Atheism Has a Suicide Problem

During the holidays, we tend to see atheists and atheist groups come out more strongly against religion. WHy is this? They are often quiet during the summer, fall and even during Easter. However, when Christmas approaches, we see caricature atheist groups like Freedom from Religion or American Atheists spend thousands of dollars carelessly on advertisements promoting religious bigotry. Instead of using the donations they receive from their sheep to help others, they waste it on hateful campaigns. The question remains: Why?  Why during this time?

It is not news that people often get depressed during the holidays. Memories of the past come back due to cues we get from the senses. The holiday music, decorations, cold weather etc all bring back memories. Atheists seem to experience something deeper. Some believe the onset of atheistic beliefs bring about atheism. When someone seems to think God is imaginary, this may affect his or her happiness since God is an image of goodness and love. Perhaps the memories of when they were a religious believer start to come back and make them feel remorseful. Then there are those atheists who feel targeted by overzealous religious folks who condemn them. In any event, atheism has a big suicide problem.

According to a study done in 2004, atheists and those unaffiliated with religion had the highest rates of depression and suicide. These individuals were young, unmarried, had no children, did not keep in contact with family and had no moral objections to suicide due to relativistic views. This makes sense. Atheists are often self-centered. They believe that they are somehow enlightened and others are not. To them, everyone else is indoctrinated with "delusions" and other ideas that are of the "iron age." However, then they realize that life without God and religion is meaningless, they begin to collapse psychologically. They become angry and bitter, easily triggered by anything good that is related to God. They become unhappy and want to spoil all the fun for everyone else. This is why we see them come out strongly during the holidays which is for many a time of great joy.

Atheism does not offer anything to the atheist. It is just diatribe against God based on misconceptions and an insistence on adopting ignorance as a rule of life. To the atheist, there is no objective truth or morality. It is a no-holds-bar scenario. Because of this, everything is arbitrary. All hope is gone in the atheist's life. Nothing matters anymore because there is no God in heaven and no judgment. To quote one of my former philosophy professors Massimo Pigliucci, "No one is keeping score above." We are all hardwired to believe in God and the afterlife. Once we break off this important evolutionary trait, our sense of humanity begins to fade. We begin to de-evolve back to simple primates seeking to survive at the expense of others and even our own selves.

Think about it. Which one is more hopeful:

A). Believing in God and that we may reach a reward in heaven by being good.

B). Not believing in God and believing that you die into oblivion.


If you chose A, then you will be more hopeful. You will do good and care for others because you will receive a reward in heaven.  Not only will you receive a reward, but you will also feel good about doing good deeds. We all know it feels good to help others. When you feed someone who is hungry, give company to an elderly or sick person, or make someone who is suffering smile, it feels good. You feel the "warm and fuzzies," so to speak. Life is worth living. There is a purpose to it. Instead of just being an organism eating, sleeping and eliminating waste, we have more to live for.

Now, if you chose B, you may still feel a sense of purpose and happiness. However, as you age and watch people die around you, your perspective changes. You start to wonder why even live. What is the point of waking up in the morning and engaging in societal rituals such as hygiene, nutrition, school or work? What is the point of having a family or even friends?  Why party? Why study?  If we are just going to die at any time and disappear into oblivion, what is the point?  Life becomes meaningless without God. It becomes hopeless. Despair sets in. An existential crisis arises when one is an atheist. I know this too well as a former atheist. I remember becoming a cold stoic adopting utilitarian point of view where choices in life were based on points or a calculus system. All that mattered was me. The homeless, uneducated, sick, unborn, elderly were meaningless to me because they were unfit. They failed natural selection and had to go so that the rest of us "fit" ones can survive.

So as you can see, atheism does nothing good for the mind. It is a disease that leads to empty hearts and minds. Once empty, depression and possibly suicide will follow. Life without God is meaningless. Instead of being sons and daughters of God, we become just mere atoms animated in space and time. 



Source:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/atheism-has-a-suicide-problem_us_5a2a902ee4b022ec613b812b

https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.ajp.161.12.2303