I want to say something important. I'm not a pastor, not a theologian. I struggle with faith, doubt, and belief—daily. But I also see where this world is heading.
We are becoming an atheistic society. And when societies become fully atheistic, they don’t stay that way—they often become atheistic states. And history has shown us what that leads to.
I don’t want America, or any society, to become another version of that.
In the last 100 years, atheistic regimes have caused over 70 million deaths—here’s the grim tally:
When people say “religion caused all the wars,” they usually haven’t looked at the 20th century.
Let’s look at some atheistic states—regimes that rejected God entirely and replaced religion with the state itself:
Total deaths by atheistic regimes in the last 100 years: Over 70 to 100 million people.
These were not accidental outcomes. These regimes attempted to build morality without God. They replaced the soul with ideology, the individual with the collective, and ethics with power.
Fear of God restrained ancient rulers; today’s godless rulers become gods themselves.
Pharaohs were seen as vessels of the gods—not as gods themselves, but as god-kings—entrusted with upholding divine order and deeply fearing the consequences of failing their sacred duty.
Throughout history, even rulers like the Pharaohs believed they would face divine punishment for atrocities committed against their own people.
That belief acted as a moral check — a kind of invisible boundary on power.
Modern rulers, rejecting that fear of divine consequences, often become their own gods. Without that restraint, they answer to no higher authority, and power itself becomes absolute.
A ruler who does not fear divine consequences effectively places themselves above any moral law, making their will the ultimate law.
Was religion ever violent? Yes. But even over 2,000 years, the numbers don’t compare.
Estimated total religious deaths across history: Approximately 17 to 25 million.
Even at the high end, religious violence over 20 centuries pales in comparison to the death tolls of atheistic regimes in just one century.
This isn’t about saying “religion is perfect.” It’s not. It’s been used badly. But here's the difference:
Religious violence happens when people betray their own faith. Atheistic violence happens when people follow their ideology to the letter.
Religious ideals—when followed—lead to compassion, forgiveness, justice, humility. Atheistic regimes, when untethered from any higher truth, tend to elevate the state or the system above everything else.
They erase God. And then they erase people.
We are turning into a society where God is mocked, ignored, or erased. And that always has consequences. Not just political ones, but cultural and spiritual ones.
When God disappears from our collective view:
Even if you don’t fully believe, or are still working through doubt—don’t let the idea of God vanish from the world. Because the alternative is not progress. It’s darkness with high-speed internet.
This is not an attack on individual belief or a call for theocracy. It’s a caution about the consequences when societies reject all higher moral authority—not just religion.
History is complex, but the tragic outcomes of atheistic regimes are well documented by scholars across perspectives. This is not about ideology vs. religion—it’s about the moral framework that shapes culture and governance.
Sure, we’ve had moral frameworks for ages—they’re called laws that change with the wind. But without a higher, unchanging foundation, those laws can become mere tools of power.
Religious violence is acknowledged—but the scale and pattern of death under atheistic regimes in the last century demand honest comparison, not dismissal.
Morality and justice require more than laws or shifting human opinions; they need a foundation beyond human will—something transcendent and unchanging. Without that, power alone defines right and wrong, and history shows where that leads.
Whether you believe or doubt, this is a call to remember that lasting justice depends on a higher moral anchor.
1. Data Accuracy Doubts:
The numbers come from well-documented historical research across many scholars; this isn’t speculation but established fact.
2. Causation vs. Correlation:
Political causes exist, but without a transcendent moral anchor, nothing stops power from becoming absolute. History shows secular utopias collapse because they lack higher moral limits.
3. Secular Morality:
Without an unchanging foundation, morals shift with culture and power. Laws that “change with the wind” enable abuses. Only absolute moral law protects true justice and dignity.
4. Overgeneralization and Identity Protection:
Attempts to soften atheism’s role often serve as identity defense, ignoring the clear historical consequences of godless regimes.
5. Blame and Responsibility:
Pharaohs ruled for 3,000 years with divine fear as a moral check—showing power restrained by belief lasts, while unchecked power leads to destruction.
6. Religion’s Complicity:
Religion can be misused, but it provides moral boundaries. Atheistic regimes, lacking this, caused far more death, showing morality without God risks becoming a tool of oppression.
7. Fear of Theocracy and Secularism’s Role:
Secularism opened the door for atheistic states to rise, and ignoring this risks repeating history. Protecting secular identity by denying consequences is self-deception.
“This is not about discrediting anyone’s identity or belief. I’m simply sharing the truth as I’ve come to understand it—because I believe facing these realities is essential if we want a better future together.”
If you’re reading this and you’ve felt forgotten, like your voice or soul doesn’t matter—I promise it does. There’s a reason you’re here. There’s a reason people like us, full of doubt and scars, still try to believe.
God uses unlikely people. The Creator always has.
Let’s not let society drift into the kind of future where God is absent, and power is everything. We’ve seen where that leads.
Let’s remember God—before the world forgets what that even means.
Derek Van Derven 2025