Christine,
I said "[atheism] has no philosophical creativity in it . . ." and because of this I find it intellectually and spiritually uninteresting.
The principle philosophical schools born out of atheism in the 20th century are Existentialism and its slack-jawed, mouth breathing cousin Nihilism. They deny any meaning in life beyond that which one ascribes to one's self (kind of bleak, eh?), the inexistence of any universal moral truths (is this what you would teach your daughter?), and the ethical uncertainty of all of man's behavior (so, let's just make it up as we go--it's a life boat and situational ethic buffet).They seem to approach life with a shoulder shrugging, philosophical wimpiness, that is too quick to say "I don't know, and don't really care, because it just doesn't matter (except for what I decide for myself)."
Now I am a huge fan of individuality, but without a generally shared sense of loyalty, charity, honor, truthfulness, justness . . .VALUES, it seems civilization, at least as we know it in America, would indeed be on a steep slippery slope. I was deep into existentialist literature in my college years, and know its sensibilities very well. I even found it stimulating--in the abstract--but that's where I drew my personal line, because life is not lived in the abstract.
If you have specific knowledge of some positive philosophical spawn of atheism, other than its illusory reliance on "logic" and "rational" thought, I'd like to hear it.
Rick |
