The gentle atheist

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A radical atheism

The gentle atheist

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Is it possible to conceive of a new kind of atheism which has rituals and a godless temple/church? Can there be a code of atheistic living that does not scoff at religion but steals from it the ideas of goodness and discipline? Yes, says British writer Alain de Botton, described often as a philosopher of everyday life. In his new book, 'Religion for Atheists: A Non-believers Guide to the Uses of Religion', de Botton advocates a radical kind of atheism - one that borrows freely from religion.

What pushed you to conceive of a new kind of atheism that borrows from elements of religion?

Believing in God is, for me as for many others, simply not possible. At the same time, I want to suggest that if you remove this belief, there are particular dangers that open up - we don't need to fall into these dangers. For a start, there is the danger of individualism: of placing the human being at the centre stage of everything.
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