Are you sure you are an Atheist?

[Nefelie]

~~~
Just a friendly question to all Atheists:

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

or,

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

Thanks for your responces

~~~

 

[Demonslayer]

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

Very, very strongly this.

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

Not so much this, though I don't consider any of this to be versions of "God."

 

[HonestJoe]

I can't speak for anyone else. Rule one is that everyone is individual.

I've never believed in any god or gods so my lack of belief extends to all defined gods by definition. When you use the term God with a capital letter, it's a proper noun referring to a specific individual and an explicit belief in their non-existence can only be based upon how that being is defined by believers. I've heared lots of of different theistic beliefs, claims and assertions in my time but none of them have convinced me of their truth yet.

 

[Marsh]

I came to atheism largely through the problems that arose between Genesis and science; oh, and the inability of the Bible to satisfactorily explain where God came from. Are you one of those people who believe there are no atheists?

 

[Nefelie]

~~~

Very, very strongly this.

Thought so

Not so much this, though I don't consider any of this to be versions of "God."

Why not?

~~~

I've never believed in any god or gods so my lack of belief extends to all defined gods by definition.

What is that “bothers” you about the definitions you have heard so far?

~~~

I came to atheism largely through the problems that arose between Genesis and science; oh, and the inability of the Bible to satisfactorily explain where God came from.

So, basically you do not believe in the Bible... That doesn’t make you an Atheist. You know that, right?

Are you one of those people who believe there are no atheists?

Are we that many? Hahaha...

~~~

 

[NewGuyOnTheBlock]

What the English speaking world does to our language is deplorable. The meanings of words become less precise with time rather than more precise. The word "atheist" belongs in that evergrowing list of words that becomes less and less specific with use; along with the words Theory, Pedophile, God, Fetish and many more.

The most basic definition of "atheist" is "one who withholds belief in gods". This includes those, like myself, who will state emphatically, "There is no God"; but also includes many who will state, "I'm not sure if there is a God or not" and those who would state "I'll believe in God of objectively proven to exist; but as yet, there is no objective evidence to confirm God's existence, so until there exists that objective evidence, I will remain skeptical". All of these share one common thread: withholding of the belief in a deity; and at different extremes.

My belief is "there is no God". I accept this statement as a belief-based statement; as the word "god" is open for interpretation and lacks a unified definitions and a unified determination of the characteristics of what a "god" is and is not; and also, looking at this question from a purely objective standpoint, mankind is as powerless to objectively disprove god as they are powerless to objectively prove god.

So, based on my belief, your question:

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

or,

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

my answer:

I believe there is no God. There is no spirit. There is no soul. There is no hereafter. There is no divinity. There are no "spiritual forces" interacting with the physical realm or life itself. So, I hold there is a non-existence of God; and this includes all fabrications and various definitions of "god".

 

[Kilgore Trout]

~~~
Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

Not in the slightest. Atheism is merely one logical conclusion of being a rational skeptic. No idea, concept, or description of any god(s) I've ever encountered has met even the barest criteria for evidenced existence - similar to ghosts, psychics, big foot, etc. I remain open to all possibilities, but require some type of empirical evidence of something's existence in order to reasonably believe that it actually exists.

Of course, I accept that many other people don't have the same standards for beliefs.

 

[Quintessence]

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

Just want to point out that classical monotheism and polytheism are two very, very different theologies, both of which have considerable heterogeneity within their umbrellas as well.

 

[HonestJoe]

What is that “bothers” you about the definitions you have heard so far?

I never said anything "bothers" me about them, I've just not heard any that convince me of their truth.

 

[Quintessence]

No idea, concept, or description of any god(s) I've ever encountered has met even the barest criteria for evidenced existence - similar to ghosts, psychics, big foot, etc.

Really? I confess I find this very hard to believe considering how long you've been on the forums. Surely you have read at least one post by our resident theists whose theology strongly emphasizes divine immanence (e.g., thunder is Thor, the sun is Sol).

 

[Unveiled Artist]

~~~
Just a friendly question to all Atheists:

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

or,

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

Thanks for your responces

~~~

I am an atheist because I believe in no deities of any religion.

I just have a pet peeve with the idea of the abrahamic/christian god because I am always around Christians who genuinely want me to come to Christ.

I don't understand how one can dislike a god that they don't believe exist; so, I like your question. Maybe some people have specific deities they don't believe in or redefine the word atheism based on how they see it and not whats in the dictionary.

I don't know. It depends on how people define the word.

 

[Sapiens]

~~~
Just a friendly question to all Atheists:

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

or,

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

Thanks for your responces

~~~

No, that is irrelevant, I have no belief in any God’s non-existence, per se. I reject any form of supernaturalism, the absence of a belief in any god is a simple corollary of the classic form ... it therefore follows that ...

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Really? I confess I find this very hard to believe considering how long you've been on the forums. Surely you have read at least one post by our resident theists whose theology strongly emphasizes divine immanence (e.g., thunder is Thor, the sun is Sol).

Thunder is thunder. The sun is the sun. I don't count relabeling as evidence of anything beyond semantics.

 

[Quintessence]

Thunder is thunder. The sun is the sun. I don't count relabeling as evidence of anything beyond semantics.

This is an unfortunately typical response, and demonstrates a lack of understanding of certain types of theism and theologies if one thinks it is mere semantical relabeling.

But this is neither here nor there with respect to the topic of the OP, so perhaps it is best to leave it at that.

 

[ADigitalArtist]

I don't believe life or the universe was created by an intelligent supernatural agent or agents. And I define gods as requiring supernatural agency, so reject the notion that physical substances or events are gods.

 

[Marsh]

So, basically you do not believe in the Bible... That doesn’t make you an Atheist. You know that, right?

You are right, I might not believe the Bible and remain a liberal Christian, but I am not. I've been an atheist for nearly 50 years. Every holy book in the world is strictly a work of human craft, in my estimation, and no gods exist anywhere.

Are we that many? Hahaha...

Oh, there is a few of you around.

 

[Skwim]

What the English speaking world does to our language is deplorable. The meanings of words become less precise with time rather than more precise. The word "atheist" belongs in that evergrowing list of words that becomes less and less specific with use; along with the words Theory, Pedophile, God, Fetish and many more.

The most basic definition of "atheist" is "one who withholds belief in gods". This includes those, like myself, who will state emphatically, "There is no God"; but also includes many who will state, "I'm not sure if there is a God or not"

Think "AGNOSTIC" here.


.

 

[Marsh]

I remain open to all possibilities, but require some type of empirical evidence of something's existence in order to reasonably believe that it actually exists.

I generally agree; but aliens exist, right?

 

[Milton Platt]

~~~
Just a friendly question to all Atheists:

Is your belief of God’s non-existence based entirely on how God is perceived by all Monotheistic religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism) and Polytheistic religions (Hinduism, Old religions etc),

or,

it also covers the Pantheistic philosophies of the One, such as Tao, Zen, Pythagorians/Empedoclians, some Gnostic movements, etc?

Thanks for your responces

~~~

In my case, yes, but this not true of all atheists. It is a lack of belief in a proposition that there is a god. There may be a god or a million gods. But until the evidence supports the proposition, judgement is withheld. I have met many a theist who wasn't sure there was a god....they were just along for the ride.

 

[Milton Platt]

I generally agree; but aliens exist, right?

I live in Texas and we have lots of aliens.......