What do people mean when they say, "There is no such thing as an atheist?"?

Question

I have friends who are as secure in their atheism as my religious friends are in their theism. Trust me, they aren't crying out for Jesus or whatever, they honestly, truly and completely believe that there is no God.

Answer 1

It's a crutch.

Think about it from the religious person's perspective.
1) They believe in a god who has some smarts and wants people to believe he exists.
2) There are atheists.

To the religious person, those two facts just don't mesh. Either God really isn't that convincing, doesn't care who believes in him or not, or atheists really "deep down" realize there is a god. They can't accept that their god is not that smart or beneficient, so they just believe that atheists really "deep down" believe a god exists. It's a crutch they use to keep their other beliefs.

Therefore, there are some Christians who really won't accept that atheists, like me, really deep down lack any belief in any god. That's why they keep claiming that atheists become atheist because of some life trauma or anger. When I talk to people about my atheism, they have a hard time coming to terms with the fact that my life was pretty good and I really don't harbor any anger towards believers. In my mind, people are generally decent, no matter what superstitious beliefs they have.

Answer 2

I think the saying you are referencing is actually "There is no such thing as an atheist in a foxhole." A foxhole is a small pit that a soldier occupies in trench warfare. Being in a foxhole is a severaly life-threatening situation, so the saying means that an athiest would be likely to turn to prayer in the event of a truly dire situation. I don't think that this saying is universally true. However, as an agnostic, I have been known to pray on the occasion of severely alarming events.

Answer 3

People apparently just cannot read the dictionary...

Atheist means DOES NOT BELIEVE IN GOD/GODS!!!

It is not a "believe" but a lack thereof, based largely on the burden of proof. When someone says that there is no such thing as an atheist, it is likely because they cannot find a better arguement... it would be like us arguing there is no such thing as a theist. By their definition, there is no such thing as someone who does not believe in the magic of magicians. An atheist is someone who says, as there is not any evidence to support the possibility of a god, and much against one.... it would be unwise to waste their life pretending.

Wow Preacher, thats a pretty big assumption to base your understanding (or lack thereof) of atheists on... the conjecture by a christian author, yes thats credible.... completely (or not)

Answer 4

People who erroneously claim that there is no such thing as atheism are generally people who have had very little contact with atheists, and make prejudiced assumptions about their reasons for calling themselves "atheists"--that they just hate religion or God rather than denying its validity, that they're rebelling or in denial about something that they, at least on some level, do accept, etc. It's really pretty absurd, and offensive, stuff. How would Christians like it if atheists regularly claimed that there's no such thing as a Christian, and Christians are just atheists who are "in denial"?

Answer 5

Many theists are so trapped in their world view that they simply cannot comprehend a non-theistic world view. It's not too surprising considering that for the first 12 to 14 years of life, children absorb a tremendous amount of information into the neural networks in their brains without the benefit of any critical thinking skills to filter that information. The world view can be so deeply ingrained that a person can become incapable of thinking outside of the box.

You're to be commended for being able to recognize that atheism if a valid world view. I get along fine with my religious friends who have that ability. Unfortunately, the close-minded conservative Christians have had far too much influence in the U.S. It is because of them, not people like you, that I am an activist atheist.

Answer 6

My wife and I were good friends through college. We ran into each other 3 yrs later, began hanging out together, then became best friends. Then we fell in love. We were both hesitant to profess our love for fear of ruining the friendship. We've been married 41 yrs and are still best friends. We think best friends make great marriages. Read the Q & A in this section and you will read about people doing things to their spouses that they would never do the their best friends. So... go for it. One of you has to make the first move. Sometime when you are out laughing together just grab him and kiss him. Say, "I really love you, you know." That's what I did. She proposed to me one week later.

Answer 7

I don't believe in the phrase "There are no such things as an athiest."

I'm currently living with my dad's friend(I'm a froeign student). He is an athiest,; he doesn't believe that there is a God. Sometimes he even makes fun of Him by swearing.

I feel sorry for him because although he is sdouing something wrong, although he might not realize it, he is a good friend.

Answer 8

It is the statement of a believer who is basically stating, "You may pretend to be an atheist, but I know there is a God and so do you which you will admit when you are threatened enough." or "If I really believed that you could be right, then it would threaten me, so I don't believe it."

Answer 9

There IS such thing as an atheist. An atheist, by definition, is a person who does not believe in any higher entity, such as God.

Answer 10

My guess is they mean no one can really deny 'God'. They seem to be very unaware of the many, many different philosophies/ideas out there. They're probably the same that insist there's a God & JC even though they've never even read the Bible.
Hope they learn how to read...:-)