Not unless you want to dilute the term "religion" to mean simply a shared interest. Otherwise you're just engaging in Dolphinetics - leaping from one position or definition to another as convenience demands.

A lot of people support their football teams. Some may even pray that they do well, or pray to them. It's debatable as to whether that makes it a religion.

I often suspect that if it hasn't already, it'll probably evolve into one eventually - if the money's right.

(December 17, 2015 at 2:35 pm)Pandæmonium Wrote: A lot of people support their football teams. Some may even pray that they do well, or pray to them. It's debatable as to whether that makes it a religion.

Knowing how the fundies think they likely believe that's Devil worship.

(December 17, 2015 at 2:14 pm)Reflex Wrote:

Quote:"If you have some news or atheist activism to share, post it here. Links to news articles & blog posts are most welcome!"

Interesting that the above quote can be seen just above where one enters this particular thread, don't you think?

And if atheism isn't a new religion, why are atheist churches popping up? Just wondering.

Religious people don't know what a religion is, and this is remarkable only in that if you did you probably would shun religion too.

Religion has never, ever dealt with matters of fact, only ideas which demand acceptance through faith.

Your religious ideas are taught according to the approval of your sectarian authorities, and these are called doctrines.

Your faith is demanded according to these doctrines - because they say so, not because they are fact.

Atheism is simply a lack of belief in theistic doctrines. We are not impressed by rhetoric, doctrines, and said infallible holy books, and we don't keep any of our own on these. Facts can be proven, and that's what we look to in making our life decisions. When you try and force people to change theirs and lord your religious ideas over them, we will organize and come after you, but that doesn't make us a religion. That doesn't even make us ideological - or anyway, the last time I checked honest discourse, freedom of choice, and justice in society were not that.

REPEAT: No ideas, including those which are accepted as fact today are infallible! It's not impossible, however unlikely, that evolution without design will someday be proven false on a level scientific playing field. This would be no loss to atheism, nor would atheists raise their fists in the puerile sort of resistance which the religious leaders put up whenever their doctrines are challenged. Ideas on fact change, but that's fine because changes in our understanding of factual matters bring the world closer to understanding the real truth on things. This is why medicine tends to improve, as opposed to devolve.

Oh, one more thing: you won't slip by with the common shithead's dodge "I don't do religion, I just have a personal relationship with God".
Nononono, that does not work here, so save it! If you believe in a god, then you believe in a doctrine, therefore you would still be religious! You would be a believer in doctrine even if you made up your own by modifying an old one. It's a doctrine because it's unfalsifiable, and not factual, but accepted as true all the same.

(December 17, 2015 at 2:26 pm)Reflex Wrote:

(December 17, 2015 at 2:19 pm)Brian37 Wrote: "atheist" describes a position not a club. "Atheists" do form clubs and yes some call them churches, I don't think they should and I do think it is a bad idea. 

Just like owning a gun doesn't mean you are automatically an NRA member.

I don't agree or disagree. But do not these "clubs" get together for the same reason persons of similar religious beliefs get together?

Not at all.

First of all, atheism is not a "religious belief". It is the lack of religious beliefs.

Atheism has no doctrine, dogma, common text, leader. It is not even a worldview. Which are all reasons why theists do congregate in churches, mosques and temples. 

Personally, I think the idea of "atheists churches" is ridiculous, but I also understand some people, fresh from the mental shackles that is theism, may miss some of what their religion provided. A community of a bunch of like minded people congregating once a week. 

There is also something called "Sunday Assembly"

Most Thurday nights I go to my kickboxing "religion", apparently. (or did until my shoulder received a mighty thwack rendering my arm useless for ages)

(December 17, 2015 at 3:57 pm)Simon Moon Wrote:

(December 17, 2015 at 2:26 pm)Reflex Wrote: I don't agree or disagree. But do not these "clubs" get together for the same reason persons of similar religious beliefs get together?

Not at all.

First of all, atheism is not a "religious belief". It is the lack of religious beliefs.

Atheism has no doctrine, dogma, common text, leader. It is not even a worldview. Which are all reasons why theists do congregate in churches, mosques and temples. 

Personally, I think the idea of "atheists churches" is ridiculous, but I also understand some people, fresh from the mental shackles that is theism, may miss some of what their religion provided. A community of a bunch of like minded people congregating once a week. 

There is also something called "Sunday Assembly"

Folks gather together in large secular groups just to sing folk music, and this doesn't make them religious.

Students get together in one large classroom to learn useful facts and learn valuable skills, and that isn't religion either.

Some atheists like the comraderie of gathering together in groups. They may enjoy singing with others, or they may feel a need to be inspired by smart people with ideas on how they cope in a world made crazy with nonsense-makers.  No, not even this is religion - it's called being human!

(December 17, 2015 at 3:57 pm)Simon Moon Wrote:

(December 17, 2015 at 2:26 pm)Reflex Wrote: I don't agree or disagree. But do not these "clubs" get together for the same reason persons of similar religious beliefs get together?

Not at all.

First of all, atheism is not a "religious belief". It is the lack of religious beliefs.

Atheism has no doctrine, dogma, common text, leader. It is not even a worldview. Which are all reasons why theists do congregate in churches, mosques and temples. 

Personally, I think the idea of "atheists churches" is ridiculous, but I also understand some people, fresh from the mental shackles that is theism, may miss some of what their religion provided. A community of a bunch of like minded people congregating once a week. 

There is also something called "Sunday Assembly"

Ridiculous or not, some atheists do emulate their religious brethren.

No doctrine? No dogma? No common text? No leader or worldview? We seem to be living in different worlds. It's special pleading if you don't count Darwin's Origin of Species as a common text. No leaders? What about Dawkins and his ilk? They don't count? They're the high priests of vocal atheism. To say atheism has no worldview is like a fish saying there is no water: it's so pervasive it's invisible. Society never tires of using and abusing the media as a weapon of propaganda to get its religiously anti-religion across. It teaches us that atheists are open-minded and reasonable people who believe in the scientific method and who reject superstition. They are writers, scholars and experts who never misrepresent the facts or misuse words, while religionists are retarded Neanderthals who refuse to be persuaded by the brilliance of atheistic arguments, which of course only reinforces how stupid those knuckle-dragging religious types are.

This narrative is repeated ad nauseam in our popular culture: atheists are smart, theists are stupid; atheists love science; theists hate science; atheism is clever, superstitious religion is foolish; atheism is open-minded and tolerant; religion is dogmatic and intolerant; atheism does not seek to impose its views on others; religion seeks to impose its views on others. Four legs good, two legs bad.

There is no technology atheists will not pervert to their cause. The lessons are pumped into our children in government classrooms (for that is what “public schools” are – government indoctrination camps where reading and math have been supplanted by cultural indoctrination to secular humanist ideology). Those lessons are repeated in our television programs. Those lessons are recited dutifully by our news anchors. The goal, apparently, is to bludgeon religionists, and Christians in particular, into silence with the supremacy of  their “science” and “reason.”  

Technically, one is quite correct to say atheism is not a religion, but it certainly has all the hallmarks  of one.

(December 17, 2015 at 5:06 pm)Reflex Wrote:

(December 17, 2015 at 3:57 pm)Simon Moon Wrote: Not at all.

First of all, atheism is not a "religious belief". It is the lack of religious beliefs.

Atheism has no doctrine, dogma, common text, leader. It is not even a worldview. Which are all reasons why theists do congregate in churches, mosques and temples. 

Personally, I think the idea of "atheists churches" is ridiculous, but I also understand some people, fresh from the mental shackles that is theism, may miss some of what their religion provided. A community of a bunch of like minded people congregating once a week. 

There is also something called "Sunday Assembly"

Ridiculous or not, some atheists do emulate their religious brethren.

No doctrine? No dogma? No common text? No leader or worldview? We seem to be living in different worlds. It's special pleading if you don't count Darwin's Origin of Species as a common text. No leaders? What about Dawkins and his ilk? They don't count? They're the high priests of vocal atheism. To say atheism has no worldview is like a fish saying there is no water: it's so pervasive it's invisible. Society never tires of using and abusing the media as a weapon of propaganda to get its religiously anti-religion across. It teaches us that atheists are open-minded and reasonable people who believe in the scientific method and who reject superstition. They are writers, scholars and experts who never misrepresent the facts or misuse words, while religionists are retarded Neanderthals who refuse to be persuaded by the brilliance of atheistic arguments, which of course only reinforces how stupid those knuckle-dragging religious types are.

This narrative is repeated ad nauseam in our popular culture: atheists are smart, theists are stupid; atheists love science; theists hate science; atheism is clever, superstitious religion is foolish; atheism is open-minded and tolerant; religion is dogmatic and intolerant; atheism does not seek to impose its views on others; religion seeks to impose its views on others. Four legs good, two legs bad.

There is no technology atheists will not pervert to their cause. The lessons are pumped into our children in government classrooms (for that is what “public schools” are – government indoctrination camps where reading and math have been supplanted by cultural indoctrination to secular humanist ideology). Those lessons are repeated in our television programs. Those lessons are recited dutifully by our news anchors. The goal, apparently, is to bludgeon religionists, and Christians in particular, into silence with the supremacy of  their “science” and “reason.”  

Technically, one is quite correct to say atheism is not a religion, but it certainly has all the hallmarks  of one.

Oh my. You've gone off on several different things here. First of all, sadly, no matter how many times you are told that atheism is not a religion, you have it set in your mind and are thoroughly convinced that it is. Please provide something other than a reference to a book written by Dawkins that indubitably points to atheism as an actual religion. Anyone can write a book. It does not make them a leader of anything that they write. It makes them an author of a book. 

Second, atheist don't pevert technology to any "cause". There is no indoctrination of anything by an atheist. When we are born into this world, we have no knowledge of the existence of anything other than our mothers and our immediate surroundings. As we get older, we realize that there are things that exist outside of our viewing area, but that doesn't happen until we are about two years of age. Until that point, to a baby, when a mother walks out of a room, where the baby cannot see her, the baby processes that mom is gone but doesn't process that mom is still around. Hence, it is safe to say that a baby doesn't know of the belief of any diety or god. As a child grows older, someone or some thing tells a child that somewhere, is the existence of a god, even though we cannot see him. The child is told all about god and how much god loves them and is in their hearts and ad nauseum. THAT is indoctrination. 

As far as schools go, if you are referring to the United States educational system, The government is not atheism. The school system is not atheism. Technology is not atheism. Those are not actual human beings, therefore cannot be atheist. Are they made up of people? Yes. Are all of those people atheists? Probably not, but you'll have to ask them personally as I cannot vouch for the beliefs or non-beliefs of another. 

Your arguments are weak at best and circular at worst. Pick another topic. This isn't one you can win because you make too many assumptions about things you don't know.