An Overview of Atheism

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Atheism

The concept of atheism has constantly changed over time: in ancient Rome, pagans called Christians atheists while Christians considered pagans atheists. Some people even refer to Buddhists as atheists. Today, generally speaking, an atheist is someone who does not believe in a god or gods; this has caused tension in a world where most people (publicly, at least) profess a belief in a deity. This guide teaches you what atheism is, what it isn’t, how to become an involved atheist, who some prominent atheist thinkers are and were, and how to find atheist groups. It also provides tips on raising atheist children.

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An Overview of Atheism

Although there is no dogma, sacred text, special list of rules, or holiday calendar for atheists, there’s plenty you can learn about the principles they hold. Given the lack of general doctrine, there are many subtleties separating atheist tenets from related concepts such as humanism, scientific tradition, and skepticism. Agnosticism is commonly confused with atheism. But atheists believe that God does not exist, whereas agnostics say that we do not have the capability to know if God exists. Here is a short history and explanation of agnosticism from The Victorian Web. Whether you’re a longtime atheist, a staunch believer in God, or somewhere in between, these sites can help you grasp both the scope and the technicalities of atheism.

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Atheists reject the existence of God but may still retain religious affiliations or practices. There are practicing Jews, Christians, and Buddhists who call themselves atheists.

ReligiousTolerance.org does a good job of elucidating the differences among theism, atheism, agnosticism, Brights, ethical culturalism, freethinking, humanism, and rationalism.

In case the previous link did not clear up the terms well enough—which is entirely plausible, considering how similar some of them are—here is a site from Harvard’s Pluralism Project.

Although this is not the authoritative code for atheism, this piece from the Los Angeles Times might clear up some confusion you may have about some atheism “myths” and “truths”.

While no atheists are fans of religion, some atheist groups are vehemently antireligion. If you’re visiting a site that offends you, know that its views do not reflect those of all atheists, and move on to a different site.

You’ll find many of the atheist communities to be humanist organizations. Humanists seek to replace belief in God with an affirmation of the values of everyday life and humanity.

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For an overview …

The BBC includes a section on atheism among its religion guides and offers several pages detailing its elements. Not only can you get a basic summary and history, but if you select “Beliefs” from the left side of the screen, you’ll connect to a page with links listing all the arguments for atheism. Select topics individually and review each one in depth. The BBC also hyperlinks terms to their definitions, making this a great place for a beginner or someone looking to hone in on specifics.

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Beliefnet has a “Forums” section where you can post questions to get a better understanding of the philosophy. The atheism “Welcome Center” is a great place to start.

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Atheist Empire has a concise, friendly, fact-packed page called “About Atheism.” It’s a good place to start if you’re new to atheism, while the rest of the site is filled with articles and resources for experienced atheists.

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Ask an Atheist answers some of the big questions you might have about atheism on the left sidebar of its homepage. Take a look at the frequently updated articles, explore relevant books and texts, and check out the Ask an Atheist blog.

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American Atheists is a politically active organization of atheists in America. The “Visitors’ Center” has a section called “We Are Atheists Because” that identifies some basic characteristics of atheism. However, the organization itself is very political and anticonservative, neither of which is synonymous with being an atheist.

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