The, Atheists, Or Agonists

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

Aronson. R. (2009). Religion Dispatches. 40 Million Nonbelievers in America? The Secret Is Almost Out Secularists have very quietly become one of America’s largest minorities -- how long before they use their power?

The 1971 Census included the option of describing yourself as having ‘no religion’ if this applied to you. Why and how has this category changed since 1947?

Some say Atheism is a moral issue but in an Atheist’s perspective, it is discrimination. A deity often represents morals and meaning, according to those who believe in them. With the lack of a supreme being, it creates the idea that Atheists lack moral. This creates a false view of Atheists being unethical. This idea towards Atheism is often used to persecute Atheists. For instance, a message saying “ATHEISTS, AGNOSTICS AND NON BELIEVERS ARE THE TRUE CRIMINALS OF THE WORLD COMMUNITY” was posted on a Christian-based website called http://www.tencommandments.org. This type of attitude towards Atheism is often found in Christians because of of their

According to data from the Pew Research Center, Americans are becoming less religious, but, simultaneously, more spiritual. Often described as “nones,” these individuals have rejected the trappings of institutional religion, yet still feel “a deep sense of spiritual peace and well-being as well as a deep sense of wonder about the universe.”

We all know that religion is an organized system regarding the spiritual or supernatural along with various practices that give numerous individuals a sense of purpose in the world and allows these individuals to understand things beyond their reach. However, while reading the articles from “Nones on the Rise,” it is evident that there is an increase in the number of individuals who claim unaffiliation to any religion in the United States. “Nones” gives the facts and figures of the Americans who do not place themselves in any religious category, with an approximate one in five of the public claiming no affiliation. But there are some individuals who denote themselves as spiritual or religious in some way. The entire article is an intriguing one because it breaks everything down, from what it means to be unaffiliated religiously to the composition of the unaffiliated, the demographics of the unaffiliated and theories as to why there is an increase in the numbers of the years. It is interesting to see how people view themselves when it comes to their beliefs.

There are many methodological problems with measuring whether religion has become privatized, on of these problems is that ‘ how do you measure how many religious organisations there are?’ this is a problem because it is near impossible to count every single religious organisation in the world because of the amount of cults and sects that exist that not everybody may know about. Sociologists argue that there has been a decrease on the number of religious organisations, and therefore religious belief is decreasing, but they do not take into account that it may not be religious belief that is declining, but that lack of funding has meant that the religious beliefs could not remain forcing people into practise privately, Also, how do you define what a religious organisation is. Another problem with measuring whether religion has become privatised is that you can’t know what people are thinking, just because they don’t visit a religious organisation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are not religious, they may just not have the time to visit the organisation so instead use things like televangelism to practise at home. Also, just because people don’t attend religious organisations often, Stark and Bainbridge believe that the decline in traditional religions has created a demand for newer religions, this includes new age

We automatically put ourselves into categories when we speak of religion. Even if you don’t believe in God or don’t associate yourself with any form of religion you are still given a specific title in regards to your religious views. This can be seen when Gilkey recalls the way an “immoral” woman was treated, “Looked upon by most pious as so wicked they were embarrassed to be seen talking to her, she had in fact a higher moral character than they did.” (Gilkey 164)This quotes demonstrates how people self segregate themselves based on what they’re religion believes is moral. Within the compound there was also physical segregation as well since people of different religions were placed in separate locations.(Gilkey

The United States (U.S.) has always been the melting pot of the world, resulting in a diverse spiritual community. Christianity is still the predominant religion, but a recent survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life details the shifts taking place in the U.S. According to the study, 28 percent of American adults have left the faith of their upbringing for another religion, or no religion at all. The number of people that claim no affiliation with any particular faith is rising, and the number of people practicing non-Christian religions is increasing (Pew Forum 2010).

Eighteen options were offered as choices for this question, excluding the categories of atheist and agnostic. The responses to each category have not been captured in the survey results, owing to certain privacy concerns. However, the percentage of none as a choice was calculated from the annual survey results. Moreover, the sample for this question excluded the Californians after 1997.

This change is revolutionary, as religion has been stagnant in its beliefs for hundreds of thousands of years, thus even this slight shift in inclusivity is monumental. Later in the “Religion” essay, Schwartz highlights that religion has been in charge of “silencing women, controlling their sexuality, removing them from the public sphere, denying them equal rights of participation, denying them leadership roles in the church, and at the most extreme, even denying them access to the blessings coffered by divinity”, and this control applies to all minorities and peoples who are not white heterosexual males (CTSG 428). Jae proves that religion can be both fluid and inclusive, as her congregation has developed such a large following. I think many nonreligious people as well as many millennials want to be more in touch with a higher power, but are turned off by the rigidity and heavily structured boundaries that a believer must abide

As a baptised Catholic, I believe to be agnostic as well as Patrick states Atheism and Agnosticism to be growing rapidly in the young. As I read this article, it begins to make me question myself as to how the hell can anyone, US citizens, look upon our history that supposedly created the country to stand as the “ideological nation”. Disgustingly, divorce rates are so high it just makes me want to puke knowing the dedication a true family requires as I live with both my parents that remain married and love each other dearly. What kind of trend do we “Millennials” grow into as we grow farther and farther away from what America truly represents to the “ideological nation”? The growth of racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, and Islamophobic

The number of atheist and agnostic has been expanding there have long been predictions that religion would fade from relevance as the world modernizes, but all the recent surveys are finding that it’s happening startlingly fast. An atheist is a person who denies or disbelieves the existence of a supreme being or beings along with an agnostic, an agnostic person is a person who holds that the existence of an ultimate cause, as God, and the essential nature of things are unknown and unknowable, or that human

Atheism is not yet acceptable in the religious system because they are judged by the stereotypes included in religious books. The Qur'an is the religious book for Islam's. It is full of stories and beliefs that have been passed down for centuries. A message from the Qur'an quotes that we should feel sorry for Atheists and the decisions they made about their lifestyle. "He is not but a man who has invented a lie about Allah, and we will not believe him." He said, "My Lord, support me because they have denied me". Allah said, "After a little, they will surely become regretful"(Qur'an 23). The being referred to is Satan; an Atheistic devil that does not believe in any Gods or God. In the Qur'an it states that a man has asked God to help him because Atheistic people have said there is no God, Allah replies back to the man by saying that if later when the Atheistic people are in need they will be regretful that they do not believe in God. There are many quotes throughout the Qur’an that explain how Atheists are a disgrace and they will/should be

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