Atheism is this year’s hot “ism”
Pope disses nonbelievers in recent speech

When I was in college we studied all the different kinds of “isms” that have popped up in world history. One of my favorites was the rise of anarchism as a political movement in Europe and America during the late 19th century. Believe it or not, thousands of proclaimed anarchists would travel to places like The Hague or Chicago for anarchist conventions. I can picture these wild-eyed young men with facial hair checking into the local hotels, putting on their little anarchist nametags and hobnobbing with the prominent sepia-toned anarchists of the day.

13 year-old Dakota Blue Richards stars in the new fantasy film The Golden Compass. Some people are saying that the movie promotes atheism.

The problem with the anarchist conventions was that any time they tried to decide on a course of action, say to nominate an anarchist to run for president, for example, somebody would disrupt the proceedings by standing on a chair and shouting, “You call this anarchy? This ain’t anarchy! This is exactly what we’re fighting against!”

So the whole convention would dissolve into anarchistic disarray. It was against the very nature of anarchy to be a viable political movement, although many people put their hearts and souls into the effort.

I was thinking about the anarchists this week when I was reading some of the things that have been said publicly about atheists recently. Two weeks ago Pope Benedict, in his 75-page “Spe Salvi” attacked atheism and said it was responsible for some of the “greatest forms of cruelty and violations of justice” in history. I’m assuming he’s not talking about the Spanish Inquisition or The Crusades.

Some may wonder why the Pope would even bother to give atheists the time of day, let alone speak of them in his major press release of the year. I guess he did it because atheism, that quiet little belief without the baggage of actual belief, has become this year’s hot “ism”!

That’s right, atheism is a major topic in the media these days, thanks in part to best-selling books questioning the value of religion such as Christopher Hitchens’ God Is Not Great and Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion. Add to that the New Line Cinema release of The Golden Compass, based on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials book The Northern Lights, and you’ve got a regular Axis of Atheism going.

Last weekend’s box office winner, The Golden Compass, was the target of a number of attacks from Christian extremists, mainly those who have grown weary of trying to halt Harry Potter’s literary witchcraft (talk about your uphill battles!).

In a widely distributed email titled “Fight Against Atheism” anti-atheist forces wrote “The weekend of December 7, 2007, we are encouraging all Christians to boycott all movies at your local theatre.” The writer asked all Christians to not “attend, rent or purchase” any movies that weekend in an attempt to hit Hollywood in its pocketbook. “My hope,” the email continued, “is the silence in the empty theatres will be deafening to the producers, actors, sponsors, and supporters of movies like The Golden Compass.”

According to Variety, The Golden Compass, despite lukewarm reviews, earned $25.8 million in its three-day opening weekend. It was followed by Enchanted ($10.7 million), This Christmas ($5 million), Fred Claus ($4.6 million) and Beowulf ($4.5 million).

So much for that boycott. The email might have crossed the line for many believers when it claimed, “God needs us to be His voice and speak out boldly!” The hubris of “speaking for God” is truly offensive to a lot of believers, but many religious leaders continue to do it on a regular basis.

A more reasonable Christian reaction to the release of The Golden Compass can be found on the web at pluggedinonline.com. There, the reviewers weighed the pros and cons of the movie so that parents could make an informed decision about letting their children see the film. Still, they warn that the relatively tame spiritual overtones of The Golden Compass could be setting up young viewers for more atheistic sequels.

The recent media attention on atheism will surely lead some people of faith to declare that atheists are organized, determined and out to convert our children. That’s utter hogwash. I’ve met many atheists in my time and none of them are what I would call an Evangelical Atheist, that is one that would do anything to pull you into their tent. That’s something I can’t say about some people of other beliefs. Most organized religions make no secret of the fact that they are dedicated to increasing their congregations. Most atheists don’t care what you believe, as long as you don’t inflict that belief onto them and their families. As Americans, I do believe they have that right.