Atheist Quotes
by David M.
Fitzpatrick
Last updated
Tuesday, 30 August 2005
 "The idea of god implies the
abdication of human reason and justice; it is the most decisive negation of
human liberty & necessarily ends in the enslavement of mankind both in
theory and practice. He who desires to worship god must harbor no childish
illusions about the matter but bravely renounce his liberty and humanity."
—Mikhail Bakunin
Bakunin's classic statement on the
meaning of religious belief sums it all up very nicely: to worship a god
and believe in a religion is to give up liberty, justice, reason, and
indeed humanity.
"I contend that we are both Atheists. I just
believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss
all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours."
—Stephen Roberts
Perhaps one of the most profound
Atheist statements ever. You have to love this one (unless you're an
Xian, in which case you're probably really p1ssed off). Xians are
splintered into many denominations, all disagreeing with each other and
believing their to be the only one that is right. Despite the fact
that they disbelieve hundreds of other gods out there, and despite the
fact that each denomination of Xianity appears to worship a different God,
it's truly amazing that they can't understand how Atheists simply belief
in just one god less than they do.
 RELIGION, n. A daughter of Hope and Fear,
explaining to Ignorance the nature of the Unknowable.
"What is your religion my son?" inquired the Archbishop of Rheims.
"Pardon, monseigneur," replied Rochebriant; "I am ashamed of it."
"Then why do you not become an Atheist?"
"Impossible! I should be ashamed of Atheism."
"In that case, monsieur, you should join the Protestants."
—Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914), The Devil's Dictionary
The first line is great. Bierce
says that religion is something we ignorant humans created out of hope and
fear about things to which we cannot know the answer. Well... he's
quite right!
The opposite of the religious fanatic is
not the fanatical Atheist but the gentle cynic who cares not whether there
is a god or not. —Eric Hoffer (1902-1983)
True enough. Most Atheists
aren't "Militant Atheists," as I half-jokingly title this site; most truly
don't care whether there is a god or not. Mostly, it's because we're
convinced there isn't, so there's nothing to care about. Agnostics
accept that we can not ever know, one way or the other.
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