LETTER: Defending "Religilous"

By Non-Degree Grad Student Mary E. Thompson

In the October 20, 2008 edition of Broadside, Michael Grybowski slams Bill Maher's documentary, Religulous, for showing only religious extremists. He also criticizes other atheist works like the books of Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins. He contends that the purpose of the film (and books) is to claim that religion is fundamentally harmful or dangerous. His conclusion was that atheist films and books “prove nothing about which is better, religion or irreligion.”

But Maher didn’t interview religious extremists or crazy people. Although at the end of the film, Maher lectured about the danger of extremists, the people who appeared in the film were both ordinary people, such as truckers, and government leaders, such as former Arkansas Senator David Pryor. He also spoke people with several denominations: Catholics, Mormons, Muslims and Protestants. He spoke both with those who performed in a Christian-themed amusement park and museum as well as people who attended the park and museum. He asked them all very basic questions about religion, the scripture-based stories in which they believed, evolution, the afterlife, and other issues.

Hitchens, Dawkins, and Maher—who Grybowski labels “religion-haters”—are not against the belief in supernatural beings or phenomena because of any emotional or otherwise inexplicable bias, but rather because there is no verifiable evidence to convince them that claims of supernatural beings or phenomena are based on reality. In fact, all the scientific evidence about how the universe works supports the premise that nothing supernatural exists.

This is what most atheists are trying to draw people’s attention to and this is the cause of much of their frustration: despite that we in the industrialized west have the most educated population ever in the history of the world, and despite the scientific knowledge that provides verifiable evidence against supernatural claims, belief in the supernatural still holds sway not only over the masses, but also those in positions of power.

It is anger coupled with a refusal of reality that makes people dangerous, whether we are talking about Joseph Stalin, Osama bin Laden, disgruntled teenagers, or a ranting street corner preacher. The extreme religionists, however, believe that a (non-existent) omnipotent supernatural being is on their side. This belief fuels their tenacity and their agenda, making them even more dangerous.