I think it’s funny, and while it obviously isn’t likely to deconvert anybody, I don’t think it’s intended to. What is does do is inject some irreverence into the public square and paint a moustache on a sacred cow. I think a stunt like this serves to demystify religion and take the fear out of challenging its assumptions. The Bible is not a magic book with superpowers. This is a stunt which takes the piss out of it in a public way, and may serve to let people know they don’t have to be afraid of questioning it.
It also doesn’t hurt anybody. It’s completely non-violent and not even really confrontational. What’s to be embarrassed about?
I think that it isn’t newsworthy. No one converted anyone, it was a publicity stunt on a college campus. They’re a dime a dozen and this one was far more tame than some of the stunts the GLBTA (gay et al) group at my college pulled. I found Snarky_Kong’s comparison to a gay pride parade particularly apt.
Um, because they meet atheists like that? Haven’t you ever come across one of those “evangelical atheists” who are constantly proclaiming categorically that religion is superstitious nonsense and we’d all be better off if nobody believed it? We’ve got a few of them on these very boards.
I imagine “evangelical atheists” would think of it as “deprogramming” rather than “converting”, and they may not be as interested in convincing particular individuals to change their minds, but they certainly make no bones about declaring that everybody else ought to have the same views on religion as they do.
That doesn’t mean they’re trying to convert you. No really. Most atheists are intelligent enough to realize that they aren’t going to ‘convert’ anyone.
A lot of atheists go through a militant phase even if only briefly. It varies depending on age, geographic location and how much (they feel) religion has been pushed on or toward them. After a while it gets frustrating. You lash out because there’s only so many times you can smile politely and say ‘I’m an atheist,’ and then be told you’re wrong/evil/stupid/going to hell without responding. Now most will say ‘just ignore it and they’ll eventually leave you alone.’ I think we’re all aware that’s not always accurate. The primary thought is ‘why should I sit here and be lectured and insulted and say nothing while they get to say whatever they want?’ The implication is that religious people should have the right to say whatever they like whenever they like and atheists should just shut up and listen. It strikes one as rude and entitled. As a result, frustration builds and a lot of otherwise reasonable people get bored with being reasonable and polite and stop doing both.
None of this is to excuse that behavior, but I do hope it helps explain it.
No kidding - I’ve can’t recall seeing religious people witness to near the extent that some atheists do on these boards. Now that’s not to say that we don’t have “believers” whose views are extreme and that they are shy about expressing that view, but one or two of our “non-believer” members are downright militant.
Has anyone ever changed anyone else’s mind about religion on the internet? Why would anyone expect to begin doing so at this date? I tell you, it’s not an attempt to convert.
And we’re not talking about ‘on this board,’ anyway. We’re talking about a bunch of college kids on campus. They were having fun and being exhibitionists. No religious person was forced to talk with them or listen to them. It’s the same as closing the door in the face of a Jehovah’s Witness. You’re not required to listen.
How about the time they spent a night writing “enlightening” messages in chalk all over campus? Nice, thought provoking messages like, “Your mom’s a dyke.” The idea was to provoke discussion and bring about acceptance by suggesting that you and those close to you might be secretly gay. Since that might be the case, you should re-think your attitude toward gay people in general. There was an impressive variety of messages and they really were all over campus, the most offensive were cleverly placed in high traffic areas shielded from rain.
I’m a bit surprised at how bitter I still am about this. It was a long time ago, but on the other hand I wanted to be a member of the group and was driven off by the personalities of the leaders. On the gripping hand, though, my mother was gay and a lot of fingers were pointed in my direction for a long time. I had never made a secret of it because I hadn’t seen any reason to be ashamed. They gave me one.
Back to your question, most of their stunts were of that sort; flyers, chalk and so forth. Their “public” face (club fairs and such) was always polite, inclusive and staffed by attractive students.
Silly college tricks like the AA bake sales, the people pretending to be dead bodies in front of the CIA recruiting table, the Gay and Lesbian group doing a “kiss in” at a Frat party, the fake kidnappings at lunch to highlight El Salvadoran militias, or some other random thing people do in college.
If I was still in my college days, I would be torn between being a little offended and doing some trading. There were these guys that would give out pocket New Testaments at the doors of the recruiting station and the Naval Hospital in Oakland, so I had a stack of them (could never bring myself to throw away a Bible). I might have gone shopping with a stack of freebies to see what I could get.
if they REALLY wanted to mess with people, they should only give out Bible Porn. By that I mean take the most sexual parts of the Bible, get some models, and publish it. It would be an illustrated Bible of the good parts, along with scripture readings.
Now THAT would make an interesting point to the masses.
I’m not an atheist, but if I were I’d probably feel as much ashamed of being associated with them as, by being Christian, I’m inherently associated with so many zealous and obnoxious evangelicals. In the same way that so many Christians get a bad image because of those of those evangelicals, these are the sorts of behaviors that leave a bad taste in the mouth of religious people.
I have to wonder what their intentions are. Clearly, they’re not going to convert anyone doing this. At best, they’ll encourage some people to find a random old bible lying around or steal one from their roommate.
Either way, I think it was a poor idea, and I’m just as against it when I see religious groups engaging in similar activity.
Affirmative Action (someone else already mentioned it). Conservative groups will hold a bake sale with different prices based on race and gender.
$1 - white male
75 cents - white female
50 cents - black males
etc.
YOU invoked rule 34, not me. Nope. Didn’t do it. And I can’t search for that at work anyways.
Oh no, like Godwin’s law, rule 34 is an observation, not a claim. I’m under no onus to provide examples. Actually, I did look and couldn’t find a damn thing. The closest was nun costume fetishists, not quite the same thing. Can anyone do any better?
Also, I love the name “Atheist Agenda”
Um, because they meet atheists like that? Haven’t you ever come across one of those “evangelical atheists” who are constantly proclaiming categorically that religion is superstitious nonsense and we’d all be better off if nobody believed it? We’ve got a few of them on these very boards.