Atheism

Atheism, in its broadest sense, is characterized by an absence of belief in the existence of gods, thus contrasting with theism. This definition includes both those who assert that there are no gods and those who have no beliefs at all regarding the existence of gods. However, narrower definitions often only qualify the former as atheism, the latter falling under the more general term nontheism.

Criticisms of atheism

Atheists and atheism have received much criticism and opposition throughout human history, chiefly from theistic sources who consider lack of belief in their god sinful, misguided or immoral, but there has also been some criticism from nontheistic sources, at least of various forms of atheism. It is possible from the standpoint of religious philosophy to assess the arguments without necessarily taking a position on the issue.

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The most direct arguments against atheism are those in favor of the existence of deities, which would imply that atheism is simply untrue. For examples of this type of argument, see Existence of God.

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Other popular critiques of atheism, and their corresponding common atheist responses, include:

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Atheism doesn't exist

One popular claim among some theists in the past has been that all people must naturally, inherently believe in a deity. Thus, atheism cannot be a true statement of belief, but is simply a form of denial. With atheism defined out of existence, atheists must necessarily be deluding themselves rather than honestly disbelieving.

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The typical response to this has been to demand evidence that people who claim not to be theists are secretly theists, as anyone could make such a claim about anything, attempting to support a point by arguing that everyone already agrees with you without knowing it.

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Atheism leads to poor morals and ethics

Many world religions teach that morality is derived from, for example, the commandments of a particular deity, and that acknowledgment of God or the gods is a major factor in motivating people towards moral behavior. Consequently, atheists have frequently been accused of being amoral or immoral. For example, for many years in the United States, atheists were not allowed to testify in court because it was believed that an atheist would have no reason to tell the truth.

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Atheists reject this view and assert that they are as motivated towards moral behavior as anyone, citing possible non-theistic sources of moral behavior such as: their upbringing; natural empathy, compassion and a human concern for others; respect for order, society, and law; and a desire for a good reputation and self-esteem. In addition, while atheism does not entail any particular moral philosophy, many atheists are drawn towards views like secular humanism and utilitarianism, which provide a moral framework that is not founded on faith in deities.

Related Topics:
Empathy - Compassion - Secular humanism - Utilitarianism

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Atheists have also argued that no religious basis is necessary for one to live an ethical life. http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/mark_vuletic/moral.html They assert that truly ethical behavior would come from altruistic motivation, not from fear of punishment or hope of reward after death. Further, they cite the fact that within many religions the concept of morality is presented as a list of prohibitions; thou shall not statements, compiled as a check against one's actions. They assert that abiding by a list of prohibitions is not sufficient for genuinely ethical behavior, and that morality should be positive rather than negative; What should I do? rather than What shouldn't I do?. They consider that reason guided by humanism and rational thought leads to a more fully expressed ethical life. Of course, many modern liberal religions have such humanistic concepts as well.

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Some atheists counter that religion, rather than atheism, is a source of immorality. Francis Bacon writes: "Atheism leaves a man to sense, to philosophy, to natural piety, to laws, to reputation; all of which may be guides to an outward moral virtue, even if religion vanished; but religious superstition dismounts all these and erects an absolute monarchy in the minds of men." http://www.worldwideschool.org/library/books/phil/modernwesternphilosophy/FrancisBacon/chap17.html Many other atheists, however—and some theists—do not believe that theism, or lack of it, have any pronounced effect on whether a person behaves morally or not.

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Some theists have also argued that atheism promotes immorality based on examples of atheists who are widely considered to be oppressive and brutal rulers, particularly Joseph Stalin and Mao Zedong. However, atheists have countered that the existence of unethical people who have a certain belief system (or a lack of a certain belief system) does not in itself indicate that the belief system itself is unethical; otherwise, Adolf Hitler's Christian beliefs, for example, might incriminate all of Christianity. Without any cause-and-effect connection, such associations remain mere rhetoric.

Related Topics:
Joseph Stalin - Mao Zedong - Adolf Hitler - Christianity - Cause-and-effect

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Atheism is a belief as much as theism is

The claim that atheism requires as much faith or as many unmerited assumptions as theism does is commonly used as an argument against strong atheism by weak atheists and agnostics, as well as against atheism in general.

Related Topics:
Strong atheism - Weak atheists - Agnostics

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At times, this argument consists of laying the burden of proof on atheism, or on both atheism and theism. However, laying the burden of proof on atheism may be unrealistic, as, while it might be theoretically possible to one day find reasonably persuasive evidence of the existence of a deity (though strong agnostics disagree), it seems unlikely that atheism could ever find evidence of a "not-god" anywhere; as such, arguments for atheism consist primarily of arguments against theism, which is in keeping with claims that atheism is only the lack of a belief rather than a belief itself.

Related Topics:
Burden of proof - Strong agnostics

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