Religious People are Dumb

[Brattus]

I don't think it amounts to dumb, certain individuals may be intelligent but maybe as a group the average intelligence is lower than non religious, the religious may have their intellectual growth held back by their beliefs, reading only one book can't help, that is why I prefer the term retarded, in the sense of their developmental progress being slowed down or delayed.

Yes I think you are right. I will adjust my thinking on this.

 

[epix]

I don't think it amounts to dumb, certain individuals may be intelligent but maybe as a group the average intelligence is lower than non religious, the religious may have their intellectual growth held back by their beliefs, reading only one book can't help, that is why I prefer the term retarded, in the sense of their developmental progress being slowed down or delayed.

In the mid 1920s, there was a growing suspicion in the professional community of psychologists that the atheists were very poor strategists, judging from the fact that they didn't seem to be able to win a single game of chess. But that suspicion dissolved upon finding that the atheists played handicapped, coz their side of the chess board was always missing the two bishops.

 

[jibal]

I want to convince him, but i don't want to convince him the other way, lol. So just pimping out religious geniuses wouldn't cut it.

The simplest way to refute a universal is with a counterexample, e.g., evolutionary biologist Kenneth Miller, who is Catholic, or Ken Jennings, the Mormon who won millions on Jeopardy. While it isn't evenly distributed, stupidity can occur in anyone, regardless of their religious beliefs ... consider for example, the folks here who claim that all religious people are dumb or incapable of rational reasoning. I mean, that really really really is dumb, and I say that as an arch-"militant" atheist who thinks the world would be a lot better off with no religion.

 

[Brainache]

I want to convince him, but i don't want to convince him the other way, lol. So just pimping out religious geniuses wouldn't cut it.

Call him a Faithiest Under-Mentalist.

That'll teach him!

 

[epix]

Dear Father in the Heavens thank you again for your kind interventions on behalf of my well being. You know that I'm a very dumb person, like any other churchgoer, and so I deeply appreciate you helping me here and there. I'm also very forgetful and I wonder if you can watch over me . . .
SLAM!...SLAM!
. . . if I forget the keys in the ignition or something like that.

 

[Leumas]

In the mid 1920s, there was a growing suspicion in the professional community of psychologists that the atheists were very poor strategists, judging from the fact that they didn't seem to be able to win a single game of chess. But that suspicion dissolved upon finding that the atheists played handicapped, coz their side of the chess board was always missing the two bishops.

 

[MattusMaximus]

Sadhatter, point him to Bill Maher and his stupid anti-vaccination stance. That is a perfect example of an atheist buying into a moronic and dangerous belief.

 

[yy2bggggs]

There is really no acceptable evidence that folks who have some religious affiliation are "dumb." It would become so if the result of a sequence of studies rejected the null hypothesis saying that there is no difference between academic achievements between those who check mark the box labeled "Religion" and those who don't.

Unless everyone is dumb, as I said in the post that apparently everyone only half reads.

 

[Relax]

Well you could show him some Richard Dawkins, but I'd try to keep him clear from that Christopher Hitchens guy. Or you could also introduce him to the man himself, Carl Sagan. It'll be easier for you, that's how I started off.

 

[MickinEngland]

..His rightful beef is with televangilists, peter popoff and all. And that is good, but he is of the " all religious people are stupid" train of thought...

Depends which religion mate. Jesus certainly said there are plenty of phoney christians around and that we should steer clear of them, whether they're churchmen or TV evangs or anybody else.
The trick is to bypass them and mindmeld directly with Jesus, because the bottom line is that christianity is all about liking Jesus and freeing yourself by busting out of The World.
As he said- "i've come to free the oppressed", so who the hell wouldn't want to like him anyway?..

 

[Autolite]

Shermer's 'Why people believe weird things' is better than the title might suggest. I'd recommend that as good reading.

That's a good recommendation. When I was a 'newbie' skeptic I had trouble reconciling smart people being Theists, but this book helped.

At the risk of oversimplification, I think of religious belief as purely a product of emotion. It seems that logic and emotion are two distinct thought processes that are often in conflict.

If a person allows the emotional thought process to override their logical thought process you get Theism. If a person allows the logical thought process to override their emotional thought process you get Atheism.

OTOH, I suppose that if one knowingly allows one's emotional thoughts to override one's logical thoughts that could arguably be considered to be somewhat "dumb"...