What are your thoughts on this message? Agree or disagree? Is atheism a religion? Why or why not?
UPDATE: February 13
Now that I’ve heard from you and interacted a bit with your answers, here are my thoughts on the message:
I think the message and image is powerful. I agree with the message too. Atheism cannot be meaningfully identified as a religion. This might seem like a no-brainer for some since atheism lacks belief in a deity, but belief in a deity is not a sine qua non of religion. Think of Buddhism, for example.
The best reason for rejecting the claim that atheism is a religion is that atheism is nothing more than the belief that God does not exist. There is no other content to atheism. For something to qualify as a religion, not only does it need a set of beliefs, but it needs to contain positive beliefs. Religions typically involve rituals of some sort, and provide answers to questions about origins, what’s wrong with the world, morality, meaning and purpose, and what the future holds. Atheism does not address any of these elements.
That’s not to say that atheists do not have beliefs about origins, morality, and the future. They most certainly do, and their beliefs about these matters form their worldview – whether it be humanism, materialism, Marxism, etc. While some atheists may embrace one of these worldviews with religious fervor, that doesn’t mean their worldview is religious in nature. The worldviews commonly held by atheists typically do not involve rituals, for example.
And let’s be clear. While atheism may be compared to “off” on a TV, all atheists have a worldview, and that worldview is a channel! As such, the atheist needs to defend his worldview (that excludes God) just as much as the Christian must defend his worldview (that includes God).
Thinking to Believe 
January 28, 2014 at 10:21 pm
I think how one defines “religion” which there has been many. If religion is define as belief in a deity obivoulsy, no. But i is defined as a “belief system”, then yes of coarse, atheism is a belief. Either you believe or do not believe in god.
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January 28, 2014 at 10:27 pm
Oh I am totally following your blog. 😉 Theology and Bible student as well, but came out of college an Atheist. Intriguing.
From almost every definition and rational understanding of the word “religion:” no, atheism is not a religion. Neither is theism, although there are theists who follow a religion. There are also atheists who follow religions. But atheism, is not a religion, it’s a word that is used to describe one who does not believe in a god.
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January 28, 2014 at 10:36 pm
I pretty good definition of religion is, “An interdependent set of beliefs about the unseen — philosophical abstractions, or ultimate values, or mystical things like gods and spirits — that are taught and sought by devoted adherents and which are reinforced through various forms of organized ritual practices.”
We can employ a softer force of this definition to also talk about quasi-religions, like “straight-edgers.”
Atheism is not a religion, just like theism is not a religion. A person can believe in God without at all participating in worship thereof, prayer thereto, obedience thereto, etc. That person is not religious, and is yet theistic. I know several of these people.
There are theistic religions of course, like Christianity and Islam. Similarly, there are atheistic religions, like La Vey Satanism and Juche (an atheistic political religion). And there are religions that jump between the two depending on the brand, like Buddhism.
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January 29, 2014 at 3:03 am
My view would be that atheism is not a religion but rather a world view. A lot (most?) of the atheists just shrug their shoulders: the God hypothesis and the Not-God hypothesis don’t really matter in their lives.
Maybe a more relevant question is whether New-Atheism is a religion or not:
– the Not-God hypothesis matters a lot to them,
– they are very active propagating their world view (missioning),
– they gather in organized groups,
– they make truth claims,
– etc.
However, as new-atheism doesn’t worship anything (except science, maybe?), I think it still wouldn’t classify as religion. On the other hand, the behavior of the most prominent advocates of new-atheism start resembling that of sect leaders, so I wouldn’t be surprised if a god-substitute will appear some time soon. (Dawkins suggesting chance and DNA would be my best bet).
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January 29, 2014 at 3:19 am
I think you should give at least a small definition of what exactly you mean.
So lets run with this definition of religion.:
a) Belief in something sacred (for example, gods or other supernatural beings).
b) A distinction between sacred and profane objects.
c) Ritual acts focused on sacred objects.
d) A moral code believed to have a sacred or supernatural basis.
e) Characteristically religious feelings (awe, sense of mystery, sense of guilt, adoration), which tend to be aroused in the presence of sacred objects and during the practice of ritual.
f) Prayer and other forms of communication with the supernatural.
g) A world view, or a general picture of the world as a whole and the place of the individual therein. This picture contains some specification of an over-all purpose or point of the world and an indication of how the individual fits into it.
h) A more or less total organization of one’s life based on the world view.
i) A social group bound together by the above.
For clarification. Not all points must be true to qualify as religion. But the more the better. Test it on atheism.
a) not present
b) not present
c) not present
d) not present
e) not present
f) not present
g) world view certainly but “contains some specification of an over-all purpose or point of the world” not present
h) present by lack of organization towards religious dogma
i) present
While some points are present, the (imo) most important ones are not. If one were to run the same test on a political party we would end up with a very similar result.
Atheism is not a religion.
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January 29, 2014 at 5:35 am
Nope. Not a religion or a worldview.
As an atheist, I have a worldview. But my worldview is not atheism. It just includes atheism.
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January 29, 2014 at 7:26 am
I believe that the only heaven you will ever know is right here on earth and if you can’t see that, you are not really looking.
I believe that faith based education is a social cancer which serves only to produce new generations of ignorant bigots and I believe that indoctrinating children with this repressive medieval rubbish should be vigorously prosecuted as child abuse.
I believe that religious belief itself is a form of mental illness which has outstayed its welcome on this planet and should now be relegated back to the realm of tarot cards and crystal balls where it belongs; if you have to worship something try worshiping something real like the planet that gave you life because it’s the best friend that you ever have and I believe it’s the only friend you will, ever have.
I live in a society where everyone’s beliefs are respected, as long as they believe in god. But, despite that there are still some good reasons to be an atheist. Personally, I like the hours, 24/7. I find they suit me very well indeed.
Now people often ask me about being an atheist and certain questions crop up all the time. For example, how can you know good from evil without religion to guide you? Well that’s just the point isn’t it, religion does guide me. Most of the things I see religion do, I think are evil. And I find that’s a pretty useful benchmark. If religion is involved I know evil won’t be too far away.
Another question is, isn’t atheism itself just another religion? Well, I suppose atheism is a religion in the same way that creationism is a science or Islam is a religion of peace; in other words, when language no longer really means anything. How can atheism be a religion? Who do we worship and who’s going to kill us if we don’t? Atheism doesn’t demand absolute unquestioning obedience or make threats about eternal damnation nor does it take childish offense over trifles. It doesn’t treat women like livestock.
In a way it’s a shame it’s not a religion because we might be able to get a few tax breaks out of it but no; atheism doesn’t get any special privileges, there are no schools teaching atheism to children as a belief system, paid for with public money. Nor does atheism require anyone to tithe part of their income to keep a few cynical con-men in luxury so you see it doesn’t begin to qualify as a religion worthy of the name.
Atheism is another word for reality, it means not seeing any need to apologize for being human. And to be happy to live the life we have and not just wish it away on some celestial wingnut that tells me heaven is right there waiting and all you’ve got to do, is DIE. That’s some price to pay for admission to a place that is likely to be full of clergymen, born again christians and suicide Muslim JigSaw puzzles which I reckon makes it a fate worse than death.
But surely people need religion to answer certain questions, well yes, questions like, How best can we stifle the human spirit? How much can we squeeze from the poor and gullible? and how many palaces can we live in at once? without blushing. These questions religion answers very well indeed. But unfortunately there are other questions to which it doesn’t have answers so it makes them up. This is where atheism comes in.
Atheism says, Hey you just made that up. And religion says no, this is what we call theology.
What’s the difference between a Doctor of Medicine and a Doctor of Theology? One prescribes drugs and the other may as well be on drugs. A theologian is somebody who is an expert in the unknowable. And has all the qualifications to prove it. Yeah, a real specialist.
And this is why I think the question we should be asking is not whether atheism is a religion but why theology is regarded as a branch of philosophy and not as a creative art? Because it is very creative. You can dress your god up in whatever set of the king’s new clothes you like and it must be great fun for all concerned. But personally I don’t see any more reason to teach it in universities than there is to teach astrology.
Okay, okay, we get it. You don’t believe in god but at least religious organizations do a lot of good work especially in the third world. Surely you can’t knock that? So what are you telling me? If they weren’t religious, they wouldn’t be doing this work? It’s not really coming from their hearts? They’re just doing it because they’re following orders? Is that what you’re saying?
To be fair I do actually sympathize to some extent, I mean, it must be quite galling for religious people to see atheists like me going about their business without a shred of guilt or self loathing and not in the least inclined to pray or to do penance of any kind and not in the slightest bit worried about any form of eternal punishment.
I have to admit, if I was religious, I’d probably think to myself, well, how come I’ve got all this weight on my shoulders while these bums are getting a free ride. And I don’t even think I’d be comforted either as some of you clearly are by the prospect of their eternal torture in the flames of Hell, roasting in agony, and tormented by demons because I don’t really buy that scenario.
I think if Hell does exist, it’s probably not a place where you physically burn forever, but perhaps a metaphor for something more subtle that consumes from within. Something like eternal regret perhaps, something not done, not challenged, not risked, not loved enough. Or maybe it’s just burning in fire, I don’t want to get heavy about it. I mean it’s bad enough that Jesus died for my sins, I still haven’t really gotten over that and thanks for reminding me about that yet again by the way.
I do feel somewhat guilty that I’m not more grateful to Jesus but I just wish he’d of taken the trouble to ask me before he went ahead with it because now I feel like I’m being billed for something that I didn’t order. And that really is the deal isn’t it? If you’re a Christian. You’re born already in debt, to Jesus, and it’s a debt that you can only repay, in full, by dying. Whew, that’s some deal you got yourself there.
That’s like asking you to pay off a mortgage on a house that you already own. Especially as there’s no hard, historical evidence that the Jesus of the gospels even existed. I mean, what records we do have, were written by people who were born long, after he died; so, they were just really passing on what they heard and of course the same is true of the gospels themselves.
Curious isn’t it that nobody who was actually writing anything down at the time appears to have known anything at all about Jesus, despite the fantastic miracles he was performing, the multitudes he was preaching to, and of course his momentous and spectacular public demise. And don’t forget this is a guy whose birth was marked by a celestial event, who was born by a miracle, to a virgin, in the year 6 BC.
Two miracles for the price of one, talk about hit the ground running and then it was one miracle after another, fed the multitudes, healed the sick, walked on water, raised the dead, He was nailed to a plank and He came back to life again. How can nobody have heard of him? He should have been the talk of the desert. He should have been as famous as Elvis.
And yet, all we’ve got is hearsay: second and third hand accounts which have been doctored and edited and translated, through, ahead, backwards so many times that the truth no longer bears any resemblance to itself if it ever did. So, I don’t know who you think you’re praying to but it doesn’t seem to have done you much good does it? Maybe you should try praying to Elvis for awhile, see how that works out. I mean at least we know that Elvis actually existed.
But just because Jesus is a storybook character, that doesn’t mean he’s not a good character, doesn’t mean he hasn’t got wisdom to impart. Didn’t He say the Kingdom of Heaven is within? Luke 17; 21, I think it was. And what a useful piece of information that is when you think about it.
Now I realize that as an angry Christian you probably pay lip service to those words but you don’t really believe them and so for you it doesn’t really happen and clearly it hasn’t happened otherwise you wouldn’t be so angry would you? Turn the other cheek, forgive trespasses, love your enemy, that’s a foreign language to you; no, you want punishment, don’t you? You want eternal torture, you want unimaginable suffering, for your own satisfaction.
So I think it’s probably just as well that Jesus didn’t exist, ‘cause, if he came back and he saw what people had made of his teachings, he’d quickly realize that nobody had listened to a word he said, that he was wasting his breath and that he’d wasted his life.
Peace to everyone. Especially Christians, both inside and outside the Kingdom of Heaven. Pcondell.
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January 30, 2014 at 1:53 pm
IMO atheism is not a religion by definition. However, as many Christians have a different interpretation of Christianity, it appears some atheists have a different interpretation of atheism. I have talked to some atheists that give the impression it is a religion, but this is the minority. The majority of atheists IMO tend to be more agnostic or just don’t believe in what religion (any religion; Judaism, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, etc….) says “The Creator” or as I would say God is. This has been my experience but obviously others have had a different one.
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January 30, 2014 at 2:46 pm
Michael,
You are right. A lot of this depends on how one defines “religion.” Buddhism demonstrates that belief in a deity is not necessary for a belief system to qualify as “religious,” but I think “belief system” is too vague to be meaningful as well. Everyone has a belief system, or a worldview, but not every worldview is religious in nature.
Jason
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January 30, 2014 at 2:46 pm
Nikeyo and Stan,
Good point about theism not being a religion. Theism means you believe in the existence of a particular kind of deity, but that’s it. “Religion” connotes much more than that. A religion entails both beliefs and practices. Religions come with religious rituals. Religions provide answers regarding origins, purpose, what’s wrong with the world, and what the future holds. Bare theism does none of that. Indeed, I think it could be said that one could be a theist without being religious.
Jason
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January 30, 2014 at 2:46 pm
Christian,
Does atheism even qualify as a worldview? A worldview refers to the way one views the world, and incorporates elements of origins, meaning/purpose, what’s wrong with the world, and what the future holds. Atheism in itself doesn’t address any of those elements. It simply says “God does not exist.” Granted, that conclusion has huge ramifications for how the atheist builds his worldview, but atheism itself is not a worldview.
But this does invite the question as to whether or not some of the worldviews formulated by atheists are religious. For example, humanism. Could this be understood as a religion?
Jason
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January 30, 2014 at 2:46 pm
NotAScientist,
There’s not many times you and I agree, but mark this down as one time we do. I think you have captured the essence of the matter (or at least the essence of my own position on the question).
Jason
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January 30, 2014 at 2:47 pm
SonofMan,
We do want to hear your thoughts on the topic of the post (which you included in a couple of paragraphs in your 25 paragraph rant), but not your thoughts on every other topic all at once. Please, quit ranting.
Jason
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January 30, 2014 at 3:08 pm
Paul:
While it is true that there are too many definitions of God that the simple statement “I believe in God” is not a satisfactory statement and the definition of an atheist as being someone who “does not believe in God” is equally not a satisfactory definition.
Theism means that god is a personal god but that does not define the god of which they speak so theists give attributes to describe their god as omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient as well as perfect, eternal, infinite and not bound by anything natural or supernatural.
Clearly there are powers higher than humans for life itself is not a concept understood without experiencing life and no human being or living being has willed itself to have life for life is something apparently given to those who have it but humans do not know how. Perhaps that is one definition of god to be believed in.
Higher powers? stardust and forces, gravity and electricity, magnetism, reality, laws of physics, of the universe, the cosmos, black holes, speed of ligt, big matter, small matter, dark matter, no matter. But it is the personal and supernatural that cannot be believed in by this atheist although I suppose if Life, including its mystery of how, what, why, where and when was defined as god, I could easily say “I believe in that god” definition at face value without other people’s extensive imaginations but Life by that definition is something that needs no belief because Life is something that “I know.”
In that case then, am I really an atheist? Perhaps I am only an atheist as far as other people’s gods are concerned.
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January 30, 2014 at 3:46 pm
Jason:
1. Your comment, #10, on “How Much Does God Foreknow?” is a rant; albeit, a short rant, but a rant nonetheless.
2. There, that evens the playing field for your saucy remarks about rants when you disagree with comments and please don’t give me that old worn out over-used hackneyed catch all phrase about being “on topic” or “off topic” every comment here is on topic with the exception of the comment you deleted earlier from the “Utah and Oklahoma Same-Sex Marriage News” that said:
3. “Hello there, You’ve got carried out a tremendous employment. Let me surely yahoo this for my personal component highly recommend for you to my friends. I know they will be took advantage of this excellent website.”
4……Now that is off topic, if not a confused way of telling you that he enjoys your website in a translation that seems to indicate that English is not his mother tongue………
5. Do you think that because you claim to agree with NotAScientist, that makes his comment meaningful? Personally, I find NotAScientist comments to be meaningful despite your agreement or disagreement; your marking the point adds nothing to his clarity or meaning because you never stated any position about the question you asked, nor does your disagreement take away from any of his other ChristClearComments.
sonofman
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January 31, 2014 at 9:27 am
1Jn 1:1-10 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—
the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us—
that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.
And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
That’s Life in 10 verses………….how beautiful is that !
Naz
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January 31, 2014 at 10:17 am
1Jn:1:1-10
Whoever wrote 1Jn was a typical Christian espousing a new religion made up of Scribes and Pharisees. The author himself, already well steeped in the Dogma of religion. The new religion also followed the traditional church dogma to include the supernatural. How smart and beautiful is it for one Christian to quote another Christian who supports the same dogma? Even sinners support each other.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins…….” Tell this to your Justice System that practices the Mosaic Revenge Laws of “punishment without forgiveness”.
If you can’t practice what you preach, at least preach what you practice; then, will your darkness recede.
Excerpts from Good Book of Life in Truth. How Beautiful is that !
SOM 1:26-28
[26] SUPERNATURAL Caricature Concepts do not exist but in the minds of men put there by magicians and clergy, minions, proxies, pawns and proselytes.
[27] For (whom) ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” Mat 23 Indictment by Jesus
[28] “You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him you make him into a replica of yourselves, double-damned. Mat 23 Indictment by Jesus.
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January 31, 2014 at 1:25 pm
Psa 50:16-23
16 But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to recite my statutes or take my covenant on your lips?
17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you.
18 If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers.
19 “You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit.
20 You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother’s son.
21 These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.
22 “Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver!
23 The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”
Naz
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January 31, 2014 at 5:19 pm
Atheism: not a religion. I agree with Jason and NotAScientist. Atheism is, on the other hand, a denial, essentially, of other specific worldviews (all theistic ones) and certainly of religion in general. In practice, just like religion, atheism is embraced by its adherents in many different ways not all of them even rejecting spirituality, per se. Anyways, you all know this. Most of the time, poster theology and philosophy just doesn’t work very well.
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