ABSTRACT
Was religion still to be called “the opium of the people”? Wouldn’t it “wither away”? Might religion even play a positive function in society? In its last years, East German scientific atheism was the scene of a questioning of the classic Marxist positions on religion and also on atheism. The importance of the latter was becoming less and less obvious, to the point where the question was raised as to whether “scientific atheism” should not be replaced by “Marxist-Leninist religious science” or other terms. Only a small part of these debates left the confidential sphere, alerting the public and in particular East German Christians. At the same time, the group of scientific atheists was seeking dialogue with Christians and meeting with a series of theoretical, practical and political difficulties. Some of them also became key actors in the short-lived Association of Freethinkers, unexpectedly founded in 1989, and which they hoped would support nonreligious people facing difficult personal situations and offer advice and practical help, in competition with the “services” offered by the Churches.
