Atheism goes Evangelical

First the atheists began an ad campaign in London, and now atheists are getting ready to advertise that they are “Good without God”.

Starting next Monday, a coalition of local groups will run a monthlong advertising campaign in a dozen Manhattan subway stations with the slogan “A Million New Yorkers Are Good Without God. Are You?” The posters also advertise the Web site BigAppleCoR.org, which provides a listing of local groups affiliated with the Coalition of Reason, the umbrella organization that coordinated the campaign.

The campaign — which is being paid for by $25,000 from an anonymous donor — follows a similar but unrelated monthlong campaign on buses by New York City Atheists in July. Jane Everhart, a spokeswoman for the New York City Atheists, said that campaign was highly successful and brought in many new members. “We are trying to raise money to do it again,” she said.

Almost sounds like the beginning of a religion, doesn’t it? If Evangelical Atheists and Secular Humanists organize, grow their numbers, raise money and even -as we see here-develop thriving communities, it seems likely that they will also develop rituals and rites of passage for their children, and before you know it, atheism will be a full-blown religion, of sorts.

I wonder if they’ll become tax-exempt, and open hospitals and schools, too? Interesting.

Clearly this is trending:

The coalition has placed similar billboards in the Dallas area and West Virginia. Another group ran ads in Chicago and in the Indiana cities of Bloomington and South Bend.

Meanwhile, Inside Catholic’s Brian Saint-Paul says there is a schism growing even within atheism.

Related:
Pope: Anglicans Welcome