Question:
Can you help me clarify Atheism?
Steve
2008-03-14 14:11:06 UTC
I'm getting different answers, and I need some clarification.

New Oxford American Dictionary that comes with my Mac says:
atheism |ˈāθēˌizəm|
noun
the theory or belief that God does not exist.

So... it's a belief? right?
But people are insistent that it's the lack of or absence in a belief in God... But I thought that was Agnosticism.

So do atheists...
A) believe there is/are no God(s).
B) lack a belief in a God or Gods.

Obviously if you feel it's A, then B is implied. You see the subtle difference between A and B though?

So set me straight... which is it, or are there two sects in atheism? ;-)
38 answers:
Jeff D
2008-03-14 21:56:35 UTC
Dog and sweet Jebus! I get tired of this question and all variations on it.



Look in all the dictionaries you can find as often as you like, but remember that even though lexicographers try really hard to provide definitions that accurately describe what most English-speaking users mean when they use a word, the lexicographers are mostly Christians, Jews or other monotheists. Hence the use of the capitalized "God" in the definition. Most dictionaries also offer a definition of "God" with a capital g.



There is no practical or operational distinction between saying that an atheist "lacks a belief in gods" or "believes that no gods exist" or "is convinced that no gods exist" or "denies the existence of gods." The difference is merely word choice or semantics. What's the same is how the atheist gets to the mental stance or perspective (of having a conviction that no gods exist, or believing that they don't, or lacking a belief that gods do exist, etc.): Looking for and evaluating the evidence pro or con, and finding that there is no credible evidence supporting the existence of supernatural beings as anything other than man-made inventions.



I adapted the rest of my answer here from one that I posted LESS THAN A WEEK AGO in response to a question stated as "Definitions of gnosticism/agnosticism and theism/atheism: would these definitions seem agreeable to you?"



Yes, agnostics also "lack a belief" in the existence of gods, but there is more to agnosticism than that. In standard English, "agnostic" is never used except to describe a mental or philosophical stance that the existence or non-existence of gods is unknowable or a nonsensical or unresolvable problem.



Both atheists and theists can differ in the level of confidence they express about their belief or non-belief. But quite a few atheists whom I know don't say that they are "99.5 percent certain" or "99.9 percent certain" of their non-belief in gods. They prefer to say that the existence of a personal god (of the sort depicted in the Bible) is so improbable (0.5 percent or 0.1 percent, etc.) that they have concluded no gods exist and choose to conduct their lives accordingly. Agnostics usually conduct their lives in much the same way, according to the same secular, naturalistic worldview. The only difference is that if you ask an agnostic, "Do gods exist?", the agnostic will usually answer "No one knows" or "No one can know" or "That question makes no sense / is unresolvable" instead of "I am 90 percent confident that gods don't exist" -- even if the last statement is a completely accurate summary of the agnostic's "belief" or mental state on the question.



From the New Oxford American Dictionary, 2nd edition (2005):



atheism (n..). The theory or belief that God does not exist. Late 16th cent. from French athéisme, from Greek atheos, from a- 'without' + theos 'god.' -- atheist n. / -- atheistic adj.



agnostic (n.). A person who believes that nothing is known or can be known of the existence or nature of God or of anything beyond material phenomena; a person who claims neither faith nor disbelief in God.



God (n.) 1. [capitalized and without a definite article] (In Christianity and other monotheistic religions) the creator and ruler of the universe and source of all moral authority; the supreme being. 2. god [uncapitalized] (in certain other religions) a superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature or human fortunes; a deity.



There are no "sects" within atheism, because atheism is not a religion and there is no operational or practical difference between your A and your B.
The Doc
2008-03-14 14:15:58 UTC
Atheism isn't a religion, so it can't have sects.

As for the difference between an atheist and an agnostic, when asked if god exists, an agnostic will say, "I don't know". An atheist will say, "no".

If you don't think that a total lack of evidence is a good enough reason to say that something does not exist, then let me ask you this, do you think that the flying spaghetti monster exists? How about the Invisible Pink Unicorn? Is it even possible that I might be an omnipotent god who's just screwing with you head right now? Is there a teapot orbiting the sun outside of the asteroid ring?
whitneyskywalker
2008-03-14 14:38:45 UTC
I think you're confusing "beliefs" with "religion." An atheist can "believe" that there is no god, but at the same time lack a religion. Agnostics do not lack a belief in god...they are not certain if there is a god, and in many cases do not care.
miyuki & kyojin
2008-03-14 14:27:08 UTC
I can only speak for myself here, because there are many individual athesits, and it is illogical to try to overgenerlize about them (or anyone else). You should read more closely and read more specialized dictionaries. Theories and beliefs are quite different. Look them up in science books. Beliefs have no place in my life. Scientific theories do, but beliefs do not. Read what you said again. Look up agnosticism. A dictionary of philosophy is much better for such matters as this. If you say agnostics and atheists are the same, you do not begin to comprehend them. You are playing semantic games and trying to distort things too for you own devious purposes, but you cannot change reality with such deceit. There are not just two types of atheists. Each one is different. I have knowledge from research and thinking, not merely blind groundless beliefs.
novangelis
2008-03-14 14:18:35 UTC
Agnosticism is about the unknowability. An agnostic atheist does not believe that gods exist, but also denies the knowledge that it is an absolute. Both A and B are Atheism, Strong and Weak Atheism respectively. They are not sects as there is no defining text for either. They are classifications.
2008-03-14 14:16:27 UTC
Atheism is a theory or belief that God does not exist because, like the reverse, it cannot be proven. It can only ever be a theory.



To believe in something and to believe it exists mean the same thing in this instance.
?
2008-03-14 14:14:15 UTC
a·the·ism

–noun

1.the doctrine or belief that there is no God.

2.disbelief in the existence of a supreme being or beings. (Check your Mac for the definition of disbelief).



ag·nos·ti·cism

–noun

1.the doctrine or belief of an agnostic.

2.an intellectual doctrine or attitude affirming the uncertainty of all claims to ultimate knowledge.



MOST words can be defined in more than one way. (Note the 1,2,3...etc under each word in the dictionary) That doesn't mean that most words spoken have separate sects. See "egotistical" for example, (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/egotistical) which has 3 different explanations or definitions. Does that mean there are 3 sects of egotism? Of course not.



That should clear up any confusion.

Good Day!
2008-03-14 14:15:15 UTC
Atheists assign a probability to god existing that is roughly equivalent to my car spontaneously tunnelling and reassembling on top of the Taj Mahal. Most of us would accept good proof of god, were it to be provided to us. Some atheists will claim to know god does not exist because of the logical parodoxes intrinsic in an omnipotent, omnicsient god. Others will allow for a god that is just shy of omipotence/omnicsience, and assign it a probability as mentioned above.



An agnostic assigns a probabilty of god existing to be much higher than that, and claims that we can never know, and people who pretend otherwise are arrogant.



So I would say that atheists LACK belief, since many would acquire belief should adequate evidence be provided.
marbledog
2008-03-14 14:20:05 UTC
Atheism is occassionally subclassed into "strong" or "positive" atheism, which fills condition A. "Weak" or "negative" atheism fills condition B.



The precise definition of the terms depend largely on who you ask. American Atheists defines it by the strong definition, in addition to skeptical emipiricism.



Personally, I like to stick to the etymological definitions to avoid confusion. A person who believes in a god or gods is a theist. A person without belief in a god or gods is an atheist.



Please note that an atheist may be either gnostic or agnostic. Agnosticism is a position on knowledge, not belief.
MishMash [I am not one of your fans]
2008-03-14 14:19:59 UTC
Belief:

NOUN:

1. The mental act, condition, or habit of placing trust or confidence in another: 'My belief in you is as strong as ever.'

2. Mental acceptance of and conviction in the truth, actuality, or validity of something: 'His explanation of what happened defies belief.'

3. Something believed or accepted as true, especially a particular tenet or a body of tenets accepted by a group of persons.

Atheism is a belief, yes, but belief does not always mean religion is involved. Atheism is the belief that there are no gods of any kind... Period.

Agnosticism is the belief that there may be a god. If one is agnostic, one doesn't believe firmly one way or another.
Blackacre
2008-03-14 14:15:16 UTC
Atheism: belief that God does not exist



Agnosticism: lack of belief in God or Gods



What's the problem? Agnostics don't know whether there is a God. Atheists believe there definitely isn't one. It's pretty straightforward (if yet an oversimplification)
Take it from Toby
2008-03-14 14:16:15 UTC
It's a belief in a negative. So it could also be called a lack of belief I guess. There are technically different types of Atheism. But none of them involve a belief in God.
Fenrir
2008-03-14 14:17:06 UTC
To me, a true atheist does not believe in God, Allah, or any other supreme being that affects mankind. They hold no spiritual beliefs whatsoever and deal exclusively with the facts of the real world and scientifically proveable theory.



Someone who doesn't believe in any of the mainstream religions but believes in a Giant, Flying Spaghett-Monster being responsible for the creation of all life on the planet is not an atheist. If you have any belief in a being/power/entity beyond that which is scientifically proven to exist then you're not an atheist.



As an aside, if you don't believe in God but pray to win the lottery, you're not an atheist, just a hypocrit like the rest of us. :P
2008-03-14 14:15:42 UTC
Both actually.



Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

a·the·ism /ˈeɪθiˌɪzəm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[ey-thee-iz-uhm] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation

–noun

1. the doctrine or belief that there is no God.

2. disbelief in the existence of a supreme being or beings.

[Origin: 1580–90; < Gk áthe(os) godless + -ism]
Sara
2008-03-14 14:25:53 UTC
if u believe there is no god is much different then a lack of beilef in god

if u believe there is no God, u cant hav a lack of belief in him

a lack of belief is when u kno there is a god u just chose not 2 worship him

so if u believe there is no God, u cant hav a lack of belief in him

it isnt the same
xxprincessniaxx
2008-03-14 14:19:47 UTC
Atheist and Christian = antonyms

Christians believe there is a God (I do too)

Atheists don't they go against god.

There are people who aren't against God they just don't believe in him. But Atheists are totally against God and tell people there's no such thing. But there is. Example look at this beautiful world the trees and look at ur self the way when you get cut theres a scab God did that in his amazing plan for this world.
2008-03-14 14:15:20 UTC
Ok, good question.



I not not believe in any gods. I lack the POSITIVE belief. I would never say, "I know for certain that no gods exist." I would say, "There is no evidence for the existence of gods, therefore I have no reasonto believe they exist."
mugfullo2
2008-03-14 14:14:45 UTC
Yeah, I don't get this either. Isn't a lack of belief essentially saying there is no God according to what I believe?
t_rex_is_mad
2008-03-14 14:13:54 UTC
Atheism is the lack of belief in any gods..



Agnostics maintain that there is no way to know. May be gods, maybe no gods.
twitchymcspank
2008-03-14 14:15:11 UTC
Yes, Atheism is when you HAVE a belief that does not include a god or deity, and Agnostic is when you don't believe in anything at all.
2008-03-16 03:55:13 UTC
My experience of atheists is:



1.) They don't want to say that God definitely does not exist, because they want to accuse theists of dogmatism for saying he definitely does. (Although they say no such thing).



2.) They want to boost their numbers by recruiting agnostics to their cause, and so they define atheism in such a way that it practically becomes a synonym for agnosticism.
asherlyrslo
2008-03-14 14:17:43 UTC
This is an interesting question. so Atheists do belong to a religion, just a religion that doesn't believe God exists. And b/c they all believe in there being no God, it kinda makes it into a religion, right?
2008-03-14 14:18:03 UTC
Both.A is hard atheism.B is soft atheism or even agnosticism.You can say it's like 2 sects but we never argue with each other so...
MoeK
2008-03-14 14:16:50 UTC
I think it has a lot to do with death. Atheists do not believe in life after death. They don't believe in reincarnation. Atheism is all about being more concerned with life as we know it than death as religious people like to dream about it.



Methinks.
42
2008-03-14 14:15:08 UTC
It's a lack of belief.
Chippy v1.0.0.3b
2008-03-14 14:13:49 UTC
lack of belief in god or gods.



a - without

theism - belief in god.



so: a + theism = atheism

without + belief in god = atheism



agnosticism is believing that you cannot know whether a god exists or not.
Blue girl in a red state
2008-03-14 14:14:32 UTC
I do not believe in the existence of any gods. Period.



Agnostics are open to the possibility that gods might exist.
~michael P.
2008-03-14 14:19:45 UTC
Atheists do not believe there is a god. They do believe there is not a god. They believe it is mistaken to believe there is a god. They believe it is not mistaken to not believe there is not a god.

They believe that if they believed in a god, they would be mistaken in that belief. Etc., etc.
2008-03-14 14:18:17 UTC
It's B. The first definition is strange; wouldn't a pagan, believing in multiple gods, none of whom is named "God" fit it?
vérité
2008-03-14 14:15:04 UTC
I can't prove that dragons and fairies don't exist, but I still don't believe they exist. Is that clear?



... and yes, there are two camps... one type of atheist says: I can prove there are no gods... the other type simply says: I don't believe they exist.
Guessses, A.R.T.
2008-03-14 14:14:36 UTC
My Answer: Is Day Light the absense of Night.
2008-03-14 14:15:36 UTC
Atheist. No deity, no spirituality, no afterlife.

Agnostic. Maybe there are all of the above and maybe there aren´t.
2008-03-14 14:15:15 UTC
Would you argue that not collecting stamps is a hobby? Or that bald is a hair style?
Mike K
2008-03-14 14:14:48 UTC
The faithful say "There IS a God"

the Athiests say "There is NO God"

Agnostics say "We CANNOT know if there is a God"
2008-03-14 14:14:41 UTC
no god....... no believe...... no nothing



just a lot of babby eating and drinking!
2008-03-14 14:39:22 UTC
they eat me!
eglonr
2008-03-14 14:18:46 UTC
if they can't see it.....it doesn't exist
2008-03-14 14:17:32 UTC
Dumb question, simply dumb


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