--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only thing particularly new about the…" description: "\"The only thing particularly new about the \"new atheism\" is its nastiness.\" — Robert Barron" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg" --- # The only thing particularly new about the "new atheism" is… ![“The only thing particularly new about the "new atheism" is its nastiness.” quote by Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg) > “The only thing particularly new about the "new atheism" is its nastiness.” [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The “new atheism” isn’t novel in ideas, only in its hostile tone. **In simple terms:** New atheism repeats old arguments, but with more aggression. Key Takeaway Recognize tone over content in debates. Themes religion atheism communication Mood critical analytical Type philosophical controversial When to use this quote - debates - media commentary - academic panels Key Concepts rhetoric tone public discourse Questions to Reflect On - How does tone affect persuasion? - Can criticism be constructive without hostility? A Different Perspective Aggressive tone can alienate potential listeners. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ## Related quotes > [ There isn't \[in new atheism\]. Nothing that wasn't in Bertrand Russell or probably Robert Ingersoll. But I suppose it is more of a political… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/there-isn-t-in-new-atheism-nothing-that-wasn-t-in-bertrand-russell-or/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The new atheism as an old atheism, except it's much more aggressive. The new atheism wants to destroy religion. That's a very different thing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennox/the-new-atheism-as-an-old-atheism-except-it-s-much-more-aggressive/) [John Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennox/) > [“so obvious on large sections of the cyber-atheist community. Cyber-Atheism is the veritable North Korea of the internet, and if you intend to interfere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-jinn/so-obvious-on-large-sections-of-the-cyber-atheist-community-cyber/) [Bō Jinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-jinn/) > [“I’ve often wondered how the term “'New Atheism”' gained such currency. It is a misnomer. There is nothing new about nonbelief. All of us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-tayler/i-ve-often-wondered-how-the-term-new-atheism-gained-such-currency-it/) [Jeffrey Tayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-tayler/) > [God, Satan, Paradise, and Hell all vanished one day in my fifteenth year, when I quite abruptly lost my faith. ... and afterwards, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/god-satan-paradise-and-hell-all-vanished-one-day-in-my-fifteenth-year/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [It is true that a great deal of the rhetoric of the new atheism is often just the confessional rote of materialist fundamentalism (which,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-true-that-a-great-deal-of-the-rhetoric-of-the-new-atheism-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Essentially I see the new atheism as largely part of the crisis of the left. Having failed to carry through its agenda in relation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-pattison/essentially-i-see-the-new-atheism-as-largely-part-of-the-crisis-of/) [George Pattison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-pattison/) > [You need to possess more than a little nastiness to play basketball at the highest level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-west/you-need-to-possess-more-than-a-little-nastiness-to-play-basketball/) [Jerry West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-west/) > [Some medical beast had revived tar-water in those days as a fine medicine, and Mrs. Joe always kept a supply of it in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/some-medical-beast-had-revived-tar-water-in-those-days-as-a-fine/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [And what is an authentic madman? It is a man who preferred to become mad, in the socially accepted sense of the word, rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonin-artaud/and-what-is-an-authentic-madman-it-is-a-man-who-preferred-to-become/) [Antonin Artaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonin-artaud/) > [I don't like any nastiness on tv unless it's coming from me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kindler/i-don-t-like-any-nastiness-on-tv-unless-it-s-coming-from-me/) [Andy Kindler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kindler/) > [On one level, I am a total softie, sort of depressed and afraid of losing the people I love or failing them. To disguise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/on-one-level-i-am-a-total-softie-sort-of-depressed-and-afraid-of/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [ \[Christianity\] neither enjoins the nastiness of the Cynic, nor the insensibility of the Stoic. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-berkeley/christianity-neither-enjoins-the-nastiness-of-the-cynic-nor-the/) [George Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-berkeley/) > [The basic project of art is always to make the world whole and comprehensible, to restore it to us in all its glory and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hughes/the-basic-project-of-art-is-always-to-make-the-world-whole-and/) [Robert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hughes/) > [The insolence of base minds in success is boundless; and would scarce admit of a comparison, did not they themselves furnish us with one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-sterne/the-insolence-of-base-minds-in-success-is-boundless-and-would-scarce/) [Laurence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-sterne/) ## More by Robert Barron > [The minute you walk outside of your church on Sunday you're in mission territory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-minute-you-walk-outside-of-your-church-on-sunday-you-re-in/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [ Again, I hear almost everyday from atheists who write off religion as primitive, premodern nonsense. I summon Aquinas, Augustine, Paul \[of Tarsus\], Teresa of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/again-i-hear-almost-everyday-from-atheists-who-write-off-religion-as/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [Beauty is the arrowhead of evangelization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/beauty-is-the-arrowhead-of-evangelization/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [The slightest cooperation with God's grace can provoke a massive spiritual change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-slightest-cooperation-with-god-s-grace-can-provoke-a-massive/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [“Who had the biggest army in the ancient world? Caesar Augustus in Rome, and that is precisely how he was able to dominate that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/who-had-the-biggest-army-in-the-ancient-world-caesar-augustus-in-rome/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [“Barron is convinced that the moral teachings of Catholicism are true, and that people who strive to practice them will live healthier, happier, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/barron-is-convinced-that-the-moral-teachings-of-catholicism-are-true/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [There's no way up but down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/there-s-no-way-up-but-down/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [The cross is Jesus going into the very lair of death. He goes to meet head-on that which frightens us the most. And what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-cross-is-jesus-going-into-the-very-lair-of-death-he-goes-to-meet/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [“who can stand toe-to-toe with the best and brightest of the secular world, either in person or online, and swell Catholic hearts everywhere by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/who-can-stand-toe-to-toe-with-the-best-and-brightest-of-the-secular/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [By far the most dangerous people in the world are optimists (those who believe that all can be made well here below). If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/by-far-the-most-dangerous-people-in-the-world-are-optimists-those-who/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [The great danger of the new media is that it seems to relish the superficial. There has been an ethos within the Church for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-great-danger-of-the-new-media-is-that-it-seems-to-relish-the/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [Begin with the beautiful, which leads you to the good, which leads you to the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/begin-with-the-beautiful-which-leads-you-to-the-good-which-leads-you/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [“In Christian tradition, beauty, goodness, and truth are known as “transcendentals,” linked to the three core human abilities to feel, to wish, and to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/in-christian-tradition-beauty-goodness-and-truth-are-known-as/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [“Only when you’ve had that experience of falling in love with something, Barron believes, will learning the rules that support it make sense. Otherwise,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/only-when-you-ve-had-that-experience-of-falling-in-love-with/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [We are exceptionally good at seeing the faults in others and exceptionally adept at ignoring the faults in ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/we-are-exceptionally-good-at-seeing-the-faults-in-others-and/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) [Explore all 51 Robert Barron quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) ## More Atheism 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/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [No philosophy, no religion, has ever brought so glad a message to the world as this good news of Atheism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/no-philosophy-no-religion-has-ever-brought-so-glad-a-message-to-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [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/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [You cannot ... transmute some incoherent mixture of words into sense merely by introducing the three-letter word "God" to be its grammatical subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/you-cannot-transmute-some-incoherent-mixture-of-words-into-sense/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [If, with all the time at my disposal, with all the wealth of the resources of this vast universe, to do with as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/if-with-all-the-time-at-my-disposal-with-all-the-wealth-of-the/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Do you think that was kind? Do you think it was godlike? What would you think of a physician, if a woman came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-h-gardener/do-you-think-that-was-kind-do-you-think-it-was-godlike-what-would-you/) [Helen H. Gardener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-h-gardener/) > [Science can destroy religion by ignoring it as well as by disproving its tenets. No one ever demonstrated, so far as I am aware,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/science-can-destroy-religion-by-ignoring-it-as-well-as-by-disproving/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Honest investigation is utterly impossible within the pale of any church, for the reason, that if you think the church is right you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/honest-investigation-is-utterly-impossible-within-the-pale-of-any/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) [Browse all 4,769 Atheism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atheism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only thing particularly new about the \"new atheism\" is its nastiness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Barron" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-the-new-atheism-is-its-nastiness/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atheism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-the-new-atheism-is-its-nastiness/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/robert-barron-13186_atheism_the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-th_711762.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only thing particularly new about the \"new atheism\" is its nastiness.” — Robert Barron", "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": "Robert Barron", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The only thing particularly new about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-the-new-atheism-is-its-nastiness/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-only-thing-particularly-new-about-the-new-atheism-is-its-nastiness/#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 } } ] } ```