My new way of going about things: the positives of atheism.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

So, I'd like to hear peoples' take on this.  Atheists and atheism have been defined for a very long time by the atheists' criticism/hatred/contempt of organized religion.  I've decided to take a different path.  Rather than focusing on why I'm not religious, I've decided to focus on why I'm an atheist; not in the philosophical or metaphysical sense, but in a similar sense to what religious people do - describe all the good my beliefs have done for me. 

-atheism has given me a sense of self-determination I formally did not have
-I believe that I can not and will not fully understand reality - this is very humbling and keeps me grounded
-it drives me to learn and understand more about the things I'm able to
-my mind feels more open and more free
-I feel more in touch with how my body and mind actually work.  Since I do not believe I have a soul, or a consciousness separate from my physical body, the way I approach just about anything has become more streamlined

I'll just keep it to these five examples.  And keep in mind, in no way am I saying that religious people can not feel the same good things I just described.  I'm simply saying that this is a personal transition that accompanied my realization that I do not believe in a god. 

How do people feel about atheism being presented in this manner?  My personal experiences with people have not been good.  It has often seemed that when religiouses espouse the positives their faith has done for them, it is revered.  When I have espoused the positives atheism has done for my life, I'm actually just bashing religion. 

[The world will shine with light in our nightmare]

It's kind of funny, because I started to feel almost the exact same way around this time last year when I discovered my approach to Christianity.  Before then, religion hadn't played much of a role in my life at all because I thought I was forced to have a faith that could never align with what I perceive to be logical, sensible, or beautiful.  Atheism was never something I seriously entertained, but neither was what was probably the majority of things I had known about Christianity back then.  I felt like there were no other options, so I identified as Christian by name but never really engaged myself with my beliefs or let them influence me creatively and intellectually.  Now here we are today: applying to a church-affiliated university so I can be ordained to preach the Good News at my own church one day.

Sorry for going on a personal tangent there, but that's how it all went down for me.  Ultimately, my point is that although religion requires us to observe things logically and sometimes defend our prepositions rationally, it gives everyone a unique sense of identity.  We identify ourselves with religion or non-religion because of the way it identifies with us.  It gives us our own set of lens through which we see the world and interpret its underlying meaning.  And at the end of the day, even if we are wrong we can feel that sense of accomplishment for having interacted with reality, or otherwise what we perceive as reality, with a fresh and imaginative approach.

Of course, I believe there are right and wrong ways to make religion work, but determining our own paths in this life can be a very rewarding experience, whether one is a believer or a non-believer.

(Sorry if this doesn't answer your question, HockeyDude.  I just felt that needed to be shared. )

[afleitch]

Be prepared to be met with disdain from some corners. Sadly there are people who would rather you hold a post-colonial westernised and bastardised Buddhism or some woolly non committal diluted faith rather than simply holding a simple position of non belief. Furthermore the idea that being an atheist could possibly give you solace and guidance and a sense of purpose seems incredulous to some, even threatening.

Of course I agree with you. I feel the same way and have faced the same issues;"I hate religion, I worship science, I’m just like Dawkins and Hitchens, I’m an atheist because I know god exists and I hate him, I hate Christmas" and so on. I’m also a repository for ‘and another thing’ diatribes with people who are pissed off that I don’t believe water holds memory, that ouija and the zodiac don’t work and that there isn’t a ghost in their basement. In the end it’s just water off a ducks back. I’m not fussed. I’m active in the Humanist movement and I’m thankful that some people have been able to attend the celebrations of birth, marriage and death that we have that demonstrate the inherent kindness in people and the deep sense of community that exists within us all.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I’m an atheist because I know god exists and I hate him,

Wouldn't that make you an antitheist instead of an atheist?

[afleitch]

I’m an atheist because I know god exists and I hate him,

Wouldn't that make you an antitheist instead of an atheist?

I've told snippy street preachers that numerous times

[afleitch]

Well this went well

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

I’m an atheist because I know god exists and I hate him,

Wouldn't that make you an antitheist instead of an atheist?

I've told snippy street preachers that numerous times

*God

[DemPGH]

 
-atheism has given me a sense of self-determination I formally did not have
-I believe that I can not and will not fully understand reality - this is very humbling and keeps me grounded
-it drives me to learn and understand more about the things I'm able to
-my mind feels more open and more free
-I feel more in touch with how my body and mind actually work.  Since I do not believe I have a soul, or a consciousness separate from my physical body, the way I approach just about anything has become more streamlined
 

While I have not put it in those words I have compared it to a "discovery," and that tends to disarm people a little bit or at worst put them in a condescending mode because they think their spiritual knowledge really means something. Once or twice I've gotten real copies of the Case For Christ (which is a massive appeal to scripture as authority) and More Than a Carpenter thrown at me - you know, books or movies from people who were atheists but then "found God," whatever in the world that means. Worst, someone will say something like, "Well, God never revealed himself to you." To that I sometimes want to say, "If God 'revealed' himself to you, you might have a problem," but I don't.

I did reciprocate one time and sent someone a copy of Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World, and that was kind of the last word on it. You know, if you're going to send me religious books, I'm going to send you atheist ones.

I actually try to avoid conversations about religion except with people I know, but when the subject does come up I have to say that theists are usually kind of disarmed by the positive angle. It's far better than being negative. They might be condescending, but they kind of have persecution anxiety, I think, so they expect you to go for their throats. When you don't it can be more effective.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Furthermore the idea that being an atheist could possibly give you solace and guidance and a sense of purpose seems incredulous to some, even threatening.

Elaborate.  Why would people find this threatening? 

[afleitch]

Furthermore the idea that being an atheist could possibly give you solace and guidance and a sense of purpose seems incredulous to some, even threatening.

Elaborate.  Why would people find this threatening? 

There are people who genuinely believe that you need a belief system in order to make you inherently 'good'. Street pastors often charge me with being 'unhappy' because to them I can't be anything but if I don't subscribe to their beliefs.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

There are people who genuinely believe that you need a belief system in order to make you inherently 'good'. Street pastors often charge me with being 'unhappy' because to them I can't be anything but if I don't subscribe to their beliefs.

Is not atheism a belief system?  I've certainly encountered atheists who believe that those who advocate theistic beliefs are inherently 'bad' and can't help but wonder why anyone with an iota of sense would subscribe to such 'unhappy' alternatives to the 'truth' of atheism.  Unfortunately, it seems to be a rule that with any belief system, there will be those who denigrate those who believe otherwise.

[DC Al Fine]

There are people who genuinely believe that you need a belief system in order to make you inherently 'good'. Street pastors often charge me with being 'unhappy' because to them I can't be anything but if I don't subscribe to their beliefs.

Is not atheism a belief system?  I've certainly encountered atheists who believe that those who advocate theistic beliefs are inherently 'bad' and can't help but wonder why anyone with an iota of sense would subscribe to such 'unhappy' alternatives to the 'truth' of atheism.  Unfortunately, it seems to be a rule that with any belief system, there will be those who denigrate those who believe otherwise.

Depends on whether you define atheism as "believes there is no God" or use the atheism/secular humanism combination that is so prominent these days.

[afleitch]

There are people who genuinely believe that you need a belief system in order to make you inherently 'good'. Street pastors often charge me with being 'unhappy' because to them I can't be anything but if I don't subscribe to their beliefs.

Is not atheism a belief system?  I've certainly encountered atheists who believe that those who advocate theistic beliefs are inherently 'bad' and can't help but wonder why anyone with an iota of sense would subscribe to such 'unhappy' alternatives to the 'truth' of atheism.  Unfortunately, it seems to be a rule that with any belief system, there will be those who denigrate those who believe otherwise.

Strictly speaking I don’t think you can say atheism is a ‘belief’. Atheism if anything is the absence of a belief (that belief being theism) As theism is the belief that at least one god of whatever characteristic exists, a-theism is the absence of a belief that some sort of god exists. I don’t subscribe to the belief that the apparent movement of stars influences your life and life choices. Not holding that view isn’t a ‘belief’ in not believing in astrology. Being 'a-astrologic' isn't a belief system. Atheists can have other beliefs of course (of a non theistic kind) and can be categorised as a believer in that sense.
Depends on whether you define atheism as "believes there is no God" or use the atheism/secular humanism combination that is so prominent these days.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Strictly speaking I don’t think you can say atheism is a ‘belief’. Atheism if anything is the absence of a belief (that belief being theism) As theism is the belief that at least one god of whatever characteristic exists, a-theism is the absence of a belief that some sort of god exists. I don’t subscribe to the belief that the apparent movement of stars influences your life and life choices. Not holding that view isn’t a ‘belief’ in not believing in astrology. Being 'a-astrologic' isn't a belief system. Atheists can have other beliefs of course (of a non theistic kind) and can be categorised as a believer in that sense.

So in other words you confine the word "belief" to any philosophy in which a person holds that there exist forces beyond the natural forces.  I can see the point in denying that atheism is a "religion", but not that is a "belief".  By the dictionary definition of belief, a confidence in the truth or existence of something not immediately susceptible to rigorous proof, atheism is a belief, or have you managed to come up with a proof that God does not exist?

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

Strictly speaking I don’t think you can say atheism is a ‘belief’. Atheism if anything is the absence of a belief (that belief being theism) As theism is the belief that at least one god of whatever characteristic exists, a-theism is the absence of a belief that some sort of god exists. I don’t subscribe to the belief that the apparent movement of stars influences your life and life choices. Not holding that view isn’t a ‘belief’ in not believing in astrology. Being 'a-astrologic' isn't a belief system. Atheists can have other beliefs of course (of a non theistic kind) and can be categorised as a believer in that sense.

So in other words you confine the word "belief" to any philosophy in which a person holds that there exist forces beyond the natural forces.  I can see the point in denying that atheism is a "religion", but not that is a "belief".  By the dictionary definition of belief, a confidence in the truth or existence of something not immediately susceptible to rigorous proof, atheism is a belief, or have you managed to come up with a proof that God does not exist?

Here I do not agree with afleich.  Is atheism a religion?  No.  If atheism is a religion, then not collecting stamps is a hobby.  Is it a belief though?  Yes, absolutely.