# Will Professors try to turn me into an athiest in College **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 5, 2004, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419 "2004-04-05T19:50:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2004, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/61 "2004-04-06T21:51:27Z")
> [@John Mace](#): > > Catholics usually refer to themselves as Catholics, and not “Christians”. In the US, at least, if someone says they go to a “Christian School” that almost always means “Protestant”. \ Yet some will throw a big hissy fit if you imply that they’re not Christians. When I was eight or nine, my great-grandmother demanded to know what religions I’d heard of. So I told her: Christian, Jewish, Buddist, Mulsim and Catholic. Then I got a lecture/rant on the fact that " Catholics are Christians!!" Wisely, I didn’t tell her that’s _not_ what Dad taught me. 😉 \ ---
**Author:** ![Thingol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Thingol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thingol)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/62 "2004-04-07T00:32:11Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > I believe it is certainly possible such a thing could happen. It is also entirely possible that I could win the lottery. Dude, it’s a big old world, and some weird s\*\*t goes down. When I was a freshman in college, at a small private school in the Southeast US funded largely by the Southern Baptist Convention (y’all know about them up there?), my philosophy prof began his course by asserting that he was going to shatter students’ beliefs in God and the soul. And he meant it. Just last year, we had a high school teacher in the county I now live in who was using his break time to masturbate for a Web cam. He was traced by law enforcement agents who noticed school-related items clearly visible in the background. At the university where I taught, a prof who was surfing porn had a female student show up at his office – he called her over to look at the monitor… “Look at this! Can you believe that?” One of my high school science teachers insisted that spontaneous human combustion was caused by static electricity igniting intestinal gas. One day, the principal called him out of the room, fired him, and sent him back in. People do really stupid random things. Point being, given how many teachers there are out there, this is hardly an odds-of-winning-the-lottery type event. Now, the Jack Chik angle I can’t address, being ignorant of said JC. But… the point relevant to the OP, if it wasn’t a hoax, is that it’s best to submerge yourself in the weirdness. If your faith doesn’t hold up, how strong was it to begin with? ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/63 "2004-04-07T01:48:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Yet some will throw a big hissy fit if you imply that they’re not Christians. Well, since they are Christians, that makes sense. The reason for identifying as Catholic before Christian when introducing oneself is to prevent the awkward moments, later, when the person to whom one has been introduced goes off on a rant against the papists. Given the explicit bigotry directed against Catholics from the settling of the country until the 1960s, it was generally a good idea to declare oneself early so as to know whoone’s friends and enemies might be. (And, to be fair, there was a certain amount of displaying the chip on one’s shoulder to the “heretics” by many of the Catholics.) That hardly changes the fact that Catholics are, indeed, Christians. ---
**Author:** ![Faucet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/50afbb/32.png) [@Faucet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faucet)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/64 "2004-04-07T18:23:06Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Allow me to be the first to say: Sorry, I don’t believe it. And you should not believe it because he didn’t say those exact words but might as well have, I was totally paraphrasing, he said the same thing but in a “nice” way. Peace ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/65 "2004-04-07T18:47:13Z")
Another “secular” college student here - I went to UF as a Chemistry Major, and the religion there is football. 😃 (I am now a fervent disciple of the Gators, sigh. :rolleyes: ) I agree with everybody else - the pure science people don’t really discuss religion in their classes. The Philosophy/English/History profs, though, may vary in their mileage. Not every nonbeliever is fervently anti-Christian. It’s just that when it comes down to choosing God as their boss, they’d rather not. (Heck, we Christians have plenty of problems with submission, too.) The more religious the person, the more intent they’d be in converting people to their worldview. This applies to people of all beliefs - Christianity, Islam, Atheism, whatever. ---
**Author:** ![sugaree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@sugaree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sugaree)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/66 "2004-04-07T20:19:06Z")
> [@Faucet](#): > > And you should not believe it because he didn’t say those exact words but might as well have, I was totally paraphrasing, he said the same thing but in a “nice” way. Peace Well, good to see you back! I know some secondary ed science teachers in public schools. Atheist and believer teachers (none are, however, Biblibal literalists) alike consider such things as the theory of evolution and the geologic time scale to be potential powder kegs. At any moment a student could complain that learning this stuff violates his or her religious convictions. Delicate verbal acrobatics are needed to avoid summoning the dread spector of hysterical parents to the principal’s office and the school board meeting. I am curious–to the best of your recollection, what exactly did your teacher say. And were there reprocussions? Anyway, back to your original question. I am in college, but not a science major. None of my teachers have ever lobbyed for or against religion. My husband was a science major; he can’t recall any overt atheistic remarks in class. ---
**Author:** ![Lilairen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lilairen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lilairen)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/67 "2004-04-07T20:40:56Z")
> [@dotchan](#): > > The more religious the person, the more intent they’d be in converting people to their worldview. This applies to people of all beliefs - Christianity, Islam, Atheism, whatever. I think you need “proselytising” in between “all” and “beliefs” there. ---
**Author:** ![bookbuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9bd4f/32.png) [@bookbuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bookbuster)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/68 "2004-04-07T21:00:51Z")
I went to a standard liberal college. Were most of my professors and classmates atheists - yes. But so what, it is not like they have some evil “conversion ray gun.” They only have words, and a lot of things they say might be very challenging. No matter what belief you hold, someone on this planet will be able to challenge it in a way that really makes you think. Isn’t that a good thing? I mean it’s not like YOU won’t be there. They will say something, you will think about it, and reply. YOU will be represented as much as you choose to represent yourself. YOU are going to feel more solid and justified in your beliefs than ever before if you actively participate in the college arena. You shouldn’t be scared away from a college (or any life experience) that you feel driven towards because the scary smart people are going to challenge your belief system. YOU are a scary smart person too, and YOU are going to challenge their beliefs. What, you don’t think YOU can handle it? Of course you can, so what is the big deal? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/69 "2004-04-07T22:16:25Z")
[QUOTE=dotchan] Not every nonbeliever is fervently anti-Christian. It’s just that when it comes down to choosing God as their boss, they’d rather not. (Heck, we Christians have plenty of problems with submission, too.) /QUOTE] Uh, no. It’s more a matter of having no belief such a beastie exists. If one thinks god exists, but chooses not to worship, one is not an atheist, but something else. I suspect you don’t worship Zeus primarily because you don’t think he exists, and not primarily because you’d rather worship another god, right? ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/70 "2004-04-07T23:19:41Z")
You will come out different from what you were when you went in. Secondary school is mostly a collection of facts, many of which are dubious at best. College is where you get ideas. Some of those ideas are pretty dubious, as well, but in college you’ll be in a position to question what is told to you. If you’re afraid of having your beliefs questioned to the extent that you can’t freely exchange ideas, don’t go to college. I doubt anyone will try to make an atheist of you. No one ever did me. Even if they try, a frontal assault on your beliefs will never work, but the weight of argument might. It’s the chance you take. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2004, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/71 "2004-04-07T23:24:36Z")
I find this Christian/Catholic thing incredibly offensive. Of course Roman Catholics are Christians. Worldwide, Protestants are a small minority of Christians. Those who co-opt the term Christian to mean fundamentalist are a small minority of Protestants. I grew up Protestant in Boston which is primarily Roman Catolic and my friends were surprised to know that _Protestants_ were Christian. This whole interdemoninational catfighting is one reason I’m now an Athesit. This forum is meant to fight ignorance, not spread it. I better go now before I say something more appropriate to the Pit. ---
**Author:** ![Abbie\_Carmichael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@Abbie\_Carmichael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abbie_Carmichael)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/72 "2004-04-08T01:19:11Z")
**Worldwide, Protestants are a small minority of Christians.** Say what? There’s about 1 billion Catholics worldwide and about the same number of Protestants. Collectively the world’s got about 2 billion Christians. Now, I totally suck at math but even I can see that when you’ve got 1 billion Catholics and 1 billion Protestants, neither are a “small minority” in the Christian world. ---
**Author:** ![Thingol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Thingol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thingol)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/73 "2004-04-08T01:38:32Z")
> [@Abbie Carmichael](#): > > There’s about 1 billion Catholics worldwide and about the same number of Protestants. You hear that, Catholics? Breed, m **rf** rs, breed! ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/74 "2004-04-08T01:42:19Z")
The problem is when you run into the type of Christian who believes all non-Christians will suffer an eternity of suffering in hell who believes that Catholics are not Christians and should be converted to Christianity. A few months ago on a Greyhound bus, I got stuck behind one such missionary who was bragging on cellphone about his exploits including “converting a Catholic to Christianity.” Forget the Catholics. That sort of thing even annoys this Anglican! I get fed up with people who try to convert me and others to a faith we already embace, albeit not in the same form. That is why some Catholics, not to mention the odd Episcopalian, throw hissy fits when someone tries to imply we’re not Christian. (In fairness, such people usually aren’t sure what Episcopalians are, so we duck most of that fire.) CJ ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/75 "2004-04-08T01:44:24Z")
> [@Abbie Carmichael](#): > > \*\* . . . There’s about 1 billion Catholics worldwide and about the same number of Protestants. Collectively the world’s got about 2 billion Christians . . . What, no Orthodox? ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/76 "2004-04-08T01:51:15Z")
FWIW, [adherents.com](http://adherents.com) gives these figures Major Traditional Branches of Christianity (mid-1995; source: Encyclopedia Britannica) Catholic: 968,000,000 Protestant: 395,867,000 Other Christians: 275,583,000 Orthodox: 217,948,000 Anglicans: 70,530,000 Granted, the figures are nearly ten years old, and they’ve separated out the Anglicans from the Protestants; I think you could reasonably add them back in. The “other Christians” figure looks a bit high; I dare say some of it might represent denominations that would consider themselves Protestant. But they’ll still fall well short of the Catholics, and well short of a billion. ---
**Author:** ![Faucet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/50afbb/32.png) [@Faucet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faucet)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/77 "2004-04-08T02:04:51Z")
> [@sugaree](#): > > Well, good to see you back! I know some secondary ed science teachers in public schools. Atheist and believer teachers (none are, however, Biblibal literalists) alike consider such things as the theory of evolution and the geologic time scale to be potential powder kegs. At any moment a student could complain that learning this stuff violates his or her religious convictions. Delicate verbal acrobatics are needed to avoid summoning the dread spector of hysterical parents to the principal’s office and the school board meeting. > > I am curious–to the best of your recollection, what exactly did your teacher say. And were there reprocussions? > > Anyway, back to your original question. I am in college, but not a science major. None of my teachers have ever lobbyed for or against religion. My husband was a science major; he can’t recall any overt atheistic remarks in class. it went something like this more or less; Female Student: I think we should study all the different theories of science. Teacher: Theories of science…what do you mean? Female Student: I believe that God created everything. Teacher: That’s good but as the course goes on we will learn a lot of great science facts and we will go more into the scientific theories and build upon those rather than go in to many directions but that is a great point to make. Female Student: Can I do my reports with things I believe in. Teacher: Let’s not go there yet because as you learn your beliefs may change and thats what I’m here to do as a teacher enlighten you…but Thank You very good issues. Thats an almost 2 year old memory but mostly I remember him kind of saying in a “nice” way that her beliefs were not scientific and if she or any of the christians had any brains they’d believe the way he did. ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/78 "2004-04-08T02:14:56Z")
> [@Faucet](#): > > Thats an almost 2 year old memory but mostly I remember him kind of saying in a “nice” way that her beliefs were not scientific and if she or any of the christians had any brains they’d believe the way he did. I don’t think there’s anything unreasonable about saying that in science class you’re going to do reports working with the scientific, and not the theological, framework. If she didn’t buy into science, she didn’t have to… but the class is about understanding the underpinnings. Even if she started every lab report with “for the sake of argument, assume…”, the class isn’t about theology. It’s about understanding the workings of scientific theory. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/79 "2004-04-08T02:17:37Z")
That doesn’t sound nearly the same as you described it. What he’s trying to say is, he’s not there to teach you religion, but science facts. And that, perhaps, she will change her mind. It’s not his job to push Christianity, but to teach science. And despite all the arguing, creationism is NOT science. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2004, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419/80 "2004-04-08T02:30:01Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > FWIW, [adherents.com](http://adherents.com) gives these figures > > Major Traditional Branches of Christianity > (mid-1995; source: Encyclopedia Britannica) > > Catholic: 968,000,000 > Protestant: 395,867,000 > Other Christians: 275,583,000 > Orthodox: 217,948,000 > Anglicans: 70,530,000 > > Granted, the figures are nearly ten years old, and they’ve separated out the Anglicans from the Protestants; I think you could reasonably add them back in. The “other Christians” figure looks a bit high; I dare say some of it might represent denominations that would consider themselves Protestant. But they’ll still fall well short of the Catholics, and well short of a billion. Beat me to it. Here is more on their classification: > [@](#): > > Christians will be divided into “Catholics” and “Protestants” (with Orthodox/Eastern Christians typically classified as Protestant). With more accuracy, Orthodox are added as a third division, leaving all Christians who are not Catholic or Orthodox classified as Protestant. Typically this includes many groups who would prefer not to grouped with Protestants, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and Latter Day Saints. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-professors-try-to-turn-me-into-an-athiest-in-college/238419.md?page=5)