Atheist "Church"

 In the past several years, alternative meeting formats for atheists have become more popular and captured the media's attention. Many atheists have objections to meetings like the Sunday Assembly, Community Mission Chapel, and Oasis.

Objection: I don't like it.

I don't care. You don't have to go.

Objection: Why don't they just meet at the bar or have a lecture?

If you're not plugged in to the atheist community to know that's the STANDARD format, you need to STFU about anything in the atheist community.

Objection: The word "church"

You'll be glad to know that they don't even use the word church. It's Sunday Assembly, Community Mission Chapel, and Oasis. "Church" is a media term.

But what if they did use the word?

If your objection is anything out of the dictionary, that's prescriptivism. I don't care that the dictionary defines it as a Christian congregation. The word can be used as a format label. These meetings are churchy, they have singing and testimonies and fellowship behavior.

What word does illustrate the difference between groups that use a churchy format and groups that just do lectures and pub meetups? Because I dare you to find another label.

Objection: Confusing Christians about atheism being a religion

I DON'T CARE. I don't care about your internet debates with Christians. How dare you tell atheists not to do things that help them because of your debates?

Meeting together is not the definition of a religion, that's trivially easy to point out to a Christian.
Atheists are people with social needs,and many ex-Christian atheists enjoy the churchy format. Any Christian who pretends to be confused with this explanation is not confused, they're LYING and HATEFUL.

Objection:Something about brainwashing and groupthink

STFU, please. Getting atheists together is like herding cats. Nobody's going to be brainwashed by having a fun little meeting.

Objection: Atheists shouldn't have to get together as atheists, we have nothing in common

Thank you, you little privileged asshole who probably doesn't live in the bible belt. Or you might be asocial, in which case, STFU about something that's for socializing.

Why can't I just go to a local knitting/hiking/blah group to get friends? Because if you live in the bible belt or many other places, you will get asked where you go to church, not if you go to church. You don't want to make a scene, you don't want to keep your mouth shut, and you don't want to hang out with people who think you're going to hell.

Objection: We need to get beyond churches/evolve/give up these formats

Religion does not own community, potlucks, singing. talks, fellowship or any of that. Don't let them have it.

The ONLY thing anyone can say about these meetings is if they would go or not. Any other assertions are baseless.

Perhaps you ask why my answers are so mean. Well, I am hostile to what are essentially subjective preferences being wrapped in a cloak of objectivity. I'm hostile to the outsider nature of such questions as why should atheists get together or talking about their preferences for bar meetups without realizing that they're already catered to. I'm hostile to the denigrating of ex-Christians when it seems like lifelongs are voicing these. I'm hostile when it seems like antisocial basement - dwelling trolls are asking this of "normal" people.

 If your first impulse is to put down something fun that other people are doing, without a damn good demonstration of harm, I basically don't trust you. So perhaps you should rethink your objections if you've said these things before.

Atheists are Coming for Your Grandchildren!

Mr. Don Boys is having a breakdown over our very existence.

"New Atheists hate God and religion and are going to shocking extremes to change American and Canadian family life and our total culture as they promote their “God doesn’t exist” heresy. Since they teach that the Bible is full of dangerous information, they consider it child abuse to expose children to biblical teaching. New Atheists are dangerous people not simply angry old men with stinking breath, sweaty hands, and showers of dandruff."

Um, what? I don't even know what to say to his caricature...

" The American Atheists’ website clearly proves my contention when the founder, Al Stefanelli, Georgia State Director, wrote of fundamentalist Christians, “They don’t respond to lawsuits, letters, amicus briefs or other grass-roots campaigns and they must, must, must be eradicated.” Eradicated means “to wipe out, destroy, tear out by the roots.” He continues to libel us when he lumps us with fanatics who fly planes into buildings and “people being burned for witchcraft.” Al is so uninformed that he doesn’t know that no “witch” was ever burned in America! (Check out my book, Pilgrims, Puritans, and Patriots: Our Christian Heritage!)"

Pretty sure Al Stefanelli is not the founder of American Atheists. Also, I'm pretty sure there's more context to that quote. Also, "witches" were HANGED in Salem, and I'm pretty sure that's still bad...


He then goes on to quote all 4 horsemen and others about the harms of religion.

"Folk, the barbarians are not at the gates, they are within the gates and have launched a crusade to destroy our faith and remove our children from Christian influence. Not from this family! New Atheists can get all the state or Federal laws passed they want but they will never take my visiting grandchildren no matter how many warrants they have. Not without a literal fight!"

PARANOIA!!!! We're coming to take your grandkids!!! Statistically, we probably already have them...

 "America is in deep trouble especially when you realize there is still a fool on every corner, a clown in every public office, and every village has not one, but several idiots plus numerous tyrants, terrorists, thugs, and totalitarians lounging down at the American Angry Atheist Association. They are dangerous, duped, dopey, and deluded people who might be helped if brains could be transplanted. Absent that, if they had a New Birth experience with Christ, they might become tolerable–with time."

The American Angry Atheist Association...I'll petition Dave for a name change shortly

" No, I do not hate any of the New Atheists. I simply accept their declaration of war. Those who criticize my “strong” language are a bunch of pantywaists who don’t understand the seriousness of this war or have already capitulated to the enemy or are part of the enemy."

He's declared war on us! Run!!!!

"We used to laugh at atheists; now we are in a life and death struggle with them. Our children are in their sights so that puts atheists in my sights. Remember, this is a war of their making. After all, there are some things worth fighting for and the First Amendment and my grandchildren are two of those."

I actually love it that the atheist movement has made such an impression on him that he stopped laughing at us.

" New Atheists are designing, deceptive, and dishonest people who are determined to control what all children are taught. Is the Bible dangerous for children? Has the First Amendment been repealed? Where is all the outrage at such a dangerous, disastrous, and deadly threat?"

I like how he notices that he's alone in his paranoid outrage. I also like how he pleads for the first amendment without realizing that it applies to us too.

Batshit Anti-Atheist Book

Oh, man, this book sounds as awesome as God's Not Dead.

"Catoosa County resident Don Boys released his 15th book “The God-Haters: Angry Atheists, Shallow Scholars, Silly Scientists, Pagan Preachers, and Embattled Evolutionists Declare War Against Christians.” The $21.95 book is published by Barbwire Books."

"God-hating" check. 'War on Christians" Check. Also, $22 seems like a lot for a book.

"Boys re-read books by atheists of the past then read the writings of the group of new atheists who have declared war upon Christians..."

 “Every time I finished one of their books, I said I can’t believe a scholar would write hundreds of pages filled with numerous errors and put his name on the cover,” he said. “This is a good example of what happens when an author writes on a subject outside his field of training and experience. They are so sure there is no God, they lose all control and emotion takes control.”

Because YOU'RE definitely writing in your field of expertise and are unemotional...

" He charges that his opponents identify the “fruits, flakes and nuts” in some churches as mainline Christians."

No True Scotsman

“It would be like generalizing the average atheist coming home each evening with a bottle of cheap rum, kicking his dog, bullying his wife, beating his kids and getting roaring drunk terrorizing the whole neighborhood,” Boys said, “when that doesn’t characterize the group as a whole. It shows how desperate, disingenuous and dishonest some atheists are. Even honest atheists find that offensive and shameful and have opposed the new atheists.”

That's a pretty elaborate fantasy you got there...And I have no idea who these "honest atheists" vs "new atheists" are.

"He said atheists take a hatchet to the Bible because it limits their ungodly lifestyle of “barnyard morals.” If they can disprove God then anything goes with no present or eternal accountability."

WTF ARE BARNYARD MORALS?

This is the "Y'all just want to sin" gambit. Because they're OBSESSED with sex.

"This is the most serious attack upon America’s homes and churches in 100 years yet the issue is still ‘under the radar’ of all the pro-family groups,” he said. “The new atheists declared war against Christians, the churches and Christ and here is one American who will oppose it if it means persecution, prosecution and prison,”

"Pro-family" groups don't know about us atheists yet! Shh...

What is up with his persecution fantasy?

" Boys and his wife Ellen, who edited the book, live near Ringgold. His website is cstnews.com and his blog is atdonboys.cstnews.com/."

Those websites are GOLD. Try them out.