yahwehyadayada

I did a search for this under "atheist culture" & came up with nothing.
Has there ever been an atheist society or culture? Not a communist society that had atheism superimposed on it & had religion being practised underground, but a society or culture that had no god(s) belief at all?

oneofshibumi

You are searching for myths and myth-making. "All societies need myths to live by," Campbell, Joseph. (1972) Myths To Live By. How we re-create ancient legends in our daily lives to release human potential.

From the Back: What is properly functioning mythology and what are its function? Can we use myths to help relieve our modern anxiety, or do they foster it? Campbell explores the enduring power of the universal myths that influence our lives daily and examines the myth-making process from the primitive past to immediate present, returning always to the source from which all mythology springs: the creative imagination.

Campbell stresses that the borders dividing the earth have been shattered; that myths and religions have always followed the certain basic archetypes and are no longer exclusive to a single, region, or religion. He shows how we must recognize their common denomination and allow this knowledge to be use in fulfilling human potential everywhere.

[ August 25, 2002: Message edited by: oneofshibumi ]</p>

Eudaimonist

Huh? That was one heck of a nonsequitur, oneofshibumi.

As far as I know, the only cultures that could possibly count as nontheistic might be some animistic cultures where there aren't any powers quite like gods. Would that do?

Starboy

"Atheist culture" has got to be an oxymoron. Culture is what we pass on to our kids and what they pass on to their kids. It represents all that we feel is worth keeping. I would say that atheists drink deeply from the culture of the world including religion, but that each one of us determines for ourselves what is important about existence and what we value above all in life. For me it is curiosity and honesty, I am sure it is different for each atheist on the planet.

Starboy

CaptainDave

Starboy, I suspect that yahwehyadayada is not looking for a culture based on non-belief in god(s) (strong atheism) but a culture which is based on principles which do not include god(s) (weak atheism).

I don't know of such a culture but give it time. I suspect that most major cultures will have slain their god(s) by the close of this century.

Starboy

CaptainDave, I am a weak atheist as in a-theist. A culture based on a-theism is what I would prefer. Religion is mythology, I don’t expect it to be expunged from the culture, nor do I want it to be. It is part of our history just as Greek mythology is part of our culture. I consider the scenario proposed by yahwehyadayada to be hypothetical since there has never been anything like it in the history of the world and may not be possible with the current crop of mankind.

Starboy

[ August 25, 2002: Message edited by: Starboy ]</p>

case

You could consider this, the online community of non-believers otherwise known as the secular web, as a culture, in a way. I doubt that you would find many societies in history with an atheistic basis. I think you could make an argument that there weren't any religious ones, either, though I'm not qualified to back up that assertion. Though socities might be religious, and inclined to one particular sect, I don't think that they form because of them, unless we are talking about small cult-like communities.

Yes, I am grossly oversimplifying the issue. But bear with me for a moment. Let us take an example case; let us use Saudi Arabia. Now, the majority of the citizens by far are Islamic, or believe in the religion of Islam. The religion shapes the law and order of the country, as well as the morality and behavior of the population. I don't think many would argue that this is an Islamic society. But was Islam the basis of its formation? This is an assertion that I would not feel confident in making. Rather, I think that Islam is a factor, though to be sure a rather influencial one, that has shaped the society over time.

Feel free to throw in you six-pence on this.

Jamie_L

I've heard it said repeatedly on this forum that most forms of Budhism do not involve dieties, though they do involve spiritualism. I don't know how true that is, but you might research it.

Is simply not believing in dieties what you are after? Or are you thinking of a culture that has/had no supernatural beliefs at all? That might be a tall order given mankind's need to fill in the gaps of their knowledge with speculation, stories, and all manner of strangeness.

Jamie

never been there

I think that ywhwydyd is looking for is something analogous to "Queer Culture".

I don't think you'll find such a thing. I've tried thinking up a good reason why not, but all I get are plausible-but-weak ideas.

Mark_Chid

Late 20th century Britain is as near to atheist as makes no odds. Sure there are Christians within it, but very rarely does anyone mention God and certainly the culture hardly reflects it.

I know with absolute certainty that when I meet a English person under 40 I assume they are an atheist. I'm almost always right.

Oddly this is a culture with an official state religion and school prayer - but its just meaningless to a large %age of the population and of those who are believers, 90%+ keep it to themselves. the religious right has a vanishingly small political voice.

White New Zealand culture is much the same, maybe even more so (we have an openly atheism femalew Prime Minister), though Polynesian culture is steeped it a sickly sweet religiosity.