The Vatican recently decided to forgive John Lennon for his statement about The Beatles being bigger than Jesus, even though Lennon didn’t just make an offensive statement about Christianity; he chose to not believe in the religion at all. In addition to Lennon and his view of a world that could someday live as one, here are some other famous atheists and agnostics:
Luis Bunuel
This great director was responsible for some of the most controversial films to deal with religion of all time, including ‘Viridiana’ and ‘Simon of Desert’ (I highly recommend both!). His short film ‘Un chien andalou’ has also got quite a bit of acclaim in the cult world for its bizarre and surreal imagery, most notably the cutting of a woman’s eye. Bunuel did a very good job of mocking the Catholic Church, which made it hard for him to keep working on films, but now all of his works are highly regarded in the film industry. He’s also very famous for his line “Thank God I’m still an atheist.”
Bill Maher
He’s funny; he’s outrageous; and he’s one of the brave few celebrities that openly discuss their views on religion (or lack thereof) in-depth. If you want to laugh a little at Jesus’ expense, you have to see his film ‘Religulous’, which is hilarious no matter what your religious views are.
Albert Einstein
One of the greatest minds of all time was an atheist, and I guess you kind of have to be if your mind is soaring above and beyond what man has constructed on this earth. He’s one of the many who believe that religion was born through fear of death and the unknown, and if he had any semblance of a religion, it was figuring out that unknown.
Hemingway was a tortured soul, and some have argued that he might not have been such if he had been a religious man. However, he believed that all great thinking men are atheists, and we would not have been blessed with his beautiful literature if he had been a religious man.
Eva Green
Beautiful Bond girl Eva Green was raised an atheist, and starred in the children’s film ‘The Golden Compass’, based on the book written by an atheist author (the religious themes of the book were removed from the film). She also starred in Bernardo Bertolcci’s ‘The Dreamers’ and Ridley Scott’s ‘The Constant Gardener’. Eva is a very talented French actress who speaks English fluently, plays piano, and considers herself nerdy. She also has to be the hottest atheist actress ever.
Seth MacFarlane
Seth MacFarlane is the creator of the hilarious FOX shows ‘Family Guy’ and ‘American Dad’, and he’s not afraid to take a few shots at religion on the shows (he just can’t go too overboard). Some parents would be appalled to know that he’s also worked on children’s cartoons in the past, like ‘Johnny Bravo’ and ‘Dexter’s Laboratory. He’s a strong supporter of gay rights, and definitely the polar opposite of the dad from ‘American Dad’, Stan Smith, a foil he uses to show how ridiculous the thinking of so many Americans is. The guy has a great voice, and he’s a bit of a science fiction nerd (if you can’t tell from all of the ‘Star Wars’ and ‘Back to the Future’ references in the show). He also was one of the lucky few who missed their flight on one of the planes involved in the September 11 attacks. Divine intervention or just plain circumstance? You decide.
David Bowie
David Bowie is just one of those musicians who is way too cool. Sure it’s in a weird, androgynous way, but it’s still cool. His song ‘Changes’ is enough for me to declare him one of the greatest musicians ever, and he’s also displayed an amazing talent for acting in the film ‘The Man Who Fell to Earth. He’s stated he’s actually a ‘reluctant atheist’. Perhaps by his statement he meant, like many, his mind just won’t let him believe in God, but he wants some kind of faith and hope to hold onto.
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich once stated that she stopped believing in God after her wartime experiences, and that she agreed with Goethe’s quote, “If God created this world, he should review his plan.” The beautiful actress is one of the greatest of all time, and her sultry voice and bedroom eyes are legendary. She’s been in many great films, but my favorite has to be ‘The Blue Angel’, where she portrays a cabaret girl who consumes the life of a man who just can’t resist her.
Jack Nicholson
Jack Nicholson is undisputedly one of the coolest actors of all time. I’m sure he still smokes pot everyday, and the man can still act (even if the roles he gets aren’t that great). But it’s his early work in films like ‘Easy Rider’, ‘Five Easy Pieces’, and ‘The Shining’ that have made him legendary. He’s stated that he’s given up on religion, but envies those with faith, a sentiment that many atheists share. But ignorance is bliss, and once you move beyond ignorance, you cannot go back.
A few other notable atheists/agnostics are Mark Twain, Matt Groening, Larry King, and, of course, Charles Darwin.
But this is just a small sampling of the many, many great minds and personalities that have shaped our worlds that have expressed that they are atheists or agnostics. So for those who feel they don’t fit in with the overwhelming majority of people on this planet who follow a religion (or at least say that they do in order to fit in), I hope you don’t feel too alone out there. For while you may not be able to console yourself with thoughts of a perfect afterlife, you know a great truth that the religious sometimes seem to forget: your time on this planet is very important, and you have to make the most of what little you have.
SOURCES:
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/262592
http://www.michaelnugent.com/resources/famous-atheists/dead-atheists-society/
