What is the meaning of "atheism"?

Question

Before answering, let me explain why I'm asking so you can address my question more specifically. An ordinary person on the street usually thinks atheism is the belief that there is no God. But intellectual atheists are quick to point out that atheism isn't a belief at all. Rather, it's a lack of belief in the existence of God.

Most of us have a hard time distinguishing that from agnosticism. Agnosticism is basically lack of knowledge, right? If you're agnostic, then you lack knowledge about whether there's a God or not. So you don't have a belief either way. So an agnostic's position could be summarized like so:

1. Lack of any belief that God exists.
2. Lack of any belief that God does not exist.

Whereas the intellectual atheist position can be summarized like so:

3. Lack of any belief that God exists.

The only difference between atheism and agnosticism is that atheists are silent about whether they have a belief that God does not exist.

to be continued...

It seems to me that if atheists say they also have a lack of a belief that God does not exist, then there's no difference between atheism and agnosticism. But if they say they do NOT have a lack of belief that God does not exist (in other words, they do believe that God does not exist), then atheism DOES make a positive claim. It isn't just a lack of belief. It's the presence of a belief that God does not exist.

Answer 1

Atheism is the lack of any belief that any god exists. This includes, but is not limited to the belief that no god exists.
Agnosticism is, as you say, uncertainty.
Your confusion seems to stem from an unfounded belief that the two terms must be mutually exclusive. They aren't. It is entirely possible to be an agnostic atheist.
If it helps, some people use the term 'strong atheism' to refer to the belief that no gods exist, to differentiate it from agnosticism.

Answer 2

I can't believe I'm going to address this seriously...

Agnosticism isn't about belief at all, it's about knowledge. An agnostic thinks proof of God will never be found one way or another, or that God as a fact is unknowable.

Atheism is about a definite non-belief in gods. So technically it is a belief, yes, it is a belief that no gods exist.

The thing is, that is all atheism means. It does not imply any belief in place of gods, and atheists are all different beyond the god thing. They may hold other similar beliefs, but that is incidental, nothing to do with the actual definition of atheism.

So, agnostic on its own is a fairly meaningless term. Technically pretty much everyone is an agnostic when it comes down to it. If you want to be pedantic I'm an agnostic atheist, as is pretty much every other atheist I suspect.

Answer 3

I think you're partially right, but you state it the wrong way.
Atheism is stands for the not believing in god. This might not be as absolute as you state it, and I think there is an overlap in atheism and agnosticism. Let's say there are different ways to look at it, eg. how far do you want the influence of "the creator" to go, or in "what point of our knowledge" do you want to project this god.
Agnostics are still imagining all kinds of scenarios, call it science fiction, that can explain everything, but are too ignorant (there you are right) to see the greater picture. Atheist see the greater picture and do not see room for a god so far, and everything they see is or will be very well explainable without a god or (intelligent) creator. But as science is ultimately searching for explanations of the unexplained, and solutions for the unsolved, there's always room for surprises, as long as it is based on scientific methods, and not on ancient mythology.

Answer 4

Agnostics usually admit the possibility that one or more of the earth's organized religions might be true. Atheists do not.

It will be difficult to find an atheist who is 100% positive that here is no god, since we all recognize that that is not something we can prove. But most of us are, say, 99% sure based on the lack of evidence, lack of necessity, and sheer improbability.

Basically I can summarize my position like this: I am quite sure there is no God. But if I am wrong and there is a God, I am positive that it is not the one described in the Bible or worshipped by any organized religion.

We make this statement based on the illogic of religion and self-contradictory teachings present in all holy books.

An agnostic, on the other hand, accepts that maybe there is no God, maybe the God described in the Bible (etc.) does exist, or maybe some other god not described by any religion is the true supreme being. They do not see any strong evidence to convince them of any of these views. They suspend judgement until they can be convinced by facts.

Also, I would like to rephrase something you said. I do not like to say that I do not believe in God's existence. I prefer to say that I DO believe in the NONexistence of God. The former implies that God exists, but I deny it (a dictionary I once owned defined an atheist as "one who denies the existence of God"). The latter implies that I believe that there is no God. It's a subtle difference, I know, but an important one.

I also hate being described as "irreligious" or "not religious." I think this implies that religion is not something I think or care about. This is not true; religion is something that permeates all societies, and where I live in the United States it often unfairly dictates our laws and is used to oppress people. I study the bible often. Religion is something I am almost always thinking about. I just happen to believe that there is no God.

This is what Einstein meant when he described himself as "a deeply religious nonbeliever."

Answer 5

What you're talking about is the difference between strong and weak atheism. Weak atheism is a lack of belief in deities. Strong atheism is a positive belief that there are no deities.

I, for example, am a strong atheist. I believe that deities are symbols, methaphors for a concept our minds can't grasp because it's so abstract and all encompassing (Tao). It's an attempt to define the undefinable. So you see I have an affirmative belief that deites are not actually real.

Answer 6

Agnosticism is an epistemological question: it is a statement of lack of knowledge as to the existence of (or lack thereof) a divine being (or plural). Atheism is an axiological question: it is the active and willful CHOICE to NOT believe in any form of deity.

Another way to look at this is: agnosticism is an acknowledgement of lack of knowledge (or the ability to know); athiesm is a CHOICE of reality which fits the observations of the world in which we CURRENTLY exist, due to the inability to observe any other world or reality.

Answer 7

To me it's actually really simply. I'm not an atheist, I'm Mark.

Long ago some people needed to fill some gaps in their knowledge, and started to invent gods. Thor made thunder, we later figured out what really caused thunder, and Thor lost his job. People needed "gods-of-the-gaps" throughout history.

One of the few questions that's still unanswered is "how did the universe coem to existence?". Most people have Yahweh or Allah as a god for that gap.

It's not my fault that others invented gods. I don't believe in all that nonsense, but I don't usually call myself an atheist. Would be weird to need a label, simply because other people invent fairy tales.

I also don't believe that raw fish is very good for my body, but I've honestly never called myself an asushist.

Answer 8

Atheism is the view that God does not exist. Atheism is not a new development. Psalm 14:1, written by David in around 1000 B.C., mentions atheism – “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” Recent statistics show an increasing number of people becoming atheists, with up to 10% of people worldwide declaring themselves adherents of atheism. So, why are more and more people becoming atheists? Is atheism truly the logical position atheists claim it to be?

Why does atheism even exist? Why doesn’t God simply reveal Himself to people, proving that He exists? Surely if God would just appear everyone would believe in Him! The problem with this idea is that it is not God’s desire to just convince people that He exists. It is God’s desire for people to believe in Him by faith (2 Peter 3:9) and accept His gift of salvation (John 3:16). Yes, God could appear and demonstrate once and for all that He exists. The problem is that God clearly demonstrated His existence many times in the Old Testament (Genesis chapters 6-9; Exodus 14:21-22; 1 Kings 18:19-31). Did the people believe that God exists? Yes! Did they turn from their evil ways and obey God? No! If a person is not willing to accept God’s existence by faith, then they are definitely not ready to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). That is God’s desire – for people to become Christians, not just theists (those who believe God exists).

Answer 9

I do not believe the the tooth fairy is real.... I do not believe god is real.

You can reword things till your head explodes, but that does not change the fact that a lack of a belief is not a belief.

This is the same as me saying I lack the possession of a truck...... but I never said I don't have a truck, so it is a belief that I don't have a truck..... no, I just don't have a truck.

Answer 10

Most people I come across believe in God, gods, spirits etc
Anthiests claim they do not believe there is a God.
However many of them might believe in spirits.
Almost all of them behave like they are god themselves.
Agnostics are humbler.
They just say they do not know.
If we do not know if there is a God or not then there might be a God or we may find out later that there is one.