Atheism and the Family

Atheism for Mental Health and Structured Life

At first sight, atheists have no reason to tie the afore-mentioned six elements of a strong family to religion. What practice can religion provide that the “Free Thinker,” as many atheists like to refer to themselves, can't find an alternative for? If the assumption remains that religion is for the stupid and invites a type of ignorance, it would seem that atheism must be the superior alternative for mental health. To this end medical studies have been conducted, testing the resilience of atheists in critical situations. One such study, examining subjects suffering depression, found that atheists are at considerably more risk to attempt suicide when depressed than are faithful and religious subjects in similarly distressed states (Dervic, 2004). This indicates that atheists may suffer from the absence of context and meaning that religion can provide. While atheists may not reach states of depression more frequently than others, this fact must rule out the possibility that atheism in any way improves mental health.

The structure of organized religion, with its worship services and rote practices, can be offensive to a Free Thinker. Nonetheless, it seems that this is of use to children, who benefit from having set structures in which they can grow. In a presentation given at the 2001 World Family Policy Forum professionals asserted that children have a right to traditions, which will give them depth and perspective to their lives and a cloak of emotional stability (The Howard Center for Family). Atheists who wish to avoid religious traditions will need to draw on family traditions, which likely have roots in earlier religious practices, or create their own observances. In either case it is ironic that the atheist who refuses religious traditions would feel no qualm about peddling traditions of his own.