Posted on by scottjacobsen

The New Atheism?

I wonder why atheism is now called “the new atheism.” Is there new evidence, or might it be that the old atheism is simply a failure? When you attempt to prove the existence of non-existnece, the burden of proof gets pretty demanding.

I think it’s a whistle-in-the-dark kind of marketing scheme. Sells books, anyway.

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5 Replies to “The New Atheism?”

  1. I think the only thing “new” about “new atheism” is that they are the most recent round of outspoken members. Also, I think you may be a bit confused, atheists don’t try and prove the non-existence of god, they simply don’t make claims about his/her existence.

    1. Maybe that’s supposed to be the “new” part, but most I hear from are making all kinds of assertions affirming the non-existence of God. If an atheist made no such assertion, we would not know of THEIR existence as an atheist! “A-theism” etymologically means, at the least, “no god.”

      1. Yes, I understand and I am not trying to adulterize the term, but a-theist, (in my opinion) is just an orientation in reference to people in the world who are theists. So as I understand it, very few atheists, make the bold claim of “their is no god.” Depending on how the terms are used I suppose atheist-agnostic, but I do think that you would agree that the term (whatever we use) a-theist is a useful one to have in a society that is comprised of 85% theists.

      2. “I cannot satisfactorily convince myself there is a *noteworthy* difference between disbelieving all Gods and believing there is no God. Trying to establish a difference is to accept the unpopular condition of being a fence-sitter. Why pussyfoot around what you believe in?” – http://amrestorative.wordpress.com/2012/12/07/burden_of_proof/

        I recognise that there is a difference, between rejecting claims of God and asserting that there is no God. One does not have to make such a positive assertion to be an atheist, but I think most atheists do claim that there is no God. Therefore both parties–atheist and theist–carry a burden of proof. I argue in my article referenced above that atheists have already sufficiently met the burden of proof–a stretch perhaps.

        I think new atheism represents a change from closet atheism to unashamed & vocal atheism.

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