Zizek believes atheism is ideological

[Absolutely Frank]

Most atheists think that atheism is simply the absence of belief in gods. However, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek argues that atheism is actually an ideology that shapes how people see and interact with the world. He says atheism isn't just the opposite of theism: it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values. Many atheists do treat atheism as an ideology, with its own beliefs, values, and dogmas. They argue, debate, and defend their beliefs just as fiercely as believers defend theirs. For example, many atheists strongly believe in scientific rationalism as the only way to understand the world. They often dismiss or ridicule any belief in the supernatural as irrational or ignorant. They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. In this way, their atheism becomes an ideology, a belief system not so different from a religious one. They feel they have the "truth," while believers are deluded or brainwashed. This sense of superiority can lead to aggression towards those they see as inferior or ignorant. Also, some atheists may feel threatened by religious beliefs. They see religion as holding back progress, limiting freedom of thought, and encouraging harmful practices. In their minds, aggressively challenging religious beliefs is a way to promote reason, equality, and social progress. I believe that Zizek might be on to something here and based on how some atheists behave you can't consider their form of atheism has just passive non-belief because they act like ideological foot soldiers - they are activists. What do you guys think?

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

News flash: atheism is a word and, as such, it has both denotation and connotation (neither of which are stagnant).

 

[Eddi]

What do you guys think?

I think that some atheists are dogmatic and supercilious

But that most of them are just very reasonable

 

[ChristineM]

Most atheists think that atheism is simply the absence of belief in gods. However, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek argues that atheism is actually an ideology that shapes how people see and interact with the world. He says atheism isn't just the opposite of theism: it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values. Many atheists do treat atheism as an ideology, with its own beliefs, values, and dogmas. They argue, debate, and defend their beliefs just as fiercely as believers defend theirs. For example, many atheists strongly believe in scientific rationalism as the only way to understand the world. They often dismiss or ridicule any belief in the supernatural as irrational or ignorant. They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. In this way, their atheism becomes an ideology, a belief system not so different from a religious one. They feel they have the "truth," while believers are deluded or brainwashed. This sense of superiority can lead to aggression towards those they see as inferior or ignorant. Also, some atheists may feel threatened by religious beliefs. They see religion as holding back progress, limiting freedom of thought, and encouraging harmful practices. In their minds, aggressively challenging religious beliefs is a way to promote reason, equality, and social progress. I believe that Zizek might be on to something here and based on how some atheists behave you can't consider their form of atheism has just passive non-belief because they act like ideological foot soldiers - they are activists. What do you guys think?

What Zizek doesn't seem to comprehend is that most atheist are not weighed down with religious dogma and therefore have no problem accepting science. It's science that shapes their outlook, not disbelief in gods.

 

[Revoltingest]

The post starts out with "most", & continues with "many".
All that to make the absolutist statement....
He says atheism isn't just the opposite of theism: it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values.

Atheism will tend to some things.....
- Opposition to theocracy, & hence separation of church & state.
(BTW, this is something many believers agree with.)
- Preferring science to stories handed down by ancient ignorant goatherds.

Other than that, atheists don't have much in common.
So those tendencies aren't enuf to constitute a philosophy,
worldview, dogma, or ideology. It's more of an absence
of those things....or an ultra-minimalist version of them.

His claims strongly suggest that philosophy is a dead field,
ie, not offering new discoveries.

Slavoj Žižek - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[McBell]

Most atheists think that atheism is simply the absence of belief in gods. However, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek argues that atheism is actually an ideology that shapes how people see and interact with the world. He says atheism isn't just the opposite of theism: it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values. Many atheists do treat atheism as an ideology, with its own beliefs, values, and dogmas. They argue, debate, and defend their beliefs just as fiercely as believers defend theirs. For example, many atheists strongly believe in scientific rationalism as the only way to understand the world. They often dismiss or ridicule any belief in the supernatural as irrational or ignorant. They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. In this way, their atheism becomes an ideology, a belief system not so different from a religious one. They feel they have the "truth," while believers are deluded or brainwashed. This sense of superiority can lead to aggression towards those they see as inferior or ignorant. Also, some atheists may feel threatened by religious beliefs. They see religion as holding back progress, limiting freedom of thought, and encouraging harmful practices. In their minds, aggressively challenging religious beliefs is a way to promote reason, equality, and social progress. I believe that Zizek might be on to something here and based on how some atheists behave you can't consider their form of atheism has just passive non-belief because they act like ideological foot soldiers - they are activists. What do you guys think?

In other words, Christianity is not a theist religion from Slavoj Žižek’s perspective. He says that secretly there is a layer of atheism under Christianity, and he emphasizes that Hegel knew this, too. The one who died on the cross was not Christ. Actually, God has been forsaken on the cross. The one who died on the cross was the very god of the beyond but how did that happen? How is it possible? There’s a moment when Christ stated that famous phrase “God, why have you forsaken me?” It’s precisely that moment when God has lost his belief in god, himself. Because Christ asked somehow for help but there was no one to do something. god tried to reach out to God for the first time in all eternity but surprisingly find nothing. In this way, Christ, in his human form, tastes the atheist’s deepest experiences of nothingness. Somehow at that moment, it was that god understands how it is to be a human and initiates to empathize with his creations.​

​

Slavoj Žižek goes further and even states in his documentary that “The only way to be an atheist is through Christianity” (۵). Slavoj Žižek claims “Christianity is much more atheist than the usual atheism, which can claim there is no god and so on, but nonetheless it retains a certain trust into the Big Other. This big other can be called natural necessity, evolution, or whatever. We, humans, are nonetheless reduced to a position within the harmonious whole of evolution, whatever, but the difficult thing to accept is again that there is no big other, no point of reference which guarantees meaning”. The big other, according to Lacan, is understandable to be assumed as the god but in fact, you can find out that these two concepts are different from each other. But anyhow, we can see that Slavoj Žižek took them as the same.
In conclusion, we should state that Christianity, in essence, is atheistic and at least, one of the possible paths to reach it, is through Christianity. That’s why Slavoj Žižek identifies himself as a Christian Atheist.​

​

Why Does Slavoj Žižek Identify Himself as a Christian Atheist? – Praxis

praxispublication.com

​

 

[Revoltingest]

“The only way to be an atheist is through Christianity” (۵). Slavoj Žižek claims “Christianity is much more atheist than the usual atheism....​

I wonder how many more of this "philosopher's"
snippets are so utterly stupid?
(Couldn't be bothered to wade in to find more.)

 

[Viker]

Here's where I get to school a philosopher.

Atheism isn't the opposite but the lack of theism. Any attempt to credit it as an ideology or belief system always fails. Not all atheists even know what or care for scientific rationalism. They simply lack a belief in higher agency, deities, etc.

This philosopher is wrapped up in an already aged process of ongoing logical fallacies and critical thinking errors. Hard to take his stance serious.

BTW. I'm not an atheist.

 

[Absolutely Frank]

What Zizek doesn't seem to comprehend is that most atheist are not weighed down with religious dogma and therefore have no problem accepting science. It's science that shapes their outlook, not disbelief in gods.

False. Not all atheists are ardent enthusiasts of science and reason. Some are more interested in exploring other superstitious belief systems, such as Buddhism, astrology or homeopathy.

 

[Viker]

Slavoj Žižek goes further and even states in his documentary that “The only way to be an atheist is through Christianity” (۵). Slavoj Žižek claims “Christianity is much more atheist than the usual atheism, which can claim there is no god and so on

The only way to be an atheist is to NOT have a belief or creed in any god.

 

[McBell]

What Zizek doesn't seem to comprehend is that most atheist are not weighed down with religious dogma and therefore have no problem accepting science. It's science that shapes their outlook, not disbelief in gods.

Post #6 shows that Zizek is extremely bogged down with religious dogma...

 

[Eddi]

Some are more interested in exploring other superstitious belief systems, such as Buddhism, astrology or homeopathy.

Or Marxist socialism

When I was a youth Marxist socialism and atheism were bundled together into an ignorant unthinking world view which I have thankfully long since ditched

 

[ChristineM]

False. Not all atheists are ardent enthusiasts of science and reason. Some are more interested in exploring other superstitious belief systems, such as Buddhism, astrology or homeopathy.

I can recommend a good optician. I said "most" and never said "ardent" so please retract your "false" and use it to refer to yourself

 

[I Am Hugh]

What I think is that there are two types of atheists. The majority, by far, are apathetic. They don't care about theism, wouldn't waste a moment arguing, debating, parading, or protesting. Don't care about prayer or creationism in the classroom, or the ten commandments or nativity scene at the courthouse, don't necessarily believe in evolution, gay marriage, abortion, think it silly to go to online forums and argue about it. They are a silent majority.

On the other hand, there is what I call the fundamentalist, militant atheists minority who are the polar opposite of the apathetic atheists. They are the ones that make the most noise. The former, I don't think are ideologues, but the latter is pretty much as you've described them. I think that if you scratch the surface the latter doesn't really care about theology, theism, Gods, or the Bible. They are expressing a sociopolitical frustration with a pseudo theocratic society. It is a sort of class struggle, a world view, an ideology.

I can relate to both; I think they both have reasonable reactions to theism. When I stand back and look at the atheist vs theist debate, it looks to me like a married couple or friends with a long history arguing about something that isn't really what they are angry about.

 

[Altfish]

Most atheists think that atheism is simply the absence of belief in gods. However, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Zizek argues that atheism is actually an ideology that shapes how people see and interact with the world. He says atheism isn't just the opposite of theism: it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values. Many atheists do treat atheism as an ideology, with its own beliefs, values, and dogmas. They argue, debate, and defend their beliefs just as fiercely as believers defend theirs. For example, many atheists strongly believe in scientific rationalism as the only way to understand the world. They often dismiss or ridicule any belief in the supernatural as irrational or ignorant. They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. In this way, their atheism becomes an ideology, a belief system not so different from a religious one. They feel they have the "truth," while believers are deluded or brainwashed. This sense of superiority can lead to aggression towards those they see as inferior or ignorant. Also, some atheists may feel threatened by religious beliefs. They see religion as holding back progress, limiting freedom of thought, and encouraging harmful practices. In their minds, aggressively challenging religious beliefs is a way to promote reason, equality, and social progress. I believe that Zizek might be on to something here and based on how some atheists behave you can't consider their form of atheism has just passive non-belief because they act like ideological foot soldiers - they are activists. What do you guys think?

" ...it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values" - could be Humanism
"They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. " = Secularism

 

[Revoltingest]

Or Marxist socialism

When I was a youth Marxist socialism and atheism were bundled together into an ignorant unthinking world view which I have thankfully long since ditched

I've always been an atheist.
And as soon as I found out what Marxism is,
it had no appeal at all. You know....the economic
woe, & the vicious oppression. **** that ****.

 

[Viker]

" ...it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values" - could be Humanism
"They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. " = Secularism

What this aforementioned philosopher fails to realize is that someone like me, a definite theist, supports humanism and secularism. Once again, I am not an atheist.

I'd also like to be one of those types who "hates to burst one's bubble" but I am not. I enjoy it.

 

[I Am Hugh]

" ...it's a worldview with its own set of beliefs and values" - could be Humanism
"They also often advocate strongly for separation of church and state and oppose religious influence in public life. " = Secularism

You left out scientism.

 

[Absolutely Frank]

The only way to be an atheist is to NOT have a belief or creed in any god.

The difference between non-belief and a stance can be described like this:
Non-belief is a state of not having a belief or opinion about a particular subject. It's the absence of a belief, whether positive or negative. It implies a lack of commitment or involvement. On the other hand, a stance is a clear and conscious position or viewpoint on a subject. It involves taking a stand or expressing a strong opinion or belief one way or another. It indicates a clear and often active commitment to a particular position. Atheism is a stance not mere passive non-belief but an active position people take.

 

[Eddi]

I've always been an atheist.
And as soon as I found out what Marxism is,
it had no appeal at all. You know....the economic
woe, & the vicious oppression. **** that ****.

I think Marx was right on some things but very wrong on others