Could Atheism be technically considered a religion?

reply to post by ProfessorChaos


While Prpl is right about how many times this question has been asked, but I did not think you were being offensive at all, unless curiosity can somehow be offensive.

I just hope my previous post and the posts here by other atheists has enlightened you on the subject. If not than I suggest that you listen to some formal debates, there are plenty on YouTube which cover the subject in great detail.

reply to post by randyvs

Well, I'm not technically an atheist, BUT I am certainly not religious. If for some reason I am wrong in my beliefs, or lack there of, and I find myself talking to God one day, being judged, I do believe I can make a pretty strong argument for myself. So I'm not worried a bit.

That GOD for Bill Maher!

Atheism, by definition means one does not believe in God. But God, in itself is really a metaphor for the Creator.
Some professed Atheists do not believe in God, per-se , but they do believe there is a Creator. They shun the subjective version of God as someone to worship, so technically, they do subscribe to a religion of sorts, that is they believe in the immortal spirit within, the God within, which could be considered a personal religion. They are really not Atheists at all.

So, if one does not believe in a Creator, then I would consider them a true Atheist, and not have any religion at all. A very unfortunate predicament to be in, IMHO.

No, its absence of not only religion, but spiritual concepts and relates only to the body suit and material world. It believes that consciousness is a random chance occurrence, something created from nothing, as a normal mechanism, and that it arises from the workings of the brain, instead of having a soul which drives the body suit AI.

My father is an atheist, its pretty cut and dry the difference, its all about what consciousness is.

reply to post by ProfessorChaos


Just wanted to add this as well.

The belief in evolutionary science is not a faith based position, there is emperical evidence to support these conclusions.

Faith is a system of belief based on no evidence, or at least any type that can be measured through objective means.

Originally posted by Openeye
reply to post by ProfessorChaos

 

Just wanted to add this as well.

The belief in evolutionary science is not a faith based position, there is emperical evidence to support these conclusions.

Faith is a system of belief based on no evidence, or at least any type that can be measured through objective means.

And I appreciate your gentle manner in your responses. Though you do have to admit that there is a lot of evolutionary evidence that is primarily conjecture.

The same can be said about Biblical or Quranic evidence as well. The finding of towns thought to never have existed for example. While it seems to support the scriptural accounts, it is still conjecture as to the stories applied to them.

reply to post by windword


Oh very well said! And thanks for the Bill Maher clip.

Originally posted by JayinAR
reply to post by randyvs

 

Well, I'm not technically an atheist, BUT I am certainly not religious. If for some reason I am wrong in my beliefs, or lack there of, and I find myself talking to God one day, being judged, I do believe I can make a pretty strong argument for myself. So I'm not worried a bit.

And if you do find yourself, under judgement ? You can know, I will be paying close attention and rooting for you big time. I even think you may fair very well. Just remember he already knows your heart.

Sometimes I think it would be great if atheism could be considered a religion then I could become a priest and claim tax free status we could send people out like the JW to knock on doors and generally annoy people in the mornings converting others.

There is a youtube video out that is based on the premise of atheism being a religion and it is pretty funny. This video is funny too.

reply to post by charlyv

So, if one does not believe in a Creator, then I would consider them a true Atheist, and not have any religion at all.

I believe in "GOD." But I don't believe in a creator. I believe GOD is the creation. The body of all that exists is what I believe GOD is. Not something outside of the universe that holds a magic wand and says "Let it be" to nothing, that suddenly becomes something.

I believe the fabric of the universe is the "Word of God" and we are GOD in the flesh. Everything in total is what GOD is.

Now, am I an atheist? Do all atheists disagree with me? No, and No.

Originally posted by AngryCymraeg
Given the fact that atheists do not worship a giant bearded person in the sky, do not have a hierarchy who wear silly clothes and do not practice elaborate but ultimately pointless rituals then I'd say that no, atheism is not a religion.

your definition of religion is a bit narrow.

Remind me of what my friend's said jokingly about atheist as religion. He said they dont/lack believe of God even they knew science hasnt come long and far enough, still in early stage but already have conclusion there is no God. They supposed to wait till science is advance enough to make a good conclusion.

The other thing he said is lots of atheist like to hang around in religious forum and talk about religion religiously, and i think it is a bit weird but true just like in here, but that is not serious, just kidding.

reply to post by charlyv


I do not know, there for I do not believe. STRONG atheism

I know there is no God. WEAK atheism

I believe in, try to follow and live my life for Jesus Christ. STRONG belief.

I know there is a GOD. Could be anything from weak to strong belief.

reply to post by randyvs


I appreciate the kind sentiments.

All religions have one thing in common: Dogmas. These are things that are not under debate. This is the thing that separate religious people from atheists. Because in todays political climate it has suddenly become offensive to point out how incredibly stupid religious ideas are. If you do that, it's wrong. People even claim that you are narrow-minded if you point out what incredibly stupid ideas people have. In fact, it's the opposite. Dogmas are important because some ideas are necessary for the internal logic of the religion to be intact. So, no. Atheism is not a belief. As they said in ancient Greece: There is a difference between logos and theos. Belief and logic. These things are different. Sadly, many people fail to see this distinction. You can believe all you want, but hard data is the truth.

It's not that religion hasn't got it's purpose: Creating an imaginary father-figure to unite people who otherwise would be in conflicts is the right thing to do. The irony is that if you got too many of those imaginary father-figures around, you'll end up with a whole different conflict. You'll have to tell people that you created these father-figures only because it served the need for higher power for certain individuals. But, you'll also be in another mess. This father-figure will be programmed into children from their early years. It's hard to remove programming like that. And, there is this dogma. Discussing religion is wrong. And, there is probably a basic need to believe. And for many, this imaginary father figure will also serve the need for something to love.

But, it's offensive to point out the incredible stupidity behind religion. That's why many simply don't point out that belief and facts are two very different things. Facts are beliefs, but they are regularly tested and can some times end up as nonsense. To point out that religion is nonsense is seen as offensive, because religions have dogmas. So, that's why one way of thinking is more useful than the other. In primitive cultures we relied on religion. Now, we rely on something else. But, there is a cultural lag. So, many will just smile and nod when faced with religious farce. Remember my key point, though. One has dogmas that can't change, the other way of thinking has theories that can be proven wrong.

Strong atheism is the positive assertion that there is no god. Its a foolish position.

Weak atheism is what most atheists are. It is simply the lack of belief in god. Big difference.

Agnosticism is the claim it is impossible to know one way or the other. A person can be an agnostic atheist or an agnostic theist.

Just wanted to let that be known. Lots of people don't understand the terminology.

I like how all the religohs came to this thread just to agree with all the other religohs that it makes sense lol.

It only makes sense because you all agree on it... doesn't make you right, at all.

Interestingly, there is a structured debate on this very subject in the ATS Debate Forum right now:

Challenge Match: Sheepslayer247 VS. Intrepid Atheism is Not a Religion


For myself, no, atheism is a simple disbelief, it is not a religion. There are some, though, who are trying to turn it into one: Atheism Plus (Because, one presumes, "Bright" wasn't fail enough, lol)

Originally posted by JayinAR
Strong atheism is the positive assertion that there is no god. Its a foolish position.

Weak atheism is what most atheists are. It is simply the lack of belief in god. Big difference.

Agnosticism is the claim it is impossible to know one way or the other. A person can be an agnostic atheist or an agnostic theist.

Just wanted to let that be known. Lots of people don't understand the terminology.

That's pretty much it.

Lack of belief in a god/deity. God can not be proven or dis-proven.

What each individual atheist believes is called "atheist philosophy".

It is not a religion because there is no doctrine of belief.