Mar 3, 2008
What atheist/agnostic/adamantly non-religious people do you admire most?
Friendly Atheist asks what Christians you admire. A commenter wonders if a Christian blog would ask a corresponding question. So I’m asking.
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Theme based on Derek Punsalan's Grid Focus.
All of them,
because they are magnificent creatures created in God’s great image.
None of them,
because they are committing high treason.
Dr. Jerry Soneson. University of Northern Iowa. Best teacher I ever had. Very compassionate and went WAY above and beyond to help his students succeed.
Hard-core agnostic, but amazing teacher.
Bill Bryson and E. B. White for their writing styles. John Steinbeck and Charles Dickens for their ability to weave compelling stories. Neil Postman for his media critique. Michael Shermer for his bold skepticism. Malcolm Gladwell for making psychology interesting. Charles Darwin for his revolutionary theory. Stephen Jay Gould for making science interesting and being so darn smart. Thomas Sowell for his economic insight. David McCullough for making history interesting. Douglas Adams for his existential humor. Seth Godin for raising the standards and methods of marketing. Thomas Paine for his boldness and common sense. Benjamin Franklin for his inventiveness and wit. The list could go on.
Abraham, I’d be interested in your answer.
Richard Dawkins is the kind of person I would like to talk with. However I don’t think that I admire him. Also, Douglas Adams fits it that category (althought I admire him as a writer)
There are many unbelievers in the Arts who’s talent amazes me. There are many atheistic intellectuals who challenge me. But when it comes to character, it is difficult (and immoral?) to admire someone who does not have genuine faith. If no one is pleasing to God without faith, should they be pleasing to us, His children? We can admire their abilities without admiring their hearts.
Wow.
I was going to say something like John but less eloquent.
I don’t read enough to comment like Josh.
But man I really, really do love them and love talking to them.
I love the idea behind this blog Abraham. It’s got me ALMOST counting words.
~Jason Pauli
[...] wants to know: What atheist/agnostic/adamantly non-religious people do you admire [...]
I admire the honest ones (adamantly non-religious) that say, “yeah, I know God exists and that He commands that I repent, but I don’t want to!” I don’t get upset at them, Scripture says they “cannot.” I thank them and ask, “so you won’t repent, not because you don’t think it’s true, you know it’s true, you won’t repent because you don’t want to?” They say, “yes.”
I admire that because it is more honest than I was before the Holy Spirit gave me new life that I may willingly believe.
Carl Sagan. A man of true eloquence, generosity, and selflessness in thinking and acting for the betterment of his fellow man, regardless their personal beliefs.
Any common-wo/man-atheist with the sense and compassion to find Christians to admire, refuse to belittle the lot of you, and prove erroneous assumptions about our minority incorrect with grace.
I would have to say Douglas Adams. Brilliant man with an extraordinary sense of humour.
Well the ones I admire most are dead, but they are #1 Gene Roddenberry and Carl Sagan. Living would be Richard Dawkins and Greg Epstein. Why? Well, Gene had a lot of values that I respect and appreciate, which are seen very well in the Star Trek episodes he wrote and/or had a part in when he was living. Carl Sagan had a respect for the universe that I deeply relate to. Richard Dawkins, well, I agree with a lot of what he says and Greg Epstein does say a lot of things I can respect.
Its sometimes hard to name atheists, because many are in the closet as a self protective measure. Many of the bloggers over at the Friendly Atheist are eloquent, intelligent, thoughtful, and concerned about humanity. I have been humbled by the patience they show, answering the same questions from Christians over and over. Herb Silverman is one outspoken atheist in my town – also the president of the Secular Coalition of America. He tries to advance “positive atheism” and a few years ago had a series of debates published in our local paper. He had challenged all comers to find “God” in the constitution. He and the person he wound up debating, the religion editor, I think, did a wonderful job of explaining their points of view without becoming caustic. I admire both men for that.
I admire the honest ones (adamantly non-religious) that say, “yeah, I know God exists and that He commands that I repent, but I don’t want to!”
Whoa! You think the rest of us are dishonest?
Gosh. I wish I could let you see inside my head. I’ve got no idea what makes you so confident that you know what other people are thinking, but I hope you’ll reconsider.
Oh I forgot Robert Price. I really do admire him a lot for many reasons. Too numerous to list here. There is also two others Joyce Carol Oates, a Humanist and a wonderful writer, as well Acharya, who has a lot a of guts and bravery.
Living
Greg Epstein
Hemant Mehta
Hamish MacPherson
Matt Casper
Helen Mildenhall
Ian McKellan
Deceased
Jean-Paul Sarte
Douglas Adams
Isaac Asimov
Mark Twain
Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson
My wife.
Hemant Mehta, Ayaan Hirshi Ali (just finished her book), Robert Price, Micheal Shermer, Margaret Downey, Greg Epstein, Carl Sagan. and I admire Dawkins, Harris, Dennett and Hitchens for having the guts to speak up, even though I don’t agree with everything they say. Dennet is my favorite, and I have to admit I admire Hitchens’ honesty even when I disagree with him. I’m glad Dawkins has addresses the war on science, and I’m glad Harris has spoken up about Islam, which is too often ignored.
definetly Douglas Adams, for his books and his insight into religion as well
Well, I’m not sure what you’re saying. You quoted me saying:
“I admire the honest ones (adamantly non-religious) that say, “yeah, I know God exists and that He commands that I repent, but I don’t want to!”
Then you said:
“Whoa! You think the rest of us are dishonest?
Gosh. I wish I could let you see inside my head. I’ve got no idea what makes you so confident that you know what other people are thinking, but I hope you’ll reconsider.”
Please don’t assume that this is personal. I answered the OP question from real-life experience. So, when you say:
“I’ve got no idea what makes you so confident that you know what other people are thinking, but I hope you’ll reconsider.”
I’m confident because that is what they’ve told me. I’ll even ask them sometimes to confirm that I’ve understood them correctly – and they’ve affirmed.
Like I said, I don’t get upset at them personally. Sure, it hurts, it’s sad, but the Bible says that the person who has not been regenerated by God the Holy Spirit is hostile towards God and cannot please God. So my only hope is that God will save that person like he saved me – making me willing to come to the Cross for forgiveness of my sin which condemned me for all eternity.
It was there that I learned that Jesus the Son of God was crucified at the hands of evil men. But at the same time, the will of God was being accomplished – a will that was planned before the world began. That plan included me; that when Jesus was dying on the Cross, He was receiving the wrath of God for my sin and for all who believe – IOW, in my place as a substitute. That is why He is my Savior. All of this was done to the glory of God! He has created me in such a way that my greatest joy and pleasure is directly tied to Him being glorified. I exist to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever in eternity.
This is free to all who shall believe – by faith.
I don’t know why you would want me to see inside your head. What’s going on in there is between you and God. I can only see the outside. But I promise you, Lynet, that I will pray that my God does the same for you as he’s done for me. It really is our only hope.
Perhaps I simply interpreted you wrongly. I thought you were saying that atheists are lying when they explain that they truly don’t believe there is a God to reject. If you could see inside my head, you see, you’d know that was false :-)
Apologies for the misunderstanding.
I wrote my M.A. thesis on Wallace Stevens, and I admire him — and pity him — for his view that modern man has no reasons left to believe in God, yet has nothing to gain by surrendering hope.
I also like my brother Chris, who is an atheist. I pray for him daily.
I don’t know if “admire” is the right word for my answer, but I’m intrigued by Mark Twain and Stephen King.
Both men knew/know the Scriptures better than an abundance of professing Christians, therefore they show us that one can know the gospel without embracing it (which is sad, but demonstrates the difference between demons’ belief and trust in Christ as treasure).
I quote Twain often when I talk to people who say that the Bible is hard to understand:
“It’s not the things I don’t understand in the Bible that bother me. It’s the things I DO understand that keep me awake at night.”
I admire Australian octogenarian gardening TV program presenter, Peter Cundall. He has seen great cruelty in his life and can’t understand how there can be a God. But he has also seen the marvelous beauty of all things horticultural, which points me inescapably to the creator of our wonderful world.
I think that Camille Paglia is, while often wrong, still frequently filled with common grace insights that most people seem to miss. Her writing style is very clear and forceful, which is a great skill to have developed – God clearly has given her great dexterity with words.
I read somewhere that Angelina Jolie is an atheist – I don’t know if that’s true, but I think that at least some of her efforts on behalf of the UN and her adoption of needy, hurting children and subsequent incorporation of them into her family, are both respectable and honorable things.
My first thought isn’t as intellectual, perhaps, as some of the above comments, but I would have to say Lance Armstrong not only because of his Tour de France wins but also because of his work promoting cancer research and helping cancer patients. Ever wonder what such an inspiring man could do if he were doing it for God’s glory?
I second Lauren: Camille Paglia.
Also, Stanley Kubrick is one of my heroes.
Hey Lance:
I admire Stephen King as well, but he’s a nonpracticing theist, not an atheist.
http://www.adherents.com/people/pk/Stephen_King.html
Ditto on Douglas Adams.
And Douglas Hofstadter. I just picked up GEB:EGB and I’m having a hard time putting it down.
Oy. I should clarify: “ditto” is echoing people’s previous sentiments about Douglas Adams, not my clarification on Stephen King.
My list may include a few agnostics, but here we go -
Mark Twain
Clarence Darrow
John Lennon
Richard Dawkins
Carl Sagan
People committed to knowledge, to justice, to leaving this world better than we found it.
I’m also gonna throw Billy Joel on the list, just because his song “Lullaby” pretty much encapsulates what may be the best way for an atheist to answer a child who asks “where do we go when we die?”
I’ve always been fascinated by John Steinbeck. His characters emote the despondency appropriate to his world view; they’re real, raw and utterly lost. His detached observation of pointless tragedy is an honest kind of atheism, as opposed to the Utopian nonsense of HG Welles.
Stephen wrote: I admire the honest ones (adamantly non-religious) that say, “yeah, I know God exists and that He commands that I repent, but I don’t want to!”
i really hate to tell you this, man, but people who say that aren’t atheist. they’re just crappy christians.
being atheist doesn’t mean that you don’t repent, or don’t care about god’s existance, it means you know god doesn’t exist.
Nothing personal against you, but you really need to learn about atheism and what it means. i’m not saying become one, i’m saying be more worldly.
Steve Ross,
Out of the three options in th OP, I chose one – and put it in parenthesis to single it out from the others. I did this specifically to prevent the confusion that you have unitentionally become entangled in.
I’ll try to be clearer in the future.
hi Steve Ross,
“being atheist doesn’t mean that you don’t repent, or don’t care about god’s existance, it means you know god doesn’t exist.”
i’m an atheist, but i’m not even close to ‘knowing’ a god/s don’t exist; i just don’t believe in them nor have i seen any reason to.
i admire Adams and Dawkins, but mostly the friends and individuals i’ve been lucky enough to meet in real life, for their compassion, integrity and intelligence. so not that different from the religious people i admire then.
I know plenty of non-practicing Christians, but none I’d describe as “adamantly nonreligious”. Are there many of these? How many do you know?
Greg Graffin-lead singer of Bad Religion
He’s super smart, as well as an awesome musician. He seems like a man of conviction and knows what he believes and why he believes it. I wish more Christians knew why they believe what they believe and weren’t afraid of backing it up.
Does Benny Hinn count??? Or how about that guy on tv around 11:00pm that asks me to call in every night for my free miracle green cloth or my free miracle spring water??? I swear one of these nights I am calling in. It is very tempting.
Strangely, Fredereich Nietzshce. He actually followed atheism to it’s moral conclusion showing the ethical bankruptcy of the worldview.
Richard Dawkins
Carl Sagan
Terry Pratchett
John Piper, what country are you from, where atheism get charged with “high treason”? Someplace like Pakistan, where atheists get beheaded? I hope those who don’t subscribe to your repressive state’s religion find asylum someplace like the United States, where we welcome people of all religions.