You don't want to be labelled. Good. Labels and being labelled are important.
One of my rules is -Don't argue with anybody who makes their own definitions.-
A part of the growing atheist movement has been to more effectively take control of the definition of the word atheist (later to be used as a label.) The definition used most commonly here I find to be: "One who does not believe in any god or gods." I'd call this the definition of "weak" atheist where the lack of belief is essentially a passive activity. My pet rock is an atheist. It doesn't believe in anything.
There are others: The other or "strong" definition of atheism is the one in which the believer actively believes that there are no gods. That is the definition which my dictionary uses: "Atheist: one who believes (actively) in no gods."
Then there is the protestant Christian definition of atheist: Atheist = evil person. I believe this definition is used because the memeplex of protestant Christianity recognizes (probably without consciously realizing it because I don't believe that protestant Christianity is conscious,) atheism of any sort as a threat to its reproduction, spread and prosperity.
Using the "weak" definition, one is either a theist or atheist (not-theist.) Just like one is either a brick or not a brick. There's a logic principle here. The excluded middle rings a bell. One is either A or not A there are no other choices.
One of my rules is -Don't argue with anybody who makes their own definitions.-
A part of the growing atheist movement has been to more effectively take control of the definition of the word atheist (later to be used as a label.) The definition used most commonly here I find to be: "One who does not believe in any god or gods." I'd call this the definition of "weak" atheist where the lack of belief is essentially a passive activity. My pet rock is an atheist. It doesn't believe in anything.
There are others: The other or "strong" definition of atheism is the one in which the believer actively believes that there are no gods. That is the definition which my dictionary uses: "Atheist: one who believes (actively) in no gods."
Then there is the protestant Christian definition of atheist: Atheist = evil person. I believe this definition is used because the memeplex of protestant Christianity recognizes (probably without consciously realizing it because I don't believe that protestant Christianity is conscious,) atheism of any sort as a threat to its reproduction, spread and prosperity.
Using the "weak" definition, one is either a theist or atheist (not-theist.) Just like one is either a brick or not a brick. There's a logic principle here. The excluded middle rings a bell. One is either A or not A there are no other choices.
So how, exactly, does God know that She's NOT a brain in a vat? 
