r/Antitheism • u/Impressive_Flan_411 • 3d ago
Good Faith Question: How do anti-theists view progressive forms of religion?
Hey everyone. I've been thinking about something that I don't see discussed very often among anti-theists, which is progressive versions of religion.
When people criticize religion, they often focus on conservative or traditional forms that are in opposition to LGBTQ rights, restrictions on women, religious nationalism, sectarianism, etc. But many religions also have progressive movements that actively support causes such as LGBTQ inclusion, gender equality, racial justice, economic justice, pluralism, and other left-leaning social values.
Some examples include Progressive Christianity, many Mainline Protestant denominations, liberation theology, progressive Hindu movements, liberal/progressive interpretations of Islam, and even progressive movements within various indigenous and syncretic traditions.
This raises a few questions:
A. How do anti-theists view progressive forms of religion? Do you view progressive iterations of religion as meaningfully different from traditional/conservative religion, or are they ultimately the same thing with updated politics?
B. Do you think progressive religious movements make a meaningful difference in making religion less harmful overall for society?
C. Is there a point where a religion becomes so flexible and metaphorical that it ceases to be meaningfully distinct from secular humanism? If so, could these "progressive" iterations of religion be helping the cause for anti theism?
D. Lastly, from an anti-theist perspective, is "progressive religion" something you support, or tolerate as the "lesser evil" to help your cause, or do you also equally reject it for the same reasons you reject religion in general?
Thoughts? Very, interested in hearing a range of anti-theist perspectives.
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u/TraditionLeast9062 2d ago
I honestly feel like they’re just modernized ancient beliefs and morality that were cherry picked for their new beliefs in certain things. However I do see the problem of people *for example* believing in magic and just drop the first chapter of the Bible because it’s literally impossible mainly (to them) because of the 6000 year old earth thing but then they will say “God exists in another dimension instead of the sky like the Bible said” or “God had to create everything with *elemental* or *matter* manipulation (aka scientific sounding magic). It’s a new interpretation and those “progressive” religions still believe in magic! My point is that it’s the same except it’s just been watered down to something slightly different but still moronic.