Is atheism a religion

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And who determines what is absurd?

Please name secular leaders throughout history that allowed freedom of thought and conversation? There’s a very long list that have killed people for not following their belief system.

There are many individuals who have acted out of love and kindness despite corrupt governments due to their religious beliefs. At the end of the day, it’s how we treat one another, not how many conversations we have, that matters.
 
I lack a belief in God. But then again, I lack A belief in Leprechauns.
 
I don’t know anyone who has a good argument for the existence of leprechauns. Do you?

I know of several people with an intelligent argument for the existence of God. Do you?
 
There certainly are reasoned arguments for God. That I have yet to be convinced by those arguments hardly makes my objections to those arguments statements of religious belief.
 
But if you share a belief in unbelief with others, how is that any different than those who share a belief in belief with others?
 
I likely share an unbelief in Zeus with you. That doesn’t make us coreligionists.
 
If we met on regular basis to discuss our unbelief in Zeus, demanded Zeus be taken out of Greek mythology books, consider those who believe in Zeus to be _____, take to social media to let others know about our dislike of all things Zeus…
Yes, that would be a religion.

Once people put their beliefs, or unbeliefs, into action, they have started a movement.
 
@kainosktisis, Well said, and thanks for correcting me. I guess I should have said in my tongue and cheek humor, I don’t believe in atheism.
 
I don’t meet regularly with any other atheist. I work with another atheist but we generally talk about music and politics, and religion never really comes up. I would agree that humanist societies and the like probably do fulfill some of the roles a church might traditionally play, but seeing as I am not a member of such a society, nor do I meet with other atheists to discuss my beliefs (or lack thereof), what precisely does that make me?
 
stoplooklisten said:
Everyone has a religion. Religion is what defines our worldview, morality, purpose, sense of history, sense of the future.

See the Wikipedia article for “List of religious populations”. Link: List of religious populations - Wikipedia

The category for irreligious, atheist and unaffiliated is #3 behind Christianity and Islam and ahead of all the others.
Click to expand...
Some may want to dispute that irreligious/atheist/agnostic/unaffiliated designates a religion. But it is a religious category. All 100% of people belong to a religious category.
 
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There are a lot of misconceptions about atheists in this thread. How about we respect that atheists don’t consider their belief system a religion, and we go with that. What difference does it make to a Catholic, anyhow?
 
That’s a good question. I would consider a person who identifies as Christian, but doesn’t attend a church, a religious person. Being Christian has a basic belief system one shares with others and most people accept that as being religious.

I don’t see any difference with atheism.
 
The atheists are debating their position on the Catholic forum voluntarily. They are free to leave the thread or not answer.

The OP asked a question that both atheists and Catholics want to answer, apparently.

What do you see that is disrespectful?
 
You read too much into my post. I stated that I am reading a lot of misconceptons about atheists here. Also, I suggested it is respectful to consider atheists as they wish to be considered (not belonging to any religion).

With all due respect, you seem to be conveying a certain level of animosity towards atheists and I am not sure why. It seems you have a pre-conceived notion of what atheists are about. That is the difference between atheism and religion. For atheists, there isn’t a uniform “box” they fit into with rules and boundaries and guidelines of what they believe or how they conduct themselves.

Asking a question about what atheists believe is great. That is someone who is trying to educate themselves. What I am hearing is quite a bit of generalization, with regards to what atheists are about. That is troubling, because there is no “profile” for atheists.
 
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You don’t really seem to have a consistent operating definition of an atheist. On the one hand you insist that atheism is a religious position because apparently atheists congregate. When I point out that I don’t, the response appears to be “oh well, that doesn’t matter, you’re religious anyways.”
 
Most atheists I know would not consider it a religion…they specifically have no religion. They aren’t for or against people worshiping how they choose, they simply do not believe and thus do not participate. If someone says “Merry Christmas” or “I will pray for you”, they simply say thanks and move on, know that gesture means something to the other person and are grateful the religions person is thinking positive thoughts for them.

A minority of atheists I know are militant about it. They actively reject Christianity, Islam, Judaism, etc., mock it, and are down right nasty people. From my perspective, this minority treats their form of Athiesm as a cause, if not a religion.
 
I would say atheism is a religion for both reasons
1). There is a shared set of beliefs by all who identify as atheist
2). IT has evolved into a movement

Both qualify individually, as well.
 
No animosity. Just the knowledge that my opinion matters as much as theirs.
 
A lack of belief in God, even if I were to accept that as a positive statement (which I don’t) hardly constitutes a “set”. And seeing as I am not the member of any movement, even by what seems to constitute an extraordinarily vague definition, it’s hard to see where I fit. I’ll be honest, I think your definition is self-serving, it’s not meant to describe any particular atheist or group of atheists in an honest and unbiased fashion, but is more of a backhanded insult against what some might call the “militant atheists”, and which atheists like myself become collateral damage in a rather peculiar culture war.

Believe me, I have no more sympathy for the Richard Dawkins of the world than I do the most strident theists. There is a middle ground where people respect each other, don’t wantonly generalize and pigeon hole to win some sort of rhetorical prize, where we accept the sincerity of each others’ positions, even if we disagree with them.
 
How is my definition self-serving?

I believe that atheists pride themselves in not being religious and therefore, do not see the obvious similarities.

I would like to understand your position. Is a person who believes in God a religious person?
 
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