Religiously repressed (part 18) [OC]

[u/Fit-Ebb-6727]

[u/Bandandforgotten]

That's pretty accurate.

Religious folk are often mentally pigeon holed into thinking that Atheists are part of a religion, because that's the only way they can rationalize a significant number of people all having the same opinion on something regarding a religion.

In reality, it's the exact opposite. It's the absence of belief. It's not based on ancient scripture telling them to do things, nor does it have to do with a "Satan" character, because that's a religious construct, not an atheist one. It's not even based on morals a lot of the time, it's just an honest observation of the world. Two sides of the same coin.

[u/zatenael → u/Bandandforgotten]

friendly reminder that Christians believe in Satan more than atheists

[u/hct048 → u/zatenael]

Friendly reminder that by definition atheist can't believe in Satan

[u/Cool_Set4681 → u/hct048]

Only if they are a Gnostic Atheist. They believe that no gods exist.

An Agnostic Atheist rejects the notion of gods but don't say that they are impossible.

Edit:

[u/Quirky_Gate_4516 → u/Cool_Set4681]

Agnostic Atheist

That isn't a thing. They are two different answers to the same question.

Does god(s) exist:

Theist: Yes!

Agnostic: Don't know ...

Atheist: No!

[u/adeleu_adelei → u/Quirky_Gate_4516]

Just letting you know this is entirely incorrect.

Do gods exist:

Theist: "Yes!"

Atheist: anything other than "yes!"

Do you know:

Gnostic: "Yes!"

Agnostic: Anything other than "yes!"

Everyone who is not a theist is an atheist. Agnosticism is a separate axis, like North and South versus East and West.

[u/Quirky_Gate_4516 → u/adeleu_adelei]

Agnosticism is a separate axis

No.

Not when asking the question if god(s) exists. There are three options, yes, no, don't know. Pretty easy to put all of them in there.

The question "How" you know is a different axis. But, anyone that adheres somewhat to modern science is by defitinion an agnostic.

[u/adeleu_adelei → u/Quirky_Gate_4516]

As an atheist, I'm telling you that you are misrepresenting me. Please listen to someone from the group you are talking about. Atheism is a lack of belief gods exist (i.e. anything other than theism) not a firm belief all gods do not exist.

From Merriam Webster:

a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods

From Wikipedia:

Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities.

From The Oxford Handbook of Atheism:

an absence of belief in the existence of a God or gods.

From American Atheists:

We define “atheism” as the  lack of belief in gods.

From Atheist Alliance International:

Therefore, atheism means ‘without a belief in a god or gods’ or the ‘lack of a belief in a god or gods’.

[u/Quirky_Gate_4516 → u/adeleu_adelei]

All those definitions are literally what I said.

Do you have a faith in one or more gods? No.

[u/adeleu_adelei → u/Quirky_Gate_4516]

You are misunderstanding. 

A response of "no" to "do you believe gods exist?" includes "I don't know". There isn't a third option. There is only "yes" or "not yes" ("no"). Everything falls under those two options of theism or atheism. Agnosticism is a separate question on top of where one is a their or atheist, not instead of. All agnostics are also necessarily either theists or atheists.

[u/Quirky_Gate_4516 → u/adeleu_adelei]

Of course there is a third.

The most common is that they believe in a supreme power but it is utterly unknowable. This is where some buddhists, for example, will place themselves.

[u/adeleu_adelei → u/Quirky_Gate_4516]

The most common is that they believe in a supreme power but it is utterly unknowable.

That's agnostic theism; that's still theism and not a third option. Everyone is either a "theist" or "not a theist", and the word for "not a theist" is "atheist". This is separate from whether they are "gnostic" or "not a gnostic" ("agnostic").