A couple questions about atheists.?

Question

Do atheists have beliefs?
Is atheism a religion?
What do atheist believe is their purpose on Earth?
Do atheists dislike Christians?
Why do atheists talk about religious issues all the time?

This is not for or against your beliefs...just curious
Please- no hateful responses

Answer 1

I have plenty of beliefs - However, one of them is not in a god
No it is not
I make my own purpose
No, I don't dislike christians as a group, I dispise some of them
No, I don't talk about religious issues all the time`

Answer 2

The first question to answer is - no, it is not a religion. There is no atheist version of the 10 commandments. It is a completely individual decision. The only commanlity is that atheists do not believe in god. Not any version.

Yes, atheists have beliefs. But not in god.

It varies from individual to individual.

Some do, some don't. Some christians dislike other christians too.

What you really mean is, why are we HERE? Because 1) this is not a christian category; 2) religion doesn't have to include theology. Buddhism is a religion without theology; 3) to discuss spirituality (note this is Religion and Spirituality); 4) some people hang out in Society & Culture, the mother ship for R&S, and happen to see R&S questions that way.

Answer 3

Atheists are defined by what they don't believe. We don't believe in God. We don't believe in something without proof or reason. It isn't a religion, its the absence of religion.

Finding your purpose on this earth is part of a personal journey. For atheist this journey is usually unguided but most develop a strong sense of purpose.

Atheists do not dislike Christians. Some are superficially Christian or still relate to them. Many started out as Christian and my have a lot of Christian friends and family members. Some atheists dislike some Christians but not all. Many dislike fundamentalists and radicals but feel the rest are fine, just don't get violent or rude and we all get along OK.

Atheists value freedom and free-thought, most are thinkers and love to be proven wrong. We love to discuss what people think and feel. Not believing we know it all already we are learning constantly. We aren't restricted from thinking, questioning or examining things the way some religious are and we tend to celebrate this regularly with discussion. A true religion will stand up to this scrutiny with barely a sway. If you are quiet certain you are right, you have nothing to fear from an atheist that wants to discuss religion. Remember, deep down we all want you to be right. You're just not.

Answer 4

I have many beliefs. I believe I typed this, for example. I just have no belief in the existence of any gods.

Religion is a set of beliefs about the existence of one or more gods. Atheism is just a lack of that belief. Secular Humanism is the closest thing to an atheist religion, in that it promotes a moral structure, but not all atheists are Secular Humanists. If atheism is a religion, then bald is a hair color.

The only purpose in a people's lives is that which they make for themselves.

I dislike some Christians and I like others. I think their religion is a superstition. I understand why they hang onto it, though, and don't hate them for that.

A lot of atheists used to be religious. It is a long road to realizing there are no gods, and it usually takes much study into the nature of religion. This tends to make atheists more knowledgeable about religion than most theists. People like talking about what they know about. Also, people tend to not like it when falsehood is spread, especially when laws are made according to that falsehood. Therefore, both out of compassion and self-preservation, atheists like to educate others about what they've learned, themselves.

Answer 5

Of course atheists have beliefs. "That god exists" just doesn't happen to be one of them.

I wouldn't consider atheism a religion -- I don't meet with other atheists, nor are there any standardized codes of belief or nonbelief.

I don't see why there has to be a purpose to life in order to have a meaningful life, but I do my best to be a good person. That's enough for me, but I guess it isn't for some people.

I don't have anything against Christians or people of any other religion, for that matter, *unless* they feel the need to tell me how I'm a terrible person and I'm going to hell and all that. I think many atheists are *frustrated* with Christians. I also know that in my experiences in my early days of atheism, it was usually other people who would move the conversation toward religion. I don't know if that's the case with the people you know, but it might be worth considering that other people might be the ones bringing up the topic.

As with anything, it's probably a good idea not to generalize, and my answers may not be the same as everyone else's answers.

Answer 6

Do atheists have beliefs? Of course, they believe that there is no God or other Divine Being and therefore do not have to conform to any religion. We all have beliefs about a great many things and atheists are no exception.

Is atheism a religion? Depends on what you mean by "religion". It is a belief system or philosophy much like many others. Since there is no way to prove the non-existence of God, there is a certain measure of faith required to hold that position. I personally consider it a religion, but many atheists would disagree with that.

Purpose on earth? In the strictest sense, since there is no higher power than the individual, there is no purpose other than the continued existence on this planet. Since there is no belief in an afterlife, this is all you get.

Dislike Christians? Some. From my experience, I have known many atheists and have been good friends with them. many think I am misguided in my devotion to a Divine Being, as I think they are misguided in their refusal to accept His existence. But I do not think all in all that they hate Christians.

Why discuss issues? There are a number of reasons. Some like the discussion of the abstract and metaphysical. Some do like to insult those of faith to attempt to prove their intellectual superiority. And some people just like to argue!

Answer 7

Atheists usually believe what science has come up with (which isn't necessarily agreed upon within the scientific community).

Atheism is not a religion.

There is only the purpose we give ourselves (or try to be happy if that's what you like)

I often dislike Christians. Not all. Their beliefs tend to put them at odds with me. I bet I have even had friends who were racist--don't agree with the philosophy, but some are amiable.

Religious issues affect humanity and individuals. Religion is a force in the world...a misguided force based on mistakes...so we try to fix it up.

Answer 8

Welp... as an ex-atheist, I'll give an answer for you. lol.

Nope, at least, no spiritual beliefs.
Sort of. It's "I believe there is nothing out there beyond what I can experience with my five senses and my mind, and hence, I will live my life according to what I feel is natural and right to me". That is their creed and dogma.
Live life to its fullest.
I don't know about other atheists, but when I was one, I wanted every Christian on earth silenced, converted to the 'wisdom' of atheism, or non-existant (ie either the belief or the believers, dead).
To shut Christians up.

I don't know about the rest of the atheists... but this was my outlook on life way back when.

Answer 9

1) Not as a group. The only thing that binds us is that we do not believe in deities.
2) Not as such.
3) Take your pick, there are plenty of ideas about the "purpose of life" I, personally, don't think there is one.
4) Some do, some don't. Some dislike specific christians.
5) Depends on the person. Most that I know of don't, perhaps the only ones that you are aware of are the loud, obnoxious kind. Or perhaps, it's simply an important issue to them.

Answer 10

Were all are different, I believe in tangible things, things that can be backed up scientifically.

I do not believe atheism to be a religion, but a lack there of.

I believe that any humans purpose on earth is to help mankind move forward socially, scientifically, ecologically.

I like Christians just fine.

I talk about religious issues, because it fascinates me that so many otherwise smart, logical people subscribe to something that is easy to debunk.

Hope i was helpful

Answer 11

Atheists believe things, but they believe them because there is solid, empirical, falsifiable (that is, it's possible for it to be proven wrong) evidence supporting the things they believe. It would be closer to the truth to say that atheists "know" things rather than "believe" them, but even atheists acknowledge that that knowledge is subject to be put aside if new information comes along that contradicts the old.

Atheism is not a religion. Religion is based on faith -- believing something to be true even though there's a total lack of evidence to support it -- and atheists understand that this is irrational behavior and a waste of time.

As to the purpose of life on Earth....from a purely mechanical standpoint, our purpose is to see to it that our genetic code gets passed on to our progeny. That's all we are -- a transport and replicating system for our DNA. However, since we are also imbued with consciousness, we are also here to learn, to love, and to make the world better than we found it for future repositories for our DNA.

I would say that atheists (by and large) dislike Christians a lot less than Christians dislike atheists. At most, most atheists feel a bit sorry for Christians -- like you might for a 30-year-old adult who still believes in Santa Claus and monsters under the bed.

Atheists talk about religious issues because, in feeling sorry for those theists, they want to encourage the theists to critically examine and THINK about the things they believe, in the hope that they will someday realize how contradictory and absurd those beliefs are and free their thoughts from the captivity of religious dogma.