Why do people of faith insist that Athiests believe in something too....?

Question

I am an athiest with pastafarian tendensies *if you dont know, dont ask*

I do not believe in anything unexplainable...there is no spirituallity in me, so why do religeous folks HAVE to believe that I do indeed believe in something, can they simply not ingvision someone like me?

Answer 1

Whoa... slow down people...

Let me address some of the misconceptions of other answerers before I address the question.

First off, atheism comes in many forms. An atheist is simply a person who does not believe in God. This could mean a lot of things -- it could mean they haven't been taught the concept of god; it could mean they hate their Christian parents and so they are rebelling by not believing; it could mean that they've concluded that the idea of a supernatural being is self-contradictory, and so cannot exist. Atheism comes from the prefix "a" (or "an"), meaning "without", and "theism", meaning "belief-in-god". So, translated literally, an atheist is "without-belief-in-god". This is just like apolitical (without-political-beliefs), anorexic (without-appetite), anemic (without-normal-amount-of-red-blood-cells), etc... Those of you claiming that all atheists have some sort of positive disbelief need to check your sources and the history of the word.

Likewise, agnosticism is not a "middle ground" as many conceive it to be. When you say "I'm agnostic, it's impossible to prove or disprove god," you haven't actually stated whether you believe or not. You've only made a statement about the knowability of the answer. Just saying "I'm agnostic" doesn't really tell anyone what you believe. You have to say "I'm agnostic, and I do/do not believe in god" Either way, you end up being an atheist or a theist. Those are two halves of a sphere, there's no middle ground.

As for the question, I think honeys9702's answer was dead-on. For almost all religious people, belief in the existence of god is about way more than just the existence of god. For them, god and day-to-day life are intricately connected, such that they cannot (unfortunately) even conceive of a worldview divorced from god. Many that I have talked to are scared of seriously looking into atheism -- not because of what their friends might think, but because they themselves believe that atheism leads to a bleak, existential outlook on life.

For them, belief in god is not just an academic topic, but is a way of life. So they equate "way of life" with "belief in god." Thus, the logic: Everyone has a "way of life" (or, more technically, a worldview), therefore, everyone must have a "god."

That (I think) is the logic behind it. It's internally consistent, but that's only because the religious person making the statement cannot conceive of a worldview (especially a moral worldview) that does not include god. So it doesn't make sense to them because when you say "I don't believe in god" it translates to them as "I don't have a worldview," which is impossible for any conscious being.

I hope this rambling was coherent...

Answer 2

I'd like to venture a guess.

Figuring that people of faith are mostly going by the ten commandments and you are a decent person, they are probably equating that with 'faith' or a belief in a supreme being. If you haven't killed anyone, committed adultery or fornication, lied, coveted, dissed your folks, then you "must believe in something" when you're just being a decent human being who was raised to know the difference between right and wrong.

Does this help you at all? ;)

Answer 3

atheists do believe in something. Believing in nothing means to BELIEVE that nothing exists. This takes a lot more faith than believing in a God. To claim that in ALL the universe, you KNOW beyond a doubt that there cannot be a god. A brave thing to believe when you think how big the universe is and how little part of it you've seen with your own eyes. Atheism is to declare yourself a god because you don't need another god. That is self-worship(ironically one of the oldest religions in the world).

Answer 4

OMG aren't pastafaris the ones believing the universe was made by a giant pasta monster?well,eh never mind. I'm an atheist to and I think all those people just mean that atheist don't not believe in anything. We just don't believe in god and that's believing something too.Atheism kind of doesn't even exist because Atheism=not believing in anything would mean that if you believe in atheism you do believ in something and then you wouldn't be an atheist. Kind of hard to understand but it makes sense if you think about it

Answer 5

Don't confuse faith with belief. Faith is believing without any observation. Belief is believing by observations.

I think evey person does have his ow beliefs. I, as an atheist, believe in evolution and science. Are you sure you do not believe in anything unexplainable?

Evolution as a theory does not show enough evidence to confirm the possibility of macroevolution; that is the evolution from one species to another. Yet most of us believe in evolution as a theory. Do you believe in time? Can you explain to me what time is?

Answer 6

Cognitive dissonance is the perception of incompatibility between two cognitions, which can be defined as any element of knowledge, including attitude, emotion, belief, or behavior. The theory of cognitive dissonance holds that contradicting cognitions serve as a driving force that compels the mind to acquire or invent new thoughts or beliefs, or to modify existing beliefs, so as to reduce the amount of dissonance (conflict) between cognitions. Experiments have attempted to quantify this hypothetical drive.

The theory of cognitive dissonance was first proposed by the psychologist Leon Festinger in 1956 after observing the counterintuitive belief persistence of members of a UFO doomsday cult and their increased proselytization after the leader's prophecy failed. The failed message of earth's destruction, sent by aliens to a suburban housewife in 1956, became a disconfirmed expectancy that increased dissonance between cognitions, thereby causing most members of the impromptu cult to lessen the dissonance by accepting a new prophecy; that the aliens had instead spared the planet for their sake.[1]

Answer 7

Atheists have one stated belief:

THERE IS NO GOD.

This is just as hard to "prove" as there is a God. If you are an atheist you DO believe in something without haveing the direct evidence for it(at best you have anecdotal evidence, which is not considered scientifically valid) You believe the above statement. If you are not sure that there is no God, you are an agnostic, not an atheist.

Answer 8

Hmm, that's actually a sad way to live life not believing in anything. Not even a faith in yourself? I'm not a religious person. I do however believe in God and in Jesus Christ as my personal saviour. I don't think you have to believe in what I believe but I do think that your personal spiritual choices impact your life in more ways than you think.

Why can't I ask what pastafarian is? Can't explain it or just don't understand it yourself?

Answer 9

People of faith are classified as Christian, Jewish, Protestant, Muslims, or whatever according to their respective faiths.

Atheism is a belief system as well. It is the belief that God does not exist. In order for one to be considered an atheist, one must profess a belief that God does not exist, hence the ideal that atheism is a belief system.

Answer 10

The truth is: You believe in Atheism. It is still a belief system. There is no proof one way or the other that there is or is not a God. Your choice to believe that there is no God is just as real as a Christians belief that there is a God.

Answer 11

Alrighty then, my son! You don't believe in anything therefore you believe in nothing. It's still a belief, albeit not one of so-called spirituality. Believe or do not believe in what you choose. No skin off my furry little nose. Blessings of a Pagan Mom anyways.