Atheist Discussion

Setanta wrote:

horsesh*t . . . there certainly are those who claim to be atheist, but who in fact have a belief system little distinguishable from atheism . . . but that doesn't mean they are correct to describe themselves as atheists . . .

How do you define an atheist, Set?

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revjames wrote:

I am new to this forum. I am just watching some of the debeate before I really get stuck in.

Just a thought, Isn't atheism just as much of a belief system or 'religion' as any of the others?

Did anyone celebrate World Atheists day? it was held on April 1st

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The answer to both questions is: No

Also, perhaps you can explain the thought behind the questions.

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john/nyc wrote:

revjames wrote:
I am new to this forum. I am just watching some of the debeate before I really get stuck in.

Just a thought, Isn't atheism just as much of a belief system or 'religion' as any of the others?

Did anyone celebrate World Atheists day? it was held on April 1st
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The answer to both questions is: No

How do you define atheism?

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There is no god.

Which part of that statement would you define as a belief "system" or religion?

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Tell 'em, john.

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john/nyc wrote:

There is no god.

Which part of that statement would you define as a belief "system" or religion?

I would define none of it as a religion.

I would describe the entire of it as a belief system.

What unambiguous evidence do you have that there are no gods?

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By the way...I want to make it clear that I am not suggesting in any way that atheism is a religion.

It is not...and I have debated that point with theists in many, many threads, both here and over at Abuzz.

I have also often noted that some atheists are content to say "I do not believe in God."

That is not a belief system in any way.

But most, as does John, go that step further and say "I believe there are no gods" or, as John indelicately put it, "There is no God."

That type of atheism IS a belief system.

But not a religion.

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edgarblythe wrote:

Tell 'em, john.

Hey Edgar.

Some things never change.....

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I know there is no god because I read it in post 914666, therefore there is no god.

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The fact there is no god will never change, that's certain, old pal.

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edgarblythe wrote:

The fact there is no god will never change, that's certain, old pal.

And that is a belief of yours...which will not change either.

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Frank Apisa wrote:

john/nyc wrote:
There is no god.

Which part of that statement would you define as a belief "system" or religion?

I would define none of it as a religion.

I would describe the entire of it as a belief system.

What unambiguous evidence do you have that there are no gods?

How would you define "system"?

What unambiguous evidence could be offered to ascertain how many ships did NOT flounder because of the existence of the lighthouse? How does one unambiguously proove a negative?

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Way I see it, people didn't have many facts. They had evolved with no guide book. They still had and have instinctual residue and they have fear and guessing. They invent concepts of gods and life in a hereafter. Being territorial by nature, the heaven, creator, etc., are boundless territories because imagination is boundless. Territorial animals fight to preserve their territories, so the religious blindly try to stave all counter and dis belief. They parade the made up deities and concepts, defying one to prove they are false. It's Alice in Wonderland down a rabbit's hole. No matter what Alice thinks, everything is contrary to logic.

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An atheist is just what the word states--without god. People who band together to promote "atheism," who proselytize for "atheism," those who have an agenda for "atheism" do in fact have gods, and faith--"rationality" is their god, and their faith is in science. It is appalling to me the extent to which the "professional atheists" i have met or read of resort to science as if it were a body of belief, which is better founded than any other body of belief--when in fact, science is knowledge, and the methods of attaining to knowledge.

To my mind, such people are atheist to exactly that same extent to which Christian Scientists are scientists.

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True, there are factions, if I may steal the word, of atheists just as far out in the weeds as the deists. I think the originator of this thread may be guilty of some of those faults - May be, but I don't know for sure.

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One must be reasonable in one's demands on life. For myself, all that I ask is: (1) accurate information; (2) coherent knowledge; (3) deep understanding; (4) infinite loving wisdom; (5) no more kidney stones, please.

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Just to be a wee bit technical about it. Atheism is not a belief system. It is an absence of a belief. The 'belief' is what has become status quo, hence the term 'non-believer'. As you may have noticed, those who choose to not believe in the existence of gods do not generally gather to worship their lack of a belief.

I haven't posted here is quite a while - I've come to the belief (ha!) that I'm not going to convince anyone and that no one is going to convince me. You'll have better luck debating the existence of intelligence in Texas.

(Okay, before you get all huffy, that was just a joke. I used to live in Texas and I would swear (to myself) that there was intelligence there.)

(Wow - only I could get parentheses within parentheses.)

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Texas has a huge population. I have met several intelligent persons here.

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I don't think there's anything to gain arguing with theists, but I do think that the proposition that atheism is itself a religion (or a belief "system") needs refuting. To say that colorlessness is color amounts to the same thing: its senseless.

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john/nyc wrote:

Frank Apisa wrote:
john/nyc wrote:
There is no god.

Which part of that statement would you define as a belief "system" or religion?

I would define none of it as a religion.

I would describe the entire of it as a belief system.

What unambiguous evidence do you have that there are no gods?

How would you define "system"?

What unambiguous evidence could be offered to ascertain how many ships did NOT flounder because of the existence of the lighthouse? How does one unambiguously proove a negative?

Proof

Who asked for proof?

I asked for unambiguous evidence upon which to base a GUESS of "there are no gods."

What is your evidence for the pro-active statement that there are no gods?

If you have none...you are offering a belief...a guess.

And if you are guessing or believing there are no gods..it is a belief system

But...it has been my experience that theists will never acknowldge that they are doing nothing more than guessing about the unknown when they demand "There is a God!"...and atheists will never acknowledge that they are doing nothing more than guessing about the unknown when they demand "There are no gods."

Believers are like that.

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