Many people often confuse atheism with agnosticism, by saying that atheists are confused and have no faith whatsoever. This is not true. Although there are many different kids of atheists, the many principle is that there is no God or higher being. They do not always rely on science to come to this conclusion. Therefore, atheists do believe and have faith; they believe that there is no God and they have faith that God does not exist. Agnostics do not believe in God but they do not believe that there is no God. Atheism is often a teenage phase, but it also lasts for life. Some Atheists judge Christians, Jews, etc., but some do not, and I think it is very judgemental to classify all Atheists as "self-obsessed judgemental people who hate anyone who's not an atheist". In my experience, if you respect an Atheist's religion, they are, in most cases, more than likely to respect yours.
One:
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: Thanks, but no thanks. I don't believe in God.
Religious Person: Oh, that's cool. I respect that.
Two:
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: Thanks, but no thanks. I don't believe in God.
Religious Person: OH MY GOD. WHY NOT? JESUS IS MY LORD AND SAVIOR AND THE BIBLE CLEARLY STATES THAT. IT'S REALLY STUPID NOT TO BELIEVE IN GOD. I HAVE TO SAVE YOU.
Three:
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: OH MY GOD, NO. CHRISTIANITY IS A BUNCH OF FAIRY-TALES, STUPID MADE UP STORIES. YOU SHOULD BE AN ATHEIST, JUST LIKE ME, THEN YOU'LL BE SCIENTIFIC AND SMART AND LOGICAL AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
Religious Person: Erm... okay.
My Point Is:
Obviously, there are assholes in every religion / way of living that you think you should live just like them. Some Christians are like that, some Atheists are like that, some Jews are like that, and so on, and so on. This will never change, but just because you know one or two people like that, it doesn't mean that they are all like that.
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: Thanks, but no thanks. I don't believe in God.
Religious Person: Oh, that's cool. I respect that.
Two:
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: Thanks, but no thanks. I don't believe in God.
Religious Person: OH MY GOD. WHY NOT? JESUS IS MY LORD AND SAVIOR AND THE BIBLE CLEARLY STATES THAT. IT'S REALLY STUPID NOT TO BELIEVE IN GOD. I HAVE TO SAVE YOU.
Three:
Religious Person: Hey, I have youth group this weekend. Wanna come?
Atheist: OH MY GOD, NO. CHRISTIANITY IS A BUNCH OF FAIRY-TALES, STUPID MADE UP STORIES. YOU SHOULD BE AN ATHEIST, JUST LIKE ME, THEN YOU'LL BE SCIENTIFIC AND SMART AND LOGICAL AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
Religious Person: Erm... okay.
My Point Is:
Obviously, there are assholes in every religion / way of living that you think you should live just like them. Some Christians are like that, some Atheists are like that, some Jews are like that, and so on, and so on. This will never change, but just because you know one or two people like that, it doesn't mean that they are all like that.
by sfifsioasfiofifas April 25, 2006
Anybody who isn't 100% convinced about a certain religioun, tgere are 2 general types of an atheist:
Agnostic- a person who does neither claim gods existence nor denies it
Gnostic- a person who denies the existence of a god or gods
But a person who for example isn't aware of the concept of a god or just doesn't give a fuck is an atheist as well
Agnostic- a person who does neither claim gods existence nor denies it
Gnostic- a person who denies the existence of a god or gods
But a person who for example isn't aware of the concept of a god or just doesn't give a fuck is an atheist as well
by User694208800q March 11, 2021
One who disbelieves or lacks belief in a god or gods.
A belief is not necessarily a religion. It becomes a religion if the belief is taken to be fact without empirical evidence (on faith). There are four positions on "do you believe in a god?"
1) gnostic theist - believes in a god and believes it is a fact.
2) gnostic atheist - believes there is no god and believes it is a fact.
Due to the lack of empirical evidence on the existence or non-existence of a god, these two positions are delusional.
3) agnostic theist - believes there is a god but accepts that there is no empirical evidence of his existence. This position is merely irrational.
4) agnostic atheist - believes there is no god but accepts that there is no empirical evidence of his non-existence. Since it is rational to not believe in something that has no empirical evidence of its existence, this position is rational.
A belief is not necessarily a religion. It becomes a religion if the belief is taken to be fact without empirical evidence (on faith). There are four positions on "do you believe in a god?"
1) gnostic theist - believes in a god and believes it is a fact.
2) gnostic atheist - believes there is no god and believes it is a fact.
Due to the lack of empirical evidence on the existence or non-existence of a god, these two positions are delusional.
3) agnostic theist - believes there is a god but accepts that there is no empirical evidence of his existence. This position is merely irrational.
4) agnostic atheist - believes there is no god but accepts that there is no empirical evidence of his non-existence. Since it is rational to not believe in something that has no empirical evidence of its existence, this position is rational.
by Funs1inger February 12, 2016
by Oh Em Gee August 29, 2006
One who doesn't believe in god(s). Usually accepts scientifically demonstrated facts, and is generally willing to change one's mind should better evidence be presented.
As an atheist, I may not know completely how Life, the Universe and Everything came into existence, but I see no reason to subscribe to a belief in a magical entity to explain it.
by happy infidel June 7, 2010
An atheist is simply one who lacks a belief in a god or gods. That's it. It does not mean militant asshole, anti-theist, humanist, intelligent, blind, skeptic, secular, freethinker, or liberal.
Most people confuse the terms agnosticism and atheism. This should clear the misunderstanding:
gnostic theist: I know god exists
agnostic theist: I don't know if a god exists, but I believe there is one
agnostic atheist: I don't know if a god exists, but I don't believe there is one
gnostic atheist: I know there is no god
Most atheists are agnostic. While atheism deals with non-belief in god(s), this term does not describe what we do believe in. People have different labels (or no labels at all) for what they do believe in but this is outside atheism.
Atheism is not a religion. There is no worship of any people, no holy books, no dogma, no persecution, and no absolute truth.
Most people confuse the terms agnosticism and atheism. This should clear the misunderstanding:
gnostic theist: I know god exists
agnostic theist: I don't know if a god exists, but I believe there is one
agnostic atheist: I don't know if a god exists, but I don't believe there is one
gnostic atheist: I know there is no god
Most atheists are agnostic. While atheism deals with non-belief in god(s), this term does not describe what we do believe in. People have different labels (or no labels at all) for what they do believe in but this is outside atheism.
Atheism is not a religion. There is no worship of any people, no holy books, no dogma, no persecution, and no absolute truth.
Sye: You're agnostic? Oh good, I'm glad you're not one of those militant atheist assholes
Chris: Actually, I'm an atheist
Sye: But I thought you were agnostic? You're a decent person, how could you be an atheist?
Chris: I just don't think there's enough evidence to warrant a belief in god. That's it. This does not mean I'm a good person or asshole.
Chris: Actually, I'm an atheist
Sye: But I thought you were agnostic? You're a decent person, how could you be an atheist?
Chris: I just don't think there's enough evidence to warrant a belief in god. That's it. This does not mean I'm a good person or asshole.
by GreatA42 December 27, 2016
A highly disputed term that can have any number of meanings.
The following are three colloquial definitions as understood and used by the average American:
1) Someone who believes that there is no God/Gods
2) That asshole who spends all of his time arguing with or scoffing at Christians about their beliefs.
3) A socially-depraved menace to society bent on burning our churches and brainwashing our children into joining their cult which is really based on worshiping Satan and may be headed by the Jews in their attempt to control the world's money and media in order to enslave us all... (I can go on)
But it's only fair to explain atheism as defined by atheists. After all, they are the ones who identify with the term. So what do THEY believe?
Generally, there are two strains of atheism, as used by atheists:
1. "Strong" atheism- The belief that there are no Gods
2. "Weak" atheism- The lack of belief in Gods
The vast majority of atheists fall into category 2. You're hard-pressed to find an atheist who is absolutely certain that there is no God.
There is a confusion about the terms "agnosticism" and "atheism" and it's important to make the distinction clear.
Agnosticism is a position concerning knowledge of Gods. Agnostics either:
1) believe that there is no way to know for certain whether or not there are Gods
2) are undecided on the issue because they currently lack sufficient evidence
Meanwhile, atheism/theism are positions concerning what you do and do not believe regardless of any claims to knowledge. Thus, fusions between the two are likely:
Agnostic atheist- I do not believe in any Gods because 1) or 2)
Agnostic theist- I believe despite 1) or 2) for any number of reasons (fear of hell, hope, comfort, feeling that there must be some great power/first cause, etc.)
Most self-proclaimed "agnostics" are also atheists. It's very common to hear someone who calls him/herself an agnostic say,
"I don't know whether or not there is a God, so I am neither a theist nor an atheist". But like the second strain of atheism, they do NOT have belief in any Gods. If they did believe, then they wouldn't be undecided! Thus, they are undecided and without belief (agnostic atheist). In much the same way, you can say that all infants and animals are also agnostic atheists!
Now, I say this is true for MOST self-proclaimed agnostics because I have yet to hear someone call him/herself an agnostic AND claim to believe in a God. This is because most self-proclaimed agnostics think of agnosticism as a third-choice between atheism and theism. I'm of the personal opinion that this is largely due to the many negative connotations surrounding the term "atheist" (see colloquial definitions above)
I apologize for the obscene length of this definition (inb4 tl;dr!), so I won't go into detail concerning this next point:
Atheism is NOT a religion. For the same reason, theism is also not a religion. You need more than mere belief/disbelief in a God(s) to be aptly identified as a religion.
The following are three colloquial definitions as understood and used by the average American:
1) Someone who believes that there is no God/Gods
2) That asshole who spends all of his time arguing with or scoffing at Christians about their beliefs.
3) A socially-depraved menace to society bent on burning our churches and brainwashing our children into joining their cult which is really based on worshiping Satan and may be headed by the Jews in their attempt to control the world's money and media in order to enslave us all... (I can go on)
But it's only fair to explain atheism as defined by atheists. After all, they are the ones who identify with the term. So what do THEY believe?
Generally, there are two strains of atheism, as used by atheists:
1. "Strong" atheism- The belief that there are no Gods
2. "Weak" atheism- The lack of belief in Gods
The vast majority of atheists fall into category 2. You're hard-pressed to find an atheist who is absolutely certain that there is no God.
There is a confusion about the terms "agnosticism" and "atheism" and it's important to make the distinction clear.
Agnosticism is a position concerning knowledge of Gods. Agnostics either:
1) believe that there is no way to know for certain whether or not there are Gods
2) are undecided on the issue because they currently lack sufficient evidence
Meanwhile, atheism/theism are positions concerning what you do and do not believe regardless of any claims to knowledge. Thus, fusions between the two are likely:
Agnostic atheist- I do not believe in any Gods because 1) or 2)
Agnostic theist- I believe despite 1) or 2) for any number of reasons (fear of hell, hope, comfort, feeling that there must be some great power/first cause, etc.)
Most self-proclaimed "agnostics" are also atheists. It's very common to hear someone who calls him/herself an agnostic say,
"I don't know whether or not there is a God, so I am neither a theist nor an atheist". But like the second strain of atheism, they do NOT have belief in any Gods. If they did believe, then they wouldn't be undecided! Thus, they are undecided and without belief (agnostic atheist). In much the same way, you can say that all infants and animals are also agnostic atheists!
Now, I say this is true for MOST self-proclaimed agnostics because I have yet to hear someone call him/herself an agnostic AND claim to believe in a God. This is because most self-proclaimed agnostics think of agnosticism as a third-choice between atheism and theism. I'm of the personal opinion that this is largely due to the many negative connotations surrounding the term "atheist" (see colloquial definitions above)
I apologize for the obscene length of this definition (inb4 tl;dr!), so I won't go into detail concerning this next point:
Atheism is NOT a religion. For the same reason, theism is also not a religion. You need more than mere belief/disbelief in a God(s) to be aptly identified as a religion.
Bob: Hey Fred!
Fred: Hey Bob!
Bob: You know, in all our many years of friendship, I've never asked you a simple question. Do you believe in God?
Fred: I'm an atheist-
*violence*
Bob: WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!
Fred: Hey Bob!
Bob: You know, in all our many years of friendship, I've never asked you a simple question. Do you believe in God?
Fred: I'm an atheist-
*violence*
Bob: WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!
by SpankyMuffin October 20, 2008