Bulletin Articles
Apatheism
The Psalmist says of those of who are against the Lord: “the wicked boasts of his heart’s desire, and the greedy man curses and spurns the LORD. The wicked, in the haughtiness of his countenance, does not seek Him. All his thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’” (Psalm 10:3-4). Then, “He says to himself, ‘God has forgotten; He has hidden His face; He will never see it’” (v. 11). Notice how those who would say, “There is no God,” also say that God will never see what they do. Their form of atheism is a denial that God sees them. A similar attitude is found in Psalm 14:1: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” One need not think that God actually does not exist to exhibit this attitude. By one’s action, that person can deny in his heart that God sees, knows, or even cares about what he does.
We hear terms like atheism and agnosticism bandied about. “Hard” atheists argue there is no God. “Soft” atheists are not as bold, but might say they just don’t think there is enough evidence to believe. Agnostics say that we cannot know. Let’s add another term: Apatheism. This term, if we are not careful, can describe our own attitude.
Apatheism is a combination of “apathy” and “theism.” According to James Sire, apatheism, “a term coined in 1972 by sociologist Stuart D. Johnson, holds that whether God/gods exist is simply an irrelevant question. (Why should I care whether God exists or not? The answer to the question has no practical relevance to my life.)” (The Universe Next Door, 58).
In our current culture, apatheism may well describe where more people are in their beliefs and practices. Many have no desire to debate the existence of God; they just think the whole issue is irrelevant. Even if God did exist, His existence does not change their lives because it does not matter. And even if they confess some kind of belief in God, this still has no real impact on what they do. Believe? Don’t believe? No big deal either way.
Apathy might just be the last straw in any endeavor. There’s nothing anyone can do with “I don’t care.” I would rather an atheist argue strongly with me than to shrug with an off-putting “whatever.” “I don’t care” is the last indicator of a seared conscience. Atheist Richard Dawkins argued that the universe has what we would expect if there is “at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil, no good, nothing but pitiless indifference” (River out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life). The apatheistic attitude mirrors the concept, for even if God existed, He does not really care, and if there is nothing at bottom in the universe that cares, why should we? And where does “care” come from in the first place?
Apathy about God can creep in among God’s people who know that, of all people, we should care the most. We might not say it that way, but we might act in ways that betray the attitude. Once we become apathetic, then for all practical purposes we are apatheistic, for we are acting as if we don’t care whether God exists. Or if we say that God exists, we may assume that He, like us, does not really care about what we do. If we act as if God does not see or care, have we not become apathetic to His presence? Again, the psalmist speaks of this attitude among the wicked: “The LORD does not see, nor does the God of Jacob pay heed” (Psa 94:7). It is a catastrophic failure to assume that God does not see or care about what we do.
There is a reason the Lord told a lukewarm church in Laodicea, “be zealous and repent” (Rev 3:19). We fall into this pattern of thinking we are just fine, so we need nothing, particularly when it comes to spiritual growth. That failure to pay attention to our growth is fatal. We then leave what is supposed to be our first love and we think it does not matter. Zeal is an appropriate response in repentance because it shows that we actually care about our relationship with God.
We need to know not only that God exists, but that He also cares deeply about us and our fellowship with Him. God promises us His presence (Heb 13:5-6). He promises to come to our aid, to hear our prayers, and to give us strength (Phil 4:13). The Lord cared enough to give His own life that we might live. We know that He loves us deeply (Rom 8:31-39). And if we know He cares, we know we ought to care.
We cannot make apathetic people care, but we can pray that there is something deeper within our consciences that would spark some level of concern for what we are and where we are going. Do not let any form of apatheism take hold, for it can do no good for anyone.
