RAmen.

lol, the picture could make fun of both sides depending how you interpret it. But maybe that's the point ;)

The way you can tell a real fanatical atheist when you read/hear/see one is they spend all their time pointing out how awful religion, especially organized religion is, they use organized religion as a scapegoat for every single problem in the whole wide world, and they spend zero time offering happy, shiny alternatives to religion, and they offer no way to solve the world's problems other than suggesting that people should give up religion.

In other words, fanatical atheists are much like every other kind of fanaticism out there, except that thus far, AFAIK, none of them have resorted to violence to accomplish their goals. Fanatical atheists will tell you it's because they know better, but I suspect it has more to do with the fact that there are so few fanatical atheists out there. IMHO, if there were a great many more of them, at some point, one of them would turn out to be crazy enough to try to blow someone up or go on a shooting spree.

This is because it is fanaticism, not religion that leads good persons into doing horrible things.

-- Furry cows moo and decompress.

Atheists and agnostics are right in most of their thinking

It has been common among religious believers to look with misgiving at atheists and agnostics, and to think that they are mistaken; however, in many instances the opposite is the truth; some religious beliefs are not just irrelevant, but baseless. The “God” of main line traditions simply does not exist. I accepted the challenge of finding the One who may be recognized even by agnostics and atheists: the Existence itself. The God of religions may be denied, but nobody can deny that the Existence is. It doesn’t matter how you call it, but “All-That-Is,” is. A book (probably not written for you) “Christianity Reformed From ist Roots” tells all; perhaps its reflections will relieve your friends of the illusion, as they did for me. (Amazon.com).

Jairo Mejia, M. Psych., Santa Clara University Episcopal Priest, Retired Carmel Valley, California

http://www.mbay.net/~jmejia/Grudzen.htm http://www.mbay.net/~jmejia/Churcher.htm