Whenever I'm asked about the purpose of life, or how atheists can be moral people I always think of Einstein when he said;
"If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed. The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge. ... "
There is a purpose to life, as has been stated previously, to procreate and continue our lineage. There are additional theories for ultimate purposes of the universe and these scientifically advanced and researched purposes are endlessly fascinating. I have personally found that acknowledging my purpose in the scientific/biological/cosmological sense has been something that allows me to constantly explore and understand better. A belief in a supernatural being would simply cloud my mind from being able to find the "purpose" you talk about.
When you say that religious people live for a purpose and a higher reason, well from an atheist point of view you've missed the point and live shadowed by a belief that doesn't allow reason or logic. It isn't any surprise that some of this discussion has been heated.
"If people are good only because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed. The further the spiritual evolution of mankind advances, the more certain it seems to me that the path to genuine religiosity does not lie through the fear of life, and the fear of death, and blind faith, but through striving after rational knowledge. ... "
There is a purpose to life, as has been stated previously, to procreate and continue our lineage. There are additional theories for ultimate purposes of the universe and these scientifically advanced and researched purposes are endlessly fascinating. I have personally found that acknowledging my purpose in the scientific/biological/cosmological sense has been something that allows me to constantly explore and understand better. A belief in a supernatural being would simply cloud my mind from being able to find the "purpose" you talk about.
When you say that religious people live for a purpose and a higher reason, well from an atheist point of view you've missed the point and live shadowed by a belief that doesn't allow reason or logic. It isn't any surprise that some of this discussion has been heated.
My religion is the understanding of my world. My god is the energy that underlies it all. My worship is my constant endeavor to unravel the mysteries of my religion. 
