Atheism comes from the Greek word for godlessness, it is a certain worldview. It is based on the assertion of the materiality of the world. Explains the laws of nature and phenomena from a scientific point of view, without involving God (gods) and other supernatural forces.
Who are atheists?
Atheists are people who are convinced that there are no supernatural world principles. At the same time, they consider it their duty to convince others of their views. The personal position of a particular person does not turn him into an atheist, since the latter must actively manifest it. He does not passively reject religion - he actively opposes it.
Atheists must be distinguished from agnostics and anticlericals.
An agnostic is a person who has no judgment of the supernatural. Their representatives are completely indifferent to the presence or absence of God. There are two types of agnostics. The former are not interested in religious matters at all. The second are those who thoughtwere looking for an explanation for this or that process in relation to supernatural manifestations, but did not receive an answer.
Anticclericals - people who have a negative attitude towards organized religious structures. For them, any association of believers is unacceptable. Atiklerikal is sure that the participation of people in religious structures leads to a deterioration in their lives and the lives of those around them. As a result, the organized religious forms of faith must be fought, their influence and authority should be reduced.
In view of the above, it should be noted that the statistics answer the question of how many atheists there are in Russia: not many. There are few people in society who are active in detail, having a clear atheistic worldview. Usually atheists include anti-clericals, who in everyday life call themselves atheists. However, this is completely false.
Brief historical background
Religion and atheism have their roots in the distant past. They are inextricably linked with each other. And they appeared almost at the same time. Their relationship is rich in events, including those full of tragedy.
Thus, researchers of the Christian religion note that the word "atheist" in the New Testament is mentioned only once. Denotes people who have lost the true God. Unbelievers, pagans, were referred to those who suffered a great misfortune. It has long been believed that a normal person should know God and repay him. Atheism was perceived as an abnormal phenomenon, associated, among other things, with human mental ailments.
The current state of atheism
Modern Western civilization is different in that the interest in religion among the population is falling. This applies to all segments of the population. There is a decrease in temple attendance, an increase in the number of people who identify themselves as atheists and agnostics. In the ranks of believers, religion is losing its top positions, it is not among the main internal factors.
The main adherents of the religious worldview remain a small population of rural areas. Representatives of atheism, which is becoming more and more, actively promote that the religiosity of the population is a lack of education and knowledge, a tendency to refuse to perceive the achievements of science and technology.
The opposite situation can be observed in developing countries, including the republics of the former USSR. In African states, in the countries of the Middle East, a significant increase in religiosity is recorded, often manifested in the forms of fundamentalism and fanaticism. An atheistic worldview in these regions is recognized as a crime for which punishment may follow. So, apostates in Pakistan can expect the death pen alty.
Growing role of religion in Russia
The atheistic movement in Russia and the CIS countries can be described as undeveloped, forced to exist in difficult conditions. After the dominant communist ideology, officially preaching atheism, failed, the ideological pendulum swung in the opposite direction. Rejection began to prevail in the public consciousnessatheism. How many atheists in Russia have experienced these changes, one can only guess.
So, in the country, the growing influence of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), its persistent and successful merging with the authorities and administration is recorded. Moreover, a surge of interest in astrology, pseudoscience, and mystical beliefs is recorded in the public mind.
How many believers and atheists in Russia
According to information provided by the media from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, which keeps records through monitoring attending public religious events, believers in Russia make up about 1% of the population.
In total, several dozen religious structures have been officially registered in the country. How many atheists in Russia today, united in structures, is difficult to establish. Most of them try not to advertise their activities too much, limiting themselves to active work in the media and the Internet.
The number of persons who are members of them is unknown. Modern laws of the state allow them not to provide information about their members. It is also impossible to know the exact number of atheists in Russia.
However, independent sociological sources show the following picture of Russian society.
Slightly more than 70% of the adult population of the country consider themselves Orthodox believers. 1.2% of the population consider themselves believers of other directions of the Christian religion. Muslims, Buddhists, Jews - these are 6.65% of the inhabitants of Russia. 12.6% - representatives of other religions.
How many percent of atheists are in Russia?Statistics assures: 7.3%.
All-Russian independent surveys also record that the largest number of people who identify themselves as atheists live in the following regions: Primorsky Krai - 35%; Altai Territory - 27%; Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) - 26%; Novosibirsk region - 25%; Amur Region - 24%.
The given data may be inaccurate, but to a greater extent reflect the real picture.
At the same time, it is impossible even approximately to calculate how many atheists there are in Russia in the entire history of the state.
The Constitution of Russia on religion and atheism
It should also be noted that obtaining accurate information about how many atheists there are in Russia is prohibited by the country's Constitution. This main law establishes the secular nature of the state. Any religion cannot become mandatory or state.
Article 19 of the Constitution establishes the equality of all religious structures before the law, as well as the fact that they are separated from the state. Article 28 ensures that free religion is established in the country. Everyone has the right to profess any faith, to spread it freely and to act in accordance with its norms.
Discrimination on religious grounds is prohibited in Russia. The constitutional law emphasizes that no one can be forced to participate in the activities of religious structures. It is unacceptable to involve minors in religious associations. You can not teach them religious dogmas against their will and without the consent of their parents.
Directionsactivities of atheistic structures
In modern Russia, the atheistic movement is represented by a number of public organizations and informal associations. They see their main goals of activity in protecting the secular structure of the Russian state, preventing the clericalization of society, in carrying out public criticism of religion, their representatives, as well as in protecting an atheistic worldview that has the right to exist. They actively use the possibilities of the media and the Internet. How many atheists in Russia are involved in this work? Probably everything.
General educational activities of atheists
General educational activities are a number of areas through which the coverage of the largest possible part of the population is carried out. At the same time, atheists seek to encourage the audience to logical thinking, adequate perception of scientific achievements, the ability to critically comprehend the so-called supernatural phenomena.
General educational tasks are implemented by atheists from the standpoint of the scientific method, which explains the structure of the world. At the same time, work is being carried out aimed at popularizing knowledge on the history of religions. The origin of religious beliefs, which are based solely on human activity, is revealed.
Socio-political direction
Socio-political objectives are a series of activities aimed at ensuring the protection of the secular nature of society. Due to the fact that the main religious structure in Russia isThe Russian Orthodox Church, the focus of the activities of atheists is aimed at preventing the strengthening of its influence in the spheres of state activity and public life.
In this case, special attention is paid to:
- preventing the penetration of religion into public education;
- countering attempts to remove elements of evolutionary theories from school curricula or to teach them in conjunction with religious disciplines;
- the formation of a negative attitude of society towards attempts to make theology a discipline of the Higher Attestation Commission (Higher Attestation Commission), which implies recognition of it as an official science;
- taking measures to counteract the introduction into the consciousness of society of the idea that Orthodoxy is the only correct worldview;
- prevention of the positioning of Orthodoxy as a state-forming religion, as a result of which the assertion is formed that Russia is an Orthodox state;
- preventing the introduction of religious dogmas into the laws of the country, such as bans on abortion, etc.;
- carrying out work aimed at prohibiting the transfer of state buildings and structures to religious structures, as a result of which museums, theaters, and organizations are evicted from them;
- preventing the use of public funds in advertising of religious organizations. Exclusion of cases of participation of representatives of the clergy in state events;
- countering the facts of consolidationreligious (mostly Orthodox) holidays as public holidays;
- initiating the adoption by the state of norms prohibiting the use of religious terms in state symbols. Including the mention of God in the national anthem.
Conclusion
Religion in the modern world is a reality. It is opposed by atheism, which is a system of views that scientifically prove the absence of God and his participation in the creation of the world and man. It is hard to imagine how many atheists in Russia and believers come together in battles every day. And none of them recognize the rightness of the opposing one.
In this confrontation, Russia is in an unstable state, balancing between opposite worldviews. At the same time, with a high degree of probability, victory will go to internal religiosity, which is best adapted to modern realities.
