The World’s Largest Coalition of Nontheists and Nontheist Communities!

Atheism a religeon?

I've recently had a lively debate with a deist who asserted that atheism is a religeon as it has set tennents and creeds that are followed i.e. the tendancy to adhear to certain "dogma" such as skeptism and so on..

Now I've heard this flacid arguement more times than I'd like, but this particuler individual pruposed that not only is atheism a religeon that the whole of philosophy is by definition a religeon in that it follows set guidelines put forth. He went onto to assert political philosophies are as well. That is what got me thinking...Is a religeon a commonly held set of beleifs shared by a group as proposed by a figure head(s)?

this got my brain scratching...so I'm interested to hear what you think

-cheers!

0 members like this

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by David Zgurski on March 15, 2012 at 6:47pm

I think the deist thinks too much about this. You might as well say that science is a religion and groan about that for a while. I've described atheism as a movement that tries to lessen the hegemony of religion in our lives, and give ourselves more breathing space to learn, grow, enrich ourselves, and just out-and-out enjoy the freedom of being in charge of our own lives. Religion has pretty architecture and lovely music, and is good for herding the human sheep into a small building (have you ever wondered what that says about Jesus that he thinks so little of his followers to call them sheep?), but is the most egregious constraint on humankind's growth and future. I think you can't call atheism a religion any more than you can call feminism a religion, although I'm sure a lot of Rush Limbaugh fanatics have done so.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Peter White on March 16, 2012 at 12:18am

I did some research on the question in preparing to write an article on it. I found there are two groups who disagree on atheism being a religion. The religious overwhelmingly think atheism IS a religion. Atheists think it IS NOT a religion.

The reasons the religious give for atheism being a religion are poorly thought out and poorly argued. Most of the reasons I can categorize as projection. They just can't understand how atheists can "believe in nothing" and feel that non-belief in god(s) must be just like their belief in a deity. Some even argue that atheists must be following a charismatic leader like cult members or adhering to a rigid dogma.

The atheists have no trouble putting forward good arguments for atheism not being a religion. Most argue that atheism bears no resemblance to a religion and recognize the wide variety of beliefs both inside and outside of their atheism.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by MICHAIL CLUTTER on March 16, 2012 at 8:32am

By his definition Hasbo's Monopoly is a religion. Let him know religion is not a set of rules, but something that has rules and is DRIVEN BY FAITH. Since I don't need faith to buy boardwalk and put a Hotel on it, Monopoly just isn't a religion.

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by annet on March 17, 2012 at 8:37am

▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Rusty on March 18, 2012 at 10:58am

Anything can be approached in a "religious manner" but that doesn't make it a religion. For example, look at soccer. Some people become very ritualized and connected or at odds with others solely on the basis of their identification with a specific team. Does that make soccer itself a religion? No. It is simply a way of describing the people who are out of balance and obsessive succinctly.

There are going to be some people who having left a religion will transfer their absolutism and obsessive behavior to atheism to the extent that they are connected or at odds with others solely on their identification with one or more aspects of atheism. They will wear the team hats, attend all the team events, and use sayings as mantras. That doesn't mean that atheism is a religion either.

It is a very human behavior to identify closely with one's tribe. And, when one changes tribes, there is a strong psychological impetus to fit in that has been documented in psychological studies. One such study set up a fake office where everybody wore one type of clothing. New people introduced to the office as temporaries quickly acquired similar clothing and wore it.

Within moderate limits, this is healthy behavior that allows individuals to lower their emotional guards and enjoy their time with their tribe (religious group etc.) because outward conflicts have been diminished and a level of security and familiarity has been established. So, one or two bumper stickers is normal, fifty is probably worrisome.

What your debater has done is blur two separate uses of the word religion. English does have that problem since one word can often have completely different meanings depending on context. That does not mean that the word carries all those meanings in all contexts. For example, if you look at a word like "hot", it can mean sexy or high temperature. A stove is usually not considered sexy but it may have a high temperature. And, you aren't going to burn your hand if you touch a sexy looking person.

If he is using "religion" to mean a group of beliefs and assertions that require faith (unquestioning acceptance) since they cannot be rationally examined, then atheism is not a religion. If he is using "religion" to mean a group of people tied together by a common culture then atheism would qualify but the first meaning would not apply.

The only way I know to not go around in circles with an argument like this is to say that the word has two meanings and use more specific terms instead like "faith-oriented" and "common culture".