Atheism: When I Questioned 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

American Atheism and Why it Exists 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,

There are many religions in this world and many creation myths that accompany those religions. Each religion has its own unique viewpoint on how the world came to be. The Cherokee myth I have chosen is something that may seem outrageous to the outsider, but it is how the Cherokee

I am an atheist, but it wasn't always that way. My entire life there was a constant pressure on me to accept that there was a supreme being that created all. Even at a young age I couldn’t bring myself to fully believe this. I continued grasping for straws because, just like every other religious person, I was scared of the “consequences” that would come with not believing. My Non-Denominational Christian Church promoted telling this to everyone, even children.

Many people have an opinion about the overall nature of the universe and about the role which humanity plays in the universe. For example, “Why are we here” and “What will happen to us after we die”? The majority of us don’t know the answers to these questions. Thus, many of us want to have a religion because it gives us the impression that we are secure in the universe. It also provides guidance in our life. I presume it’s easier to live with some sort of explanation, even if it’s incorrect. When asked, “What religion do you practice”? I reply, “I’m atheist”. I simply lack belief in deities. However, many people have preconceived ideas about what I am and what I am not. For instance, I don’t believe in God, I loathe Christians; I concur

PROBLEMS atheist / secular / materialistic worldview As I mentioned, I myself in a short period of time considered an atheist, but I changed my mind. The reason for this was that I saw many problems with this system of thinking. Some of these problems are the following

In Atheism: The Case Against God, George H. Smith refutes arguments that many Theists use to try and prove God’s existence. One example of this is what he describes as “The Argument from Life.” This argument is often referred to as the fine-tuning argument as it argues that the Universe that humanity is a part of is so unlikely, it is as if it has been fine-tuned by a supernatural force. Although Smith argues against this claim using a variety of arguments, he is ultimately unsuccessful in refuting it because an intelligent designer is a better explanation for life than chance.

Give Me that Old Time Atheist Religion Recently, I've noticed that some of my friends have become concerned about me because I'm an atheist. This is odd, because I've never made any secret of that fact, although I don't go around preaching it to anyone who will listen. Ever since I realized that I no longer agreed with any of the religious viewpoints which I was brought up with, I have explained my opinions, as clearly as I can, to those who were interested, curious, or who challenged by beliefs.

I found both the Mesopotamian and Egyptians religions to be intriguing because they seem to believe in naturalistic elements but they add gods and goddesses to religion that control them and the elements. It seems since the beginning of time humanity has been searching for a higher power. Something greater than ourselves that controls us and the universe we live in. While there are many different types of religions currently most are still based on the ideas of nature, one god who rules the universe and mankind, or many gods and goddesses who rule, which I believe connects back to the religions of ancient

McCloskey refers to the arguments for God’s existence as “proofs” and often implies that they can’t definitively establish the case for God, so therefore they should be abandoned. However, the biggest problem with viewing the arguments for God’s existence as “proofs” is that they are not proofs like the proofs in Mathematics which are one-hundred percent certain. (Foreman) These are arguments, not “proofs”, as there is no way to come to a one-hundred percent certain conclusion with such arguments. Therefore, McCloskey is viewing and trying to use the arguments for God’s existence in a wrong way and in a way that they were not meant to be used.

Atheism I have seen and experienced how this atheists can be seen with a very negative connotation. For some of us realizing we are atheists can be as simple as a sudden realization. "One week ago I worshiped the Bible. One week ago I wasted Sundays mornings at church. One week ago I was convinced in a fairy tale"(Cimino) However for most of us it is a gradual realization that we need to eventually tell others about on our own time. Unfortunately this experience comes from within my own family, who are the definition of an extremely religious family, aside from my father. "Certainly someone who grew up with a secular or at least religiously unenthusiastic parent will be more likely to lose faith than someone whose parents were both earnestly

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines atheism as “a disbelief in the existence of deity.” This definition of atheism is broad and general. Most people only know that atheism is the lack of belief in a god or gods, but they do not know what atheists do believe in or if atheists

In the article, “On Being an Atheist”, H.J. McCloskey discusses the reasons of why he believes being an atheist is a more acceptable than Christianity. McCloskey believes that atheism is a more rational belief versus having a God who allows people to suffer so he can have the glory. He believes to live in this world, you must be comfortable. The introduction of his article, he implements an overview of arguments given by the theist, which he introduces as proofs. He claims that the proofs do not create a rationalization to believe that God exists. He provides 3 theist proofs, which are Cosmological argument, teleological argument, and the argument of design. He also mentions the presence of evil in the world. He focuses on the existence

However, as the political world of Greece evolved, atheism would not remain unscathed. An earlier instance of this can be found within the works of Plato, a renowned philosopher. Of all of his works, the tenth book of The Laws is most historically relevant to atheism. Within this text, Plato essentially disavowed all aspects of atheist philosophy, disregarding non-believers as “certain clever moderns” and “young men” with foolish opinions (Whitmarsh 136). Furthermore, he declared the belief in the Greek deities was essentially to the functioning of a “just society,” suggesting legal penalties for all those who undermine the gods (137). However harmful, this work raises the important question of how many atheists there truly were in Plato’s

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