Then I saw her face, now I’m a non-believer!

Religion is one of those awkward words. To some, it represents all that is good in life, and the celebration of the divine. For others, it’s a term which is almost taboo, one of those awkward boxes that Facebook asks you to fill in. Yet, there’s no doubt that many religions have shaped past and present events, and will no doubt continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Or so you might think; but just how many people are still religious?

The 2011 census results show that the total number of people with ‘No Religion’ was 25.1% of the total UK population, or 14.1 million people. In 2001 this figure stood at a total of 14.8%. While we’ve no doubt that the figures for Imperial College itself are probably rather different, this is more than just a large increase. So, then, as this is clearly a piece which serves no purpose other than that of shameless self-promotion (read: encouraging discussion), where is the Atheist society?

Well, right here. 2 weeks ago, Imperial Atheist, Secularist and Humanist Society (or IASH as we like to be known) came into existence. After a highly successful inaugural talk (held jointly with the Feminist Society), we’ve got a lot more things planned,but first let us clarify a few points. To whom do we cater and why do we exist? After all, surely an atheist society exists only to poke fun at specific religions and circle jerk over how its members agree with one another? Well, not really, that’s actually quite wrong.

So first off, what do we believe? No doubt you know of atheists who flat out don’t believe in the idea God(s), or any other supernatural omnipotent entities. But what if that’s not your style? Some of us aren’t so sure. Perhaps there’s a God, or two, or even more? You can’t know for certain. We welcome anyone who would be happy to label themselves as either of these, or anywhere in between. If you find yourself questioning God, scripture, or anything else to do with religion, we’d love to talk to you. We also consider ourselves secularists, we believe in the separation of Church and state, and that no religion should have any place in the activities of government. We also support the ideals of humanism; living on the basis of reason and science, and treating all others equally regardless of religion or belief.

That, in a nutshell, is what the majority of our members believe. But what do we aim to do? One thing we cannot stress enough is that discussion and debate are essential. It’s obvious that curiosity about the world we live in, interest in how things work, or the desire to help people have provided the drive to obtain a place at Imperial. We seek to continue debate, and encourage others do so regardless of their beliefs. It may come as a surprise to some that this fits perfectly with humanism. So, to conclude; we exist as a social group for anyone who feels that they fit the above labels. However, just like the many religious societies already established, we will be hosting guest lecturers and taking part in debates and discussions throughout this and coming years. If this sounds overwhelmingly appealing or even just mildly interesting, we would very much like to see you: we are a friendly bunch (or at least we like to think so). Our next big event is at 6pm on 25th February, where Robin Ince of Radio 4 fame will be giving a lecture “The Things I am Thinking Right Now: a finite life in a big universe”. This will take place in the Pippard Lecture Theatre, on Level 5 of the Sherfield building; and is open to all, free of charge. We encourage you to stop worrying about your studies for a short while, and come. You might just enjoy yourself.