Question for atheists: Help me reject/respond to this statement intelligently for class.?

Question

I don't agree with my teacher about his point below. How do I defend myself intelligently?:

An Atheist, purely defined, believes in nothing...no God, no standard, moral or rule that anything or anyone is an example above and beyond or below others. An atheist would not define oneself because that implies a category that can be manipulated. To believe in nothing or reject everything of any value...means proclamation of nothing.

So, once you name yourself an Atheist and say "I don't believe in God" you have just defeated the very definition of what it means to be an Atheist.

I don't agree with my teacher about his point below. How do I defend myself intelligently?:

An Atheist, purely defined, believes in nothing...no God, no standard, moral or rule that anything or anyone is an example above and beyond or below others. An atheist would not define oneself because that implies a category that can be manipulated. To believe in nothing or reject everything of any value...means proclamation of nothing.

So, once you name yourself an Atheist and say "I don't believe in God" you have just defeated the very definition of what it means to be an Atheist.

***EDIT*** Okay, this class is Introducing Religion, so he is not taking a stance against me, necessarily. The point is not to argue with him, but to refute his ideas about atheism intelligently. I know the INTELLIGENT part can be hard for all of us, but the intent is to NOT ARGUE! Please only respond if you, yourself, are an atheist, otherwise you defeat the point of answering. Don't be hateful.

Answer 1

ATHEIST comes from the greek

"A-" meaning without

and "THEOS" meaning god

hence it means "without a god"

This is not to say that an Atheist has no standard, moral or rule. Many atheists believe in a personal code of ethics that is as strict as or even stricter than the usual codes seen in the Christian church.

Many Buddhists are atheists, as has been stated previously. Wiki states that some schools of Hindu thought are atheistic (although I do not personally know of any).

Most atheists deny the existance of God or gods. They believe that the universe came into existance in some other way than being created - often subscribing to Big Bang theory etc.

Of antiquity, Epicurus and Lucretius were atheists. Both of these men had personal codes of conduct as well as following Roman law. Epicurus went so far as to establish his own brand of philosophy now called Epicureanism.

David Hume, a prominent philosopher of the 18th century was careful to hide his atheist views to avoid religious persecution. He was one of the founders of a viewpoint called Utilitarianism.

Friedrich Nietzsche was a philosopher of the 19th century. He too was an atheist - responsible for the statement "God is dead." - and again a man who has developed complex ideas of standards and behaviour.

20th century philosopher Bertrand Russell says "On the other hand, if I am to convey the right impression to the ordinary man in the street I think that I ought to say that I am an Atheist, because, when I say that I cannot prove that there is not a God, I ought to add equally that I cannot prove that there are not the Homeric gods."

He too is an atheist. He has written many books of philosophy and certainly could not be considered to be a man who "believes in nothing".

NIHILISM
You will find many comments in your answers here suggesting that your teacher has defined and is criticising Nihilism. Many people would say that Nietzsche is a Nihilist (although wikipedia states that "Nietzsche could be accurately categorized as a nihilist in the descriptive sense, he never advocated nihilism as a practical mode of living and was typically quite critical of nihilism as he construed it." and "While this may appear to imply his allegiance to the nihilist viewpoint, it would be more accurate to say that Nietzsche saw the coming of nihilism as valuable in the long term. According to Nietzsche, it is only once nihilism is overcome that a culture can have a true foundation upon which to thrive. He wished to hasten its coming only so that he could also hasten its ultimate departure").

My understanding of Nihilism is that it essentially believes that there is and was no creator-god, that our BEING is without purpose and therefore there can be no true morality - no true right or wrong.

It doesn't stop you from having a morality, but would state that your morality might not be as right as you think it is ... or as important as you think it is.

Quite a few branches of Hinduism are nihilistic.

Answer 2

" purely defined " Something is either defined corectly , or not . In this case NOT .
Atheist believe in standards . An atheist expects to be treated fairly in business dealings and hopefully trys to adhere to those same standards .
Atheists belive in morals . But the concept of morals is not based on a religious decree . But rather on how much pain or pleasure , help or hinderence , and so on their acts produce in this world . Of course atheists consider some people to be more moral ( nicer , more intelligent , etc. ) than others . Otherwise how would we select car repair places , butcher shops , friends , etc.
To "believe in nothing" is just a stupid statement . Sounds like a fundamentalist Sunday School teacher with no real education . We have of course already covered "reject everything of any value" , unless you define beliefe in a god(s) as the ONLY thing of any value .
If this teacher is in a public school I would complain to the Principle , The PTA , The School Board , and the ACLU .
The last statement "... once you name yourself an atheist..." is just bizarre and childish . "just defeated" ??? No , It IS the definition of atheist . The only definition ! Nothing more . Nothing less .

Answer 3

Well, I think your prof needs some schoolin because what he's described is a nihilist or "one that believes in nothing". Nihilists basically don't care about anything including themselves.

An atheist simply doesn't believe in gawd any gawd. We actually believe in a lot of things and can be spiritual people. Look at the buddhists, some sects of buddhism are atheistic so is he saying that buddhists believe in nothing?

He's taking the idea that morals and standards come from some deity and that a person that doesn't believe in that deity can't follow those rules. This is of course false. Most atheists that I know are good, honest and moral people. We live by the golden rule, "treat others as you would like to be treated". In other words treat others right and with respect and you'll get that in return. By the same token treat me wrong and I will return it in kind.

Answer 4

I'd counter with what I call the "Pat Tillman" argument.

Pat Tillman was an atheist. Your teacher is then implying that Pat Tillman did not believe in anything greater than himself? If that is the case, why did he enlist to fight the Jihadis in Afghanistan?

If he didn't believe in a higher standard, a higher purpose or something outside of himself, he would not have enlisted to fight for a cause that did not directly benefit him. He could have easily remained a well paid professional athlete.

The other posters also have some great responses. Read them and learn from them.

Answer 5

He seems to be confusing an atheistic position with a nihilistic one.
All the word atheist means is "No Gods". It does not mean anything else.

People can disbelieve in Gods and still be:
Humanist
Secularist
Nihilist
Existentialist
Taoist
Buddhist
or one of many other "ists" or combination of "ists."

The "ism that has been added make being a nonbeliever sound like another belief system but that is a very misleading idea.

I suggest you ask if he isn't confusing a lack of belief in God with Nihilism.
Then ask if he believes the Deists,Taoists and Buddhists are Nihilists since they do not believe in Gods that are persons either.

Answer 6

You are wrong. An atheist does not believe in gods. That's it. It comes from Greek - "theos" meaning "god" together with the prefix "a-" meaning "no, not". It means "no god".

Atheists can and do believe in many things. Atheists are ethical and moral people. They don't need the threat of heaven and hell to behave, they treat other human beings as they wish to be treated themselves.

Your definition is not that of an atheist but that of a nihilist. the two are entirely different.

Answer 7

Some people think that the percentage is too small. But, you can just have ribs removed -- then it'll work out whether you're part of the 1%, or not.. There was a rumor a while back, that Marilyn Manson had his bottom two ribs removed for exactly that purpose. (Not true, by the way.)

Answer 8

You tell him that he needs to look at the dictionary to find the true meaning of the word Atheist. Atheist doesn't mean "believes in nothing", it means "lack of belief in any deity". That is all it means.

You explain what you do believe in. That you believe in the past, the present and the future. That you believe in learning from all three so that you don't repeat mistakes made by yourself and others. That you believe in love, hatred, joy, and sorrow. That you believe in other people and yourself. That you believe in justice and fairness. That you believe in education and knowledge. That you believe in tolerance and acceptance of others. And that you don't need a god to believe in any of those or you wouldn't believe in them in the first place.

What it means to be Atheist is to free yourself from false restraints that allow you to hate others for who they fundamentally are.

What you tell your teacher is that you believe in plenty of things, you just don't believe in a god and you feel no need for the gods existance.

In those words you will show him that he is wrong and you will likely embarass the crap out of him in front of the class in the process.

Answer 9

Your teacher has the wrong definition of atheist, which would cause me to seriously question his credentials. Look up the definition in Websters: an atheist doesn't believe in the existence of a deity. There is no stipulation of non-belief in morals, rules, etc.

Frankly, I think your teacher needs to go back to school!

Answer 10

The question in based on a false premise.

Atheists believe in something: the absence of a supreme being.

Most atheists believe in:

Free will
Moral standards
Personal freedom
Fairness and equity for all
Murder another human being is wrong
The Golden Rule

Atheists do not reject belief in all things.