again, being religious is just having a theory about the cause/nutre of life and the universe and stuff. believing in a god is not a requirement of being religious.
True, but calling yourself Christian while not following the religion seems wrong to me. Anyone can be religious, but you shouldn't claim to be part of a specific religion if you're not their for the religion.
true, that is one reason why i left, that and mormons are kinda nuts :P But wha twe are trying to figure out is if athiests fit in the religious category, personally i think that the lack of belief in a diety is not a good enough reason for them to not be classified as religious. they act the same as religious folks do, just about the opposite belief. and if they arent religious, what are they. because they are not "nothing" they are anti something, but does being at the other end of the spectrum make you religious, or another category which is yet to be defined.
because they are not "nothing" they are anti something,
I can't speak for all atheists, but I'm not anti anything.
One of the problems with group atheist is that we only fit into the most general of groups. The only thing all atheist have in common is the lack of belief in a God or Gods.
How so? Atheism doesn't come with any of those things he listed. It doesn't have an after life, higher power, dogma, or moral code. All it is is a lack of a belief in a deity.
But wha twe are trying to figure out is if athiests fit in the religious category, personally i think that the lack of belief in a diety is not a good enough reason for them to not be classified as religious.
As NoName pointed out atheism fits in the religious category just a theism does. These are not religions they are these are positions on belief regarding a deity. There are religions that have no belief in a deity, making those in that religion atheists. There are far more religions with a belief in a deity/s, making the people in those religions theists. There are atheists and theists who don't subscribe to any religion.
and if they arent religious, what are they.
I have to wonder what religion are you? You said you were once Mormon but no longer. If you are currently not part of any religion right now then you have your answer.
Wow. I am a christian, who wanted to know people's opinions. Jerks and douchebags who just take this oppurtunity to take cheap shots at other people's religions are not welcome. I want to make this clear
We really have to consider that there are many different ways to interpret religion, theism, atheism, and the rise of these terms to identify their most accurate purposes.
Let's look at some of the definitions here:
Theism: A belief in Gods; The doctrine (or dogma) associated with a belief in Gods; Belief in the existence of a god or gods, especially belief in a personal God as creator and ruler of the world.
Atheism: The belief that there is no God; without belief; denial of the existence of Gods
Now, the etymology here simply affixes the prefix A- to theism, and came about after the ideas of theism. If we take this literally then Atheism means 'without theism'. There is nothing in the etymology of Atheism with demands an active denial although there are many atheist who are 'strong atheists' in that they actively deny the existence of any gods whatsoever, although the majority are more moderate and simply withhold belief due to a lack of proof.
Now let's look at religion:
Religion: The service and worship of God or the supernatural; the state of being religious; commitment or devotion to religious principles.
It is clear from this that a lack of belief, or even a denial of the existence of a God (supernatural being) is directly at odds with the principles of a religion.
Religion demands that there are principles, practices, and dogma associated with its tenets and that these must be observed and/or practiced in accordance with the requirements of the dogma surrounding such a belief system.
Atheism demands no practices, has no dogma, and requires nothing from atheists except refraining from asserting in the positive that a supernatural being with the attributes ascribed to a deity exist.
Religion: The service and worship of God or the supernatural; the state of being religious; commitment or devotion to religious principles.
copying and pasting from dictionary.com isn't that hard, and also, where did you get that definition?
re·li·gionâ â/rɪËlɪdÊ'Én/ Show Spelled[ri-lij-uhn] Show IPA â"noun 1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
as previously quoted by mage or avorne, or somebody, from dictionary.com
i like definition #6 though, also under dictionary.coms page on religion.
6. something one believes in and follows devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience: to make a religion of fighting prejudice.
again, people keep using that athiests don't believe in a god as a reason for not being a religion, but the definition plainly states that while a religion usually worships some kind of diety, it is NOT required.
kind of like agnostics, but i really don't want to name it. its not a describable way of life, except i believe in a sort of nameless higher power, a reason, a path, karma, a kind of chivalry, almost a knights code, but i hate horses, and they don't even have good meat. i dont think theres A god, but i hope not. for me though, there has to be a direction, a meaning to all of this, and if im wrong, then atleast i will have lived my life in a happy, and healthy way (except smoking for now).
again, people keep using that athiests don't believe in a god as a reason for not being a religion, but the definition plainly states that while a religion usually worships some kind of diety, it is NOT required.
And if you want to use that definition then we can consider sport, politics, or anything in the world a religion so long as someone 'follows devotedly'. However, I would like to point out that I, for one, and many of the atheists whom I associate with do not follow atheism or the idea that there is no God devotedly, we simply are withholding affirmation of a deity until there is evidence. Should evidence arise we would immediately change our position.
Again, if we want to argue semantics and take every possible definition of a word as an accurate one then anything could be a religion. Before we debate as to what a thing is we must all agree to choose by which definition we are attempting to establish the truth value and purpose of a proposition.
thats not really a good plan, i mean i get what you are saying, i bet theres alot of dictionaries out there that are biased, or have a different view of the same word. but at the same time, there are very disreputable sources out there. like urbandictionary.com, not saying that theyre right on some things but wow, theres alot of wierd stuff on there.
btw, i agree, we need to agree on a definition of religion, ofcourse i submit that dictionary.com should hold the title of most reputable. but maybe theres a way we can vote on it. maybe we have to start a new thread.
