Why I’m Angry: An Anti-Theist’s 78 Reasons

71. I am angry at the number of atheists who are shamed into silence and, as a result, try to shame other atheists into silence regarding the things we have every reason to be angry about in society. It is difficult being an atheist and much easier to have the “nice atheist” persona, but if you care about the world, like many of us do, it is frustrating to be told that the most caring thing we can do is NOT care or voice our concerns regarding religion’s effects on society.

What Are The Goals of the Atheist Movement?
“’It doesn’t do any good for atheists to argue with believers about religion, or to make fun of religion, or to insult it.’ We see this argument a lot among atheists.” — Greta Christina

72. I am angry that the verse, “If a man does not work, he should not eat” is used to moralize employment situations. If a man does not work, maybe it’s because he has a hard time finding work. Maybe this is an opportunity to have compassion on him instead of thinking the Bible defines his situation and what he deserves.

A Conquering Faith: IF A MAN WON’T WORK, NEITHER LET HIM EAT
“Lazy people don’t learn their lesson if they are continually supported and excused for bad behavior. If God rejects the craving of the wicked, so should we.”

73. I am angry that the Old Testament stories of Abraham sacrificing his son Isaac at God’s command (even though he was stopped) and Jephthah killing his daughter after making an oath to God (Judges 11) are stories that teach Bible-readers that a nonexistent God is more important than the lives of their children. It seems clear that this conviction has been a source for several parents who have claimed that God commanded them to kill their kids (cf. Deanna Laney, Carlos Rico, Jennifer Cisowski, LaShaun Harris, and several others).

CNN.com – In interview, mother details delusions that spurred her to kill sons – Apr 1, 2004
“The Lord told Laney the end was near, He was coming and she needed to kill her sons to prove her complete and unconditional faith in Him, Laney told a forensic psychiatrist in December.”

74. I am angry at the concept of demon possession in the Bible, which has resulted countless times today and throughout Christian history in traumatic exorcisms instead of the medical treatment and understanding that the mentally ill individuals need.

My family thinks an exorcism will cure my mental illness.
“This is the 21st century, and an unwillingness to accept that mental illness is just that—an illness—seems an act of willful bigotry not amenable to reason.”

75. I am angry that the concept that homosexuality is an abomination in the Bible is the ONLY reason why Christians refuse to see gay relationships as legitimate ones that can be christened as marriages — when the Bible, at the same time, seems to have no problem with polygamy (on the man’s side, not the woman’s) and the taking of multiple concubines — who aren’t wives, but are there for sex purposes.

Varieties of Biblical Marriage

76. I am angry that circumcision — the cutting of a person’s genitalia — is regularly performed without a male’s consent when he is an infant.

77. I am angry at the Biblical concept that what you have, you should thank God for — because the implication is that God has “blessed” you with it. Saying God blessed you with something is a way of claiming a right to it that other people, whom God hasn’t blessed in the same way, don’t have. I mean, the clear, logical implication of this thinking is that one person is “blessed” with riches while another has been “blessed” with poverty and malnutrition — and the subtext is that each should be grateful for what he has. Paul’s statement that he’s learned to be content in every situation (Philippians 4:11-12) indicates that it’s a virtue for the poor to be as satisfied with their lot as the rich. This thinking masks very real social changes that need to take place for the suffering to be cared for, so it makes me, at times, absolutely livid.

78. I am angry that Christianity creates the very problem of sin and the concept of the sinner, along with all the psychological damage that problem and concept causes, that it then claims it is the solution for.

Note: A different list has been recommended in the comments, and I thought it would be helpful to include it here: Greta Christina’s book Why Are You Atheists So Angry: 99 Things That Piss Off The Godless. As of writing this note, I have not read it, but it comes highly recommended and Greta Christina is an excellent author.

Go back