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Is Atheism a viewpoint?
THen it is belief.
Is there any concrete evidence for the basis of Atheism? Can it prove a deity cannot just "exist"?
If it cannot then it is a belief.
Instead of just stating the argument I literally destroyed in the OP , try disputing your irrational belief that Atheism is not a belief. I covered my bases and unless you find flaw within the argument itself .
Saying you assertion in something that cannot be proven or disproved by default constitutes belief.
Originally posted by IamBoon
reply to post by ChickenPie
THat wouldn't prove anything except that god did not create the universe. It has no bearing on the concept of existence....
Originally posted by -PLB-
Originally posted by IamBoon
So unless deductive logic , observational coherence,and solid empirical data absolutely rule out a possibility on a subject , any stance on the unproven subject is by definition a belief.
How about the stance "because of the lack of evidence there is no reason to believe its true, therefor I don't believe it to be true". I fail to see how not believing is a belief.
Originally posted by Mike_A
reply to post by IamBoon
Is Atheism a viewpoint?
THen it is belief.
What does an atheist believe? It is not (necessarily) that god(s) does not exist and a lack of belief cannot be stated as a belief.
I provided the literal meaning of atheism and it is clearly not a belief in anything. There is a belief involved in atheism but only in arriving at atheism; that is an atheist must at least believe that there is no reason to believe in god. However that does not make atheism itself a belief.
Is there any concrete evidence for the basis of Atheism? Can it prove a deity cannot just "exist"?
If it cannot then it is a belief.
But that is not what many atheists assert. For myself I do not claim that a deity cannot or does not exist I just don’t believe that any does; I remain open to the possibility.
Instead of just stating the argument I literally destroyed in the OP , try disputing your irrational belief that Atheism is not a belief. I covered my bases and unless you find flaw within the argument itself .
But you didn’t destroy anything. All you did was define the word belief as say atheism is that; you didn’t prove anything except that the belief that there is no god is illogical and that it is indeed a belief. You didn’t even touch on the definition of atheism as a lack of belief except to say, without evidence or logic, that it was erroneous.
How is the lack of belief in one thing itself a belief? What is being believed in that case?
Saying you assertion in something that cannot be proven or disproved by default constitutes belief.
What is my assertion?
They kill in the name of god, but never kill in the name of love.
Originally posted by cushycrux
Why still debating about atheism? What about moral? What about love? What about materialism and egoism? Who needs a God if we have "values".
They kill in the name of god, but never kill in the name of love. They kill in the name of materialism and power. But they don't kill empathy. So why polarize? Can we live in peace together? What the hell is your god (my god) believers problem? You are so fundamental - so we will never reach peace on earth. It's so sad!
[edit on 30-7-2010 by cushycrux]
"Positive explicit" atheists assert that it is false that any deities exist. "Negative explicit" atheists assert they do not believe in deities, but do not assert it is true that deities do not exist.
Originally posted by Mike_A
reply to post by cushycrux
They kill in the name of god, but never kill in the name of love.
Yes they do, euthanasia, finding someone in bed with your partner and shooting them, taking revenge on someone who has hurt a loved one etc. It happens all the time.
Anyway that's not the topic.
Lack of empirical evidence can only bring you so far as to say that the probability of God existing is slim, but you cannot know God does not exist from that alone. So, if you don't know God does not exist, then that means you believe He doesn't exist.
Originally posted by -PLB-
Maybe we should introduce some types of atheism:
"Positive explicit" atheists assert that it is false that any deities exist. "Negative explicit" atheists assert they do not believe in deities, but do not assert it is true that deities do not exist.
Wikipedia
I agree that "Positive explicit" atheism can be seen as a belief. But "Negative explicit" atheism can not.
Originally posted by IamBoon
reply to post by Mike_A
I cannot make it any simpler than this seeing as the original and subsequent posts were to complicated for you.
Most argument Atheists use can also be used by THeists. THis IS because of the subject. Watch.
THere is no empirical data proving god.
THere is no empirical data Disproving god.
Atheism is a lack of belief in god(s) existence.
Theism is a lack of belief in god(s) nonexistence.
See? Does that make Theism a non belief? NO. It is a flawed argument that Atheists use to make themselves seem superior. It is egotistical garbage.
Your "lack of belief" argument holds no water on the subject of existence. And admitting to there being a possibility of an object without 100% certainty is a belief also. ugh And I thought Christians were thick headed about certain dogmas.