--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about…" description: "\"I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm hostile to it. I think it is a positively bad idea, not just a false one. And I mean not just organ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg" --- # I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm… ![“I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm hostile to it. I think it is a positively bad idea, not just a false one. And I mean not just organized religion, but religious belief itself.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg) > “I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm hostile to it. I think it is a positively bad idea, not just a false one. And I mean not just organized religion, but religious belief itself.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that religion is not merely false but harmful, urging active opposition. **In simple terms:** Religion is harmful, not just wrong. Key Takeaway Oppose religious influence. Themes religion atheism criticism Mood defiant critical Type controversial philosophical When to use this quote - political discourse - education - public policy - personal belief Key Concepts moral philosophy social impact Questions to Reflect On - Is all belief harmful? - How to balance critique with tolerance? A Different Perspective Religion can provide community and comfort for many. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) [Atheist Neutral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist-neutral-3659701/) [Bad idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-idea/) [Bad ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-ideas/) [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Hostile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hostile/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Neutral Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neutral-religion-1124916/) [Organized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized/) [Organized religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organized-religion/) [Positively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positively/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religion Hostile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion-hostile-3659702/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) [Religious belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious-belief/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Columnist Joseph Sobran writes, “The prevailing notion is that the state should be neutral as to religion, and furthermore, that the best way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-w-colson/columnist-joseph-sobran-writes-the-prevailing-notion-is-that-the/) [Charles W. Colson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-w-colson/) > [The prevailing notion is that the state should be neutral as to religion, and furthermore, that the best way to be neutral about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-sobran/the-prevailing-notion-is-that-the-state-should-be-neutral-as-to/) [Joseph Sobran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-sobran/) > [The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the Supreme Being as his father, in the womb of a virgin, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-day-will-come-when-the-mystical-generation-of-jesus-by-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism and tribalism and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/violent-irrational-intolerant-allied-to-racism-and-tribalism-and/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I'm not even an atheist so much as I am an antitheist; I not only maintain that all religions are versions of the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-not-even-an-atheist-so-much-as-i-am-an-antitheist-i-not-only/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I am not even an atheist so much as I am an antitheist; I not only maintain that all religions are versions of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-am-not-even-an-atheist-so-much-as-i-am-an-antitheist-i-not-only/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Nothing proves evolution more than the survival of the religious belief. It shows we are still fearful, partially formed animals with a terror of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/nothing-proves-evolution-more-than-the-survival-of-the-religious/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [More than any other personality trait, my mother seemed to be ruled by anger and sadness. She seemed to hate being a mother. Watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merrill-markoe/more-than-any-other-personality-trait-my-mother-seemed-to-be-ruled-by/) [Merrill Markoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merrill-markoe/) > [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. My family is supportive now, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/by-the-time-i-was-seventeen-i-was-on-my-way-to-hollywood-and-didn-t/) [Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/) > [I have done conferences explaining that cloud is a bad idea. It's putting all your eggs in one basket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-demon-calce/i-have-done-conferences-explaining-that-cloud-is-a-bad-idea-it-s/) [Michael Demon Calce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-demon-calce/) > [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism & Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-s-not-a-bad-idea-to-call-this-cthulhuism-yog-sothothery-of-mine/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [Idea-Advocacy Matrix highlights a couple of things: that good ideas need to be "sold" if they are ever going to see the light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/idea-advocacy-matrix-highlights-a-couple-of-things-that-good-ideas/) [John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/) > [“Sometimes I have good ideas, sometimes I have bad ideas and sometimes I have colossally bad ideas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-cellier/sometimes-i-have-good-ideas-sometimes-i-have-bad-ideas-and-sometimes/) [Melanie Cellier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-cellier/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Atheist quotes > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [That the world is in a bad shape is undeniable, but there is not the faintest reason in history to suppose that Christianity offers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/that-the-world-is-in-a-bad-shape-is-undeniable-but-there-is-not-the/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [Atheist’s denial of God’s existence needs just as much substantiation as does the theist’s claim; the atheist must give plausible reasons for rejecting God’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-copan/atheist-s-denial-of-god-s-existence-needs-just-as-much-substantiation/) [Paul Copan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-copan/) > [“The atheist joined his hands. It wasn't against the Gods. He smiled, with his hands folded, saw his daughter's in-laws approaching near.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhavik-sarkhedi/the-atheist-joined-his-hands-it-wasn-t-against-the-gods-he-smiled/) [Bhavik Sarkhedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhavik-sarkhedi/) > [I am surprised that anyone can profess to be an atheist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-comfort/i-am-surprised-that-anyone-can-profess-to-be-an-atheist/) [Ray Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-comfort/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [An Atheist wandering down a road where he meets up a four road junction , he asks a passer by hey !, where does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-rambharack/an-atheist-wandering-down-a-road-where-he-meets-up-a-four-road/) [Glen Rambharack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-rambharack/) > [Good churches are not built by bad men; at least, there must be probity and enthusiasm somewhere in the society. These minsters were neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/good-churches-are-not-built-by-bad-men-at-least-there-must-be-probity/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [An ineffably holy God, who has the utmost abhorrence of sin, was never invented by any of Adam's descendents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/an-ineffably-holy-god-who-has-the-utmost-abhorrence-of-sin-was-never/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [If all the Atheists & Agnostics left America, they'd lose 93% of The National Academy of Sciences & less than 1% of the prison population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/if-all-the-atheists-agnostics-left-america-they-d-lose-93-of-the/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I am an atheist. I don't think there's anything divine. Beautiful, impressive, awe-inspiring - sure, but not divine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomy-arpaly/i-am-an-atheist-i-don-t-think-there-s-anything-divine-beautiful/) [Nomy Arpaly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomy-arpaly/) > [I am like all other atheists only in that I do not believe there are any gods. Beyond that, I may differ dramatically in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-carrier/i-am-like-all-other-atheists-only-in-that-i-do-not-believe-there-are/) [Richard Carrier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-carrier/) [Browse all 2,434 Atheist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm hostile to it. I think it is a positively bad idea, not just a false one. And I mean not just organized religion, but religious belief itself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Christopher Hitchens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-religion-i-m-hostile-to-it-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atheist" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-religion-i-m-hostile-to-it-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de6/christopher-hitchens-117_atheist_i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-rel_1209478.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral about religion, I'm hostile to it. I think it is a positively bad idea, not…” — Christopher Hitchens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Christopher Hitchens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I'm an atheist. I'm not neutral...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-religion-i-m-hostile-to-it-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-m-an-atheist-i-m-not-neutral-about-religion-i-m-hostile-to-it-i/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```