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In his review of Michael Krasny’s new book, “Spiritual Envy: An Agnostic’s Quest”, Reza Aslan joins the chorus of those who draw a parallel between religious fundamentalism and “the new Atheism”. Let’s get this straight: Atheism cannot be fundamentalist. Fundamentalism is the belief that sacred texts (e.g. the Bible or Quran) contain divine truth and must be followed literally. Atheism has no sacred texts and no set of established laws or dogma. In fact it has only one central tenet, that there is no God as defined by any religion.
Somehow atheists have earned the label of fundamentalist through vehement rejection of religion’s fundamental texts and beliefs. This makes no sense whatsoever. The recent crop of writers against religion may be rude, arrogant and certain in their convictions but they are not, cannot be, fundamentalists.
Pity the poor agnostic these days, caught in the middle of an ever-widening gap between an increasingly assertive religious fundamentalism on one side, and on the other a new brand of atheism whose dogmatic certitude and zealous proselytizing make it appear more fundamentalist by the day.Read more at www.thedailybeast.com
