Ren Jiyu: Confidently Publicizing Scientific Atheism

Ren Jiyu: Promote Scientific Atheism with Confidence and Correctitude ^[1]

Editor’s Note: Recently, negative cultural elements such as sorcery, superstition, and pseudo-science have resurfaced like dregs rising to the top. Due to various reasons, our promotion and research of scientific atheism have shown a weakening trend. Some harbor misgivings about promoting atheism, while others set the promotion of atheism against the respect for freedom of religious belief. In some locales, the situation has even reached a point where "theists have a platform while atheists remain silent." Comrade Hu Jintao recently proposed that we should "take the promotion of science as an honor and ignorance as a shame" ^[2]; this is highly targeted and provides crucial guidance. We have invited an expert to discuss why we must strengthen the promotion of scientific atheism in light of the current weakening trend.

Inquiry from Shen Zhang, Haidian District, Beijing: The journal has invited Ren Jiyu, Honorary Director of the National Library of China and President of the Chinese Atheism Society, to respond to the following:

• What is the difference between naive atheism and scientific atheism?
• What is the Marxist view of religion?
• Does promoting atheism contradict the Party’s religious policy?
• What determines whether the nature of a social ideology is rational?
• What is the relationship between politically respecting freedom of religious belief and ideologically persisting in scientific atheism?

The current situation of "theists speaking while atheists are silent" is deeply worrying.

Scientific atheism is one of the greatest ideological achievements produced by humanity on the foundation of the development of modern science, and it is a vital component of advanced culture. It was the prerequisite for the formation of the Marxist worldview and is an essential ideological condition for Communists. Engels once suggested that the works of 18th-century French materialists should be widely disseminated among the working masses, and Lenin emphasized the vigorous promotion of scientific atheism after the October Revolution. During the eras of revolution and construction, our Party always attached great importance to the promotion of scientific atheism. One could say that scientific atheist thought was an important ideological guarantee for our Party’s revolutionary victory and construction achievements. However, in recent years, due to various reasons, the promotion and research of scientific atheism has trended toward weakening, to the point where some suggest that "theists have a platform while atheists remain silent." This is deeply worrying.

Science is the natural ally of atheism. Marxism inherited this excellent tradition and elevated scientific atheism to an entirely new height.

Atheism is a system of thought established in opposition to theism. In the realm of Western culture, atheism has always referred to the negation of the reality of "God." Since the Renaissance, it has traveled alongside the movement for the liberation of thought. In modern times, it has many variants, including so-called pantheism, deism, skepticism, and humanism, with the "militant atheism" of the 18th century being the most resolute. Nietzsche announced that "God is dead," and Einstein called for the expulsion of a personal God from religion; these reflected the major trends in Western humanities and natural sciences.

Broadly speaking, atheism can be divided into two types: atheistic thought prior to the scientific revolution was fragmented and simple, only able to expose the flaws and self-contradictions of the concept of ghosts and gods through specific issues, but unable to fundamentally deny their existence. We call the atheism of this period "naive atheism." The scientific revolution beginning with Copernicus provided a solid ideological foundation for atheism. During this period, atheist thinkers not only fundamentally denied the existence of ghosts and gods but also provided correct explanations for the origins of these concepts. This type of atheism, built on the development of modern natural science, is what we call "scientific atheism." From another perspective, modern atheism is founded upon science, advances with science, and clears the path for scientific development. Therefore, science is the natural ally of atheism. Marxism inherited this excellent tradition and elevated scientific atheism to an entirely new height.

Marxist atheism is closely linked to its philosophical worldview, its view of religion, and its practice of socialism. Marxist philosophy holds a fundamental tenet: social existence determines social consciousness, and social consciousness reacts back upon social existence. Theism is the core of the religious worldview; its essence is illusory and inverted, yet it is the soul of religious organizations. Once a religious organization loses its soul, it loses the spiritual pillar of its survival; therefore, religious theology constantly changes its forms of argumentation along with the progress of science and society. Religious organizations are the primary carriers of theism, and are the subjects that create theology and produce and promote the concepts of ghosts and gods. They bind believers together, forming material forces capable of constraining followers and acting upon society. The social function of religion is mainly expressed through its organizational forms, while religious theism exists primarily at the spiritual level. Organizational forms are highly mutable, while internal concepts are relatively stable. Thus, the same religious belief, under different religious organizations and social conditions, can hold completely different political stances and play diametrically opposite roles in society. Concepts of ghosts and gods at the spiritual level possess greater inertia and traditional continuity. Therefore, one must not conflate the treatment of religious organizations with the treatment of religious concepts.

Marxism holds that the birth, development, and eventual withered disappearance of religion possess their own historical objective necessity. "Man" is the sum of social relations ^[3]; religion is an inverted worldview and an illusory reflection of inverted social relations. Therefore, the essence of religion must be sought in the social conditions that produced it. Solving the religious problem must begin with transforming social relations. In this regard, a Marxist party treats the resolution of the religious problem as a constituent part of its revolution and construction; it opposes replacing actual social transformation with mere ideological education, and even more so opposes isolating "struggle against religion" from the Party’s general line. That is to say, religion has its own social roots; the task of Marxism is to unite with the masses of believers to remove the social roots of religion, rather than stopping at ideological struggle.

Promoting scientific atheism does not contradict the Party’s religious policy.

In a socialist country guided by Marxism, promoting scientific atheism is an unshakable responsibility. Vigorously strengthening the promotion and education of scientific atheism is necessary for consolidating the ideological foundation of Marxism and for raising the ideological quality of the entire nation. Not only should Communist Party members establish a scientific atheist worldview, but the general masses should also receive education in scientific atheism. Both theory and fact demonstrate that no one is a born atheist, nor a born theist. Becoming an atheist is the result of postnatal education; to establish a scientific atheist worldview, education and promotion must be conducted.

Promoting atheism does not contradict the right to freedom of religious belief stipulated in the Constitution, nor the Party’s policy of freedom of religious belief. When Chinese Communists promote scientific atheism, they are primarily educating their own core masses; they are not targeting religious believers, nor are they requiring everyone to become an atheist. In this regard, Engels' teaching remains our motto. Engels said: if one were to forcibly require everyone to become an atheist, one would be doing God a service ^[4]. On this issue, past mistakes should not be repeated, previous lessons must be absorbed, and "ultra-Left" practices must be corrected. That is to say, promoting scientific atheism is consistent with respecting and protecting the citizens’ freedom of religious belief; they run in parallel without conflict. This was true in the past and remains true today. On this issue, we should be "clear-headed and bold" (lizhi qizhuang), without any doubt or wavering. In fact, Western countries do not have as many taboos as we do. There, atheists and skeptics still persist in their critique of religious theology. Citizens' freedom of thought and speech are equal under the law. Some leaders in the United States claim to have founded their nation on religion, yet the calls for non-religion and humanism in the media are growing daily.

Furthermore, while Marxism accepts the principle of freedom of religious belief, it must be pointed out that its meaning can never be interpreted as only having the freedom to believe in religion. It also advocates that religion should be separated from politics and education. It emphasizes that for the state, religious belief should be a private matter of the individual; whether to believe or not, or which religion to believe in, is a choice the individual has total freedom to make, and no external force may interfere. However, for a Marxist political party, religious belief is not a private matter. Our Party’s worldview is dialectical materialism and historical materialism, which are opposite and irreconcilable with theism. The Party organization is unified; it does not allow the infiltration of other organizations or the existence of non-organizational activities. The Party must protect the citizens’ right to freedom of religious belief, but in terms of worldview, it must maintain its own independence.

Maintaining and respecting the civil right to freedom of religious belief politically, while persisting in and promoting scientific atheism ideologically, is a unity of opposites rather than a metaphysical contradiction.

Politically protecting and respecting the civil right to freedom of religious belief and ideologically persisting in and promoting scientific atheism is a unity of opposites, not a metaphysical contradiction. If there were only the freedom to believe in religious theism without the freedom to promote scientific atheism, that would be a lack of freedom, and citizens would lose their most important option. Conversely, if one launches political or personal attacks against religious citizens in the name of atheism, that would be an infringement on the sacred rights of citizens, which would destroy the unity of the people and interfere with the implementation of the Party's general line and general tasks.

Whether the nature of a social ideology possesses rationality depends on the social system and the historical process of social development; it is not determined solely by a certain belief or dogma. Cultural plurality, differences in ideological understanding, and the coexistence and contention of beliefs, convictions, and values are normal phenomena of a healthy society. Atheism and theism, religion and non-religion, this faith and that faith—coexisting within a single social community—can not only enrich and activate people’s spiritual lives but also allow for mutual communication and comparison. This aids in interpersonal exchange, the elevation of understanding, and the perfection of morality; it helps drive the overall progress of society.