Atheism is NOOOOOOOT a religion!!

[White Tiger Akutare]

I wish we could just forget about religion, just say "Who cares", get on with our lives, so much conflict spared.

But nothing can ever be so simple.

Oh, and atheism isn't a religion, it believes nothing.  

[Sforzando Poco]

Designer Genes

Verderbnis

And misery, suffering, war, diseases, poverty, crime, rape, murder, robbery, genocide, all that because someone said it's an order by god.

How many people have an order by god to walk the rightful path of negotiation and diplomatics today?

The amount of good being done by a alcoholics producer spending one traffic light is more then the good as a whole being done by the church in its entire history.

War is never and has almost never been fought over religion. It is fought over resources.

...
You actually said that, didn't you?
If war isn't fought because of religion even in part, then can you explain the crusades to me? Because I obviously missed something... -___-
Oh, and all the conflict in the middle east as well. Please explain that too.

 

[SpokenSoftly]

White Tiger Akutare

I wish we could just forget about religion, just say "Who cares", get on with our lives, so much conflict spared.

But nothing can ever be so simple.

Oh, and atheism isn't a religion, it believes nothing.

You're thinking of nihilism. Atheism is, insofar as I have been able to understand, the position that there is not a supreme being that created the universe.

I hold the opinion that atheism is, while not a religion in and of itself, still a religious position. A true atheist thinks of a god or gods constantly, albeit in terms of unbelief, therefore he (or she, as the case may be) takes a religious position, if not strictly speaking having a religion.

((Note: Agnostic, formerly of the Moravian Church prior to 1987))  

[Aashif]

"A religion is merely a set of moral codes that is expressed through myths, legends, or any type of literary device in order to establish a system of beliefs, values, and rules, which regulate a culture and society"
...i do love that quote...
if atheism isnt a set of codes then what is it?
its something to live by, while it not might be one of the prominent dynamic religions in todays society it believes simply to not believe.

I think how we define religion in this conversation is going all askew because we assume that a religion has to have a god.  

[Sullen Couch]

Atheism is, in my opinion, the complete disbelief in a higher power and/or afterlife, and refusal to abide by any pre-set moral codes.
Someone could, theoretically, be, from a moral standpoint, Roman Catholic, but not actually believe that there is a God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, et cetera.
Meaning--
A person could believe in fidelity, monogamy, and all that jazz, but might still doubt the existence in a God of any sort.

Thus, atheism is not a religion.
Aashif, if it were a religion, all athiests would be expected to believe in exactly the same things as other athiests.  

[SpokenSoftly]

Sullen Horror

Atheism is, in my opinion, the complete disbelief in a higher power and/or afterlife, and refusal to abide by any pre-set moral codes.
Someone could, theoretically, be, from a moral standpoint, Roman Catholic, but not actually believe that there is a God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, et cetera.
Meaning--
A person could believe in fidelity, monogamy, and all that jazz, but might still doubt the existence in a God of any sort.

Thus, atheism is not a religion.
Aashif, if it were a religion, all athiests would be expected to believe in exactly the same things as other athiests.

Not really. There are different denominations of Protestantism, etc.  

[Alizarin Sol]

The funny part is, if religion didn't exist, niether would atheists.

The whole idea of atheism is to reject religion, in hopes of making life simpler. Hey, who can blame 'em? There's like a hundred different religions, and there's many ways to look at it.

Maybe there's only ONE correct religion.
Maybe all religions are right, and everything exists at once.
Maybe NONE of our religions are right, and maybe something completely different happens after death. After all, isn't most of religion just one big series of build-up that eventually boils down to "What's going to happen when we die"?

Atheists decide to believe in nothing, and decide to find out what happens after death WHEN they actually die. Making atheism the opposite of a religion.  

[Mad Haru]

Quppins

Sullen Horror

Atheism is, in my opinion, the complete disbelief in a higher power and/or afterlife, and refusal to abide by any pre-set moral codes.
Someone could, theoretically, be, from a moral standpoint, Roman Catholic, but not actually believe that there is a God, Jesus, Holy Spirit, et cetera.
Meaning--
A person could believe in fidelity, monogamy, and all that jazz, but might still doubt the existence in a God of any sort.

Thus, atheism is not a religion.
Aashif, if it were a religion, all athiests would be expected to believe in exactly the same things as other athiests.

Not really. There are different denominations of Protestantism, etc.

Maybe so, but they all have their own set of ways a person should live.  

[Skald the Philistine]

We have to die in battle, so that Valkyries will take our souls to Valhalla.

Duh.

 

[xXx suicidal_skittles xXx]

Isnt religon based upon what you believe? Well, then if a person believes that there isnt a god or doesnt believe in any sort of common religous thing then isnt that a religon it self? Because they believe that there isnt a god. So by means Atheism is a religion.  

[Mad Haru]

Skald the Philistine

We have to die in battle, so that Valkyries will take our souls to Valhalla.

Duh.

You do have a point.  

[tikitales]

Arenlor

Sorry, atheism is a religion. In America the definition of organized worship in order to be a religion is covered by:
1. Having 2000 or more members, check
2. Having a distinct set of doctrine that differs from other religions, check (the doctrine that there is no deity)
3. Having a set place of gatherings, check (I can't remember where it meets but there is a huge gathering yearly, that counts)

So having met all three requirements they are recognized as a religion in the United States of America, therefore they cannot claim to be against all religions without declaring a holy war against America itself. America has the Trinity Act, which declared America to be a Christian nation. Hence anyone, such as Islamic extremists, or atheists, who claims to want to destroy Christianity through violence is declaring war on this sovereign nation.

The english people first came America to be free from religious pressure and in my opinion we are not a christian nation but a nation of freedom and since all cultures and beliefs are welcome here...I find what you just said offensive...and if it is true, then there needs to be some change in legislation...no wonder christians believe they rule the world...blah...  

[Ookami hime95]

Alizarin Sol

The funny part is, if religion didn't exist, niether would atheists.

The whole idea of atheism is to reject religion, in hopes of making life simpler. Hey, who can blame 'em? There's like a hundred different religions, and there's many ways to look at it.

Maybe there's only ONE correct religion.
Maybe all religions are right, and everything exists at once.
Maybe NONE of our religions are right, and maybe something completely different happens after death. After all, isn't most of religion just one big series of build-up that eventually boils down to "What's going to happen when we die"?

Atheists decide to believe in nothing, and decide to find out what happens after death WHEN they actually die. Making atheism the opposite of a religion.

I like the way you think...Very smart.  

[Prince-I]

Doctor_Whiteface

White Tiger Akutare

I wish we could just forget about religion, just say "Who cares", get on with our lives, so much conflict spared.

But nothing can ever be so simple.

Oh, and atheism isn't a religion, it believes nothing.

You're thinking of nihilism. Atheism is, insofar as I have been able to understand, the position that there is not a supreme being that created the universe.

I hold the opinion that atheism is, while not a religion in and of itself, still a religious position. A true atheist thinks of a god or gods constantly, albeit in terms of unbelief, therefore he (or she, as the case may be) takes a religious position, if not strictly speaking having a religion.

((Note: Agnostic, formerly of the Moravian Church prior to 1987))

He stated preciselyh my argument, minus one thing.

Thing back to the Ancient days, when we didn't have complex machinery, back thousands of years "BC." Things happened that people couldn't understand. Man, being a creature that doesn't like the unknowns decided to create something that explained mishaps (such as how the Earth was made, lightning storms, tide swell, etc.) All of this came to become the first religion. So people created this religion, which shows that people created the deity which ruled said religion.

Religion is defined as "something one believes in and follows devotedly." This does not state anything about meetings, it's just a commonly held belief.

To put me aside from many others, I am a realist. If you don't know what a realist is, go look it up.  

[Prince-I]

Ookami hime95

Alizarin Sol

The funny part is, if religion didn't exist, niether would atheists.

The whole idea of atheism is to reject religion, in hopes of making life simpler. Hey, who can blame 'em? There's like a hundred different religions, and there's many ways to look at it.

Maybe there's only ONE correct religion.
Maybe all religions are right, and everything exists at once.
Maybe NONE of our religions are right, and maybe something completely different happens after death. After all, isn't most of religion just one big series of build-up that eventually boils down to "What's going to happen when we die"?

Atheists decide to believe in nothing, and decide to find out what happens after death WHEN they actually die. Making atheism the opposite of a religion.

I like the way you think...Very smart.

UGh, atheism is a religion. The BELIEVE that God doesn't exist. The prefix "a-" or "an-" means no, or without. Theism is a belief in a god. Atheism is without the belief of God, in other words, believing in no God. Atheists don't believe nothing, as stated before, that is nihilism.