British Bus Campaign: "There's Probably No God"

It seems I just recently wrote a blog about city buses in America advertising Islam.

Now buses in England are also used as billboards. In January atheists launched a campaign posting the message: "There's probably no God. So stop worrying and enjoy your life" on the side of 800 British buses.

The campaign was conceived by Ariane Sherine, a comedy writer who dreamed of just one bus going around London with an atheist slogan after she saw a similar advertisement for Christianity on the back of a bus.

She was upset to click on the web link it suggested and be directed to a site prophesying a future of hellfire and brimstone for those who don’t believe. She determined to do what she could to offer non-believers a more life-affirming message and wrote about it in an online forum.

Her campaign sparked a massive and instant response and was taken up by the British Humanist Association and the scientist and Professor Dawkins, who pledged £5,500 of his own cash. According to The New York Times, the atheist campaign raised $150,000 in four days, providing the financing for the wider advertising effort.

A leading Christian activist made a formal complaint about the atheist bus adverts which were launched nationwide this week. Nevertheless, organizers are frustrated that their signs have not caused more outrage. This lack of outrage, some suggest, is just more evidence of Britain's growing secularity.

As The New York Times reported, "Although Queen Elizabeth is the head of the Church of England; Britain is a deeply secular country with a dwindling number of regular churchgoers, and with politicians who seem to go out of their way to play down their religious beliefs." Indeed, former Prime Minister Tony Blair's Director of Communications once famously quipped, "We don't do G-D."

Probably? Are British atheists allowing for the possibility? Hardly; British atheists have discovered a higher power. It's called the British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing. Ariane Sherine, who came up with the idea for the atheist buses, said in her blog that "inclusion of the word 'probably' makes it less likely to cause offense, and therefore be in breach of the Advertising Code." In other words, she wants to avoid a law-suit.

The advertisement probably caused people to think about G-D who wouldn't have. As far as He is concerned, the wisdom of this world is nonsense. He knows that the thoughts of the wise are worthless. (Isa 40:13)

I do not believe in G-D because I have become convinced that his existence is probably true, but because I am convinced that the existence of G-D is the first principle of all truth.

“As I live, says Adonai, every knee will bend before me, and every tongue will publicly acknowledge G-D.” (Isa 45:23) Only a fool says in his heart, there is no G-D. God said that in (Psalm 14) and he said it again in (Psalm 53) just in case we didn't get it!