Atheism and Rationalism

There are many people who claim that they are Atheists for various reasons. Some people simply lack faith in supernatural, some have lost it after a catastrophic event in their life, some choose it as a mask to attack other religions they don't like and very few come to that conclusion after skeptical and rational analysis of things. The above statement is true for every other religion too. In case of other religions, most people follow a religion only because they are born in to families practicing those religions. Now what makes Atheism special?

Most of the religions claim that they are the oldest, only true religion, most scientific, have proof etc. Likewise Atheists also suffer from a problem, “rationalism”. Few of the prominent Atheists were/are rationalists. That won't make all Atheists rationalists by default. So let us see the how good rationalism of Atheists fare.

Type 1: I don't believe in anything supernatural

This is sufficient to make one Atheist. But this includes people with differing level of intellect, critical thinking and rationalism. For example, I know people who believe in Homeopathy, but say that they are rationalists. “Wait sir, you are an Atheist, but believing in Homeopathy is superstitious.” But if I tell them that Homeopathy is fake, then, the following argument will be like telling a religious person that his/her religion is fake. So there is no rationalism in their Atheism. They just lack any religious belief may be due to brought up or because they thought it is fancy. There are lot of Atheists I know, who believe in alien invasion, astrology as science, some races are superior, moon landing never happened etc.

Type 2: I lost my faith

Losing and gaining faith is a matter of personal choice. I am not here to say no one should lose their faith. But losing your faith won't make you a rationalist. You are only an Atheist, only when you critically examine things, you become a rationalist. I have seen a very religious person who lost his faith in supernatural after a miserable event in his life. But he still believed some incorrect things taught by his religion. And whenever he faces some big problem, he will softly revert back to his religion and after the problem resolves back to his lack of faith. These type of people just argue against existence of a deity in only one line. “If there is a God, then why there are so many sufferings and troubles in the world?” Other than this, they don't know anything else. So their lack of faith too is not about rationalism but about pessimism.

Type 3: Hiding The Truth

There are some popular figures in media and politics, who act like they are atheists and use that cover to attack religions they don't like. There are some directors and actors who claim that they are Atheists, but attack other religions while softly criticizing or in some cases, militantly supporting their own religions. These people may or may not lack faith in supernatural. But they claim that they are Atheists, only to avoid problems while attacking other religions. These are the worst type of Atheists. They too lack any rational thoughts, as rational thoughts prevent one from doing morally evil things, while what these people do is outright immoral. Like the religious wear secular mask, these people choose Atheist mask to avoid counter attacks while criticizing other religions.

Type 4: Rational Atheists

They are the minority within Atheist community. These people are the only one who are suitable to be called rationalists. But most of them can't be seen or heard in public. They are the one who works on science and technology. They are the one who try to makes law and society neutral from the grips of religions. But wait! There are such rational minorities in every religion. But I have to accept that Atheists have a higher percentage of such people. Chances are high that a person lacking in faith can question things easily without fear or angering a deity or hurting their own sentiments. But how many Atheists move to this step apart from simple lack of faith?

Conclusion:

Buying a laptop without OS won't make you a Free Software supporter. Only when you install a Free Software OS, you become one. Likewise, lacking faith won't make you rationalist by default neither associating with a religion makes you irrational, unless you partake in superstitions. Only when you critically think and examine things around you, you are a rationalist. In olden days rational minds stayed religious. In recent past great minds had belief in supernatural yet remained rational. They called themselves Deists. Even today, many people culturally associate themselves with a religion but in practice remain rational. These type of people are encouraged by their society and education to free their mind from shackles of superstition. Such cultural change can produce even more rationalists than simple lack of faith.

No matter whether we believe in supernatural or not, it is better to keep such beliefs personal and try to apply critical thinking in whatever we do in our life. By that we can can serve people and God (if you believe in one) better.