Discrimination against atheists

Last updated

Discrimination against atheists, sometimes called atheophobia, [1] atheistophobia, [2] or anti-atheism, [3] [4] both at present and historically, includes persecution of and discrimination against people who are identified as atheists. Discrimination against atheists may be manifested by negative attitudes, prejudice, hostility, hatred, fear, or intolerance towards atheists and atheism or even the complete denial of atheists' existence. [5] [6] [7] It is often expressed in distrust regardless of its manifestation. [8] Perceived atheist prevalence seems to be correlated with reduction in prejudice. [9] There is global prevalence of mistrust in moral perceptions of atheists found in even secular countries and among atheists. [10]

Contents

Because atheism can be defined in various ways, those discriminated against or persecuted on the grounds of being atheists might not have been considered atheists in a different time or place. Thirteen Muslim countries officially punish atheism or apostasy by death and Humanists International asserts that "the overwhelming majority" of the 193 member states of the United Nations "at best discriminate against citizens who have no belief in a god and at worst can jail them for offences dubbed blasphemy". [11] [12]

Ancient times

Tim Whitmarsh argues atheism existed in the ancient world, though it remains difficult to assess its extent given that atheists are referenced (usually disparagingly) rather than having surviving writings. Given monotheism at the time was a minority view, atheism generally attacked polytheistic beliefs and associated practices in references found. The word "atheos" (godless) also was used for religious dissent generally (including the monotheists) which complicates study further. Despite these difficulties, Whitmarsh believes that otherwise atheism then was much the same. While atheists (or people perceived as such) were occasionally persecuted, this was rare (perhaps due to being a small group, plus a relative tolerance toward different religious views). [13] Other scholars believe it arose later in the modern era. Lucien Febvre has referred to the "unthinkability" of atheism in its strongest sense before the sixteenth century, because of the "deep religiosity" of that era. Karen Armstrong has concurred, writing "from birth and baptism to death and burial in the churchyard, religion dominated the life of every single man and woman. Every activity of the day, which was punctuated by church bells summoning the faithful to prayer, was saturated with religious beliefs and institutions: they dominated professional and public life—even the guilds and the universities were religious organizations. ... Even if an exceptional man could have achieved the objectivity necessary to question the nature of religion and the existence of God, he would have found no support in either the philosophy or the science of his time." [14] [15] [16] As governmental authority rested on the notion of divine right, it was threatened by those who denied the existence of the local god. Those labeled as atheist, including early Christians, Jews and Sufi Muslims, were as a result targeted for legal persecution. [17] [18]

Early modern period and Reformation

During the early modern period, the term "atheist" was used as an insult and applied to a broad range of people, including those who held opposing theological beliefs, as well as those who had committed suicide, immoral or self-indulgent people, and even opponents of the belief in witchcraft. [14] [15] [19] Atheistic beliefs were seen as threatening to order and society by philosophers such as Thomas Aquinas. Lawyer and scholar Thomas More said that religious tolerance should be extended to all except those who did not believe in a deity or the immortality of the soul. [17] John Locke, a founder of modern notions of religious liberty, argued that atheists (as well as Catholics and Muslims) should not be granted full citizenship rights. [17]

During the Inquisition, several of those who were accused of atheism or blasphemy, or both, were tortured or executed. These included the priest Giulio Cesare Vanini who was strangled and burned in 1619 and the Polish nobleman Kazimierz Łyszczyński who was executed in Warsaw, [14] [20] [21] as well as Etienne Dolet, a Frenchman executed in 1546. Though heralded as atheist martyrs during the nineteenth century, recent scholars hold that the beliefs espoused by Dolet and Vanini are not atheistic in modern terms. [16] [22] [23]

Baruch Spinoza was effectively excommunicated from the Sephardic Jewish community of Amsterdam for atheism, though he did not claim to be an atheist.[ citation needed ]

Modern era

Victorian Britain

During the nineteenth century, British atheists, though few in number, were subject to discriminatory practices. [24] The poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was expelled from the University of Oxford and denied custody of his two children after publishing a pamphlet titled The Necessity of Atheism . [25] Those not willing to swear Christian oaths during judicial proceedings were unable to give evidence in court to obtain justice until this requirement was repealed by Acts passed in 1869 and 1870. [24]

Atheist Charles Bradlaugh was elected as a Member of the British Parliament in 1880. He was denied the right to affirm rather than swear his oath of office, and was then denied the ability to swear the oath as other Members objected that he had himself said it would be meaningless. Bradlaugh was re-elected three times before he was finally able to take his seat in 1886 when the Speaker of the House permitted him to take the oath. [25]

Nazi Germany

In Germany during the Nazi era, a 1933 decree stated that "No National Socialist may suffer detriment... on the ground that he does not make any religious profession at all". [26] However, the regime strongly opposed "godless communism", [27] [28] and all of Germany's atheist and largely left-wing freethought organizations such as the German Freethinkers League (500,000 members) [29] were banned the same year; some right-wing groups were tolerated by the Nazis until the mid-1930s. [30] [31] In a speech which he made later in 1933, Hitler claimed that he had "stamped out" the atheistic movement. [26]

During the negotiations which led up to the Nazi-Vatican Reichskonkordat of 26 April 1933, Hitler stated that "Secular schools can never be tolerated" because of their irreligious tendencies. [32] Hitler routinely disregarded this undertaking, and the Reichskonkordat as a whole, and by 1939, all Catholic denominational schools had been disbanded or converted to public facilities. [33]

By 1939, 94.5% of Germans still called themselves Protestant or Catholic, while 3.5% were so-called " Gottgläubige " (lit. "believers in God") and 1.5% were without faith. [34] According to historian Richard J. Evans, those members of the affiliation gottgläubig "were convinced Nazis who had left their Church at the behest of the Party, which had been trying since the mid-1930s to reduce the influence of Christianity in society". [35] Heinrich Himmler was a strong promoter of the gottgläubig movement and did not allow atheists into the SS, arguing that their "refusal to acknowledge higher powers" would be a "potential source of indiscipline". [36] Himmler announced to the SS: "We believe in a God Almighty who stands above us; he has created the earth, the Fatherland, and the Volk, and he has sent us the Führer. Any human being who does not believe in God should be considered arrogant, megalomaniacal, and stupid and thus not suited for the SS." [34] The SS oath (Eidformel der Schutzstaffel), written by Himmler, also specifically denounced atheists, repeating the sentiments above. [37]

Present day

Human rights

Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is designed to protect the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. In 1993, the UN's human rights committee declared that article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights "protects theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess any religion or belief". [38] The committee further stated that "the freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief necessarily entails the freedom to choose a religion or belief, including the right to replace one's current religion or belief with another or to adopt atheistic views". Signatories to the convention are barred from "the use of threat of physical force or penal sanctions to compel believers or non-believers" to recant their beliefs or convert. Despite this, atheists still are persecuted in some parts of the world. [39] [40]

Western countries

Modern theories of constitutional democracy assume that citizens are intellectually and spiritually autonomous and that governments should leave matters of religious belief to individuals and not coerce religious beliefs using sanctions or benefits. The constitutions, human rights conventions and the religious liberty jurisprudence of most constitutional democracies provide legal protection of atheists and agnostics. In addition, freedom of expression provisions and legislation separating church from state also serve to protect the rights of atheists. As a result, open legal discrimination against atheists is not common in most Western countries. [17] However, prejudice against atheists does exist in Western countries. A study showed that atheists had lower employment prospects. [8]

Europe

In most of Europe, atheists are elected to office at high levels in many governments without controversy. [41] Some atheist organizations in Europe have expressed concerns regarding issues of separation of church and state, such as administrative fees for leaving the Church charged in Germany, [42] and sermons being organized by the Swedish parliament. [43] Ireland requires religious training from Christian colleges in order to work as a teacher in government-funded schools. [44] In the UK one-third of state-funded schools are faith-based. [45] However, there are no restrictions on atheists holding public office. [46] At least four Prime Ministers of the UK have been openly atheists, along with many other senior politicians across all the parties. According to a 2012 poll, 25% of the Turks in Germany believe atheists are inferior human beings. [47] [48] Portugal has elected two presidents, Mário Soares, who was also elected Prime-Minister, and Jorge Sampaio, who have openly expressed their irreligion, as well as two agnostic Prime-Ministers, José Sócrates and António Costa. On the contrary, in Greece, the right-wing New Democracy government stated that "the Greek people have a right to know whether Mr. Tsipras is an atheist", citing their political opponent's irreligiosity as a reason he should not be elected, even though they granted that "it is his right." [49] In the Elder Pastitsios case, a 27-year-old was sentenced to imprisonment for satirizing a popular apocalyptically-minded Greek Orthodox monk, while several metropolitans of the Greek Orthodox Church (which is not separated from the state) have also urged their flock "not to vote unbelievers into office", even going so far as to warn Greek Orthodox laymen that they would be "sinning if they voted atheists into public office."[ citation needed ] [50]

Brazil

A 2009 survey showed that atheists were the most hated demographic group in Brazil, among several other minorities polled, being almost on par with drug addicts. According to the research, 17% of the interviewees stated they felt either hatred or repulsion for atheists, while 25% felt antipathy and 29% were indifferent. [51]

Canada

Canadian secular humanist groups have worked to end the recitation of prayers during government proceedings, viewing them as discriminatory. [52] [53] Scouts Canada states that while a belief in God or affiliation with organized religion is not a requirement to join, members must have "a basic spiritual belief" [54] and one of the core values is "Duty to God: Defined as, The responsibility to adhere to spiritual principles, and thus to the religion that expresses them, and to accept the duties therefrom." [55]

United States

Anti-atheism was described as a "key pillar of American religious identity" from the early settlements to today's conspiracy ideologies. [56] Discrimination against atheists in the United States occurs in legal, personal, social, and professional contexts. Many American atheists compare their situation to the discrimination faced by ethnic minorities, and LGBT communities. [57] [58] [59] "Americans still feel it's acceptable to discriminate against atheists in ways considered beyond the pale for other groups," asserted Fred Edwords of the American Humanist Association. [60] The degree of discrimination, persecution, and social stigma atheists face in the United States, compared to other persecuted groups in the United States has been the subject of study and a matter of debate. [61] [62] [63]

In the United States, seven state constitutions include religious tests that would effectively prevent atheists from holding public office, and in some cases being a juror/witness, though these have not generally been enforced since the early twentieth century. [64] [65] [66] The U.S. Constitution permits an affirmation in place of an oath to allow atheists to give testimony in court or to hold public office. [64] [67] However, the Supreme Court case Torcaso v. Watkins (1961) reaffirmed that the U.S. Constitution prohibits states and the federal government from requiring any kind of religious test for public office, in this specific case as a notary public. [64] [68] [69] This decision is generally understood to also apply to witness oaths. [70]

Several American atheists have used court challenges to address discrimination against atheists. Michael Newdow challenged inclusion of the phrase "under God" in the United States Pledge of Allegiance on behalf of his daughter, claiming that the phrase amounted to government endorsement of discrimination against atheists. [71] He won the case at an initial stage, but the Supreme Court dismissed his claim, ruling that Newdow did not have standing to bring his case, thus disposing of the case without ruling on the constitutionality of the pledge. [72] [73] Respondents to a survey were less likely to support a kidney transplant for hypothetical atheists and agnostics needing it, than for Christian patients with similar medical needs. [74] As the Boy Scouts of America does not allow atheists as members, atheist families and the ACLU from the 1990s onwards have launched a series of court cases arguing discrimination against atheists. In response to ACLU lawsuits, the Pentagon in 2004 ended sponsorship of Scouting units, [75] [76] and in 2005 the BSA agreed to transfer all Scouting units out of government entities such as public schools. [77] [78]

Despite polling showing that nonbelievers make up an increasingly large part of the population there are only a few public atheists serving as public officials across the nation. Few politicians have been willing to acknowledge their lack of belief in supreme beings, since such revelations have been considered "political suicide", [79] [80] and some have identified themselves as atheists only after or towards the end of their terms in office. California Representative Pete Stark was the first openly atheist member of the United States Congress, publicly identifying himself as such in 2007 despite serving since 1973. [81] [82] With this announcement he became the highest ranking openly atheist elected official in the United States. Stark was defeated for reelection in the primary in 2012, the same year Jared Huffman was elected representative for a different California district. Huffman has since been the sole non-theist in the United States House of Representatives, describing himself as a humanist and stating "I suppose you could say I don't believe in God" in a 2017 interview with The Washington Post 's Michelle Boorstein. [83] [84] It is thought that for years, there was only one openly atheist state legislator, Ernie Chambers, who held a seat in the Nebraska State Legislature from 1971 to 2009, and again from 2013 to 2021. During the 2010s, some other members of state legislatures have publicly identified themselves as atheists including Juan Mendez of Arizona, [85] [86] Andrew Zwicker of New Jersey, [87] and Megan Hunt of Nebraska. [88] Cecil Bothwell, who has publicly stated he does not believe in gods and that it is "certainly not relevant to public office", was elected on 3 November 2009, to the Asheville, North Carolina city council after he won the third highest number of votes in the city election. Following the election, political opponents of Bothwell threatened to challenge his election on the grounds that the North Carolina Constitution does not allow for atheists to hold public office in the state. However, that provision, dating back to 1868, is unenforceable and invalid because the United States Constitution prevents religious tests for public office. [89] A 2015 Gallup survey found that 40% of Americans would not vote an atheist for president, [90] and in polls prior to 2015, that number had reached about 50%. [91] [92]

A 2014 study by the University of Minnesota found that 42% of respondents characterized atheists as a group that did "not at all agree with my vision of American society", and that 44% would not want their child to marry an atheist. The negative attitudes towards atheists were higher than negative attitudes towards African-Americans and homosexuals but lower than the negative attitudes towards Muslims. [93] Many in the U.S. associate atheism with immorality, including criminal behaviour, extreme materialism, communism and elitism. [94] The studies also showed that rejection of atheists was related to the respondent's lack of exposure to diversity, education and political orientations. [95] Atheists and atheist organizations have alleged discrimination against atheists in the military, [96] [97] [98] and recently, with the development of the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program, atheists have alleged institutionalized discrimination. [99] [100] In several child custody court rulings, atheist parents have been discriminated against, either directly or indirectly. As child custody laws in the United States are often based on the subjective opinion of family court judges, atheism has frequently been used to deny custody to non-religious parents on the basis that a parent's lack of faith displays a lack of morality required to raise a child. [101] [102]

Prominent atheists and atheist groups have said that discrimination against atheists is illustrated by a statement reportedly made by George H. W. Bush during a public press conference just after announcing his candidacy for the presidency in 1987. [57] [103] [104] [105] When asked by journalist Robert Sherman about the equal citizenship and patriotism of American atheists, Sherman reported that Bush answered, "No, I don't know that atheists should be regarded as citizens, nor should they be regarded as patriotic. This is one nation under God." [57] [105] [106] Sherman did not tape the exchange and no other newspaper ran a story on it at the time. [57]

George H. W. Bush's son, George W. Bush, responded to a question about the role of faith in his presidency during a 3 November 2004 press conference, "I will be your president regardless of your faith. And I don't expect you to agree with me, necessarily, on religion. As a matter of fact, no president should ever try to impose religion on our society. The great – the great tradition of America is one where people can worship the – the way they want to worship. And if they choose not to worship, they're just as patriotic as your neighbor." [107]

On 16 December 2016, President Barack Obama signed H.R. 1150, an amendment to the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act. It includes protections for "non-theistic beliefs, as well as the right not to profess or practice any religion at all." [108]

Torcaso v. Watkins , 367 U.S. 488 (1961) was a United States Supreme Court case in which the court reaffirmed that the United States Constitution prohibits States and the Federal Government from requiring any kind of religious test for public office; the specific case with Torcaso was regarding his being an atheist and his work as a notary public.

The constitutions of seven U.S. states ban atheists from holding public office. However, these laws are unenforceable due to conflicting with the First Amendment and Article VI of the United States Constitution: [109] [110]

Arkansas
Article 19, Section 1
"No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court." [111]
Maryland
Article 37
"That no religious test ought ever to be required as a qualification for any office of profit or trust in this State, other than a declaration of belief in the existence of God; nor shall the Legislature prescribe any other oath of office than the oath prescribed by this Constitution." [112]
Mississippi
Article 14, Section 265
"No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office in this state." [113]
North Carolina
Article 6, Section 8
"The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God." [114]
South Carolina
Article 17, Section 4
"No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office under this Constitution." [115]
Tennessee
Article 9, Section 2
"No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state." [116]
Texas
Article 1, Section 4
"No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall any one be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being." [117]

An eighth state constitution affords special protection to theists.

Pennsylvania
Article 1, Section 4
"No person who acknowledges the being of a God and a future state of rewards and punishments shall, on account of his religious sentiments, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust or profit under this Commonwealth." [118]

Muslim-majority countries

Atheists, and those accused of defection from the official religion, may be subject to discrimination and persecution in many Muslim-majority countries. [119] According to the Humanists International, compared to other nations, 12 countries in Africa, 9 in Asia, and 10 in the Middle East, were given the worst rating for committing "Grave Violations". [120] Atheists and religious skeptics can be executed in at least thirteen nations: Afghanistan, Iran, Brunei, Maldives, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Libya, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. [11] [121]

According to the most common interpretations of Islam, Muslims are not free to change religion or become an atheist. Leaving Islam and thus becoming an apostate is traditionally punished by death for men and by life imprisonment for women. The death penalty for apostasy is apparent in a range of Islamic states, including Iran, [122] [123] Egypt, [124] Pakistan, [124] Somalia, [125] United Arab Emirates, [126] Qatar, [127] Yemen [127] and Saudi Arabia. [124] Although there have been no recently reported executions in Saudi Arabia, [128] a judge in Saudi Arabia has recently recommended that imprisoned blogger Raif Badawi go before a high court on a charge of apostasy, which would carry the death penalty upon conviction. [129] While a death sentence is rare, it is common for atheists to be charged with blasphemy or inciting hatred. [130] New "Arab Spring" regimes in Tunisia and Egypt have jailed several outspoken atheists. [130]

Since an apostate can be considered a Muslim whose beliefs cast doubt on the Divine, and/or Qur'an, claims of atheism and apostasy have been made against Muslim scholars and political opponents throughout history. [131] [132] [133] Both fundamentalists and moderates agree that "blasphemers will not be forgiven" although they disagree on the severity of an appropriate punishment. [130] In northwestern Syria in 2013 during the Syrian Civil War, jihadists beheaded and defaced a sculpture of Al-Maʿarri (973–1058 CE), one of several outspoken Arab and Persian anti-religious intellectuals who lived and taught during the Islamic Golden Age. [134] [135]

Jordan requires atheists to associate themselves with a recognized religion for official identification purposes. [136] In Egypt, intellectuals suspected of holding atheistic beliefs have been prosecuted by judicial and religious authorities. Novelist Alaa Hamad was convicted of publishing a book that contained atheistic ideas and apostasy that were considered to threaten national unity and social peace. [137] [138]

Algeria

The study of Islam is a requirement in public and private schools for every Algerian child, irrespective of their religion.

Atheist or agnostic men are prohibited from marrying Muslim women (Algerian Family Code I.II.31). [139] A marriage is legally nullified by the apostasy of the husband (presumably from Islam, although this is not specified; Family Code I.III.33). Atheists and agnostics cannot inherit (Family Code III.I.138).

Bangladesh

The Constitution of Bangladesh ensures secularism and right to religious freedom. [140] Yet, the controversial Digital Security Act (DSA), passed in 2018, provides provisions against blasphemous expressions:

Article 28, Section 1
"If any person or group willingly or knowingly publishes or broadcasts or causes to publish or broadcast anything in website or any electronic format which hurts religious sentiment or values, with an intention to hurt or provoke the religious values or sentiments, then such act of the person shall be an offence." [141]

The penalty under Section 2 and 3 of Article 28 of the Digital Security Act is a term of imprisonment not exceeding 5 years or a fine of BDT 1 million, or both. A person that commits the same offense several times is subject to imprisonment for up to 10 years or a "fine not exceeding Taka 20 lac (BDT 2 Million), or with both." [141] Allegedly, DSA is being used to prosecute any person for atheistic remarks.[ citation needed ]

Religious Education is a mandatory subject in Bangladeshi public curricula from Grade-3 (Ages 8 to 9 usually), and even though Religious Education is required from Grade-3 onwards, most public and private schools have Religious Education since Grade-1 (Ages 6 to 7 usually), and most children are given Religious Education from a young age, and most children from Muslim households in Bangladesh can read the Qur'an by the time they are 8 or 9. Religion is also a mandatory in order for a student to sit for their SSCs. Although Atheism is frowned upon, no atheists have ever been given death sentence for apostasy since the birth of the country. Some Bangladeshi atheists have been assassinated by various local Islamic extremist organizations, but the Government has taken strict measures and has since banned the Islamist groups. [142]

Indonesia

Jess Melvin argues that atheists were victims of genocide under the legal definition of the term during the 1965–66 Anti-PKI extermination campaign (PKI were the Communist Party of Indonesia) as the Indonesian Army called for the destruction of "atheist" and "unbelievers" collectively for their association with communism and, according to Matthew Lippmann and David Nersessian, atheists are covered as a protected group in the genocide convention under "religious group." [143]

Atheists in Indonesia experience official discrimination in the context of registration of births and marriages, and the issuance of identity cards. [144] In 2012, Indonesian atheist Alexander Aan was beaten by a mob, lost his job as a civil servant and was sentenced to two and a half years in jail for expressing his views online. [145] [146] However there is no law that criminalizes, prohibits atheism and atheists.

Iran

Since atheism is not a belief nor a religion, non-believers are not given legal status in Iran. Declaration of faith in Islam, Christianity, Judaism or Zoroastrianism is required to avail of certain rights such as applying for entrance to university, [147] [148] or becoming a lawyer, with the position of judge reserved for Muslims (and men) only. [149] The Penal Code is also based upon the religious affiliation of the victim and perpetrator, with the punishment oftentimes more severe on non-Muslims. [147] [150] Numerous writers, thinkers and philanthropists have been accused of apostasy and sentenced to death for questioning the prevailing interpretation of Islam in Iran. [151] [152] [153] The Iranian Atheists Association was established in 2013 to form a platform for Iranian atheists to start debates and to question the current Islamic regime's attitude towards atheists, apostasy, and human rights. [154]

Saudi Arabia

Atheism is prohibited in Saudi Arabia and can come with a death penalty, if one is charged as an atheist. [155] [156] [157]

In March 2014, the Saudi interior ministry issued a royal decree branding all atheists as terrorists, which defines terrorism as "calling for atheist thought in any form, or calling into question the fundamentals of the Islamic religion on which this country is based". [158]

Turkey

Although officially a secular state, the vast majority of Turks are Muslim, and the state grants some special privileges to Muslims and to Islam in the media and private religious institutions. Compulsory religious instruction in Turkish schools is also considered discriminatory towards atheists, who may not want their children to receive any religious education. [159]

India

Sanal Edamaruku, atheist and founder-president of Rationalist International, had to flee India in 2012, when the Catholic Secular Forum pressed charges against him under Section 295(A) of the Indian Penal Code, which penalises outraging the religious sentiments of any citizen. [160] He is currently in self-exile in Finland to avoid arrest and indefinite jail time. [161]

In Indian society, rationalists have been generally considered undeclared atheists because they tend to label all sorts of religious activities as superstition. They have been stigmatized and avoided by most Hindus.

Organizations

Regular Freemasonry insists, among other things, that a volume of scripture is open in a working lodge, that every member profess belief in a Supreme Being, and that the discussion of religion is banned. Continental Freemasonry is now the general term for the "liberal" jurisdictions which have removed some, or all, of these restrictions.

"Duty to God" is a principle of Scouting worldwide, though it is applied differently in different countries. [162] [163] The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) takes a strong position, excluding atheists and agnostics, [164] [165] while the Girl Scouts of the USA takes a more neutral position. The United Kingdom Scout Association has recently[ when? ] published alternative promises for people of different or no religion, specifying "Atheists, Humanists and people of no specific religion", who make a promise to uphold Scouting values rather than a duty to God. Scouts Canada defines Duty to God broadly in terms of "adherence to spiritual principles" and does not require members to be part of an organized religion, but does require that they have some form of "personal spirituality". [166] In other countries, especially in Europe, some Scouting organizations may be secularist or religiously neutral (such as Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs de France, Corpo Nazionale Giovani Esploratori ed Esploratrici Italiani and the Baden-Powell Service Association in the United States [167] ).

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religious intolerance</span> Intolerance of anothers religious beliefs or practices

Religious intolerance or religious bigotry is intolerance of another's religious beliefs, practices, faith or lack thereof.

Irreligion is the absence or rejection of religious beliefs or practices. It encompasses a wide range of viewpoints drawn from various philosophical and intellectual perspectives, including atheism, agnosticism, religious skepticism, rationalism, secularism, and non-religious spirituality. These perspectives can vary, with individuals who identify as irreligious holding diverse beliefs about religion and its role in their lives.

Religious discrimination is treating a person or group differently because of the particular religion they align with or were born into. This includes instances when adherents of different religions, denominations or non-religions are treated unequally due to their particular beliefs, either by the law or in institutional settings, such as employment or housing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State atheism</span> Official promotion of atheism by a government

State atheism or atheist state is the incorporation of hard atheism or non-theism into political regimes. It is considered the opposite of theocracy and may also refer to large-scale secularization attempts by governments. To some extent, it is a religion-state relationship that is usually ideologically linked to irreligion and the promotion of irreligion or atheism. State atheism may refer to a government's promotion of anti-clericalism, which opposes religious institutional power and influence in all aspects of public and political life, including the involvement of religion in the everyday life of the citizen. In some instances, religious symbols and public practices that were once held by religions were replaced with secularized versions of them. State atheism in these cases is considered as not being politically neutral toward religion, and therefore it is often considered non-secular.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apostasy in Islam</span> Islamic views on the renunciation of Islam by a Muslim

Apostasy in Islam is commonly defined as the abandonment of Islam by a Muslim, in thought, word, or through deed. It includes not only explicit renunciations of the Islamic faith by converting to another religion or abandoning religion, but also blasphemy or heresy by those who consider themselves Muslims, through any action or utterance which implies unbelief, including those who deny a "fundamental tenet or creed" of Islam. An apostate from Islam is known as a murtadd (مرتدّ).

Some movements or sects within traditionally monotheistic or polytheistic religions recognize that it is possible to practice religious faith, spirituality and adherence to tenets without a belief in deities. People with what would be considered religious or spiritual belief in a supernatural controlling power are defined by some as adherents to a religion; the argument that atheism is a religion has been described as a contradiction in terms.

Accurate demographics of atheism are difficult to obtain since conceptions of atheism vary considerably across different cultures and languages, ranging from an active concept to being unimportant or not developed. Also in some countries and regions atheism carries a strong stigma, making it harder to count atheists in these countries. In global studies, the number of people without a religion is usually higher than the number of people without a belief in a deity and the number of people who agree with statements on lacking a belief in a deity is usually higher than the number of people who self-identify as "atheists".

The 2008 Constitution of Maldives designates Sunni Islam as the state religion. Only Sunni Muslims are allowed to hold citizenship in the country and citizens may practice Sunni Islam only. Non-Muslim citizens of other nations can practice their faith only in private and are barred from evangelizing or propagating their faith. All residents are required to teach their children the Muslim faith. The president, ministers, parliamentarians, and chiefs of the atolls are required to be Sunni Muslims. Government regulations are based on Islamic law. Only certified Muslim scholars can give fatawa.

Atheism and agnosticism have a long history in India and flourish within the Śramaṇa movement. Indian religions like Jainism, Hinduism and Buddhism consider atheism to be acceptable. Doubt has been ingrained even in Indian spiritual culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religion in Saudi Arabia</span>

Islam is the state religion of Saudi Arabia. As the "home of Islam" where the prophet of Islam lived and carried out his mission, the kingdom attracts millions of Muslim Hajj pilgrims annually, and thousands of clerics and students who come from across the Muslim world to study. Approximately 100% of its citizens are Muslim and most of its large population of foreign workers are as well. Hanbali is the official version of Sunni Islam and it is used in the legal and education systems. The Basic Law of Saudi Arabia states that it is the duty of every citizen to defend Islam.

The main blasphemy law in Egypt is Article 98(f) of the Egyptian Penal Code. It penalizes: "whoever exploits and uses the religion in advocating and propagating by talk or in writing, or by any other method, extremist thoughts with the aim of instigating sedition and division or disdaining and contempting any of the heavenly religions or the sects belonging thereto, or prejudicing national unity or social peace."

Irreligion in Iran has a long historical background, but is difficult to measure, as those who profess atheism are at risk of arbitrary detention, torture, and the death penalty. Non-religious citizens are officially unrecognized by the Iranian government. In the official 2011 census, 265,899 persons did not state any religion. Between 2017 and 2022, the World Values Survey found that 1.3% of Iranians identified as atheists, and a further 14.3% as not religious. In the 1999-2004 cycle, the WVS had found 1% identified as atheist and 3% as not religious.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irreligion in Afghanistan</span>

According to a study by Humanists International (HI), Afghanistan is one of the seven countries in the world where being an atheist or a convert can lead to a death sentence. According to the 2012 WIN-Gallup Global Index of Religion and Atheism report, Afghanistan ranks among the countries where people are least likely to admit to being an atheist.

Irreligion in the Middle East is the lack of religion in the Middle East. Though atheists in the Middle East are rarely public about their lack of belief, as they are persecuted in many countries where they are classified as terrorists, there are some atheist organizations in the Middle East. Islam dominates public and private life in most Middle Eastern countries. Nonetheless, there reside small numbers of irreligious individuals within those countries who often face serious formal and, in some cases, informal legal and social consequences.

The secular movement refers to a social and political trend in the United States, beginning in the early years of the 20th century, with the founding of the American Association for the Advancement of Atheism in 1925 and the American Humanist Association in 1941, in which atheists, agnostics, secular humanists, freethinkers, and other nonreligious and nontheistic Americans have grown in both numbers and visibility. There has been a sharp increase in the number of Americans who identify as religiously unaffiliated, from under 10 percent in the 1990s to 20 percent in 2013. The trend is especially pronounced among young people, with about one in three Americans younger than 30 identifying as religiously unaffiliated, a figure that has nearly tripled since the 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faith to Faithless</span> UK organisation confronting discrimination against people who left religions.

Faith to Faithless is a non-profit organisation in the United Kingdom dedicated to confronting discrimination against atheists and non-religious people, in particular discrimination towards individuals who have left minority religions. It provides support to people leaving religion and helps them to "come out" to friends and family and gives a platform for individuals to speak out publicly and to find mutual support in the wider atheist, secular and humanist communities. Faith to Faithless advocates for individuals and families leaving any religion, and aims to bring discussion and support for ex-religious people into the public domain.

Capital punishment for offenses is allowed by law in some countries. Such offenses include adultery, apostasy, blasphemy, corruption, drug trafficking, espionage, fraud, homosexuality and sodomy not involving force, perjury causing execution of an innocent person, prostitution, sorcery and witchcraft, theft, treason and espionage. In addition to civilian treason and espionage, often considered capital crimes against the state where the death penalty is retained, military laws frequently ordain execution for serious offences, including in jurisdictions where capital punishment is illegal or obsolete under civilian law.

The status of religious freedom in Africa varies from country to country. States can differ based on whether or not they guarantee equal treatment under law for followers of different religions, whether they establish a state religion, the extent to which religious organizations operating within the country are policed, and the extent to which religious law is used as a basis for the country's legal code.

Ex-Muslims are individuals who were raised as Muslims or converted to Islam and later chose to leave the religion. These individuals may encounter challenges related to the conditions and history of Islam, Islamic culture and jurisprudence, as well as local Muslim culture. In response, ex-Muslims have formed literary and social movements, as well as mutual support networks and organizations, to address the difficulties associated with leaving Islam and to raise awareness of human rights issues they may face.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apostasy in Islam by country</span> Statistics of people leaving Islam by country

The situation for apostates from Islam varies markedly between Muslim-minority and Muslim-majority regions. In Muslim-minority countries, "any violence against those who abandon Islam is already illegal". But in some Muslim-majority countries, religious violence is "institutionalised", and "hundreds and thousands of closet apostates" live in fear of violence and are compelled to live lives of "extreme duplicity and mental stress."

References

  1. ↑ Warf, Barney (2015). "Atheist Geographies and Geographies of Atheism". In Stanley D. Brunn; Donna A. Gilbreath (eds.). The Changing World Religion Map. Vol. 4. p. 2225. ISBN   978-94-017-9375-9 – via Amazon.com. [...] to openly discriminate against them [atheists], or practice atheophobia.
  2. ↑ Ribeiro, Henrique Jales (1 December 2009). Rhetoric and Argumentation in the Beginning of the XX Century. Imprensa da Universidade de Coimbra / Coimbra University Press. ISBN   9789898074775.
  3. ↑ Klug, Petra (2023). Anti-atheist nation: religion and secularism in the United States. Routledge studies in the sociology of religion. Abingdon New York (N.Y.): Routledge. pp. 167–174. ISBN   978-1-032-31010-7.
  4. ↑ Cragun, Ryan T.; Joseph H. Hammer; Jesse M. Smith (2013). "North America". In Stephen Bullivant; Michael Ruse (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Atheism. Oxford University Press. pp. xiii, 615+. ISBN   9780199644650 . Retrieved 13 February 2017– via Google Books.
  5. ↑ Klug, Petra (2023). Anti-atheist nation: religion and secularism in the United States. Routledge studies in the sociology of religion. Abingdon New York (N.Y.): Routledge. pp. 148–151, 164–191. ISBN   978-1-032-31010-7.
  6. ↑ Somin, Ilya. "Atheists May Be the Most Unpopular Minority" (PDF).
  7. ↑ "Atheists in Lebanon". Freethought Lebanon. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  8. 1 2 Gervais, Will M.; Shariff, Azim F.; Norenzayan, Ara (2011). "Do you believe in atheists? Distrust is central to anti-atheist prejudice". Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 101 (6): 1189–1206. doi:10.1037/a0025882. ISSN   1939-1315. PMID   22059841.
  9. ↑ Gervais, Will M. (22 February 2011). "Finding the Faithless: Perceived Atheist Prevalence Reduces Anti-Atheist Prejudice". Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 37 (4): 543–556. doi:10.1177/0146167211399583. ISSN   0146-1672. PMID   21343437. S2CID   24248880.
  10. ↑ Gervais, Will M.; Xygalatas, Dimitris; McKay, Ryan T. (7 August 2017). "Global evidence of extreme intuitive moral prejudice against atheists". Nature. 1 (8): 1–6. doi:10.1038/s41562-017-0151. ISSN   2397-3374.
  11. 1 2 Robert Evans (9 December 2013). "Atheists face death in 13 countries, global discrimination: study". Reuters.
  12. ↑ "'God Does Not Exist' Comment Ends Badly for Indonesia Man". Archived from the original on 20 January 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2012.
  13. ↑ Whitmarsh, Tim (2015). Battling the Gods: Atheism in the Ancient World. Knopf. ISBN   978-0-307-95833-4.
  14. 1 2 3 Davidson, Nicholas (1992). "Unbelief and Atheism in Italy". In Michael Hunter; David Wootton (eds.). Atheism from the Reformation to the Enlightenment. Oxford University Press. pp. 55–86. ISBN   978-0-19-822736-6.
  15. 1 2 Armstrong, Karen (1994). A History of God: The 4000-year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Random House, Inc. pp. 286–87. ISBN   978-0-345-38456-0.
  16. 1 2 Kelley, Donald R. (2006). Frontiers of History: Historical Inquiry in the Twentieth Century. Yale University Press. p. 115. ISBN   978-0-300-12062-2.
  17. 1 2 3 4 Gey, Steven G. (2007). "Atheism and the Freedom of Religion". In Martin, Michael (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge University Press. pp. 250–253, 260–2. ISBN   978-0-521-84270-9.
  18. ↑ Armstrong, Karen (1994). A History of God: The 4000-year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Random House, Inc. pp. 98, 147. ISBN   978-0-345-38456-0.
  19. ↑ Laursen, John Christian; Nederman, Cary J. (1997). Beyond the Persecuting Society: Religious Toleration Before the Enlightenment. University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 142. ISBN   978-0-8122-1567-0.
  20. ↑ Brooke, John Hedley (2005). Heterodoxy in Early Modern Science and Religion. Maclean, Ian. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-926897-9.
  21. ↑ Kłoczowski, Jerzy (2000). A History of Polish Christianity. Cambridge University Press. p. 155. ISBN   978-0-521-36429-4.
  22. ↑ Onfray, Michel (2007). Atheist manifesto: the case against Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Leggatt, Jeremy (translator). Arcade Publishing. p. 24. ISBN   978-1-55970-820-3.
  23. ↑ Chadwick, Owen (2003). The Early Reformation on the Continent By. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-926578-7.
  24. 1 2 Larson, Timothy (2003). "Victorian England". In Cookson, Catharine (ed.). Encyclopedia of religious freedom . New York: Routledge. ISBN   978-0-415-94181-5.
  25. 1 2 Gey, Steven G. (2007). "Atheism and the Freedom of Religion". In Martin, Michael (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge University Press. pp. 253–255. ISBN   978-0-521-84270-9.
  26. 1 2 Baynes, Norman Hepburn (1969). The Speeches of Adolf Hitler, April 1922 – August 1939'. H. Fertig. p. 378. Without pledging ourselves to any particular Confession, we have restored faith to its pre-requisites because we were convinced that the people needs [sic] and requires [sic] this faith. We have therefore undertaken the fight against the atheistic movement [Gottlosenbewegung], and that not merely with a few theoretical declarations: we have stamped it out.
  27. ↑ Smith, Christian (1996). Disruptive religion: the force of faith in social-movement activism. Routledge. pp. 156–57. ISBN   978-0-415-91405-5.
  28. ↑ Stackelberg, Roderick (2007). The Routledge Companion to Nazi Germany. Routledge. pp. 136–8. ISBN   978-0-415-30860-1.
  29. ↑ "Atheist Hall Converted: Berlin Churches Establish Bureau to Win Back Worshipers". The New York Times. 14 May 1933. p. 2. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  30. ↑ Bock, Heike (2006). "Secularization of the modern conduct of life? Reflections on the religiousness of early modern Europe". In Hanne May (ed.). Religiosität in der säkularisierten Welt. VS Verlag fnr Sozialw. p. 157. ISBN   978-3-8100-4039-8.
  31. ↑ Kaiser, Jochen-Christoph (2003). Christel Gärtner (ed.). Atheismus und religiöse Indifferenz. Vol. Organisierter Atheismus. VS Verlag. pp. 122, 124–6. ISBN   978-3-8100-3639-1.
  32. ↑ Helmreich, Ernst Christian (1979). The German Churches Under Hitler: Background, Struggle, and Epilogue. Detroit: Wayne State University Press. p. 241. ISBN   978-0-8143-1603-0.
  33. ↑ Evans, Richard J. (2005). The Third Reich in Power. New York: Penguin. ISBN   978-0-14-303790-3; pp. 245–246
  34. 1 2 Ziegler, Herbert F. (2014). Nazi Germany's New Aristocracy: The SS Leadership, 1925–1939. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. pp. 85–87. ISBN   9781400860364 . Retrieved 23 January 2018.
  35. ↑ Richard J. Evans; The Third Reich at War; Penguin Press; New York 2009, p. 546
  36. ↑ Burleigh, Michael (22 March 2012). The Third Reich. ISBN   9780330475501 . Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  37. ↑ Himmler, Heinrich. Die Schutzstaffel als antibolschewistische Kampforganisation . Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  38. ↑ "CCPR General Comment 22: 30/07/93 on ICCPR Article 18". Minorityrights.org. Archived from the original on 16 January 2015.
  39. ↑ International Federation for Human Rights (1 August 2003). "Discrimination against religious minorities in Iran" (PDF). fdih.org. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  40. ↑ Davis, Derek H. "The Evolution of Religious Liberty as a Universal Human Right" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  41. ↑ Hartmann, René (March 2008). ""Most American secularists have few expectations..." An Interview with AAI president Stuart Bechman". MIZ Magazine. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  42. ↑ "Fee for leaving church is brought before European Court of Human Rights | I". International League of Non-religious and Atheists (IBKA). Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  43. ↑ "Anmälan till JO – Riksdagens ombudsmän". jo.se. Archived from the original on 22 November 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  44. ↑ "Why must agnostics be obliged to teach faith?". The Irish Times. 2 February 2010. Archived from the original on 23 October 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
  45. ↑ Berkeley, Rob; Savita Vij (December 2008). "Right to Divide? Faith Schools and Community Cohesion" (PDF). London: Runnymede Trust. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 September 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  46. ↑ Peev, Gerri (20 December 2007). "Religion: I don't believe in God". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  47. ↑ Liljeberg Research International: Deutsch-Türkische Lebens und Wertewelten 2012 Archived 11 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine , July/August 2012, p. 68
  48. ↑ Peters, Freia (17 August 2012). "Leben in Deutschland: Türkische Migranten hoffen auf muslimische Mehrheit". DIE WELT (in German). Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  49. ↑ "ΝΔ: Ο ελληνικός λαός πρέπει να γνωρίζει αν ο Τσίπρας είναι άθεος – η απάντηση ΣΥΡΙΖΑ". skai.gr. 19 January 2014.
  50. ↑ "Μητροπολίτης Γόρτυνος: "Το ράσο μου πετάει τριφασικό ρεύμα" (Video)". Archived from the original on 25 July 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  51. ↑ "Ateus e drogados são os mais odiados pelos brasileiros". Paulopes.com.br (in Portuguese). 3 May 2009. Retrieved 4 August 2013.
  52. ↑ "No More Prayers in Legislature". humanistcanada.com. Archived from the original on 4 September 2009. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  53. ↑ Hurst, Lynda (9 May 2008). "Stirring up yet another religious storm". Toronto Star. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  54. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions" . Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  55. ↑ "Values". Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  56. ↑ Klug, Petra (2023). Anti-atheist nation: religion and secularism in the United States. Routledge studies in the sociology of religion. Abingdon New York (N.Y.): Routledge. ISBN   978-1-032-31010-7.
  57. 1 2 3 4 Dawkins, Richard (2006). The God Delusion. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 43–46. ISBN   978-0-618-68000-9.
  58. ↑ Harris, Sam (24 December 2006). "10 myths – and 10 truths – about atheism". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 17 April 2008. Retrieved 12 March 2009.
  59. ↑ Downey, Margaret (June–July 2004). "Discrimination against atheists: the facts". Free Inquiry . 24 (4): 41–43. Archived from the original on 8 February 2008.
  60. ↑ "Humanists Praise Pete Stark for "Coming Out" as a Nontheist". American Humanist. Archived from the original on 5 July 2008. Retrieved 17 March 2009.
  61. ↑ Tabash, Eddie. "Atheism is Indeed A Civil Rights Issue". Council for Secular Humanism. Archived from the original on 20 February 2009. Free Inquiry magazine, Volume 24, Number 4.
  62. ↑ Thornton, Paul (18 April 2007). "Disliked, not oppressed I may be a reviled atheist, but that doesn't mean I can claim equal victimhood with truly repressed minorities". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2009.
  63. ↑ Grothe, D.J.; Dacey, Austin. "Atheism Is Not a Civil Rights Issue". Free Inquiry. 24 (2). Archived from the original on 29 April 2013.
  64. 1 2 3 West, Ellis M. (2006). "Religious Tests of Office-Holding". In Finkelman, Paul (ed.). Encyclopedia of American Civil Liberties. CRC Press. pp. 1314–5. ISBN   978-0-415-94342-0.
  65. ↑ Giacalone, Robert A; Jurkiewicz, Carole L. (2005). Handbook of Workplace Spirituality and Organizational Performance. M.E. Sharpe. ISBN   978-0-7656-1743-9.
  66. ↑ Urofsky, Melvin I. (2002). Religious Freedom: Rights and Liberties Under the Law . ABC-CLIO. pp.  39–40. ISBN   978-1-57607-312-4.
  67. ↑ Lampman, Jane (7 December 2006). "At swearing in, congressman wants to carry Koran. Outrage ensues". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 1 March 2009.
  68. ↑ Douglas, Davison M. (2006). "Belief-Action Distinction in Free Exercise Clause History". In Finkelman, Paul (ed.). Encyclopedia of American Civil Liberties. CRC Press. p. 119. ISBN   978-0-415-94342-0.
  69. ↑ Belknap, Michal R. (2005). The Supreme Court Under Earl Warren, 1953–1969. Univ of South Carolina Press. ISBN   978-1-57003-563-0.
  70. ↑ Friedman, Dan (2005). The Maryland State Constitution: A Reference Guide. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 44. ISBN   978-0-313-32044-6.
  71. ↑ Bishop, Ronald (2007). Taking on the Pledge of Allegiance: The News Media and Michael Newdow's Constitutional Challenge. SUNY Press. pp. 39–40. ISBN   978-0-7914-7181-4.
  72. ↑ "US to keep 'under God' pledge". BBC News. 14 June 2004. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
  73. ↑ Mintz, Howard (15 June 2004). "U.S. Supreme Court Dismisses Pledge Challenge". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
  74. ↑ "Atheism, Secularity, and Well-Being: How the Findings of Social Science Counter Negative Stereotypes and Assumptions, Phil Zuckerman*" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 December 2014.
  75. ↑ "Winkler v. Chicago School Reform Board". 2004. Archived from the original on 7 June 2012.
  76. ↑ "Department of Defense settles part of litigation challenging its involvement with the Boy Scouts of America". Usdoj.gov. 16 November 2004. Archived from the original on 8 May 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  77. ↑ "National Boy Scout Organization Agrees to End All Local Government Direct Sponsorship of Troops and Packs". American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 2 March 2006.
  78. ↑ "Boy Scouts Jamboree to Stay at Army Base". The Washington Times . Archived from the original on 19 April 2006. Retrieved 2 March 2006.
  79. ↑ Marinucci, Carla (14 March 2007). "Stark's atheist views break political taboo". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 12 March 2009.
  80. ↑ "California Lawmaker Becomes Highest-Ranking Official To Say He's a Nonbeliever". Nysun.com. Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  81. ↑ SCHRECK, ADAM (13 March 2007). "Congressman says he doesn't believe in God" . Los Angeles Times .
  82. ↑ Stark called himself "a Unitarian who does not believe in a supreme being" and has been identified as an atheist. Rep. Stark applauded for atheist outlook: Believed to be first congressman to declare nontheism, Associated Press, March 13, 2007 (Accessed June 28, 2024)
  83. ↑ Nadeem, Reem (3 January 2023). "Faith on the Hill: The religious composition of the 118th Congress". Pew Research Center . Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  84. ↑ Michelle Boorstein (9 November 2017). "This lawmaker isn't sure that God exists. Now, he's finally decided to tell people". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  85. ↑ Hendley, Matthew (4 March 2014). "Atheist Representative Juan Mendez Brings More Non-Prayer to the Arizona House". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  86. ↑ Reinhart, Mary (22 May 2013). "Ariz. lawmaker comes out as atheist during meeting". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  87. ↑ "r/IAmA - Comment by u/AndrewZwicker: "I'm an atheist, but I don't believe that science and religion are by definition incompatible."". reddit. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  88. ↑ "Legislator Spotlight: Nebraska Sen. Megan Hunt". State Innovation Exchange. 28 January 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  89. ↑ "Critics Say Atheist N.C. City councilman Unworthy of Seat". Fox News. 7 April 2010. Archived from the original on 17 December 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  90. ↑ "In U.S., Socialist Presidential Candidates Least Appealing". Gallup. 22 June 2015. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  91. ↑ "Faith in the System". Mother Jones . September–October 2004.
  92. ↑ Page, Susan (12 March 2007). "2008 race has the face of a changing America". USA Today. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
  93. ↑ Edgell, Penny; Stewart, Evan; Hartmann, Douglas; Gerteis, Joseph (7 November 2016). "Atheists and Other Cultural Outsiders: Moral Boundaries and the Non-Religious in the United States" (PDF). University of Minnesota. 95 (2): 619.
  94. ↑ "This Godless Communism, 1961". authentichistory.com.
  95. ↑ "Atheists identified as America's most distrusted minority, according to new U of M study". UMN News. Retrieved 22 March 2006.
  96. ↑ "MAAF (2009). Military Association of Atheists & Freethinkers". militaryatheists.org. 27 April 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  97. ↑ LaGrone, S. (30 September 2008). "Soldier alleges religious bias at Lakenheath". Armytimes.com. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  98. ↑ Jones, W. (28 September 2010). Fleet, Josh (ed.). "Air Force Academy Cites Progress in Tackling Religious Intolerance". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  99. ↑ Banks, Adelle (16 January 2011). Fleet, Josh (ed.). "Army Faces Questions Over 'Spiritual Fitness' Test". Huffington Post. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  100. ↑ "The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program's Unconstitutional Soldier Fitness Tracker and Global Assessment Tool" (PDF). MAAF. 30 December 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  101. ↑ Volokh, Eugene (2006). "Parent-child speech and child custody speech restrictions" (PDF). New York University Law Review. 81: 631.
  102. ↑ Zuckerman, Phil (2009). "Atheism, Secularity, and Well-Being: How the Findings of Social Science Counter Negative Stereotypes and Assumptions" (PDF). Sociology Compass. 3 (6): 949–971. doi:10.1111/j.1751-9020.2009.00247.x. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 December 2014.
  103. ↑ Castle, Marie Alena. "Your money and/or your life: mugged by the mythmakers". Atheists For Human Rights. Archived from the original on 19 January 2009. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
  104. ↑ O'Hair, Madalyn. "George H. W. Bush: "Atheists Neither Citizens Nor Patriots". American Atheists. Archived from the original on 28 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-02-27.
  105. 1 2 Burns, Saxon (30 November 2006). "Godless in Tucson; Atheists—the least-trusted group in America—speak out". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
  106. ↑ Frequently misquoted as "No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots.", starting with GALA Interim (Fall 1988). "On the Barricades: Bush on Atheism". Free Inquiry . 8 (4): 16. ISSN   0272-0701..
  107. ↑ "Transcript of President Bush's News Conference". The New York Times. 4 November 2004. Retrieved 17 January 2012.
  108. ↑ Emery, David (20 December 2016), Obama Signs Law Protecting Atheists from Religious Persecution, Snopes.com , retrieved 23 December 2016
  109. ↑ "Article VI". Legal Information Institute.
  110. ↑ "U.S. Constitution – First Amendment". Legal Information Institute.
  111. ↑ Constitution of the State of Arkansas (PDF). Little Rock, AR: Arkansas State Legislature. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  112. ↑ "Constitution of Maryland". Annapolis, MD: Maryland State Archives. 10 June 2011. Archived from the original on 13 August 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  113. ↑ "Constitution of the State of Mississippi" (PDF). Jackson, MS: Secretary of State, State of Mississippi. p. 117. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  114. ↑ "North Carolina State Constitution Article VI Section 8" . Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  115. ↑ "South Carolina Constitution Article 17 Section 4". Archived from the original on 2 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  116. ↑ "Article IX, Disqualifications" (PDF). Tennessee Blue Book 2011–2012. Nashville, TN: Secretary of State, State of Tennessee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  117. ↑ "Texas Constitution, Article 1, Section 4" . Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  118. ↑ "Pennsylvania Constitution, Article 1, Section 4" . Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  119. ↑ Robert Evans (9 December 2012). "Atheists around world suffer persecution, discrimination: report". Reuters.
  120. ↑ "International Humanist and Ethical Union – You can be put to death for atheism in 13 countries around the world" . Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  121. ↑ "International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU)". 2015.
  122. ↑ "Hanged for being a Christian in Iran" . The Daily Telegraph . 11 October 2008. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  123. ↑ "Iran hangs man convicted of apostasy". Reuters . 31 January 2011. Archived from the original on 17 January 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  124. 1 2 3 "Supporting Islam's apostates". TheGuardian.com .
  125. ↑ "Somali executed for 'apostasy'". BBC News . BBC. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  126. ↑ "Crimes punishable by death in the UAE include…apostasy – Freedom Center Students" . Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  127. 1 2 "Islamic Teaching on the Consequences of Apostasy from Islam". Archived from the original on 9 July 2007. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  128. ↑ "'Apostasy' laws widespread in Muslim world". CTV News. Associated Press. 27 March 2006. Archived from the original on 20 January 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2023. Islamic Shariah law considers conversion to any religion apostasy and most Muslim scholars agree the punishment is death. Saudi Arabia considers Shariah the law of the land, though there have been no reported cases of executions of converts from Islam in recent memory.
  129. ↑ Abdelaziz, Salma (26 December 2013). "Wife: Saudi blogger recommended for apostasy trial". CNN. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  130. 1 2 3 "No God, not even Allah: Ex-Muslim atheists are becoming more outspoken, but tolerance is still rare". Economist. 24 November 2012.
  131. ↑ Kamrava, Mehran (2006). The new voices of Islam: reforming politics and modernity : a reader. I.B.Tauris. pp. 123–24. ISBN   978-1-84511-275-2.
  132. ↑ Hamad, Ahmad (1999). "Legal plurality and legitimation of human rights abuses". In Al-Zwaini, Laila; Baudouin Dupret; Berger, Maurits (eds.). Legal pluralism in the Arab world. The Hague: Kluwer Law International. p. 221. ISBN   978-90-411-1105-0.
  133. ↑ Zaki Badawi, M.A. (2003). "Islam". In Cookson, Catharine (ed.). Encyclopedia of religious freedom. New York: Routledge. pp.  204–8. ISBN   978-0-415-94181-5.
  134. ↑ "Syria violence claims head of ancient Arab poet". Reuters. 12 February 2013. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  135. ↑ Jihadists Behead Statue of Syrian Poet Abul Ala Al-Maari Archived 16 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine . The Observers, France 24. 14 February 2013. Accessed 15 December 2013.
  136. ↑ "International Religious Freedom Report 2008-Jordan". US of Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 19 September 2008. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  137. ↑ Boyle, Kevin; Sheen, Juliet (1997). Freedom of Religion and Belief: A World Report. Routledge. p. 30. ISBN   978-0-415-15978-4.
  138. ↑ Al-Boray, Nagad (1999). "Egypt". Secrecy and Liberty: National Security, Freedom of Expression and Access to Information (International Studies in Human Rights). Berlin: Springer. ISBN   978-90-411-1191-3.
  139. ↑ "de beste bron van informatie over Lexalgeria. Deze website is te koop!". lexalgeria.net. 2 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 June 2004. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  140. ↑ "The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh". bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  141. 1 2 "Digital Security Act 2020" (PDF). www.cirt.gov.bd. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  142. ↑ bdnews24.com, Staff Correspondent. "Ansar al-Islam banned in Bangladesh". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 1 July 2020.{{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  143. ↑ Melvin, Jess (2017). "Mechanics of Mass Murder: A case for Understanding the Indonesian Killings as Genocide". Journal of Genocide Research 19 (4): 487–511. doi:10. 1080/14623528.2017.1393942.
  144. ↑ "International Religious Freedom Report 2007-Indonesia". US of Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 14 September 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  145. ↑ "Amnesty Calls for Release of Jailed Indonesian Atheist". Jakarta Globe. 15 June 2012. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013.
  146. ↑ "Indonesia's atheists face battle for religious freedom". The Guardian . 3 May 2012.
  147. 1 2 "Discrimination against religious minorities in IRAN" (PDF). Fédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de l`Homme and the Ligue de Défense des Droits de l'Homme en Iran. August 2003. Retrieved 13 March 2009.
  148. ↑ "Iranian Atheists Association: Issues". Iranian Atheists Association. Archived from the original on 24 September 2013.
  149. ↑ "Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association". Amnesty International. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  150. ↑ "Apostasy in the Islamic Republic of Iran". Iranian Human Rights Documentation Center. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  151. ↑ "Iranian Writer Sentenced to Death for Apostasy". Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  152. ↑ "Human Rights Questions: Human Rights Situations and Reports of Special Rapporteurs and Representatives – Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran". Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  153. ↑ "Witness Statement: Mahmoud Roghani". Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  154. ↑ "About Us". Iranian Atheists Association. Iranian Atheists.org. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
  155. ↑ Levy, Rachael (24 March 2014). "Why Are Saudis Tearing Up the Quran?". Vocativ. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  156. ↑ "Atheists Classified As Terrorists Under New Saudi Arabian Laws". Huffington Post . Retrieved 4 March 2014.
  157. ↑ "Saudi Arabia: A wave of atheism or a misunderstanding". Al Arabiya. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  158. ↑ Adam Withnall (1 April 2014). "Saudi Arabia declares all atheists are terrorists in new law to crack down on political dissidents – Middle East – World". The Independent. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
  159. ↑ "A Quest for Equality: Minorities in Turkey". Minority Rights Group International. 2007. Retrieved 14 March 2009. Compulsory religious instruction in schools is discriminatory not only against Alevis, as is often emphasized by the EU,195 but also against other non-Sunni Muslims and Sunni Muslims who either do not conform to the Sunni Hanefi faith or do not agree with its official version. It is also discriminatory against atheists, agnostics and secularists, who may not wish their children to receive any religious education.
  160. ↑ Shaffer, R (March–April 2013). "Blasphemy, Free Speech, and Rationalism: An Interview with Sanal Edamaruku". The Humanist. Retrieved 2013-02-23."Blasfemia, libertad de expresión, y el racionalismo: Una entrevista con Sanal Edamaruku". The Humanist/Europa Laicismo. March 2013. Retrieved 2013-02-23.
  161. ↑ Sims, Paul. "Sanal Edamaruku: an update". 18 June 2012. New Humanist Magazine. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  162. ↑ "What was Baden-Powell's position on God and Religion in Scouting?". Faqs. 1998. Retrieved 3 December 2006.
  163. ↑ Baden-Powell, Robert (1912). "Baden-Powell on Religion". Inquiry.net. Archived from the original on 15 November 2006. Retrieved 3 December 2006.
  164. ↑ "Duty to God". BSA Legal Issues. Boy Scouts of America. Archived from the original on 27 August 2006. Retrieved 3 December 2006.
  165. ↑ "BSA and Religious Belief". BSA Discrimination.org. 22 January 2005. Archived from the original on 20 January 2007.
  166. ↑ "Scouts Canada FAQ". Scouts Canada. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  167. ↑ "BPSA-US Policy & Guidelines". Archived from the original on 20 June 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.