Reporting for DNA-Daily News & Analysis in Education is the only antidote to religion: Richard Dawkins, Geetanjali Jhala notes that celebrity Atheist Richard Dawkins has made even more troubling statements about his ongoing plans to interfere in other people’s child rearing.
Dawkins is quotes as follows:
We need to protect children from being indoctrinated. It goes on to the next generation and then they see that their children get indoctrinated. Children are getting educated into the religion of their parents. We shouldn’t just assume that a child of a Christian becomes a Christian…
If children are taught, however moderately, that faith is a virtue, they are taught that they don’t need evidence to believe something; that they can believe something just because it’s their faith, then that paves the way for the minority to become extremists. If children are taught that they don’t need to defend their beliefs with evidence, then that does pave the way for extremism…
There seems to be a correlation with education. It’s certainly true within the US — the more educated people are more likely to give up religion. There is a lot to unpack here so let us consider his statements: “We need to protect children from being indoctrinated”
Indeed, such as is the case when from infancy they are told to believe in quaint Victorian Era tall tales about an eternal uncaused first cause piece of matter that no one caused to explode for no reason and made everything for no purpose.
“It goes on to the next generation and then they see that their children get indoctrinated”
Indeed, this is done by most people, who teach their children to love others, or to hate them, or to shower on occasion, or to work hard for what they want, or to believe in YHVH, or, as has been chronicled of Atheist parents, to not believe in YHVH.
“Children are getting educated into the religion of their parents” May are. “We shouldn’t just assume that a child of a Christian becomes a Christian”
Now, this is a very, very good point. There are not born Christians but only born again Christians as one is not a Christian due to nationality, social conformity, family tradition, etc. but only via repentance by grace through faith.
Which brings us to the next point.
“If children are taught, however moderately, that faith is a virtue, they are taught that they don’t need evidence to believe something; that they can believe something just because it’s their faith” As with very many New Atheists, Richard Dawkins invents a definition of “faith,” imposes his straw-definition upon believers and then proceeds to discredit “faith.”
The essay The Gap Filler goes into some detail on this issue but succinctly stated all of us—from the fundamentalist Bible thumping YECist to the most militant Atheist—employ some amount of “faith” and do so as the very foundation upon which our worldviews are based since our worldviews are, ultimately, based upon axioms, presuppositions which are not evidenced nor proven but intuited or assumed. In this sense, we are all metaphysicians. “Faith” is the next logical step once evidence has been followed as far as it can go and all evidence only goes so far.
So, one may consider everything from the witness of their hearts and souls to the fine tuning of the universe and life’s basis on information and conclude that there is a God. Others may turn Darwinism, a theory which is supposed to be about biology, into a worldview. They will thereby view the evidence of small changes within species and philosophically (or, misosophically) fill in the gaps with their “faith” in order to conclude that all living being changed one to another. This concludes (or begins) with belief in the ultimate crypto-zoological creature the un-evidenced common ancestor. Consider an example of such “faith” based beliefs from none other than Richard Dawkins himself:
Um, there’s got to be a series of advantages all the way in the feather. If you can’t think of one then that’s your problem, not natural selection’s problem. Natural selection, um, well, I suppose that is a sort of matter of faith on my, on my part since the theory is so coherent and so powerful. [The Atheism Tapes, Part 4: Richard Dawkins and Jonathan Miller]
Moreover, whenever Richard Dawkins positively affirms a “faith” based belief in something or other and is asked for evidence, he simply stated, “Scientists are working on it.” Well, there you have it, when he asserts his un-evidenced 97% assurance that God does not exist, which he does by “faith,” and asks you for evidence simply say, “Theologians are working on it.”
“then that paves the way for the minority to become extremists. If children are taught that they don’t need to defend their beliefs with evidence, then that does pave the way for extremism” This is very, very odd as, by admission, he not only has no evidence for his world view but would demand that such evidence is impossible and/or unwarranted. This is because his worldview is based on the negative assertion that God does not exist and that the burden of proof is upon the theist. Richard Dawkins and those who believe like him, by “faith,” that the universe came from nothing, that an eternal something or nothing brought about the universe by nothing and for nothing, that life came from non-life when lightning struck a pond, that meticulously organized information just happens because timeʹdidʹit, matterʹdidʹit, chanceʹdidʹit, evolutionʹdidʹit. They have no evidence upon which to base the majority of their beliefs. Agnostic evolutionary biologist Professor Richard Lewontin includes Dawkins in a list of those who:
…put unsubstantiated assertions or counterfactual claims at the very center of the stories they have retailed in the market. [Prof. Richard Lewontin, “Billions and Billions of Demons” New York Times Book Review, Vol. 44, No. 1 (January 9, 1997)]
Thus, since we all believe in things for which we have no evidence, we are all in danger of paving the way for extremists be headed for a future of Al Qaeda, Nazi Youth or Atheist Communists, etc.
“There seems to be a correlation with education. It’s certainly true within the US — the more educated people are more likely to give up religion”
Now, this statement actually ended with “…I’m sure that’s true in India as well” which is interesting as it is what class? Anyone? Anyone? An un-evidenced statement based on nothing but his self assured view of that which must be true according to him “…I’m sure that’s true…” Some claim that there is a correlation between education and lack of theism. Whatever the case may be one must define “education.” For example, in the US children are taught Darwinian tall tales from their most formative years and beyond. In everything from children’s books and movies to their very earliest classes that are supposed to be about science, they are taught the Atheist Catechism.
They are taught an un-evidenced worldview within an atmosphere, the public school system, wherein reference to God is virtually illegal and so each and every subject is taught with utter disregard of God. By the time the graduate high school or college they have been indoctrinated with the Atheist Catechism but are now called “educated” because they have a degree on their wall.
Lastly, for all of Richard Dawkins attempts at appearing fair, reasonable and playing the “…the children, think of the children…” card always keep one thing within the forefront of your mind when he waxes inelegant upon such issues.
He considers whether commensurate with his plans to interfere with religious parents’ childrearing society may step in:
It’s one thing to say people should be free to believe whatever they like, but should they be free to impose their beliefs on their children? Is there something to be said for society stepping in? [During his interview with Gary Wolf, “The Church of the Non-Believers“] And his ultimate goal, of course, is:
“might lead children to choose no religion at all” so hopes Richard Dawkins. [Richard Dawkins, “Now Here’s a Bright Idea“]
For more on Atheists’ besmirching of religious parents and how Atheists encourage each other to raise their own children as Atheists, see my Atheist Child Rearing section.
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