Fat Chance by Ray Comfort

Author:Ray Comfort [Comfort, Ray]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: REL004000, REL067030
ISBN: 9781614585114
Publisher: New Leaf Press
Published: 2016-06-02T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

Sweden, the Atheist Nation

For years atheists have maintained that Christianity is on the way out (thanks in part to their efforts) and that atheism is on the way in, especially in countries such as Sweden. It is said that in Sweden and Denmark, where “non-belief or even outright atheism is widespread, atheists can go about their lives free from the fear that their lack of belief will cause people to mistrust, hate, or even discriminate against them.”142 Notable atheist Sam Harris argues that Scandinavian countries, which are much more secular than the United States, have much lower rates of many social ills, including crime, drug use, teen pregnancy, and poverty,143 and Sweden is touted by atheists as among the happiest countries in the world due to its lack of religion.144

So is Sweden really a predominantly atheist nation? Phil Zuckerman, author of Society without God and an outspoken atheist, reported that several academic surveys have, in recent years, found the number of Swedes who say they do not believe in God varied from 46 percent to 85 percent, yet another survey reported that only 17 percent of respondents self-identified as “atheist.”145

A 2015 poll by WIN/Gallup International stated, “The Swedish prove to be the least religious in the Western World with 78% saying they are either not religious or convinced atheists.”146 Yet in 2012, only 8 percent of Swedes were reported to be atheist.147 So what accounts for the great disparity in findings? What do Swedes really believe?

One clue is that almost 9 out of 10 Swedes have Christian burials,148 and the last thing a die-hard atheist would request is a Christian burial. In a New York Times article, tellingly called “Scandinavian Nonbelievers, Which Is Not to Say Atheists,” the author noted:

Mr. Zuckerman, a sociologist who teaches at Pitzer College in Claremont, Calif., has reported his findings on religion in Denmark and Sweden in “Society Without God” (New York: University Press, 2008). Much that he found will surprise many people, as it did him. The many nonbelievers he interviewed, both informally and in structured, taped and transcribed sessions, were anything but antireligious, for example. They typically balked at the label “atheist.” An overwhelming majority had in fact been baptized, and many had been confirmed or married in church.149

So the many Swedish nonbelievers he interviewed were anything but antireligious and typically balked at the label “atheist.” The article also notes that “they called themselves Christians, and most were content to remain in the Danish National Church or the Church of Sweden, the traditional national branches of Lutheranism.”150

This is perhaps the reason there’s such confusion with the numbers:

There is a difference between people who consider themselves atheists and non-religious people. Non-religious people simply don’t follow any rules or guides of a religion, but they may believe in God. Atheists have a lack of belief in religion and God altogether.151

So for those who consider the Nordic country to be an atheist paradise, and hope to create the same environment in the United States, they’ll have to look elsewhere for inspiration.

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