Ok…
I am reading an article about an Atheist “Megachurch.”
While I agree that the idea of labeling it as a church is kind of odd (I am not sure if that is their label or just what others are calling it), I think the people who are like “That defeats the point of Atheism!” are confused or just nuts.
There is NO central point to Atheism. Atheism is simply the lack of belief in gods. That is pretty much it. Those who are saying “It defeats the point!” are already doing exactly what they are accusing the other group of doing.
There have been a multitude of Atheistic groups for just as long as there have been a multitude of Theistic/Deistic groups.
If a group is trying to do good, and thinks they have found a way, then that is what Humanism in all its various forms is about, and many Atheists are also Humanists.
Give them a shot. Let them do their thing. Worst case scenario, they screw it up. It is still worth letting them try.
And if you are like “They are defeating the purpose of Atheism,” you need to check yourself. You are doing exactly the same thing as the various religious groups that got all agitated when new sects of their religions formed.
If you approach your Atheism, or Atheism in general as a faith a religion or a philosophy, then you need to recognize that others may as well and it is their right to do it differently.
If you don’t approach it like a faith a religion or a philosophy, then why are you even making that comment/asking the question?
The article itself is at: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/15/atheism-contrary-to-mega-churches
As of this posting, there is at least one response that is very much worth reading at http://discussion.theguardian.com/comment-permalink/28911030 .