There have been many atheists who have participated in politics or law. This is a list of atheists in politics and law. Living persons in this list are people whose atheism is relevant to their notable activities or public life, and who have publicly identified themselves as atheists.
Non-religious politicians are very common in Spain, particularly in PSOE, Unidas Podemos, and the former Republican Left.
Being non-religious has traditionally not been a barrier to success in British politics, as evidenced by at least four Prime Ministers, one Deputy Prime Minister, one First Minister of Wales, and several leaders of the Opposition being atheists since the 20th century. Non-religious views are common among British MPs and Lords, many of whom are members of the All-Party Parliamentary Humanist Group, as well as members of Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish, and London legislatures.
Although Joe grew up in a religious household, he became an atheist while retaining respect for "the positive aspects of Jewish culture".
When I became a Irreligion person, I was completely free of nervousness, and I did not look at the religious and sectarian background of the other, I look at the sophistication of his morals, and the morals that I talk about are related to his good treatment and commitment to his word, so I have nothing to do with what he wears or drinks or how he lives his private life. And I realized that religious fanaticism only sows hatred and division.
"To be a realist here, you have to believe in miracles, " David Ben-Gurion once remarked. He didn't believe that literally, of course; he was an atheist. But he insisted that his officials and generals take Old Testament names.
Ben-Gurion and Moshe Dayan were self-proclaimed atheists.
Even atheist and socialist Israelis like David Ben-Gurion, Moshe Dayan, and Golda Meir were marked by the stories and legends of King David and the prophets. In other words, their lives had been shaped by Hebron.
Even a committed atheist like Ben-Gurion found its sacred position on his own emotional map more compelling than the demographic and historical facts that were staring him in the face.
David Ben-Gurion makes an especially fascinating study as a spokesman for Jewish messianic teleology in that by most accounts he was a secular atheist.
David Ben-Gurion (1886–1973), the first prime minister of Israel and its foremost politician in the age...Though an atheist, he saw the Bible as the most important source for shaping the new Hebrew's identity...
In 1956 I eagerly swallowed all of Ben-Gurion's political and military reasons for Israel initiating the Suez War, until he (in spite of being an atheist, proud of his disregard of the commandments of Jewish religion) pronounced in the Knesset on the third day of that war, that the real reason for it is 'the restoration of the kingdom of David and Solomon' to its Biblical borders.
I shall die a proletarian revolutionist, a Marxist, a dialectical materialist, and, consequently, an irreconcilable atheist.
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrats' new leader, has defied political convention with a blunt admission that he is an atheist.
There were no clergy at the ceremony because Milosevic was an avowed atheist.
Bethune was a communist and an atheist with a healthy contempt for his evangelical father.
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: Cite uses generic title (help)Formerly a Lutheran, Ventura generally considers himself an atheist.
Atheism is the rejection of an assertion that a deity exists. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities and any statements to the contrary are false ones. The English term 'atheist' was used at least as early as the sixteenth century and atheistic ideas and their influence have a longer history.
Antireligion is opposition to religion or traditional religious beliefs and practices. It involves opposition to organized religion, religious practices or religious institutions. The term antireligion has also been used to describe opposition to specific forms of supernatural worship or practice, whether organized or not. The Soviet Union adopted the political ideology of Marxism–Leninism and by extension the policy of state atheism which opposed the growth of religions.
Criticism of atheism is criticism of the concepts, validity, or impact of atheism, including associated political and social implications. Criticisms include positions based on the history of science, philosophical and logical criticisms, findings in both the natural and social sciences, theistic apologetic arguments, arguments pertaining to ethics and morality, the effects of atheism on the individual, or the assumptions that underpin atheism.
Discrimination against atheists, sometimes called atheophobia, atheistophobia, or anti-atheism, 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. It is often expressed in distrust regardless of its manifestation. Perceived atheist prevalence seems to be correlated with reduction in prejudice. There is global prevalence of mistrust in moral perceptions of atheists found in even secular countries and among atheists.
Throughout the history of the Soviet Union (1917–1991), there were periods when Soviet authorities suppressed and persecuted various forms of Christianity to different extents depending on state interests. Soviet Marxist-Leninist policy consistently advocated the control, suppression, and ultimately, the elimination of religious beliefs, and it actively encouraged the propagation of Marxist-Leninist atheism in the Soviet Union. However, most religions were never officially outlawed.
After the October Revolution of November 7, 1917 there was a movement within the Soviet Union to unite all of the people of the world under Communist rule. This included the Eastern bloc countries as well as the Balkan States. Communism as interpreted by Vladimir Lenin and his successors in the Soviet government included the abolition of religion and to this effect the Soviet government launched a long-running unofficial campaign to eliminate religion from society. Since some of these Slavic states tied their ethnic heritage to their ethnic churches, both the peoples and their churches were targeted by the Soviets.
Christian atheism is a form of atheism that adopts the teachings, narratives, symbols, practices, or communities associated with Christianity without accepting the literal existence of God.
God-Building is an idea proposed by some prominent early Marxists in the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party. Inspired by Auguste Comte's Religion of Humanity, the concept had some precedent in the French Revolution with the Cult of Reason. The idea proposed that in place of the abolition of religion, there should be a meta-religious context in which religions were viewed primarily in terms of the psychological and social effect of ritual, myth, and symbolism, and which attempted to harness this force for pro-communist aims, both by creating new ritual and symbolism, and by re-interpreting existing ritual and symbolism in a socialist context. In contrast to Leninist atheism, the God-Builders took an official position of agnosticism.
Marxist–Leninist atheism, also known as Marxist–Leninist scientific atheism, is the antireligious element of Marxism–Leninism. Based upon a dialectical-materialist understanding of humanity's place in nature, Marxist–Leninist atheism proposes that religion is the opium of the people; thus, Marxism–Leninism advocates atheism, rather than religious belief.
Irreligion in Africa, encompassing also atheism in Africa as well as agnosticism, secular humanism and general secularism, has been estimated at over tens of millions in various polls. While the predominant religions in Africa are Islam and Christianity, many groups and individuals still practice their traditional beliefs. Despite this the irreligious population is notable, especially in South Africa where 15.1% of the population describe themselves as irreligious and in Botswana, where 20% of the population describes themselves as non-religious.
Irreligion in Croatia pertains to atheism, agnosticism, and lack of religious affiliation in Croatia. Even though the 2011 census showed that only 4.57% of Croats considered themselves irreligious, Gallup polls conducted in 2007 and 2008 found that 30.5% of respondents did not consider religion important in their lives. The Japanese research center, Dentsu, conducted a survey in 2006 concluding that 13.2% of Croats declare themselves irreligious, compared to the 7% found by a 2010 Eurobarometer survey across Europe.
Irreligion in Italy includes all citizens of Italy that are atheist, agnostic, or otherwise irreligious. Approximately 12% of Italians are irreligious, and no affiliation is the second most common religious demographic in Italy after Christianity. Freedom of religion in Italy was guaranteed by the Constitution of Italy following its enactment in 1948. Until then, the Catholic Church was the official state church of Italy.