Religious responses to New Atheism. A

intro

new athiesm is the belief that religion is dangerous and harmful to humanity

though after 9/11 there was a rise in those believing in new atheism, numerous philosophers and theologians have formulated criticisms and arguments against it

P1 - Incompatability of science and religion

new athiesms takes an extremist scientific view, so deny the possibility that science could be aided by religion in explaining the complexities of how and why the universe exists

however, alistair mcgrath argues that evidence and belief in religion is partially overlapping with natural sciences, “science is part of the answer … faith supplements it”

John Polkinghorne says “we should welcome truth from whatever source it comes from”, different levels of explanation need weaving together to provide a rich and comprehensive whole

P2 - Increase in Fundamental Religious Activity

some religious groups worry that society sees new atheism as a threat, and seek to defend it

an increase in islamic and christian fundamentalism has been recorded, as society are moving away from fundamental beliefs, so the religious groups are becoming more active in opposing the changes by seeking to influence law and public policy

e.g. the christian insitute promoting conservative christian viewpoints, campaigning on moral and social issues seeking to influence parliament

P3 - Apologism rise in the media

the rise of new atheism led to much public discussion about christianity, giving a platform for christian apologists to reaffirm and represent the reasonableness of the christian faith

alistair mcgrath says “argument does not create conviction, but the lack of it destroys beliefs”

e.g. william lane craig uses this platform debate with some of the 4 horsemen, and founded the organisation “reasonable faith” to promote christian belief