newspaper that covers world news will more often than not be testimony to that. And just because I or someone else is NOT religious does not mean we are somehow immune to the actions of the religious. As a result an examination of why people are religious, what religion is,etc is important to have.
 
dogsgod

dogsgod

Well-Known Member
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...
We're on a religious forum because we never tire of shooting goldfish in a barrel.
 
Jeremiah

Jeremiah

Well-Known Member
MEMNOCK said:
I find it odd that Atheist hang out on a "Religious" forum...You would think to find them in a "Non-Religious forum"...Strange...I can't say much, Im just here to tap on the glass...
Click to expand...


You are not as likely to produce a stimulating conversation, talking with a bunch of people who already agree with you. What you need is people who disagree with you.
 
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Skwim

Skwim

Veteran Member
Jeremiah said:
For comparison purposes, the survey also asked some questions about general knowledge, which yielded the scariest finding: 4% of Americans believe that Stephen King, not Herman Melville, wrote "Moby Dick."
Click to expand...
Actually that's pretty darn good considering.
1/3 of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives.

42 percent of college graduates never read another book after college.

80 percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year.

70 percent of U.S. adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years.

57 percent of new books are not read to completion.

source
​
and
50 percent of adults cannot read a book written at an eighth grade level.

20 percent of Americans are functionally illiterate and read below a 5th grade level.

Nearly half of all Americans read so poorly that they cannot find a single piece of information when reading a short publication.

source
​
 
dogsgod

dogsgod

Well-Known Member
Skwim said:
Actually that's pretty darn good considering.
1/3 of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives.

42 percent of college graduates never read another book after college.

80 percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year.

70 percent of U.S. adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years.

57 percent of new books are not read to completion.

source
​
and
50 percent of adults cannot read a book written at an eighth grade level.

20 percent of Americans are functionally illiterate and read below a 5th grade level.

Nearly half of all Americans read so poorly that they cannot find a single piece of information when reading a short publication.

source
​
Click to expand...
Yes, you make 4% look awfully good. Congrats Americans, there's hope for you yet.
 
gnostic

gnostic

The Lost One
jmvizanko said:
Based on all my online discussions and debates, it does not surprise me. However, one could argue that level of education plays heavily into it, as there is an inverse relationship between education and religiosity.
Click to expand...
That's a possibility.

The other possibility is that there are people who left the religion, and became either atheists or agnostics, hence they have knowledge of the religion they left.
 
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