Atheism Is Not A Religion

What is atheism? Why would someone be an atheist? Why do people fear and dislike atheism? Simply stated, atheism is the lack of belief in a god or gods. Granted, atheists are each individuals and undoubtedly each of them prescribe [to] many different philosophies on life, politics and morality as do Christians. However, though atheists may choose to gather collectively for whatever purpose, unlike Christianity, atheism is not a belief system. An individual who identifies himself as an atheist is merely stating that he does not believe in [the existence of] god or gods. Atheism, as indicated by its name, is the opposite of theism which is belief in at least one god; to include polytheism (belief in many or more than one god) and monotheism

Atheist religions include Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Scientology. Atheism is the non-belief in god, so Atheists have no belief in god (Crabtree). Atheism is not so much a religion, but a belief. “Atheism isn 't, therefore, ‘a religion’ and nor should it be capitalized, any more than ‘monotheist’ or ‘polytheist’ should be” (Crabtree). Christians do not identify themselves as monotheist. They identify themselves as Christians or their specific denominations. For this reason, Atheists should not be radicalized as an extreme religion or rather extreme lack of religion. About 13 million (nearly 6 percent of Americans) describe themselves as atheist or agnostic (Smith). It is unrealistic that any person out of this 13 million will become a future President.

Having a Worldview is essential when it comes to how a person lives from day to day. A worldview is an initial set of expectations to which one pledges, this serves as a basis for accepting and understanding reality and will also deeply shapes how one will act (Waddell, 2015). There are different worldviews and they each have different beliefs. Atheism is a worldview that does not believe in God or any spiritual realm and leans more towards scientific theories. Pantheism worldview is quite the opposite, they are very spiritual and believe all is God. Even though they are so spiritual their God doesn’t have a relationship with humanity. Theism is a worldview that has three different religions that consist of Judaism, Christianity, and

Agnostics, on the other hand, are neither, believers or non-believers. An agnostic believes that truth is synonymous with science. In Making Sense of Your World, a Biblical Worldview, Huxley termed the coin agnosticism to describe a tentative, uncertain attitude toward any question about God and the meaning of life. (Phillips, Brown, Stonestreet, 2008). Whether agnostic or atheistic, naturalism sets forth a worldview in which God is not necessary. My belief is that humanity cannot be scientifically explained. We are not mere products of DNA. I believe and will always believe in the existence of a higher being.

Atheism is disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods, they reject religion as apart of not only a rejection of ignorance, but also a rejection of their religious family and association of religion itself, says Catherine L. and Caldwell-Harris who are published in the Department of Psychology for Boston University, Lesley College,University of Haifa, and Trinity College. This is a stark contrast to theism, which is the belief in god and is the case for many Americans. This demographic is about 83% of America’s population, according to the most recent census. About 16% of the population, or about 34,169,000 people are of an unaffiliated position, which would include Atheists,

Having completed the unit of philosophy of religion, you are now ready to respond to an article written by an actual atheist.  This article, titled “On Being an Atheist,” was written by H. J. McCloskey in 1968 for the journal Question.  McCloskey is an Australian philosopher who wrote a number of atheistic works in the 1960s and 70s including the book God and Evil (Nijhoff, 1974). In this article, McCloskey is both critical of the classical arguments for God’s existence and offers the problem of evil as a reason why one should not believe in God.

As the world grows, diversity follows. With this diversity different faiths, or even lack of, are created; one being Atheism. Atheism is the unbelief of God or any other supreme being. Atheism is becoming more present within the community which sometimes leads to criticism. Since Christianity is the is the polar opposite of Atheism, their beliefs, practices, and symbols (or lack of) are bound to clash. Nonetheless, Atheism continues to grow.

Having completed the unit of philosophy of religion, you are now ready to respond to an article written by an actual atheist. This article titled “On Being an Atheist,” was written by H. J. McCloskey in 1968 for the journal Question. McCloskey is an Australian philosopher who wrote a number of atheistic works in the 1960s and 70s including the book God and Evil (Nijhoff, 1974). In this article, McCloskey is both critical of the classical arguments for God’s existence and offers the problem of evil as a reason why one should not believe in God. Please note the following parameters for this paper:

By definition, ‘Theism’ is the belief of the existence of god one or more gods. In the English language adding an ‘A’ to the beginning of the word automatically takes the original definition, and turns it completely around. So Atheism is, by definition, the belief of no God, nor Satan. As an Atheist however, I do not need the threat of eternal damnation to make the correct choice, morally. Most Atheists are morally good because it is right to be. However, everyone is morally acceptable in their own mindset, for example, the Westboro Church, better known as www.GodHatesFags.com. The Westboro church has started several protests, in the name of God, against Homosexuals, Race, and creed. To an Atheist, believing in a God(s), is the equivalent of a grown man believing in Santa Clause.

The first mode would have to be the mode that makes most in a search for the ultimate reality. Atheism is considered the belief in the absence of the existence of gods. This absence of belief usually comes from a deliberate choice, or from an inherent inability to believe in religious teachings. It is not a lack of belief born from ignorance of religions. The word atheism has a very negative connotation but it is the lack of belief in other religions and or gods that produce this way of thought. No one can prove nor disprove an existence of a higher power or god. There are one too many religions and religious beliefs. They all stem from different cultures and places round the world and some are very closely alike but choose to have different establishments and traditions. Philosophers Ludwig Feuerbach and Sigmund Freud have argued that God and other religious beliefs are human inventions, which overtime were made to fulfill countless psychological and emotional wants or needs created by humans. Religions are also social functions that can be learned during childhood or learned from where and when you were born. This is why there are so many different religions. Think about all the different places and countries never heard

As our society evolves, we continue to perceive norms and morals individually, although, society likes to dictate that we should all be the same. According to our culture, an individual who doesn’t believe in the existence of God is an atheist; that is our everyday assumption of someone who is atheist, is just agnostic. Even by just typing into Google, “What is Atheism?” in a matter of 0.34 seconds, it answers that it is a disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods. But according to an atheist society website, American Atheist, they state that “Atheism is not a belief system nor is it a religion”, thus leaving people in a state of confusion on what actually is Atheism.

What is religion? Each person’s definition of religion is different. Each person’s faith is different. This is a question that has been asked for centuries, and regardless of the answer given there is no right or wrong answer. Religion can be defined as a group of people who have shared beliefs who feel their life has purpose or meaning. This feeling or belief that their life has meaning can come from outside of themselves, as well as within. Taking this one step further, these shared beliefs put into action in the form of worship, can be easily identified because they happen regularly. It can be said the Primal religions were in fact not religions. Some may argue Confucianism is not a religion. Others may say Taoism is not a

What is Religion? Religion has many meanings; a way of life, belief, and practices. In America people have different views on religion; it was indicated in the constitution. What is the constitution? The constitution is set of laws approved by the state. Religion and constitution are separate. As stated in the constitution of the United State of America, the first amendment, “congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” In other words the constitution and religion are not connected. The founder fathers meant when talking about “freedom of Religion,” is that the state and church are separate; because people saw the church as mass control, people were also affected by the English’s monarchies and lastly the Americans

Madalyn Murray O’Hair is the founder of the American Atheist Association. Atheism is stereotypically disliked by religious followers because they misunderstand the meaning of Atheism.

People in our society today who have the atheist point of view on religion, which is the belief that there is no god, are going against the so-called norms of society, and therefor are seen as deviant. Deviance is just an idea. Society determines what is deviant by the ideas they hold of what should be the norm. Atheism is seen as a negative deviance, or below the norm. They have a status that is placed on them in society. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they believe in evil, although that is how it is sometimes viewed from people in society who have a specific religion or faith. Atheism, which is not a new idea, has been evolving in our society, and is the reason for problems leading to debate and court cases, and for