Why do atheists think they are better than the religious?

Question

Given that we do not fully understand the workings of the human brain, how can atheists be so certain there is no god? If anything, that looks like a god complex.

I personally have no relationship with a god, but I see no compelling reason to deny the existence of one. I'm not omniscient so I can't be 100% sure about anything.

I believe atheists are the loons, because their whole platform is that god does not exist. Who cares if he exists or not? What gives people the feeling they can step past agnosticism and declare that there is nothing?

I'm told that my assumption that atheists did not believe in God is untrue.

From Wikipedia:
Atheism is the state of disbelief or non-belief[1] in the existence of a deity or deities.[2] It is commonly defined as the positive denial of theism (i.e., the assertion that deities do not exist),[3] or the deliberate rejection of theism (i.e., the refusal to believe in the existence of deities).
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"positive denial of theism" looks pretty straightforward there. Or do atheists believe in God and I've got this all backwards?

Drive-by jabs because you've got no defense are amusing but completely worthless to your cause.

I think you are the one who is unaware what atheism means. Look up agnosticism.

From Wikipedia:
Agnosticism (from the Greek a, meaning "without" and gnosis, "knowledge", translating to unknowable) is the philosophical view that the truth value of certain claims — particularly theological claims regarding metaphysics, afterlife or the existence of God, god(s), or deities — is unknown or (possibly) inherently unknowable.
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Funny how I'm getting people completely misreading my question and the details thereof.

I am an agnostic. I do not know if there is a god.

Here's as straightforward a way as I can put my question, so that there is no room for misinterpretation:

How are you certain there is no god?
That is the definition of atheism -- that there is no god. A positive disbelief.
How can you go beyond agnosticism, which is an admission that you cannot know? You don't have any clue how your brain works on a cellular level, and yet you can know for certain that there is no greater being? Really?

I think the religious and atheists are just as nutty, as evidenced by the responses below.

The thing I find amusing is how many atheists are so annoyed by any talk of religion, and yet they speak of it more often than any agnostic I've ever met.

When Jehova's Witnesses come to my door I politely listen to what they have to say, then send them on their way after taking their literature. I may dump it in the garbage the minute they're out my door, but I don't get whipped into a frenzy about how audacious they were to try to convert me.

I may be a bit ignorant, but I think I pretty clearly stated that I am not a Christian.

Why is it that half the responders answered me as if I was?

The Bible is not the only religious book. The Christians are not the only group that believe in God. There are dozens of religions that believe and agree upon the same god, but beyond that there are hundreds if not thousands of religions that believe in other gods.

And in the end I have positive belief in none of them, while at the same time I do not have positive disbelief in any of them.

The answers were a wonderful case study in how the brain works, if nothing else. Perceptual filters and anger, but little logic.

@Randy

The way I phrased my original question, I now see, did appear to be attacking only atheists on this issue. I could pose the same question to the religious, but I would only be deluged with chapters, verse numbers, and quotes. I was hoping that atheists would be able to give me a logical explanation as to why they can be so certain of something -- anything -- when we hardly know ourselves on even a biological level.

I think you are probably right about there not being many true atheists, which is what I was trying to get at.

On a basic level, it certainly is easiest to simply defer to a god and believe. But there is also a level of ease in being an atheist because it is a renunciation of control by something other than yourself.

I guess it's the difference between a family man and a rebel. Pick your poison.

Answer 1

I am religious but i understood your question from the start and was baffled by some of the answers I read.

You being an agnostic probably realize that it is impossible to be 100% certain that there is no god because you cannot prove that something does not exist. At the most you can say that it is *highly probable* that something does not exist. I think that is what an agnostic is - someone who believes it is possible for a god to exist or to not exist but you can never be sure.

If someone who claims to be atheist asserts that there is no god then it reveals their own ignorance because such a claim is illogical. However if a person does not believe in god because of an unwillingness to believe in anything then I would consider them an atheist.

My opinion is that *some* atheists believe they are better than the religious because they think the religious are fish who bit the bait or were brainwashed by religion while they feel they were smart enough to avoid the bait. In the end it is really just an issue of pride - they think they are better because they are the smartest and most logical for avoiding the "trap" of religion.

Answer 2

Atheists are not all the same.

That said, Atheists generally are individuals who view the world as deterministic. In such a world actions (and conclusions) are taken based on facts. Atheists are more interested in the absence (or existence) of facts supporting the existence of a god. Whether something exists or not, if there is no evidence to support the existence of something it is therefore imagined and must be taken on faith which is not something existing the world of an Atheist.

You make too much of Atheists taking stands on the nonexistence of a god. Usually this is “shouted” by those recently taking the Atheist path and/or usually this is the young. Many of these will return to whatever religion from which they came, that is, they never really understood what Atheism is.

Few people can actually accept Atheism. To look into the abyss and see nothing is something that most people cannot accept. I suspect that there are no more that 5 to 10 percent of the people who actually accept Atheism and truly need no mythology. Who knows, the need to accept a god may be biological for some people.

On the other hand, it is interesting to see how many religious people are concerned with Atheists. It seems that they cannot rest until all Atheists have publicly recanted their Atheism and accepted one of the myth based religions. Religious people seem to blame much of the world’s ills on Atheists and that is funny because we only want to be left alone. .We who are Atheists live in a world rife with the religious committed and we must go through life being bombarded by religious signs every hour of the day.

Every so often I hear someone utter the old canard, “There ain’t no Atheists in fox holes” meaning, that the fear of death will bring them back to the fold. Well let me suggest that such is not the case. I have been an Atheist for 50 years and have flat-lined (died) twice in my life and neither time did it make me want to not be an Atheist. Rather, I have become increasingly at ease with being an Atheist. To clearify, I am not a humanist. If I must put a label on myself the closest would be Deterministic Atheist.

The question is not, how can atheists be so certain there is no god? Rather, how can religious people be so certain that there is a god when there is no such evidence?

Answer 3

I'm agnostic. An agnostic atheist.

I hold the agnostic philosophy that the question of a god or gods is one that cannot be known. But, I have no evidence of such a being, so I do not believe. Simple.

Agnosticism is about knowledge. Atheism is about belief. Knowledge and belief are two different things.

And I don't think I'm "better" than religious people.

I do, however, try to not make blanket statements that include millions of people I don't know.



*Edit* Come now, hon... the very next sentence from your OWN source (wikipedia)...

"However, others—including most atheistic philosophers and groups—define atheism as the simple absence of belief in deities[5][6][7] (cf. nontheism), thereby designating many agnostics, and people who have never heard of gods, such as the unchurched or newborn children, as atheists as well."

And, had you continued to read further still, you would have noticed whole sections of the article devoted to the positive definition, and also the negative definition.

Edit again - hon, you can insist all day long that the definition you want atheism to be is the only definition, but it is only one definition of two whether you like it or not.

Read the article you cited, and you would see that. I do not claim to know. I just do not believe. If you can't understand that, then at least understand that it is the pinnacle of arrogance to force people into one definition where there is plainly more than one.

Answer 4

First of all, you need to stop generalizing. I'm an atheist, and an ex-Catholic. I don't feel I am superior to the faithful. As a humanist, I feel everyone is entitled to believe whatever they like. If believing in God and Jesus makes someone feel better about himself, more power to him. I wouldn't dream of trying to turn someone away from their faith. On the other hand, Christians routinely try to "save" me, and refuse to accept my apostasy. In most cases I just walk away, or change the subject, if they'll let me. I made the step past agnosticism at a fairly young age; I just became convinced science had more credible explanations. The only proof bible people offer is the bible itself. I have nothing against the bible, but as a stand-alone document it leaves something to be desired. If there was real documentation from other sources to confirm the bible stories, perhaps I'd reconsider. But since that doesn't seem likely, or even likely any of the faithful would accept proofs outside the bible, I guess I'm stuck with my atheism. But live and let live, right?

Answer 5

I'll think the religious think there better than Atheists because of there belief system. I think the Atheists think there smarter and more in the know because they rely on facts and common sense. While science has not disproven a god it has pretty much shredded religion. So if you want keep your god do it, but what is the point if the religion around that god is being disproven. How can you come up with new ideas like intelligent design 2000 years after the original story and apply it to religion like it belonged there all along? I can't disprove a god exists but If one or many do indeed exist I know it didn't happen like we were told.

Answer 6

I'm an atheist. That doesn't mean I'm right, but it is what I believe. If I ever get to meet (a) god, I hope it is more decent and kind than the one described in that bible book. Who cares if he exists or not? Not me.

My "platform" is this: live and let live. Do not approach me in public, or at home for that matter, and ask if I want to hear the news, been saved, etc. That is when my personal space is being invaded. I will debate with someone, but at my choosing. The problem with people (all of us) is that we all think our perspective is right, but someone has to be wrong.

Oh, by the way, I was born right the first time.

Answer 7

No. Stop telling the atheist that you thionk they are stupid. Chirstians should be the ones to be profiled. You have heard about how many wars and overtakings in the name of monotheistic religion there have been! That means that the christians think that their religion is so much more important than everyone else's point of view that they look beyond their own contradictive theories and statements. They think everyone and everything else is the devil, who I have never heard of until last month...

I'm a pagan and defend all religions that the christians frown upon, and the Atheists.

Just leave everyone alone!

Answer 8

I think there are way more arrogant Christians then atheists. The true arrogance is when a religious person tells me that one day I will find God and be enlightened. They I will be able to understand God. As if I am less then them because I don't believe in God.

Answer 9

Who gave you the false idea that atheists claim to be 100% sure of anything. Sounds like you don't know what an atheist is. Maybe you should bother to find out before you start insulting people.

An atheist is simply one who lacks god belief. Being an atheist doesn't mean you claim anything. It just means you don't claim god exists.

disbelief means lack of belief -- Is English your second language or what? Agnosticism has nothing to do with belief. It is about knowledge. Most atheists are also agnostics.

People like you who go around making bigoted hateful insults about people you obviously know nothing about make me sick.

I am not 100% certain about anything. I just don't make the claim that god's exist. How difficult is this for you to understand!!!

By the way I don't go quite as far as the claim of agnosticism. (Claiming such fundamental knowlege is impossible ). I have no idea if such knowlege is possible or not. How can you make such an arrogant claim with 100% certainty!! You must be a loon!
Why do you think you know more than everyone else?

Answer 10

I don't know with 100 percent certainty that there is no god. I just know that no one's ever been able to show me convincing evidence of a god.

I'm applying the same standard to believing in a god that I would apply to believing in anything else. No matter what someone wanted me to believe, I would need to see some evidence to be able to agree that it was true.