can one be an atheist and still be a spiritual person?

Question

yes they can and let me tell you how.

learning all what i can about everyting and the natural world
learning to live by the golden rule
learning to be a humanist
been mereciful even towards animals
been responsible for this planet
learning to promote ethics and morals based on new knowledge and reason, and not by blind cultural or religious beliefs

who says one cant reject religion and at the same time be a spiritual person?

ex muslim

Answer 1

I never thought about this before. Of course every man is given a measure of faith. When you see the beauty in nature, who do you praise? When you live by the golden rule is it to honor a higher power or a way to control others and avoid confrontation? I know a horse can be highly spirited...Is that the type of spirit you are referring to? According to scripture spirit is the breath from God that gave us life and when we die it returns to Him. Then there is the Holy Spirit that is within us. I need to think and study on this some more...Mmm

Answer 2

Yes, spirituality is not tied to religion, so an atheist can be spiritual.

M. Scott Peck is an example. He wrote the Road Less Travelled. It was heralded as a great spiritual book, but he was atheist at the time of writing it.

What you listed as "how an atheist can be spiritual" is not spirituality...mostly. Ethics and morals is not what spirituality is about - so golden rule, mercy, and promoting ethics and morals is besides the point. Learning about the natural world may qualify. Being responsible for this planet may qualify or may not (not indicative of spirituality).

You forgot the most important - a deep and thorough understanding of self...one that brings peace of mind and oneness of self. A prime ingreditate to atheistic spirituality is an understanding of self. You listed outward actions only.

Spirituality could be seen akin to applied psychology to oneself.

~ Eric Putkonen

Answer 3

If you want to be an athiest, be an athiest. Quit trying to compromise.

The root of the word "spiritual" is "spirit," which is something in which athiests strictly do not believe. Therefore, atheism and spirituality are mutually exclusive.

That doesn't mean that on a sliding scale, you can't be a good person. All of the things you described above are good, but they're not spiritual.

All I'm saying is do and be what you know is right, but be fully convinced based on the facts at hand. And don't try to make everybody happy by muddying the waters and losening definitions.

Ambiguity leads to conflict more than do opposing beliefs. The wars in Vietnam and Iraq are evidence of that fact.

Answer 4

Im a spiritual person and an atheist, I than martial arts and the influence i got from zen philosophy.

You can believe in no god and still be a spiritual person and long as you keep two things in mind
1) There is no god/goddess (or plural forms of either)
2) this is your only life you get, live it to the fullest.

Answer 5

The practice of Zen meditation can help you develop "spirituality" (spirit from the Latin spiritus meaning breath, spirituality literally means being one with your breathing) without the need for any religious belief. Many Zen practitioners are atheists, just as some are believers in some form of higher power up to and including some Christian practitioners of Zen. The good thing is that our believing Zen brothers and sisters don't try to shove their personal understanding down the throats of the non believing.

Answer 6

What golden rule?

Being a humanist isn't being spiritual

Being spiritual doesn't consist in promoting ethics and morals

One can be an atheist and spiritual in that they have a conception of the sum total of reality, but they don't necessarily call it 'God' or use any religious language.

The real distinction is not between atheist and religionist, but between materialist and idealist, and most atheists and religionists tend to be materialists, in that they do not have a holistic conception of reality.

Answer 7

"who says one cant reject religion and at the same time be a spiritual person?" I do. In MY belief. I too thought I was "spiritual" as well... came to find out that I was spiritually dead. That is my belief. You asked. I will point out, though that although I may think atheist/spiritual is an oxymoron, I will say that I also do not know the mind of God or pretend to. God works in mysterious ways. SO, I will do my best to give you(and others)the best answers I can while expressing MY beliefs that were asked for.

Answer 8

Thank you for posting this. I myself am a practicing Catholic, but I will never preach at anyone who says they are anything else (especially athiests), because I know that most are spiritual. You don't have to believe in God to be spiritual. The only time I will ever speak up toward anyone of a different background, is when they start trying to tell me that I can't practice my religious beliefs the way I want to. Thank you for reminding us that there are good athiests out there too!

Answer 9

I do agree with you in theory, but I'm not sure that any of the things you have listed necessarily constitute being "spiritual." They are certainly responsible and "good," but does not spirituality by definition entail acknowlegdement of "spirit"?

Personally, I do believe in something we call "spirit," but I believe it exists within the physical as quanta. I think your first point about learning about the natural world is the most spiritual of your points.

I'm not trying to refute you at all, but I just wanted throw some ideas out there. :-)

Answer 10

What does any of this have to do with spirituality?

Spirituality, in a narrow sense, concerns itself with matters of the spirit. The spiritual, involving (as it may) perceived eternal verities regarding humankind's ultimate nature, often contrasts with the temporal, with the material, or with the worldly. A sense of connection forms a central defining characteristic of spirituality — connection to something "greater" than oneself, which includes an emotional experience of religious awe and reverence. Equally importantly, spirituality relates to matters of sanity and of psychological health. Like some forms of religion, spirituality often focuses on personal experience (see mysticism).

Spirituality may involve perceiving or wishing to perceive life as more important ("higher"), more complex or more integrated with one's world view; as contrasted with the merely sensual.