Does Atheism Lead to Nihilism?

[Esquilax]

It has been demonstrated. You just don’t like the answer.

How? Once again, all you've done is made the assertion.

No problem. It’s just that you, Esquilax, with a tacit acceptance of a naturalism, cannot rationally defend meaning using a metaphysic that dismisses personal identity, intentionality, and universal essences.

Personal identity and intentionality are products of sufficiently advanced brains, which are themselves natural products. It's not really that hard, but I don't think "universal essence" is a coherent or relevant part of this conversation.

Your underlying assumption is that physical reality is the whole of reality.

If you have to begin your rebuttals by dictating to your opponent what their position must be in order for your rebuttal to stand, then you do not have a rebuttal.

In such a reality, humans are an inalienable physical process, an electro-chemical reaction, without definable boundaries between it and the rest of physical reality.

Consciousness is the boundary. I am a conscious, self aware portion of physical reality, and that self awareness is sufficient to differentiate me from the other bits.

This is exactly what I'm talking about: the theist having this conversation either has to invent a problem out of whole cloth for their god to "solve," or else they've got to remain obtusely ignorant of simple responses to their attempts to cut a god-shaped hole in the world via arguments from incredulity.