If we can neither prove or disprove the existence of God is atheism an act of faith?

Question

1) The propositions should be considered seperately , there is no proof to be had by attacking the opposing view . The two arguments do not have to collide even though they are both denying each other .
2) Believers act on faith , (mainly !)
3) Even the most rational cannot prove that the future will arrive but have faith that it will .

Answer 1

You are right but the problem is most Atheists wont accept it.I watched The Trouble With Atheism last night i could not believe how arrogant some of the atheists where they are no different than Religious fundamentalists . I mean one atheist made the comment that a scientist who believed in a possibility of a creator is only a half scientist . You only have to listen or read Richard Dawkins to get a taste of narrow minded bigotry masquerading as science (The God Delusion) . And of course there are many people in the world of science who are Theists or Agnostics and there are many other theories other than Darwinian Evolution such as ID or Theistic Evolution both which are supported by research and headed by leading scientists but sadly the media is addicted to the Dawkins view of our origins. Its time for a proper adult debate .

Answer 2

Yes atheism requires faith because true atheists do not simply lack belief in God. True Atheists believe there is no God. Big difference.

Apparently they feel that because they personally have not found convincing evidence of something it must not be true.

God either exists or he doesn't. This is not changed by what you believe.

The bigger question is does it matter to you? Do you really want to find out the truth about this?

In any event it is not a wise man that choses to be arrogant based on his lack of knowledge.

A question to consider: If there is nothing at all to this, why is faith in God seen in all cultures? If I do not share this faith, is it possible that they know something I don't.

Answer 3

No.

It does not require faith, just critical thinking and the law of parsimony. Whilst you can not prove a negative, ie demonstrate that god does not exist, you can do two other things; First, postulate what the universe would be like if he did exist, and compare it to the universe as observed, and secondly, consider the probability of god existing.
Further, you can look at the arguments that have been put forwards to prove god exists, and tackle them critically. After all, the burden of proof is with the claimant. And it is very easy to dismiss all the major arguments put forwards by theists.

So my atheism is not an act of faith, just a position arrived at by thinking!

Answer 4

No -Belief in God is based on faith, as there is no empirical (knowledge gained through the senses) evidence that God exists. "Faith" is required because you believe something exists when there is no empirical way to actually prove it.

The opposite does not apply: you do not need faith to believe something does not exist. I do not believe in the existence of the lockness monster, ghosts or the tooth fairy, but I do not require faith to uphold these beliefs; as an empirical atheist, I have not seen these things and on the balance of probabilities from considering other empirical-based evidence, I have concluded that these things do not exist. I may well have an experience in the future which changes that opinion, but on current evidence I have gathered throughout my life, they do not exist.

The same applies to God.

This process is based entirely on what you can actually see, hear touch etc. The concept of "faith" in this context has no meaning to an empirical atheist and does not play any part in the methods by which they reach conclusions about life.

Answer 5

God is the name we give to the incredible power and wisdom behind all existence.There's no "if" about it. Of course we can prove the existence of God. The proof is all around us. "The heavens declare the glory of God". Atheists have faith in nothing. They are to be pitied, for they don't know the peace and joy that stems from a religious faith. One more thing: Christians can KNOW the presence of God in their lives.

Answer 6

Not really. Proof is very relative and you would have a tough time getting me to define anything as proof. I base everything on the evidence that supports it. It just isn't reasonable to believe something without any evidence. You would be stuck with thousands of gods and every fairytale you ever heard.

No evidence = No god. If you have some that doesn't involve believing unidentified religious zealots (the authors of the Bible) I would be willing to listen, but I better be able to test it and duplicate it.

Answer 7

Atheism, technically, is no faith outside yourself.

You are an island.

The moment you populate that island with more than you, a hierachy exists and then comes Totem and then comes Taboo.

Totem is the pecking order. Taboo is what that pecking order will not allow.

Then you magically have religion and a God authority.

Answer 8

The answers that I've read prior to answering speak to having faith, a lack of faith, or the burden of proof. These are all literal to one degree or another and do not speak to the underlying point you are making with your question. Which is a very interesting one, by the way. In short, you are speaking to the idea of "faith" itself. So let's have a look at that word and see how its meaning applies to your question.

To have faith means that you accept something to be right and true even though you have no means of substantiating or proving without question, that your belief IS true.

Most look at this idea from an exterior point of view. God is perceived as an exterior being that created the universe and life on this planet. This is what all religion, monotheistic or polytheistic professes. And for those who believe in some form of religion, this is true. And I believe we can all agree that to believe, you must have faith given that you are unable to prove without doubt that what your religion states as ultimate truth, is in fact true. But how is someone able to do that? How are they able to cast away all critical thought and reason and accept anything blindly; with zero proof that it's real and true?

I think we must first look to the individual and then to the "first" instance of what faith is. Once we understand that, we can understand how this can be applied to something outside the self.

On an individual level, faith is the ability to walk into the unknown with an internal knowledge that the result will be good and successful. This act of faith comes from having faith in yourself. You believe, without any real proof of the outcome, that somehow it's all going to turn out well. And if it doesn't, you have faith that you will be able to handle the result no matter what that result might be.

This particular act of faith is something that everyone has to one degree or another. It enables us to get into our car and drive to work on a daily basis. It is behind every action we take when we have no idea what the outcome might be. And when you combine faith with tenacity, you can quite literally move mountains. This combination of characteristics is the genesis behind every leap forward our species has made. So, to apply this to your question...

Atheists and believers are the same when it comes to the ability to first have faith in the self, then applying that faith to their exterior reality. It all boils down to what they put their faith in, and how they focus their consciousness and create their reality. So yes. To not believe in god, at a fundamental, core, even cellular level requires an act of faith in precisely the same way as a believer must exercise an act of faith when they believe in an unprovable exterior being known as god. The genesis of both comes from exactly the same place. Faith in the self being applied to exterior reality.

Answer 9

Well, since I have seen a few people here express themselves as not having faith but knowledge, probably not.

But, when I look at the evidence/lack of evidence problem, on both sides, it does seem like there must be a faith in science and paleontological discovery because it is an ever-changing foundation of proofs, as science refines itself.

Answer 10

No atheism not a part of Christianity. Atheism believe in no GOD or ghost. Don't worry science has already proven ghost exist with the different equipment. Maybe some day in the future it'll be advanced enough to prove God exist. Many believe that God exist but for you science people don't worry they day will come when it will be proven