Otherwise stated - What can an atheist do to discourage or otherwise subdue the 'Christian beast'? Firstly it is not about God. Its about what God embodies. Have you recognised how Christians who are abused or taken advantage by one church, go on to become victims or benefactors of another. If Christians are to stop preaching or embracing religion, they ultimately need to do more than discover reason, because some Christians are rationalising that religion is a justifiable philosophy.
I must however state that young people are inclined to have a rationalised Christian perspective purely because they are young and have yet to challenge the parent, school or social Christian values. This is particularly likely in these situations where you are surrounded by religion. i.e. Consider the Philippines or the Middle East where religion is pervasive....almost suffocating.
By so recognising this point, they need to recognise that values are conditional, as opposed to intrinsic or dogmatic. Conditional because they are accepted or repudiated for a reason. Which means that there is the possibility of failure or rejection. If you repudiate the meaningful standard of value, and argue that you are great because you are 'with god', then such dogmatism gives a person the self-delusion of efficacy, without actually possessing any. It might boost your confidence, but its not going to help.
The fact that they repudiate this notion is a fear-response. The question is why? The reason is - they have been physically or mentally abused, or have otherwise had their intellectual development arrested by dogmatism. A poorly developed cognitive capacity is going to undermine one's self-esteem. In which case, thinking is an act which provides no validation.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com
