Motherboard interviews British philosopher Alain de Botton on religion, the changing role of art, and the Internet:
I am an atheist, but a gentle one. I don’t feel the need to mock anyone who believes. I really disagree with the hard tone of some atheists who approach religion like a silly fairy tale. I am deeply respectful of religion, but I believe none of its supernatural aspects. So my position is perhaps unusual: I am at once very respectful and completely impious.
Alain de Botton is on a Crusade to Make Atheism Smarter: An Interview | Motherboard