The topic says it all. Are Atheism or Agnosticism religions?
The question is as old as atheist beliefs themselves, I think. I had to ask myself that a while back when I was filling out a survey. One of the questions was about religion, and I had to write in what I was.
I was about to write Agnostic or Atheist (I wobble between the two, depending on my mood on a given day), but then I thought about whether it was intellectually honest to say anything other than "Not Applicable."
The definitions I use for the two terms are:
Atheism - a tacit belief that the is/are no God/gods, and there is nothing in the universe which is supernatural (though there are things which might be so advanced or complicated human beings cannot understand them)
Agnosticism - The belief that there may or may not be a God/gods, but there is no way to ever know, given the limitations of human consciousness. (Basically - God simply cannot be understood, and if you can understand it then it isn't God.)
These aren't perfect explanations, of course, but they work for me.
As for the question I asked:
The lack of does not, I think, constitute something else in itself. For instance, under "occupation" in the survey, I did not put "non-lawyer, non=doctor, non-bricklayer, non-trucker." I simply put down what I am - student. When I am nothing in the given category, why should I list the thing that I am not?
Yes, Atheism or Agnosticism might often have the trappings of other religious groups. They have "temples" (there actually are Atheist Churches on some USA university campuses, not to mention the Centers for Inquiry in many major cities around the world). There are "clergy-preachers" (ie Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and especially Richard Dawkins.) And people can be just a shrill about being Atheists as they can about being Christians.
So, is the lack of belief a belief in itself? Is "Atheist" an honest answer to a survey question asking for your religious belief?
The question is as old as atheist beliefs themselves, I think. I had to ask myself that a while back when I was filling out a survey. One of the questions was about religion, and I had to write in what I was.
I was about to write Agnostic or Atheist (I wobble between the two, depending on my mood on a given day), but then I thought about whether it was intellectually honest to say anything other than "Not Applicable."
The definitions I use for the two terms are:
Atheism - a tacit belief that the is/are no God/gods, and there is nothing in the universe which is supernatural (though there are things which might be so advanced or complicated human beings cannot understand them)
Agnosticism - The belief that there may or may not be a God/gods, but there is no way to ever know, given the limitations of human consciousness. (Basically - God simply cannot be understood, and if you can understand it then it isn't God.)
These aren't perfect explanations, of course, but they work for me.
As for the question I asked:
The lack of does not, I think, constitute something else in itself. For instance, under "occupation" in the survey, I did not put "non-lawyer, non=doctor, non-bricklayer, non-trucker." I simply put down what I am - student. When I am nothing in the given category, why should I list the thing that I am not?
Yes, Atheism or Agnosticism might often have the trappings of other religious groups. They have "temples" (there actually are Atheist Churches on some USA university campuses, not to mention the Centers for Inquiry in many major cities around the world). There are "clergy-preachers" (ie Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and especially Richard Dawkins.) And people can be just a shrill about being Atheists as they can about being Christians.
So, is the lack of belief a belief in itself? Is "Atheist" an honest answer to a survey question asking for your religious belief?