Lack of belief in gods.

[Curious George]

Why does it seem important to some to view a lack of belief in gods as a belief itself?

To make atheism part of the conversation. If you cannot hold a belief, you cannot hold a discussion about the topic.

 

[Cephus]

Well I hope you don't work for the coast guard!

Why? You think the Coast Guard is delusional?

 

[Satans_Serrated_Edge]

Only if one defines atheist as "anything not theist."

That is what the word MEANS. So yes, anyone that knows what the word means.

 

[Cephus]

Only if one defines atheist as "anything not theist."

It is a binary position. You either believe in gods or you do not.

 

[Curious George]

That is what the word MEANS. So yes, anyone that knows what the word means.

That is circular reasoning.

 

[Curious George]

It is a binary position. You either believe in gods or you do not.

It is a binary position either you believe gods do not exist or you don't.

 

[Curious George]

How about your belief in Thomas Cruz of South Texas. He has a very strong business building houses, makes good money, works hard, has a somewhat attractive wife and 3 kids.

Do you;
Believe he exists,
or do you not believe he exists?

Is there a third possibility? Maybe you hold neither belief?

Nope.

 

[Cephus]

It is a binary position either you believe gods do not exist or you don't.

By default, if you believe gods exist, you believe in a god or gods. Thanks for agreeing with me, I guess.

 

[Cobol]

Atheists do not accept that imaginary creatures or powers do exist as no scientific evidence is extant in support of those propositions. This is not a belief, it is just lack of scientific evidence in their support.

That which we do not know is our ignorance and seen in that light, a belief in the supernatural etc. is giving ignorance far greater credibility than reasoned thinking should permit.

A belief the Sun will come up tomorrow. Forgotten, so it seems, is that by example of the Sun coming up every day for billions of years hence, shows a pattern that cannot be denied that it will come up again tomorrow. Belief has nothing to do with it.

If religions and such could do likewise and show by previous experience or experiment that some part of future action could be predicted, it would then no longer be a “belief” system.

If belief in the super-natural had some kind of quantifiable substance to it, then it would escape the realms of our acceptance of ignorance as a way of explaining the world.

The religious and others have a belief that ignorance is superior to empirical knowledge.

Atheist see no credible empirical or scientific evidence for the super-natural and therefore reject the notion as one only originating from our ignorance.

There is absolutely no similarity between the Atheist philosophical stance in life and that of the religious. Atheists accept only facts, whereas the religious find no need for them.

 

[Jeremiahcp]

To make atheism part of the conversation. If you cannot hold a belief, you cannot hold a discussion about the topic.

That is just ridiculous.

 

[Nakosis]

Why does it seem important to some to view a lack of belief in gods as a belief itself?

I'd suppose to show that an atheist relies faith on as much as themselves.

 

[Satans_Serrated_Edge]

That is circular reasoning.

I'm not sure circular reasoning means what you think it does.

 

[Lorgar-Aurelian]

Abolished? Not in the foreseeable future.

Matured above the way exagerated association with theism that it all too often has these days? Definitely.

It seems to me these days that the religion with the mo

Much more important than a religious community. We need more and more atheist to step up and actively deny they believe all the insane beliefs that have been pushed down cultures for millennia so that we can free society from teh burden of religion.

Isn't it strange that religious people feel the need to gather and judge others, tell them they'll burn in hell, if they don't convert, conform, do like the rest of them....religion pretty much seems xenophobic to me.

I have doubts that we'd ever be able to get rid of religion. I think spirituality is an integral part of humanity and that simply trying to get rid of it wouldn't really work.

 

[Thief]

What they mean is: it might be silly to believe in things without evidence, but you are no better than us.

Ciao

- viole

and you could say this again?....as we stand before God and heaven

 

[FunctionalAtheist]

Nope.

Do you;
So you do not believe he exists,
you not believe he does not exists?

And you do not believe there is there a third possibility, that you do not hold either belief above?

Curious, George! Very curious!

 

[Thief]

Atheists do not accept that imaginary creatures or powers do exist as no scientific evidence is extant in support of those propositions. This is not a belief, it is just lack of scientific evidence in their support.

I believe in God because of science

by science....an item at rest will remain at rest until moved

the universe is moving

Something set it into motion

Spirit first

 

[Curious George]

By default, if you believe gods exist, you believe in a god or gods. Thanks for agreeing with me, I guess.

Why wouldn't it agree that a person who believes god exists believes in God?? Of course I agree with that.

But perhaps you missed something.

 

[Curious George]

That is just ridiculous.

How so?

 

[Curious George]

I'm not sure circular reasoning means what you think it does.

Your argument was literally: we define atheism as not theism because we define atheism as not theism.

 

[Curious George]

Do you;
So you do not believe he exists,
you not believe he does not exists?

And you do not believe there is there a third possibility, that you do not hold either belief above?

Curious, George! Very curious!

I believe he does not exist. The rest was rhetorical was it not? I figured you could follow.