If you were going to make a list of people who died SOLELY for the cause of atheism, I’ll bet you will be busy doing a lot of research. Let’s face it, there are very very few (if any) true atheists who die solely for the cause of their religious beliefs. You may be able to find a few sparse instances of atheist martyrs, but even those are ambiguous because it is difficult to prove they died for atheism (and that they were in fact atheists in their exact beliefs).
When I say “religious beliefs,” I am including atheism as a religion. It is a religion in every sense of the word. They have a creation story (evolution), they have faith in it (you can’t see something evolve in a lab, therefore faith is required), and more. So atheism IS a religion, and the sooner you realize that, the better you can understand it. So everyone on Earth has some type of religion (whether they realize it or not). Even an agnostic will generally have a vague set of beliefs about many aspects of life and death.
But how many atheists are really willing to die, only to spread the gospel of atheism or defend it? Not many are there? How many religious people die for their beliefs? Turn on the news, there should be someone in the world that probably did it today (perhaps in the middle east). If not, you shouldn’t have too much trouble finding them throughout history (the bible alone has many records of martyrs).
Why Not More Atheist Martyrs? Why Aren’t They Dying For Their Religion in Greater Numbers?
I asked this on a popular forum today because this has often interested me, and here are the main replies I got:
- Atheists do die in wars, as firefighters, police officers, etc.
My reply to that would be: Oh sure people die every day for something they believe in, or to help someone else out. That isn’t religious martyring though. I mean dying specifically for your beliefs in atheism, not merely for someone else or some other noble cause that has nothing to do with faith. As in willingly risking your life to die solely for atheism. Just like religious people die to defend their belief in God (such as the Apostle Paul, Steven, etc.). Why not more atheists doing that?
- I am Not Stupid Enough to Die. Religious People Are Stupid for Dying for Some God
They are basically saying that when they die, that’s it. Therefore, it would be dumb to martyr themselves, since their life will be over. This proves my point exactly: Atheism isn’t worth dying for! I totally agree with them, it would be stupid to die for atheism (simply because you gain nothing either way).
When a religious person is martyred, they have a potential reward. If God does exist, he will certainly reward those who died defending Him (and I am NOT talking about those crazy suicide bombers). If God doesn’t exist, then the martyr has not really lost anything (considering the fact that we all die in the end anyway). So the God fearing martyr has something to gain, and nothing to lose (except for maybe a few years of life, which is nothing in the grand scheme of things).
But in terms of atheism, they believe nothing happens when you die. So there would be no ultimate reward for being a martyr. Even if they spread their belief of atheism, that too is meaningless in the grand scheme of the universe since life has no meaning or purpose (according to the theory of evolution), and let’s face it, religion will always be here. If there is no God they lose (in terms of the rest of their life they would have had). If there is a God they lose (in terms of judgment).
Are religious people stupid for dying for something they believe in? Not at all, and especially if God does exist (which I truly believe). It shows the complete devotion and trust they have in God, and at least they have something to potentially gain after death. Even if God didn’t exist, who would dare call it stupid to die for something we strongly believe in? If you can’t die for something, you shouldn’t live for something. I live for God, therefore I would die for God. If God doesn’t exist, I don’t particularly want to live anyway in the midst of so much pain, turmoil, and negativity that exists in this life (what is the point).
Some atheists may die for another person, because most of us would agree that it is a reason worth dying. Most believers would gladly do the same, and even hold tight to their faith and die for God if needed. But how many atheists would die for atheism? Again, if it isn’t worth dying for, is it really worth living for?
Why Am I Picking on Atheists Here? There are Other Faiths I Could Pick On
I am certainly not trying to be mean to atheists today or pick on them unfairly (I love you if you are atheist or not). But atheists can be more religious and have more faith sometimes than most Christians I know. For example, I sometimes visit Yahoo Answers. If you are ever on there in their Religion/Spirituality section, you will quickly find that the same people get on day after day.
In fact, it gets far more shocking than that. Not only are there the same atheists on there day after day (usually mocking religion, or spreading evilution lies), but they create multiple accounts, usually stay on there for hours each day, and so forth.
So we have these people who hide behind their computers, create multiple yahoo accounts, and they sit there all day denying God, mocking faith, and so forth. Many even put up websites, make YouTube videos, and so much more. Whew, I have never seen so many devout religious atheists. Does that strike anyone else as odd?
I always find this odd because I don’t believe in a great many things (such as the bogeyman), but I certainly don’t spend hours and hours trying to disprove the bogeyman or debate it. I don’t post bogeyman YouTube videos, I don’t set up sites dedicated to it, I don’t create 10 Yahoo accounts to keep writing about it, and so forth.
I would expect most atheists to simply not believe in God and go on with their lives. However, that isn’t the case. They feel a need to debate, argue, and criticize people on this forum relentlessly.
They also answer questions all day long, evangelizing their atheistic beliefs. I once polled them, and most do this at work (and many work at government type jobs according to them, no wonder there is so much government inefficiency).
Christians should really take note. I know some Christians who don’t do a whole lot to spread the gospel, or to help others in their faith. Yet, these poor atheists spend so many hours day after day to evangelize their religious beliefs. And the whole time they do not even realize that they are even more religious and have more faith than the “believers” they seek to mock for their alleged “irrationality.”
I wonder if it would shock some of these atheists if they could see themselves from an outside perspective. If they could see the hours and hard work they put into trying to disprove that which is by definition immeasurable. If they could see how silly it is to mock people of faith, when they too are of a “faith.”
But again, one thing is surprising: They are so evangelistic and clearly fundamentalists about their faith, but why no (or so few) martyrs throughout history? Again, they believe it, but they aren’t willing to die for (apparently)? So is it really worth evangelizing, if it isn’t worth dying for (or living for)? I don’t think so. Not by a long shot.
Who can really die yelling out the passionate phrase: “There is no God, I evolved and life is meaningless and pointless, and I dedicate my life to that.”
I am also not suggesting that everyone SHOULD be a martyr, or that everyone should die for their faith. It is a tragedy when anyone has to lose their life prematurely. I hope that no one ever has to lay down their life again to support their faith.
I know that while I would gladly die for God, I really don’t look forward to any pain I may feel in the process of death. But I would still die for God if necessary, nonetheless.