Atheism: Belief or not a belief?

Well done. I have seen one person who has come through this discussion with a different perspective than they started with. I think the discussion was worth it. (Still is, perhaps.)

Is being a Jedi a religion or just a philosophy, or a code?

Atheism is disbelief in God.

But not all atheist are alike.

Some atheist simply do not believe in God due to a lack of proof, and never give the subject a second thought. To these type of atheists, atheism is not a belief system, but rather simply a fact ("there is no God" is the same as saying, "you can't breathe underwater").

Other atheists, however, had a tough break from religion, and embracing atheism has been a pivotal moment in their lives where they broke off from abuse, lies, and mental barriers, and embraced the freedom (and responsibility!) that comes with being the only one in charge of your life. To these people, whether they are militant or not, atheism is important, and so it is a large part of their identity, in the same way being a Jedi might be a large part of our identity (or not).

Manu wrote: Is being a Jedi a religion or just a philosophy, or a code?

Atheism is disbelief in God.

But not all atheist are alike.

Some atheist simply do not believe in God due to a lack of proof, and never give the subject a second thought. To these type of atheists, atheism is not a belief system, but rather simply a fact ("there is no God" is the same as saying, "you can't breathe underwater").

Other atheists, however, had a tough break from religion, and embracing atheism has been a pivotal moment in their lives where they broke off from abuse, lies, and mental barriers, and embraced the freedom (and responsibility!) that comes with being the only one in charge of your life. To these people, whether they are militant or not, atheism is important, and so it is a large part of their identity, in the same way being a Jedi might be a large part of our identity (or not).

You're right. Not all atheists are alike, but merely share a non-belief in gods.

I simply reject the claim that god(s) exist.

Luthien wrote:

Adder wrote:

Luthien wrote:

Adder wrote: It seems more practical to use the label IMO to reference someone who is exposed to the concept and denies it, versus someone who has not been exposed to the concept and has no position on it. So in that denial, it constitutes a belief, IMO.

I don't deny; I reject. There's nothing to confess, so denial isn't my position.

Same dif to me :ohmy: :pinch:

Okay, so I won't argue over definitions anymore. You're a big boy; use the tools available to you to understand why they are truly different.

Checks pants, yep.
I know the difference the words can mean.... how I used them there is no difference. You can disagree as much as you like, its ok with me.

Whether or not it is a belief, it is grouped in the category of belief discussion. Much like when you ask someone for a stranger's hair color and they say "they're bald"--you're still talking about the type of natural head covering, and we don't spout nonsense about how not having hair doesn't count.