religion

[paulgiamatti]

Originally Posted by leewong [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

One can hardly call atheism into question when the only thing atheism states is that there is no god or there is likely no god.

Great posts, but I differ slightly on this point. Atheism isn't so much a statement of anything as it is simply a refusal to believe in the divine or any kind of supernatural power. Every believer is atheistic with regard to some god or another, just as everyone, I hope, is an atheist with regard to Zeus, or Athena, or Thor.

Atheism is not and should not be a statement that there is no god. It's simply about having a healthy amount of skepticism and doubt when it comes to definitive answers to The Big Questions about our universe. Atheism is open to new evidence - the day Jesus descends from the heavens and raptures every believer into an eternity of praise and worship, every atheist will by principle have to become a believer.

I don't even like to say that I am an atheist or an antitheist or whatever, as it seems silly to profess what I do not believe in. As long as the States remain a secular nation I don't need to go around saying how I believe there is insufficient evidence to prove theories about the afterlife or the origins of the universe. However, the day proselytization becomes mandatory - the day my children have to read religious literature in school - is the day we should speak up.