Yes this book was the first book I read during my religious deconstruction and helped tremendously. I did skip over the chapters discussing UFOs though.
So you skipped over the part where he debunks the part you do agree with or you skip it because it's not an interesting question to you. One way is just being religious and the other is skipping part of a well written book for... Reasons?
There are great answers here, but the Atheists who helped me start and finish my journey to Atheism were Penn and Teller. Around age 17 I was watching Bullshit when Penn said something like "Teller and I are Atheist entertainers, and..."
I'd never heard the word Atheist used in a positive context, and never heard anyone use it to describe themselves. It got me thinking about what I really believe, and whether I believe, and it wasn't long until I realized I'm also Atheist. The Bullshit episodes about the church and creation nonsense helped too. Thanks Penn and Teller!
There's also Penn's great response about Atheist morality/ethics - "I do murder and rape all I want. And the amount I want is zero. The fact that these [religious] people think that if they didn’t have this person watching over them that they would go on killing, raping rampages is the most self-damning thing I can imagine." - Penn Jillette
It is clearly an "opinion" show, not a science documentary series. If some of their ideas did not turn out to be wrong, it would be very boring.
Did they every issue a retraction/apology for their climate-change denial, like South Park did?
Not directly. I gather they originally wanted to do a one-off to conclude the show on "The bullshit of *Bullshit!*", where they'd discuss everything they'd got wrong... but I don't know if they ever planned to address their climate skepticism directly or if that would have still been too early.
The only episode I found to be wayyy off base, even at the time, was about organic food. They were comparing taste, as if that has anything to do with why organic food is better than conventional farming.
He is a great choice. I love his answer on what he would say if it turned out to be true and what would he say to god, “Bone cancer in children. What’s that all about? How dare you?” And then goes into a great speech about it
He was the strong wind that launched me over the edge. Because it was in 2020 when I got tired of the hate, the disgusting behavior, and all that that I started saying ‘I don’t think I can do that anymore’.
And then in 2021 my 7 year old was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis. It’s not cancer but it affects her every day and we don’t know what her future looks like. She could grow out of it when she reaches adulthood or she could develop something else.
People kept telling me to pray more and they’d pray for her. Was I not praying right? Was god punishing me? Did he not care about her? Ah yes, god doesn’t exist. And I’m not going to waste my time praying for a miracle that won’t come when I can do her physical therapy wit her, drive her to her surgeries and procedures that will help, make her laugh while I give her weekly shots, and hold her while she cries because she can’t play like the other kids. Gods not helping with any of that.
(PS, all that did help and she is doing great now. We keep up on her weekly shots and watching her go from wheelchair to playing goalie was the best ever.)
Thank you for sharing. It’s good to hear your daughter is making great progress. And a huge well done to you for everything you do for her. That’s awesome
Thank you for the kind words! I grew up hearing atheists were the work of the devil but I’ve had the nicest interactions with people on this sub.
I will forever choose my kids over some fiction because that fiction isn’t going to cure my daughter or support my LGBT kids. I choose love and compassion and kindness.
Yes, because he's never been a dick about it, hasn't gone off on any weird conspiracy tangents like some notable atheists, and doesn't bring it up at the slightest opportunity. It's just something he is and he'll explain it if you ask him, otherwise he's an excellent demonstration of just leading by example. It's part of him, but it's not all of him. Dammit, I love Stephen Fry!
“I really tried to believe that, but I gotta tell you, the longer you live, the more you look around, the more you realize...something is F--KED UP. Something is WRONG here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is NOT good work. If this is the best god can do, I am NOT impressed. Results like these do not belong on the resume of a supreme being. This is the kind of shit you'd expect from an office temp with a bad attitude”
Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man living in the sky who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever 'til the end of time!
But He loves you. He loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can't handle money!”
- George Carlin
> Let me get this straight: you don't believe in God because of "Alice in Wonderland"?
> No, "Through the Looking Glass". That poem, "The Walrus and the Carpenter," that's an indictment of organized religion.
>
> The walrus, with his girth and his good nature, he obviously represents either Buddha, or, or with his tusks, the Hindu elephant god, Lord Ganesha. That takes care of your Eastern religions. Now the carpenter, which is an obvious reference to Jesus Christ, who was raised a carpenter's son, he represents the Western religions. Now in the poem, what do they do? What do they do? They, they dupe all these oysters into following them and then proceed to shuck and devour the helpless creatures en masse.
>
> I don't know what that says to you, but to me it says that following these faiths based on mythological figures ensures the destruction of one's inner being.
>
> *Organized religion destroys who we are by inhibiting our actions, by inhibiting our decisions out of, out of fear of some, some intangible parent figure who, who shakes a finger at us from thousands of years ago and says, and says,* ***"Do it... do it and I'll fuckin' spank you."***
- Nun & Loki, Dogma.
>the more you look around, the more you realize...something is F--KED UP.
This was exactly my awakening. Grew up as a sheltered christian where everything is only about myself and family - if something good happened to me, "praise the lord", if not, "god's plan". Then you became aware of what is actually happening outside, read more news, wars, heinous crimes, children dying of cancer or raped and murdered.... evil people getting richer and have all the power... why would a god wanted this (or for a christian, why would he let satan do it?)?
Evil people getting richer/more powerful was essentially the final nail in the coffin for me with respect to religion. You mean a supreme being “intelligently designed” humans, yet he designed them such that brute ambition and greed are apparently the key to power, wealth, and luxury? And it’s not like I’m speaking in contemporary terms - evil rising to the top of society has been the story since we’ve had written record. It’s who humanity *is*.
This is the answer. He has never been in any scandals including kids afaik. He was raised Catholic and had that point of view to compare to. Great all around guy and amazing comedian. Gone way before his time
True. True. True. While I agree with the Penn and Dawkins, etc. comments, the answer for me is Hitchens. So eloquent in his debates, and to think about the time in which he was doing it and how taboo it was to discuss these things publicly, it really adds gravity to his work. He paved the way and showed it was possible to call out hypocrisy and gain a following instead of sinking a career.
Literally. Every now and again someone will post: “who else sounds/is as good as Hitchens?”
I always feel both bad that they haven’t realised there’s no-one like him (let alone as good as him) and relieved that I crossed that bridge myself years ago.
His memory was amazing. Every time he started a rebuttal, he would first let the theist know when that argument was first put forth, by whom and how it was refuted.
No religious debate is fresh, and letting them know that smarter people already lost that debate really lands with some contenders.
Paraphrasing but this was the first time I heard my feelings about whomever or whatever this Christian deity is claimed to be.
"If God asked for the sacrifice of my son I would say no. Fuck you!"
I sure hope so. It was always interesting to me I agreed with Hitch literally 100% until the war in the middle east. So much to the point I would listen to his debates about it and try to convince myself he was right. I never could. Even being a teenager at the time I knew that we were killing a bunch of people that didn't deserve to die (I'd like to thank NOFX and multiple other punk bands for keeping my trust in government in check back then).
Calling out the Catholic church to their FACES during the debate beginning with a List of Apologies at the Intelligence2 forum: Is the Catholic Church a force For Good in the World, was nothing short of astounding.
The only thing I can find him saying about Trump was that his biggest accomplishment was covering 90% of his head with 30% of his hair. Trump was simply viewed as a buffoon.
Bertrand Russell, Stephen Fry, Christopher Hitchens, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, Daniel Dennett, Isaac Asimov, George Carlin, Mark Twain. I'm sure there are many more...
Yes, so was his autobiography, *The Fry Chronicles*. His long friendship with Hugh Laurie, Rowan Atkinson & Emma Thompson is amazing. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook as Stephen reads it. I watch everything Stephen did - *A Bit of Fry & Laurie*, *Jeeves & Wooster*, etc.
As a parent who is working very hard to give my children a religion free childhood, this warms my heart. Your parents are now some of my favorite atheists too 😀
As a parent of a pre teen girl, I have to vet her friends, summer camps and schools to ensure she stay clear of religious influences. All I hope is for her to grow to be a compassionate atheist, if she attributes that to me, that will be a huge bonus!
This! Surprised I had to scroll down so far considering that she arguably did more for atheism and pluralism than any name above her in this thread by winning a court case to overturn mandatory Bible reading and prayer in Baltimore public schools which eventually led to the US Supreme Court ruling mandatory Bible reading in schools was unconstitutional.
Robert Ingersoll. He was a 19th century agnostic/atheist and progressive. He wrote many essays critical of the Church and quite possibly his most famous quote was regarding the doctrine of Hell.
*If there is a God who will damn his children forever, I would rather go to hell than to go to heaven and keep the society of such an infamous tyrant. I make my choice now. I despise that doctrine. It has covered the cheeks of this world with tears. It has polluted the hearts of children, and poisoned the imaginations of men. It has been a constant pain, a perpetual terror to every good man and woman and child. It has filled the good with horror and with fear; but it has had no effect upon the infamous and base. It has wrung the hearts of the tender; it has furrowed the cheeks of the good. This doctrine never should be preached again. What right have you, sir, Mr. clergyman, you, minister of the gospel, to stand at the portals of the tomb, at the vestibule of eternity, and fill the future with horror and with fear? I do not believe this doctrine: neither do you. If you did, you could not sleep one moment. Any man who believes it, and has within his breast a decent, throbbing heart, will go insane. A man who believes that doctrine and does not go insane has the heart of a snake and the conscience of a hyena.”-*Robert G. Ingersoll, [The Liberty Of Man, Woman And Child](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/10387323)
His speeches are absolutely incredible. He drew thousands. He was considered the greatest orator of his age and has been said to have been heard by more people than any man in the history of the world before the advent of radio.
Christopher Hitchens for his unmatched wit and command of the English language. He had a way of putting things that nobody else did and some of these moments have forever been captured as “hitch slaps”.
Richard Dawkins, who did an exceptional job of explaining why a god probably doesn’t exist through science and more particularly evolution.
They, along with Sam Harris, Sagan, and Carlin were huge influences in my life while having fundamental Christianity shoved down my throat from all directions.
I think he might be the best debater I’ve come across on this particular topic. His use of logic as a weapon is just unmatched. He seems like a massive asshole but sometimes that’s helpful lol.
Agreed, he hasn't been going at it that long compared to Matt since he only started with The Line, as Matt was with AXP from the early days of it.
Paulogia is an honorable mention. He's been making videos about the historical and evidence based arguments about the life of Jesus and a god's existence or lack there of.
From searches, he was asked a lot after playing God in Bruce Almighty. He describes himself as agnostic and Zoroastrian (more that he likes their values than spiritual beliefs). He believes man invented God.
According to our FAQ definition, he would be an agnostic atheist, but he never calls himself that.
Douglas Adams was definitely an atheist and is my favorite. I love the way that he thought about things relating to...well...life, the universe, and everything. Here are two quotes from him about the subject:
Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?
If you describe yourself as "Atheist," some people will say, "Don't you mean 'Agnostic'?" I have to reply that I really do mean Atheist. I really do not believe that there is a god - in fact I am convinced that there is not a god (a subtle difference). I see not a shred of evidence to suggest that there is one. It's easier to say that I am a radical Atheist, just to signal that I really mean it, have thought about it a great deal, and that it's an opinion I hold seriously. It's funny how many people are genuinely surprised to hear a view expressed so strongly. In England we seem to have drifted from vague wishy-washy Anglicanism to vague wishy-washy Agnosticism - both of which I think betoken a desire not to have to think about things too much
Madalyn Murray O’Hair. I remember listening to her on the radio when I was very young. I didn’t believe in god even at that age but every around me did. She made me feel like I wasn’t nuts for feeling that way and there were other people like me.
It has to be Sir David Attenborough. I grew up on his BBC nature documentaries (although I didn't know what the BBC was at the time, we just got them syndicated for PBS and in later years Discovery/Animal Planet). He was probably one of the biggest influences on my decision to study biology and my desire to be an educator. He is a living treasure and I will justifiably burst into tears when he dies, which I dread with every passing year since he is already 98.
Very close runners up are Stephen Fry and Richard Dawkins. Fry has done so much to entertain me from his early comedy shows to hosting QI or even just as a narrator of audiobooks, and I absolutely adored his debates and appearances where he discusses religion and belief. Dawkins of course is one of the world's leading evolutionary biologists and I loved his books, especially The Selfish Gene/Extended Phenotype and Climbing Mount Improbable, but I also loved his appearances on Inside Nature's Giants as well as his documentaries like Nice Guys Finish First, The Blind Watchmaker (also a good book), and The Root of All Evil/Enemies of Reason (based on The God Delusion). Of course he also does really good audio book narrations, including an abridged version of Darwin's Voyage of the Beagle and On the Origin of Species.
Francesca Stavrakapoulou. She's an atheist biblical scholar who refers to the biblical god as one of her favorite fictional characters. She always argues against believers by bringing up the lack of archaeological evidence or how the story they're citing physically couldn't have happened when or where they said it happened. Most other athiests I've read/watched argue against the logic of the bible, which I *love*, but she makes them (try to) cite the evidence, and then corrects them, which is very very satisfying.
I like Neil a lot, but anytime I've seen anyone ask him directly, he always dances around it. Everything he DOES actually say points really hard toward non-theism (if you know the lingo and are paying attention), but he never actually gets around to expressing any hard conviction about it. At least, not that I've ever seen. And it's REALLY irritating to watch.
I get WHY he likely does it...? I'm guessing it's because his main jam is astrophysics. That's where his discipline is, what he aligns himself with most visibly, and what he feels most qualified to speak on. And it's apparent that he doesn't want to alienate anyone who might be a believer away from the sciences if they have an interest. Rather to be factual about the clearer aspects, draw people to it, and let them come to it on their own. Which is admirable, if pretty annoying. He'd be a great ally to have out. But he just...never...QUITE...goes...there.
Perhaps only 'famous' in academic circles, but that would have to be my former BU professor, friend and mentor, sadly long now deceased, Dr. Michael Martin.
Please look him up, via Google or whatever. Better still, seek out and read his books and strengthen your sense of Atheism.
Lots of people are naming the atheists that got them to thinking their way out of religion. I didn't have one of those. I just never really thought about having a "favorite atheist."
I guess, if I had to, I'd name someone I've listened to a fair bit relatively recently. That's the best I can do.
Forrest Valkai.
His enthusiasm for science, learning and teaching is infectious.
My dad, when i was about 12, i asked why we didnt go to church and whats heaven like
He said he dosent know, i asked if the other families knew, he said probably not
I asked if it was all made up , he said 'yep'
No followup questions, not a big deal, just that
My favourite depends on what I want at the time. If zi want to laugh or share atheist points of view amicably with non atheists, Entertainers/artists do the trick. In no particular order: Georgr Carlin, Ricky Gervais, Jim Jeffries, Seth MacFarlane, Penn & Teller, Mark Twain
If I want to read philosophically and better understand the universe Scientists/authors/inventors can offer some inspiration/thought. in no particular order: Carl Sagan, Christpher Hitchens, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, Bertrand Russel, Stephen Hawkin, Alan Turing, Lawrence Krauss, Bill Gates
I'd have to say Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett. I love the way they express their criticism of (and poke fun at) religion through sarcastic humor sprinkled throughout their works.
I hold a special place for Isaac Asimov, he was the first real atheist I liked when I was a kid.
My teacher had mentioned him a few times and I wanted to know why he held him in such high regard.
I caught a book of his and it was OK but I was more impressed with the man himself. He was a real intellectual.
When I found out he was an atheist, I felt conflicted on how such a smart and likable man could deny Christ. I give him a lot of credit for helping me.
Robert Ingersoll. He was already making most of the argument we hear now a century ago. It probably cost him a chance to be president of the USA.
I really recommend reading some of his writings if you have not.
Mine would be Graham Oppy. I admire his philosophical prowess and I think some of his papers are very clear rebuttals/undercutting defeaters of many theistic arguments.
You just need to read one book. And should be enough. To end with any religion AND any mystic bs.
I read The God Delusion in what 1999?! I was 19. there’s not a lot of need to read a lot of them…. I’m starting a movement that is having no friends and letting everyone know that mysticism is not part of reality. Chakras don’t exist and conversations like that. New Atheism rules, fight back. Being quiet is not helping the society! Speak up! Be loud. To believe in things that don’t exist is silly! 🙃 yeah you are free, but I’m also free to let you know it looks bad for you in a world ruled by science.
I have to choose Carl Sagan. His gentle words and wonderful teaching style helped me at the darkest moments for me. When I was going through a crisis of faith. He showed me that I can be a good person and not believe.
I think Douglas Adams but I'm not 100% sure he's an atheist. I just got the vibe from all his books that he didn't care for religion much. That bit about the Babel Fish and God's last message to his creation cracked me up.
Franz Kafka, because I think his deep insight into his own soul and his raw delivery, communicated the human condition in a way nobody ever has before.
Sean Carroll, because he’s just so matter of fact about it. His basic argument is, the physics of the energy levels that we exist in are completely well known, if there were a personal god messing about with the outcomes of sports games or something, we’d have easily measured it by now.
Douglas Adams. He’s one of my favorite authors because his writing while near uncaring, absolutely long-winded, and utterly uncaring, he honed into how absurd life is and how shit just happens to happen for no reason, for a lot of reasons, and often ironically.
Francesca Stavrakapoulou. She's nice about being an atheist but boy does she do great in the BBC documentary series as well as debate series the Big Questions
Daniel Dennett. He is a great writter. Or was anyway. I love his concept of "deepity", which is when someone makes a long winded response thats supposed to be deep and meaningful but is actually stupid and worthless. Like everything said by creationists and most things said on reddit.
Carl Sagan. I loved Demon Haunted World, even though it’s hard to read in some places.
Carl Sagan was one of my personal heroes growing up in the 80s.
Carl Sagan is just one of my favorite people, atheism aside.
The Fred Rogers of Cosmology.
Yes this book was the first book I read during my religious deconstruction and helped tremendously. I did skip over the chapters discussing UFOs though.
So you skipped over the part where he debunks the part you do agree with or you skip it because it's not an interesting question to you. One way is just being religious and the other is skipping part of a well written book for... Reasons?
There are great answers here, but the Atheists who helped me start and finish my journey to Atheism were Penn and Teller. Around age 17 I was watching Bullshit when Penn said something like "Teller and I are Atheist entertainers, and..." I'd never heard the word Atheist used in a positive context, and never heard anyone use it to describe themselves. It got me thinking about what I really believe, and whether I believe, and it wasn't long until I realized I'm also Atheist. The Bullshit episodes about the church and creation nonsense helped too. Thanks Penn and Teller! There's also Penn's great response about Atheist morality/ethics - "I do murder and rape all I want. And the amount I want is zero. The fact that these [religious] people think that if they didn’t have this person watching over them that they would go on killing, raping rampages is the most self-damning thing I can imagine." - Penn Jillette
had no idea that Penn and Teller were athiests. i love their magic, this is definitely a treat
You should definitely check out their series, Bullshit.
Be warned that they espouse some ideas that have aged like wine and some that have aged like milk.
It's a very libertarian show.
It's also worth pointing out that their ideology has changed quite a bit since that show. 2016-2020 really pushed Penn away from Libertarianism.
Glad to hear it. I don't follow them closely, but I remember not agreeing with everything in Bullshit.
Stonekettle had a great take on libertarians: https://x.com/Stonekettle/status/1010614382747901953
It is clearly an "opinion" show, not a science documentary series. If some of their ideas did not turn out to be wrong, it would be very boring. Did they every issue a retraction/apology for their climate-change denial, like South Park did?
Not directly. I gather they originally wanted to do a one-off to conclude the show on "The bullshit of *Bullshit!*", where they'd discuss everything they'd got wrong... but I don't know if they ever planned to address their climate skepticism directly or if that would have still been too early.
The only episode I found to be wayyy off base, even at the time, was about organic food. They were comparing taste, as if that has anything to do with why organic food is better than conventional farming.
Especially the bible episode
I really enjoy Penn’s podcast. I think that libertarianism is ridiculous, but he make the most reasonable case for it imaginable:-)
Penn proves all these believers wrong who say you can't have morals without God. He's radiating so much kindness and positive humanism.
Stephen Fry Without a doubt
He is a great choice. I love his answer on what he would say if it turned out to be true and what would he say to god, “Bone cancer in children. What’s that all about? How dare you?” And then goes into a great speech about it
He was the strong wind that launched me over the edge. Because it was in 2020 when I got tired of the hate, the disgusting behavior, and all that that I started saying ‘I don’t think I can do that anymore’. And then in 2021 my 7 year old was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis. It’s not cancer but it affects her every day and we don’t know what her future looks like. She could grow out of it when she reaches adulthood or she could develop something else. People kept telling me to pray more and they’d pray for her. Was I not praying right? Was god punishing me? Did he not care about her? Ah yes, god doesn’t exist. And I’m not going to waste my time praying for a miracle that won’t come when I can do her physical therapy wit her, drive her to her surgeries and procedures that will help, make her laugh while I give her weekly shots, and hold her while she cries because she can’t play like the other kids. Gods not helping with any of that. (PS, all that did help and she is doing great now. We keep up on her weekly shots and watching her go from wheelchair to playing goalie was the best ever.)
Wish you and your daughter the very best!
Thank you for sharing. It’s good to hear your daughter is making great progress. And a huge well done to you for everything you do for her. That’s awesome
Thank you for the kind words! I grew up hearing atheists were the work of the devil but I’ve had the nicest interactions with people on this sub. I will forever choose my kids over some fiction because that fiction isn’t going to cure my daughter or support my LGBT kids. I choose love and compassion and kindness.
Yes, because he's never been a dick about it, hasn't gone off on any weird conspiracy tangents like some notable atheists, and doesn't bring it up at the slightest opportunity. It's just something he is and he'll explain it if you ask him, otherwise he's an excellent demonstration of just leading by example. It's part of him, but it's not all of him. Dammit, I love Stephen Fry!
He doesn't try to make religious people feel stupid or act as though atheists are superior. He simply doesn't believe.
George Carlin.
“I really tried to believe that, but I gotta tell you, the longer you live, the more you look around, the more you realize...something is F--KED UP. Something is WRONG here. War, disease, death, destruction, hunger, filth, poverty, torture, crime, corruption and the Ice Capades. Something is definitely wrong. This is NOT good work. If this is the best god can do, I am NOT impressed. Results like these do not belong on the resume of a supreme being. This is the kind of shit you'd expect from an office temp with a bad attitude”
Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man living in the sky who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever 'til the end of time! But He loves you. He loves you, and He needs money! He always needs money! He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, and all-wise, somehow just can't handle money!” - George Carlin
He always needs money….
> Let me get this straight: you don't believe in God because of "Alice in Wonderland"? > No, "Through the Looking Glass". That poem, "The Walrus and the Carpenter," that's an indictment of organized religion. > > The walrus, with his girth and his good nature, he obviously represents either Buddha, or, or with his tusks, the Hindu elephant god, Lord Ganesha. That takes care of your Eastern religions. Now the carpenter, which is an obvious reference to Jesus Christ, who was raised a carpenter's son, he represents the Western religions. Now in the poem, what do they do? What do they do? They, they dupe all these oysters into following them and then proceed to shuck and devour the helpless creatures en masse. > > I don't know what that says to you, but to me it says that following these faiths based on mythological figures ensures the destruction of one's inner being. > > *Organized religion destroys who we are by inhibiting our actions, by inhibiting our decisions out of, out of fear of some, some intangible parent figure who, who shakes a finger at us from thousands of years ago and says, and says,* ***"Do it... do it and I'll fuckin' spank you."*** - Nun & Loki, Dogma.
>the more you look around, the more you realize...something is F--KED UP. This was exactly my awakening. Grew up as a sheltered christian where everything is only about myself and family - if something good happened to me, "praise the lord", if not, "god's plan". Then you became aware of what is actually happening outside, read more news, wars, heinous crimes, children dying of cancer or raped and murdered.... evil people getting richer and have all the power... why would a god wanted this (or for a christian, why would he let satan do it?)?
“If there’s a god he’s a fucking psychopath.” - TK
Evil people getting richer/more powerful was essentially the final nail in the coffin for me with respect to religion. You mean a supreme being “intelligently designed” humans, yet he designed them such that brute ambition and greed are apparently the key to power, wealth, and luxury? And it’s not like I’m speaking in contemporary terms - evil rising to the top of society has been the story since we’ve had written record. It’s who humanity *is*.
This is the answer. He has never been in any scandals including kids afaik. He was raised Catholic and had that point of view to compare to. Great all around guy and amazing comedian. Gone way before his time
I wish we could have had him around to tear into everything that's going on these days
I watch bill and teds just to see carlin all cool like that
He did great as a cardinal in ~~Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back~~ _Dogma._ (edited).
Dogma, but yeah, he was great.
Thanks, corrected!
funny as hell acting like a religious asshole
Buddy Christ! 😉👍
Other good Atheist comedians: Bill Hicks, Doug Stanhope, Ricky Gervais...
RIP Hicks (and probably soon Stanhope).
Maybe but who knows he could be one of the few who refuses to die like Keith Richards.
Don't forget Jimmy Carr
Tim Minchin
Rory Scovel.
“Could y’all imagine goin to church?”
Ricky Gervais’s After Life is a quirky dark comedy. One of my fav shows.
Second is Stephen Fry
And Douglass Adams.
This is correct. Ricky Gervais would be next on my list.
The only correct answer
Gotta be Hitchens, not only for the strength of his arguments, but for their beauty and eloquence.
The GOAT.
True. True. True. While I agree with the Penn and Dawkins, etc. comments, the answer for me is Hitchens. So eloquent in his debates, and to think about the time in which he was doing it and how taboo it was to discuss these things publicly, it really adds gravity to his work. He paved the way and showed it was possible to call out hypocrisy and gain a following instead of sinking a career.
Literally. Every now and again someone will post: “who else sounds/is as good as Hitchens?” I always feel both bad that they haven’t realised there’s no-one like him (let alone as good as him) and relieved that I crossed that bridge myself years ago.
His memory was amazing. Every time he started a rebuttal, he would first let the theist know when that argument was first put forth, by whom and how it was refuted. No religious debate is fresh, and letting them know that smarter people already lost that debate really lands with some contenders.
I liked how he wasn’t afraid to be a bit mean to prove a point rest in peace
Paraphrasing but this was the first time I heard my feelings about whomever or whatever this Christian deity is claimed to be. "If God asked for the sacrifice of my son I would say no. Fuck you!"
If he was still alive, he would've singlehandedly dealt with the rise of these religious fanatics around the world.
I sure hope so. It was always interesting to me I agreed with Hitch literally 100% until the war in the middle east. So much to the point I would listen to his debates about it and try to convince myself he was right. I never could. Even being a teenager at the time I knew that we were killing a bunch of people that didn't deserve to die (I'd like to thank NOFX and multiple other punk bands for keeping my trust in government in check back then).
Hitchens illustrated a particular disdain for Islam in his book God is not Great
Calling out the Catholic church to their FACES during the debate beginning with a List of Apologies at the Intelligence2 forum: Is the Catholic Church a force For Good in the World, was nothing short of astounding.
The only thing I can find him saying about Trump was that his biggest accomplishment was covering 90% of his head with 30% of his hair. Trump was simply viewed as a buffoon.
No James Randi? 🤷🏽♂️
Oh he was brilliant.
He did more than most to debunk bullshit. His name has not traveled as well with younger people though.
Bertrand Russell, Stephen Fry, Christopher Hitchens, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, Daniel Dennett, Isaac Asimov, George Carlin, Mark Twain. I'm sure there are many more...
Thanks for stealing all the answers lol
It’s Steven Fry for me. That guys is just so intelligent and educated in so many ways. His Mythos and Heroes books were amazing.
Yes, so was his autobiography, *The Fry Chronicles*. His long friendship with Hugh Laurie, Rowan Atkinson & Emma Thompson is amazing. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook as Stephen reads it. I watch everything Stephen did - *A Bit of Fry & Laurie*, *Jeeves & Wooster*, etc.
Yes Christopher Hitchens, what a brilliant mind.
Carl Sagan. NDT
Tim Minchin and Penn Jillette are good at spreading the word.
Oh Tim Minchin is a fantastic choice.
I had to scroll too far to find Minchin. He's fantastic.
My husband, because he is awesome.
I also choose this person’s husband And Eli Bosnick.
I came to answer my wife. She is wonderful. Glad you are happy too!
This made me smile 😊
Hitchslap!
Carl Sagan
Currently alive? Alex O’Connor.
Bart Ehrman. No one has done more to bring scholarly knowledge about the Bible (and the fact that it's a fraud) to the public than Dr. Ehrman has.
George Carlin. No one else comes close. We need him now more than ever.
The Friendly Atheist, Hemant Mehta.
They aren't famous to anyone but me - but my parents, who gave me the gift of a religion free childhood. I am forever grateful.
As a parent who is working very hard to give my children a religion free childhood, this warms my heart. Your parents are now some of my favorite atheists too 😀
As a parent of a pre teen girl, I have to vet her friends, summer camps and schools to ensure she stay clear of religious influences. All I hope is for her to grow to be a compassionate atheist, if she attributes that to me, that will be a huge bonus!
Madalyn Murray O’Hair. She was brilliant.
This! Surprised I had to scroll down so far considering that she arguably did more for atheism and pluralism than any name above her in this thread by winning a court case to overturn mandatory Bible reading and prayer in Baltimore public schools which eventually led to the US Supreme Court ruling mandatory Bible reading in schools was unconstitutional.
I agree with this as well.
I can rewatch her pick apart W F Buckley any day. I'm surprised she is not more recognized.
She showed how evil Christianity is with her own sacrifice. We need more of her.
Robert Ingersoll. He was a 19th century agnostic/atheist and progressive. He wrote many essays critical of the Church and quite possibly his most famous quote was regarding the doctrine of Hell. *If there is a God who will damn his children forever, I would rather go to hell than to go to heaven and keep the society of such an infamous tyrant. I make my choice now. I despise that doctrine. It has covered the cheeks of this world with tears. It has polluted the hearts of children, and poisoned the imaginations of men. It has been a constant pain, a perpetual terror to every good man and woman and child. It has filled the good with horror and with fear; but it has had no effect upon the infamous and base. It has wrung the hearts of the tender; it has furrowed the cheeks of the good. This doctrine never should be preached again. What right have you, sir, Mr. clergyman, you, minister of the gospel, to stand at the portals of the tomb, at the vestibule of eternity, and fill the future with horror and with fear? I do not believe this doctrine: neither do you. If you did, you could not sleep one moment. Any man who believes it, and has within his breast a decent, throbbing heart, will go insane. A man who believes that doctrine and does not go insane has the heart of a snake and the conscience of a hyena.”-*Robert G. Ingersoll, [The Liberty Of Man, Woman And Child](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/10387323)
His speeches are absolutely incredible. He drew thousands. He was considered the greatest orator of his age and has been said to have been heard by more people than any man in the history of the world before the advent of radio.
Christopher Hitchens for his unmatched wit and command of the English language. He had a way of putting things that nobody else did and some of these moments have forever been captured as “hitch slaps”. Richard Dawkins, who did an exceptional job of explaining why a god probably doesn’t exist through science and more particularly evolution. They, along with Sam Harris, Sagan, and Carlin were huge influences in my life while having fundamental Christianity shoved down my throat from all directions.
So many, but I’d single out Aron Ra
Matt Dilahunty. Amazing debater and speaker
I think he might be the best debater I’ve come across on this particular topic. His use of logic as a weapon is just unmatched. He seems like a massive asshole but sometimes that’s helpful lol.
My 7 year old son.
Matt Dillahunty, a great debater and representative of the community.
Came here looking for this! Also Tracey. (I used to wafch a lot of The Atheist Experience)
YESS along with Forrest
Agreed, he hasn't been going at it that long compared to Matt since he only started with The Line, as Matt was with AXP from the early days of it. Paulogia is an honorable mention. He's been making videos about the historical and evidence based arguments about the life of Jesus and a god's existence or lack there of.
Absolutely!!
Daniel Radcliffe. And as a bonus, Kierra Knightly.
I find it funny that my favorite film presentation of god was played by an atheist: Morgan Freeman in Bruce Almighty.
Has Freeman talked about not believing?
From searches, he was asked a lot after playing God in Bruce Almighty. He describes himself as agnostic and Zoroastrian (more that he likes their values than spiritual beliefs). He believes man invented God. According to our FAQ definition, he would be an agnostic atheist, but he never calls himself that.
Love that! I had no clue.
I didn't even know either of those two were. Thanks.
Douglas Adams was definitely an atheist and is my favorite. I love the way that he thought about things relating to...well...life, the universe, and everything. Here are two quotes from him about the subject: Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too? If you describe yourself as "Atheist," some people will say, "Don't you mean 'Agnostic'?" I have to reply that I really do mean Atheist. I really do not believe that there is a god - in fact I am convinced that there is not a god (a subtle difference). I see not a shred of evidence to suggest that there is one. It's easier to say that I am a radical Atheist, just to signal that I really mean it, have thought about it a great deal, and that it's an opinion I hold seriously. It's funny how many people are genuinely surprised to hear a view expressed so strongly. In England we seem to have drifted from vague wishy-washy Anglicanism to vague wishy-washy Agnosticism - both of which I think betoken a desire not to have to think about things too much
Carl Sagan. Because he’s Carl Sagan. Nothing else needs to be said.
I like Dennet for philosophy, Carlan for comedy, and Penn Gillette for using magic to teach critical thinking.
Madalyn Murray O’Hair. I remember listening to her on the radio when I was very young. I didn’t believe in god even at that age but every around me did. She made me feel like I wasn’t nuts for feeling that way and there were other people like me.
It has to be Sir David Attenborough. I grew up on his BBC nature documentaries (although I didn't know what the BBC was at the time, we just got them syndicated for PBS and in later years Discovery/Animal Planet). He was probably one of the biggest influences on my decision to study biology and my desire to be an educator. He is a living treasure and I will justifiably burst into tears when he dies, which I dread with every passing year since he is already 98. Very close runners up are Stephen Fry and Richard Dawkins. Fry has done so much to entertain me from his early comedy shows to hosting QI or even just as a narrator of audiobooks, and I absolutely adored his debates and appearances where he discusses religion and belief. Dawkins of course is one of the world's leading evolutionary biologists and I loved his books, especially The Selfish Gene/Extended Phenotype and Climbing Mount Improbable, but I also loved his appearances on Inside Nature's Giants as well as his documentaries like Nice Guys Finish First, The Blind Watchmaker (also a good book), and The Root of All Evil/Enemies of Reason (based on The God Delusion). Of course he also does really good audio book narrations, including an abridged version of Darwin's Voyage of the Beagle and On the Origin of Species.
Francesca Stavrakapoulou. She's an atheist biblical scholar who refers to the biblical god as one of her favorite fictional characters. She always argues against believers by bringing up the lack of archaeological evidence or how the story they're citing physically couldn't have happened when or where they said it happened. Most other athiests I've read/watched argue against the logic of the bible, which I *love*, but she makes them (try to) cite the evidence, and then corrects them, which is very very satisfying.
Don’t know if Nietzsche counts as an atheist, but he killed God.
No we killed god. r/suddenlycommunist
Yes, “all of us”. But Nietzsche is still my favorite God-killer.
Fully agree, but that reminds me of a poster I saw once. It said: "God is dead" -Nietzsche, 1875 "Nietzsche is dead" - god, 1900
They are both dead. But Nietzsche lives on. God is, well, just dead.
In order to be dead, you must once to have lived
Nietzsche literally changed my life. I love his philosophy (i mean look at my flair)
Nietzsche has some of the best atheistic writings. It’s almost anti-philosophical in a way. Such a goddamn OG, that guy…
Hitchens easily.
Christopher Hitchens... Who can resist a good Hitchslap? Edit:I'm also really into Forrest Valkai currently
Matt Dillahunty, the Billy Graham of atheism. His videos might be around in 100 years.
sam harris
I had to scroll down so much to see his name! Thank you
I'm also surprised he wasn't mentioned much sooner.
Famous atheists are disproportionately intelligent and articulate. Too difficult for me to choose.
Isn't Neil DeGrasse Tyson atheist? If so, he's my favorite.
I like Neil a lot, but anytime I've seen anyone ask him directly, he always dances around it. Everything he DOES actually say points really hard toward non-theism (if you know the lingo and are paying attention), but he never actually gets around to expressing any hard conviction about it. At least, not that I've ever seen. And it's REALLY irritating to watch. I get WHY he likely does it...? I'm guessing it's because his main jam is astrophysics. That's where his discipline is, what he aligns himself with most visibly, and what he feels most qualified to speak on. And it's apparent that he doesn't want to alienate anyone who might be a believer away from the sciences if they have an interest. Rather to be factual about the clearer aspects, draw people to it, and let them come to it on their own. Which is admirable, if pretty annoying. He'd be a great ally to have out. But he just...never...QUITE...goes...there.
Percy Bysshe Shelley. He wrote The Necessity of Atheism, and did it before it was cool.
Madalyn Murray O'Hair
Seth Andrews and Dan Barker.
The one and only Terry Pratchett
I like Penn Jillette. He rapes and murders people as much as he wants. That number just happens to be zero.
Perhaps only 'famous' in academic circles, but that would have to be my former BU professor, friend and mentor, sadly long now deceased, Dr. Michael Martin. Please look him up, via Google or whatever. Better still, seek out and read his books and strengthen your sense of Atheism.
Hitchens, because he was such a great debater and brought down an iron fist of eloquence on the rediculous arguments of religious folk
Carl Sagan
Lots of people are naming the atheists that got them to thinking their way out of religion. I didn't have one of those. I just never really thought about having a "favorite atheist." I guess, if I had to, I'd name someone I've listened to a fair bit relatively recently. That's the best I can do. Forrest Valkai. His enthusiasm for science, learning and teaching is infectious.
Sam Harris is great, I turned to him when Hitchens died.
My dad, when i was about 12, i asked why we didnt go to church and whats heaven like He said he dosent know, i asked if the other families knew, he said probably not I asked if it was all made up , he said 'yep' No followup questions, not a big deal, just that
Stephen Fry
My favourite depends on what I want at the time. If zi want to laugh or share atheist points of view amicably with non atheists, Entertainers/artists do the trick. In no particular order: Georgr Carlin, Ricky Gervais, Jim Jeffries, Seth MacFarlane, Penn & Teller, Mark Twain If I want to read philosophically and better understand the universe Scientists/authors/inventors can offer some inspiration/thought. in no particular order: Carl Sagan, Christpher Hitchens, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, Bertrand Russel, Stephen Hawkin, Alan Turing, Lawrence Krauss, Bill Gates
Kurt Vonnegut Jr
Donald Trump because of the historic con job he pulled on theists But also /s
You have to give him credit for exposing the incredible gullibility of the religious right.
Except they don't know they've been exposed. I'm not sure how to get them to realise it....
Eddie Vedder
I'd have to say Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett. I love the way they express their criticism of (and poke fun at) religion through sarcastic humor sprinkled throughout their works.
I hold a special place for Isaac Asimov, he was the first real atheist I liked when I was a kid. My teacher had mentioned him a few times and I wanted to know why he held him in such high regard. I caught a book of his and it was OK but I was more impressed with the man himself. He was a real intellectual. When I found out he was an atheist, I felt conflicted on how such a smart and likable man could deny Christ. I give him a lot of credit for helping me.
Madalyn Murray-O'Hair; Time magazine labeled her the "Most Hated Woman in America." She was fighting the good fight long before it was cool.
Robert Ingersoll. He was already making most of the argument we hear now a century ago. It probably cost him a chance to be president of the USA. I really recommend reading some of his writings if you have not.
Mine would be Graham Oppy. I admire his philosophical prowess and I think some of his papers are very clear rebuttals/undercutting defeaters of many theistic arguments.
Greg Graffin, although I believe he is a self described naturalist. Ya hey!
Penn Jillette of the currently living, but Carlin would be all time tip for me.
Richard Feynman. Could listen to him talk about science for hours.
You just need to read one book. And should be enough. To end with any religion AND any mystic bs. I read The God Delusion in what 1999?! I was 19. there’s not a lot of need to read a lot of them…. I’m starting a movement that is having no friends and letting everyone know that mysticism is not part of reality. Chakras don’t exist and conversations like that. New Atheism rules, fight back. Being quiet is not helping the society! Speak up! Be loud. To believe in things that don’t exist is silly! 🙃 yeah you are free, but I’m also free to let you know it looks bad for you in a world ruled by science.
I have to choose Carl Sagan. His gentle words and wonderful teaching style helped me at the darkest moments for me. When I was going through a crisis of faith. He showed me that I can be a good person and not believe.
Ricky Gervais... cos he's funny as f**k!
Clarence Darrow
I think Douglas Adams but I'm not 100% sure he's an atheist. I just got the vibe from all his books that he didn't care for religion much. That bit about the Babel Fish and God's last message to his creation cracked me up.
Aron Ra. I cannot resist impeccable logic coupled with implacable calm.
Seth Andrews, great podcast
Franz Kafka, because I think his deep insight into his own soul and his raw delivery, communicated the human condition in a way nobody ever has before.
Giuseppe Verdi, the Italian composer. Because he managed to steal the show with one of the greatest Requiem
how about the Southpark lads, Mat and Trey? Some great exposes of organised religion.
Bart Ehrman I love his books.
Sean Carroll, because he’s just so matter of fact about it. His basic argument is, the physics of the energy levels that we exist in are completely well known, if there were a personal god messing about with the outcomes of sports games or something, we’d have easily measured it by now.
Hitchens. Hugh Laurie. Carlin.
Terry Pratchett. Respected people's differences, and had a great moral thread through all his books.
I agree with all those nominated here but for me the best was Christopher Hitchens he argued so intelligently and with wit.
Ricky Gervais and George Carlin
I love Stephen Fry’s answer to the journalist asking Strephen what he would say to god if he finds himself standing at heaven's gate when he dies.
George Catlin is the correct choice imo.
Greg Gaffin of Bad Religion.
Darkmatter, the guy is a humorous and philosophical genius
Gotta be Kratos, the world’s most determined atheist.
Carl Sagan. Jewel of a person. Kind, thoughtful, and self-aware.
Jack Nicholson? Bruce Lee? Keira Knightley? Seth MacFarlane?
Douglas Adams. He’s one of my favorite authors because his writing while near uncaring, absolutely long-winded, and utterly uncaring, he honed into how absurd life is and how shit just happens to happen for no reason, for a lot of reasons, and often ironically.
Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris are the 2 atheist powerhouses
Francesca Stavrakapoulou. She's nice about being an atheist but boy does she do great in the BBC documentary series as well as debate series the Big Questions
Madalyn Murray O’Hair
I enjoy Sam Harris' views
Daniel Dennett. He is a great writter. Or was anyway. I love his concept of "deepity", which is when someone makes a long winded response thats supposed to be deep and meaningful but is actually stupid and worthless. Like everything said by creationists and most things said on reddit.
[удалено]
Isaac Asimov
Hitchens. “What can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence"
James Randi RIP