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Writer's pictureCourtney Heard

The Role of Science in Shaping Atheist Beliefs

Atheists all love science, revere logic, and celebrate reason, right? You might think every atheist has a poster of Darwin in their living room and worships at the altar of Neil deGrasse Tyson, but hold onto your test tubes – it's not that simple.


Science - The Atheist's New Deity?


Picture this: an atheist waking up, kissing their framed picture of the periodic table, and reciting the scientific method instead of morning prayers. Sounds about right? Well, not quite. While it's true that many atheists are big fans of evidence and reason (shocking, I know), not all atheists are die-hard science buffs. Some are more into philosophy, art, or, dare we say, Netflix binging. Some even believe in ghosts, psychics, and the healing power of huffing your dog's farts. They remind us that atheism only answers one question about belief in gods and doesn't automatically grant a PhD in physics.


Shrine to the periodic table


The Big Bang of Atheist Beliefs


The Big Bang Theory (no, not the TV show) is often looked at as the atheist's "creation" story – a cosmic 'In the beginning...' sans any divine spark. But let's be real, not every atheist is sitting around pondering the mysteries of the universe. Some are just trying to figure out their taxes or where to shout into the void instead of Twitter. The Big Bang isn't a creation story, and most atheists pay it no mind during their day-to-day.



Evolution - More Than Just a Theory for Some


Evolution has been a thorn in the side of creationists since Chucky Darwin got back from the Galapagos. For some non-believers, Darwin's theory of evolution is the pièce de résistance that explains the diversity of life without needing a celestial scriptwriter. But again, not all atheists are out there debating creationists or reading biology textbooks for fun. Some of us just wanna be the best ape we can be.


The Quantum Quandary


Enter quantum physics, where things get weird, and even we atheists start scratching our heads. Some atheists love diving into the quantum realm, where particles defy logic, because atheists do, in fact, feel wonder, and the best part of being godless is that when you don't already claim to have the answers, you can still search for them.


Ethics, Morality, and the Secular Scripture of Science


For many atheists, science is more than just a body of knowledge; it's a method for uncovering the secrets of the Universe. But science doesn’t always provide clear-cut answers to moral dilemmas. Sometimes, an atheist has to navigate the murky waters of ethics without a scientific compass, relying instead on good old-fashioned human empathy and reason.


A Diverse Universe of Atheist Beliefs


The relationship between atheism and science is like a Facebook status: it's complicated. While science plays a significant role in shaping many atheists' worldviews, it's not the be-all and end-all for all of us. Atheism is a big tent with room for the science enthusiasts, the skeptics, the spiritually inclined, and even those who just don’t give a cosmic damn about it all.


In the grand scheme of things, whether an atheist embraces science with open arms or keeps it at an arm's length, the beauty of atheism lies in its diversity and its invitation to question, explore, and, most importantly, to think for oneself. So, let's raise our beakers (or coffee mugs) to the wide and wonderful world of atheism, where the only dogma is that there is no dogma, and the only sin is not using your brain.


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1 Comment


Benin Oakland
Dec 24, 2023

No comments yet, But I do have a little bit to say.

there are a lot of assumptions made by believers about atheists, but the biggest one is that atheism is as big a deal to us as it is to believers. Is every accusation a confession or what? I don't think about atheism every day, and the only reason I think about God at all is because something comes across my iPad that makes me think about it. It seems incredibly difficult for very believing believers to believe that atheism is not a lifestyle, not a belief system, not a religion, not an explanation for anything, except for perhaps why I don't go to church on Sunday.


Atheism is…

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