At our last meeting we were discussing whether or not it took faith to be an atheist. It doesn't take faith to be an atheist,we do have faith though, faith in those we trust, in science, in the fact that there is no god, but, does it take faith to not believe? As viewpoints were expressed it seemed that people fell into one of two general categories, those who believed there was no god and those who knew there was no god.
Those that believe god doesn’t exist, in general are open to the possibility that given indisputable evidence, they could change their mind. This viewpoint stems from the difficulty of proving a negative, and therefore just as those without proof believe god exists, those without proof to the contrary believe he doesn’t.
The other group however, says with a certainty that they know god doesn’t exist. They start with no belief and look for evidence that something exists. Without that evidence, religion is just another mythology, and they know this.
One of Webster’s definitions of faith is: sincerity of intentions. This may be the best definition of faith that can be applied to atheists. Both those whoknow and believe do so with good intentions. They believe that without religion this world could be a better place. Every day there are acts of violence and hate carried out in the name of religion. This is a small minority of believers but it is done over differences of faith or different interpretations of the same faith. Politicians even claim natural disasters as messages from god. No god means suffering isn’t caused or allowed by some unseen force or being. No god means we don’t have an excuse for not doing more to help those who are suffering. No god means we have to realize how short and precious this life is, because there is no eternal heaven after, and we must take care of each other better than we do now. So if faith is sincerity of intentions, then yes every atheist I know has faith, faith in mankind without religion.
The other group however, says with a certainty that they know god doesn’t exist. They start with no belief and look for evidence that something exists. Without that evidence, religion is just another mythology, and they know this.
One of Webster’s definitions of faith is: sincerity of intentions. This may be the best definition of faith that can be applied to atheists. Both those whoknow and believe do so with good intentions. They believe that without religion this world could be a better place. Every day there are acts of violence and hate carried out in the name of religion. This is a small minority of believers but it is done over differences of faith or different interpretations of the same faith. Politicians even claim natural disasters as messages from god. No god means suffering isn’t caused or allowed by some unseen force or being. No god means we don’t have an excuse for not doing more to help those who are suffering. No god means we have to realize how short and precious this life is, because there is no eternal heaven after, and we must take care of each other better than we do now. So if faith is sincerity of intentions, then yes every atheist I know has faith, faith in mankind without religion.
Another way of labeling the variations within atheism is "hard" or "strong" vs. "soft" or "weak". Whichever set of labels you use, they describe the difference between "believing their is no god", a positive belief, and "lacking a belief in god", a negative belief.
ReplyDeleteWhichever way you look at it, I've often thought that the difference between the two stances is one of comfort. I'm comfortable with taking the extra step and saying I believe no god exists.
I've not thought of it as "knowing" that no god exists, but it's definitely edging in that direction. I certainly base my life and my worldview on it.