Madam, - Alan French (January 5th) laments the lack of dialogue between believers and secularists. The 2002 census found that persons of "no religion" were the largest religious minority in this State, and Mr French does every single one of us a disservice with his wilfully inaccurate portrayal of atheism.
He finds the simple rejection of religious beliefs perfectly acceptable, but he likens what I would call "positive atheism" to an authoritarian philosophy, which he terms "doctrinaire secularism". Nothing could be further from the truth, and to suggest that the opposites of religion are "materialism and hedonism" is absurd.
Positive atheism is not merely the rejection of supernatural and authoritarian beliefs. It is the affirmation that we must take responsibility for our own lives and the communities and world in which we live. Positive atheism values reason and scientific inquiry, human values and compassion, and the need for tolerance and co-operation.
I will not retread the tired ground of the argument that institutional religion is not beneficial to the state. Instead, I would simply like to point out that it is no wonder that secularists are reluctant to engage in dialogue if such a dialogue begins with accusations of authoritarianism and hedonism. - Yours, etc,
STEPHEN BROPHY, Hillside, Greystones, Co Wicklow.