Make the first para into min.

3
sentences. Preferably 5-7. Big
run-on intro = no-no

Since the dawn of the modern era (i.e. the emergence of the Roman Empire), religion has been a
governing force among the practices, morals, behaviors, and ideals of human life. However, within
recent times, atheism has emerged as a firm system in which there are no rules, punishments, or
obligations demanded by some type of righteous figure who requires service from his patrons. Through
its freedom from restrictions, atheism offers a freedom in how to live life as you see fit, offers freedom
to make up your own mind, provides a moral ability to tolerate those different from oneself, offers a
way to think critically and with questioning, relieves the fear of the unknown or desire to define the
indefinable, offers respite from worthlessness, guilt, and fear, and ultimately offers an unrestrained path
to happiness.

Atheism as a concept allows the freedom to govern one’s own life without fear of divine retribution.
Most religions offer a strict, tightly conscribed view of what constitutes acceptable behavior. They set
restrictions on what sorts of activities their followers are supposed to prefer or reject, what their
purpose and goals in life should be, whom they should obey, and what they should derive meaning and
satisfaction from. There are long lists of things that their followers, in order to fit in, must do or refrain
from doing; sometimes there are restrictions on how they dress, eat, speak and even vote. This effect is
especially pronounced in conservative and fundamentalist religious communities where the lives of each
person are planned out in advance with little regard for what those people themselves may want. This is
taken radically in cults that attempt to control literally every moment of their members' lives. An
atheist, by contrast, is free of this confinement. Atheism has no hierarchy of authority or immutable
scripture that forces its followers to live a certain way; the essence of atheism is the free choice of the
individual. This does not mean that an atheist can behave as they want without regard for others - no
one is exempt from common morals. But it does mean that an atheist has the freedom to choose their
own purpose, select their own path, and decide for themselves what makes their life meaningful and
worthwhile to them. The feeling of deep inner satisfaction that comes from living a self-directed life
devoid of religious fear can only be imagined by those forced into the narrow and shallow paths of
conventional religion. 

Secondly, atheism offers the freedom to make up your own mind. In line with the last point, most
religions put limitations not on just how their believers may act, but what and how they may think.
Ancient texts and their modern interpreters in the church hierarchies strictly prescribe how their
followers are allowed to view the world, what topics they must approve or disapprove of, and often,
what questions they are not allowed to ask. Some religions go as far as to command their followers not
to expose themselves to certain “dangerous" knowledge. To name an especially egregious example: the
Roman Catholic Church, boasting a census of over one billion people, several decades ago abolished its
Index of Forbidden Books, which for centuries threatened with excommunication any Catholic who read
any titles on the list without special permission. In contrast to this barrage of prohibition, atheism offers
the freedom to think, believe, question and form opinions as one sees fit. To an atheist, there is no
forbidden knowledge, there are no prohibited books, and there are no questions that may not be asked.
Where the religious mind sees a mental landscape bristling with bars and locks, the atheist sees a wide-
open horizon, where nothing is off-limits and the inquiring mind may travel wherever it pleases. Atheists
are entirely free to study all perspectives on any topic and decide for themselves what they believe. 
Thirdly, atheism offers the freedom to tolerate others. Many major religious traditions, in addition to
dictating their followers' actions and beliefs, further instruct them not to associate with those whose
beliefs are different. The Christian Bible, for example, commands believers to live apart from non-
Christians, "for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14). The
Islamic Qur'an is similar, with verses admonishing Muslims not to befriend those who believe differently
(9:23). By contrast, atheism has no such prohibitions. Rather than being limited to a restricted subset of
humanity, an atheist can freely associate with anyone they choose, and can find friends and loved ones
from any background. Nor is an atheist required to look down on others' actions as "sinful", but can
accept them for who they are. Members of such prejudiced religious traditions will never know the
many friendly, intelligent, loving, and generous people who come from belief systems other than their
own, but an atheist labors under no such restrictions. 

Furthermore, atheism is an education in critical thinking. For obvious reasons, most religions do not
place a high emphasis on teaching their followers the principles of skepticism and critical thinking,
preferring instead to convey the message that unquestioning faith is a virtue. But this way of viewing the
world cannot help but have repercussions in other areas. Namely, theists who are taught that evidence
is irrelevant and that truth is decided by the strength of one's belief are more likely to be deceived by all
manner of false or fraudulent claims. By contrast, an atheist accustomed to being skeptical of
extraordinary claims and experienced in detecting common errors of reasoning already has a mental
toolkit that will help them see through such impostures. 

In addition, atheism relieves the need to defend the indefensible. To be an atheist is to be released from
the perpetual need to prop up tired, false beliefs with equally threadbare apologetics. Atheists no longer
have to make excuses for why they are allowing the millennia-old writings of primitive and superstitious
people to direct every aspect of their lives today. Atheists do not have to justify why they are following
the moral advice of books that approve of slavery, the inequality of women, and war and genocide in
the name of God. Atheists do not have to make excuses for why an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving
entity never takes any clear action to help human beings who need it. Atheists no longer have to devote
the mental effort to believing in absurd myths of talking snakes, people walking on water, or men being
swallowed by giant fish and surviving, when everyone knows such things do not happen in the real
world. Atheists, in short, do not have to believe in anything but what is real, verifiable, and provable,
and can focus their energies on dealing with the world in which they live, rather than bending their
minds to believing in another world of fantasy and miracle. 

Thankfully, atheism offers respite from feelings of worthlessness, fear, and guilt. Many religions teach
that human beings are all sinners, stained and worthless in God's eyes and fully deserving of his
punishment and wrath. Others teach that there is a huge number of elaborate and arbitrary rules which
people must strictly follow at all times, and that if they transgress they are "dirty" until they subject
themselves to rituals of cleansing and absolution. Still others teach that a person's worth is entirely
dependent on whether they believe certain things. All such teachings are likely to produce in their
adherents feelings of perpetual guilt, shame and self-loathing. Atheism, by contrast, does not teach any
of these things. Combined with a humanist philosophy that respects the inherent dignity and worth of
each person, it offers a powerful antidote to feelings of worthlessness. For many theists, following their
religion is a life of constant fear: fear that the world is conspiring against them, fear that they are
constantly under attack by evil spirits, fear that a wrathful God is watching them and will condemn them
to Hell if they sin, fear that the world may end at any moment, fear that they will be ignored or
ostracized by their church community if they put a foot wrong, fear that their friends and loved ones
who believe differently will be damned. Atheism, by contrast, offers release from these superstitious
and unfounded fears, and in their place offers a credo of hope: there are no supernatural powers
arrayed against us, nor must we live in constant fear of judgment. We are human beings, alive and free,
and our destiny is in our own hands. 

And ultimately, atheism offers happiness. The last, and best, practical reason to be an atheist is that it
can make possible a life of happiness and contentment. Despite the never-ending barrage of stereotypes
from religious apologists who claim atheism offers nothing but darkness and misery, the truth is that this
is not so. The process of deconversion is often difficult and emotionally stressful for people who have
had a strong religious upbringing, but on the other side of this transition there is clear air and freedom,
and the promise of a peaceful life where all the strife, the confusion, and the wrestling with the
unanswered questions of faith have finally ceased. Atheists understand the basis for morality, that
simple compassion is a better reason to do what is right than ten thousand commands from on an
unseen maker. Atheists understand their relationship to the rest of the universe and the awe-inspiring
cosmic processes that brought us into being here. Atheists appreciate the beauty of the world and the
reasons why it is something worth fighting to preserve. Atheists possess the ability to determine their
own destinies, make their own way in life, and make up their minds for themselves. Atheists know the
thrill of a mind free to travel and explore wherever it wishes. And atheists can live lives of purpose,
meaning and deep, genuine fulfillment and inner happiness just as well as any theist can. 

There is nothing to fear about atheism, and much that it has to offer. The sooner we all realize this, the
better off we will all be. Sadly, despite all the reasons to do otherwise, the human race seems poised to
continue on its religious path into the foreseeable future, and the associated prejudices, injustices, and
futile strivings after the unseen will almost certainly continue as well. However, a day may cum when
humankind finally grasps the necessity of atheism. On that day, we will wake from our religious dream
and at last see the world as it truly is. On that day, perhaps, we can finally leave all the old fears and
struggles behind and step into the light of the morning for all time. On that day, we will at last be free.