(December 12, 2018 at 12:32 pm)Whateverist Wrote:(December 12, 2018 at 8:38 am)Amarok Wrote: Then they aren't atheists they can call themselves whatever they please they simply aren't
This is what comes of arguing over poorly defined terms. If I think what gives rise to god belief is an aspect of mind/consciousness, something that is altogether natural, and I say I think there is in fact something to it, then which am I? I identify as atheist because I don't call that aspect of mind "God" and I certainly don't believe in anything at all supernatural, whatever you choose to call it. However I do think this aspect of mind can productively be regarded as something of importance. It is something separate from the narrow I under my direct control, but something larger of which I am part. Religion, done right (which it rarely is), can help people achieve a balance within this larger thing of which "narrow I" is a part - and it can do this even if what they literally believe is entirely untrue.
Let's reword the definition for theist then.
Theist: one who professes belief in at least one god.
An atheist therefore is one who does not profess belief in any god. If someone considers the universe to be "God", that's them professing a belief in a god, which makes them a theist.
As an atheist, I can accept that such a theist may consider the universe to be "God" or believe in God in a metaphoric way, but I need not share the same attitude myself.
