The Search for Peace in Times of Chaos—Volume Logically speaking, atheists feel that most people in North America could be considered atheists Christians consistently deny the existence of the Hindu, Ancient Roman, Ancient Greek, Ancient Egyptian, and many hundreds of other gods and goddesses Thus, the difference between a typical Christian and a typical atheist is numerically small The strong atheist believes that none of the many t housands o f g ods and goddesses exist; the Christian believes that one God exists, whereas all of the other thousands of deities are nonexistent artificial creations by humans Undoubtedly, most people think that knowledge is good, and some have tried to reconcile faith and reason, but in the end, to one who believes in gods, faith is always more important To an atheist, knowledge is more important Basic Worship Service yth Most people believe that everyone worships something Because of the central importance of their religion and worship to their own lives, they view the atheist through the prism of their own belief systems They assume whatever is “important” to atheists must hold a similarly central position in atheists’ lives Below are some of the suggested candidates for what atheists must worship, but none of them are true yth Atheists are Materialistic and Worship Money, Material Goods, Comforts The belief that Atheists are more materialistic than theists isn’t one that is founded on any evidence, but it is a popular one A survey done by researchers in the University ofMinnesota’s department of sociology found that Atheists are themost despised and distrusted minority in America The most popular reasons cited were “moral indiscretions” like criminal behavior, rampant materialism, and cultural elitism.5 yth Atheists Worship Science, Evolution, and Darwin Technology is their church, evolution is their creed, Darwin is their prophet, and scientists are their high priests The idea that evolution is a creed for ~ 383 ~