“Freud saw psychology as a scientific replacement for religion. Psychological theory replaces outmoded religious beliefs about the human person. And psychoanalytic techniques replace religious practices.” (1)

Freud noted that the, “analysis is not complete” until the patient’s religious views were analyzed. I agree, but in the opposite way that Freud envisioned.

There are often clear psychological reasons that a person becomes an ‘atheist.’ Most often, the thing that gets in the way of faith, is the relationship with the individual’s father. Specifically, if the father was harsh and cruel, the individual will often come to impute or displace these characteristics onto God. They will often see God as “harsh and cruel.” The father doesn’t necessarily have to be harsh or cruel, there can be many factors and varieties of the problematic relationship.

“God can’t exist because there is evil in the world.” Many atheists come to believe that there is no God, because of the fact of “evil” in the world. And, that if there is a God, he must be cruel because of the bad things he allows to happen (murder, rape, natural disasters, and so forth).

I’ve heard it said, “If there was a God, then why do so many bad things happen to good people.”

They can’t conceive of a “heavenly father,” who loves them and who cares about the world. They ‘project’ their feelings toward their earthly father onto God. They believe that there is such a thing as “good people.”

So far, I have not seen a single atheist who does not have relationship problems with their father. Or often, if they believe, their belief is distorted by their relationship with their father. They project (direct or displace) their feelings toward their father onto God.

I’m not saying that this is the only psychological reason that one becomes an atheist, but it is the one I have observed frequently.

It’s interesting to look at Freud as an example.

In his 40s, Freud “had numerous psychosomatic disorders as well as exaggerated fears of dying and other phobias” (Corey 2001, p. 67). During this time Freud was involved in the task of exploring his own dreams, memories, and the dynamics of his personality development. During this self-analysis, he came to realize the hostility he felt towards his father (Jacob Freud), who had died in 1896…(2)

Charles Darwin is also noted as having a problematic relationship with his father. In the course of researching for this post, I discovered that I am not the first to connect the idea of problematic relationships with the father and atheism. It turns out there is a book entitled, Faith of the Fatherless: The Psychology of Atheism, which explores the subject in significantly more detail with a focus on famous atheists. My own analysis of the subject comes not from famous atheists, but from folks I have worked with in treatment, friends, and colleagues.

Many times, I have seen patients resolve their emotional conflict about God in the context of their feelings toward their fathers. When they come to see that they have displaced their feelings toward their earthly fathers onto the heavenly One, they are often able to develop a relationship with God, without the emotional baggage.

(1). http://www.jcu.edu/philosophy/gensler/RE/R-F2–00.HTM
(2). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sigmund_Freud

See also, Some Psychological Aspects of Atheism Part II and Part III, and Since atheists are about the only ones responding to my post.

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