Is atheism a belief?

[Agnostico]

Hi Im new here. Im an agnostic with Christian values and Im here to try and understand some things.

Whenever I say that atheism is based on belief just like theism is I get a strong rejection from atheists. 
Some give me these twisted definitions while others claim that i cannot be agnostic without being an atheist.

So I want to start by getting the definition correct.
Am I right in saying atheists "believe there are no Gods" or "don't believe there are Gods"?
Am I right in saying atheism is based on belief? If yes then why do so many atheists reject this?
If not then Why? What is it then based on?


Do people agree with this?


Do people agree with this?
I don't because the only thing I believe in is knowledge. 
I don't lean either way on the question of God. I just don't know. 
There isn't sufficient evidence either way for me to decide.

[GrandizerII]

Atheist means not a theist.

Are you a theist? If no, then you're an atheist. It doesn't matter how agnostic you may be about this or that, if you do not believe in any god, then you fit the literal meaning of the word "atheist".

There are, of course, variations within atheism itself. Some atheists have assertive beliefs regarding the nonexistence of God, but not all.

[brewer]

The * comment made me laugh.

Man created god(s), not the other way around. 

Don't get caught up in semantics. 

Um........... the religious claim to have knowledge, so do the schizophrenics (not saying that religious are schizophrenics). You'll need to determine for yourself what knowledge you find acceptable for you.

[unfogged]

I think the difference is often in the question being asked. If the question is "does god exist" then the simple atheist/agnostic/theist options work best but if the question is "do you believe that a god exists" then that is a yes/no question with degrees of certainty and that's where it gets more interesting IMO. You either believe a proposition or you don't. When people say they are undecided as to whether or not they believe they are actually undecided on the first question, not the second.

I grew up with the atheist="there is no god" and agnostic="I don't know" definitions but generally find that other definitions can be more useful because, as you see in the 4-quadrant chart you posted, it lets you be more nuanced quickly. The definitions I tend to prefer are:
theist/atheist = does/does not accept the claim "a god exists"
gnostic/agnostic = is/is not certain
By those definitions I'm an gnostic atheist with regard to christianity, islam, etc and an agnostic atheist with regard to the question if there is anything that deserves the label.

In the end, what is most important is that you ensure that you and your interlocutor are using the same definitions or at least understand what the terms mean to each other. Words are just tools to convey ideas; they don't have single intrinsic meanings.

[AFTT47]

Most atheists here (I think it was about 75% on one of our polls) lack a belief in God rather than actively believe there is no God. The former position is not a belief. It is a situation where someone has heard the claims of a religion and is unconvinced by them.

[brewer]

I believe that god(s) exist as a concept.

[Rahn127]

Atheism is a response to a single question. That question is "Do you believe that a god exists ?"
If you answer Yes, you are a theist. If you answer No, you are an atheist.

That is the only thing that makes anyone an atheist.
Atheism contains no positive beliefs. It is not a belief. It is a rejection of a claim.

"Do you believe in bigfoot ?"
No. The answer of no would make me an abigfootist if such a term existed.
The non belief in bigfoot is not a belief.

Also I would say that all agnostics are also atheists. They don't have a belief in a god and as such, that makes them an atheist, by definition.
They may not like the label of atheist, but that is what they are.

What beliefs do you think atheism is based on ?

[Angrboda]

Note that it's also possible to be agnostic about the question of whether you know that no gods exist or not, because whether you know that no gods exist is another thing you may or may not believe. I find myself in that category because what it means to know something is not itself known with any certainty. Depending on the constraints and demands you place on knowledge, the proposition that no gods exist is known may or may not be true. There's also the question of whether the concept of a god is sufficiently narrowly defined to have a determinative answer on the question. As noted by other posters, some will claim to know that specific, well-defined gods do not exist, but be more agnostic on others. I tend to believe the concept of a god is sufficiently narrowly and clearly defined that such a step is not necessary, but I recognize that opinions on that differ, and like the question of knowledge, it touches on some deep issues which are far from settled.

As to your specific question, atheism can consist of a belief, but it isn't necessary that it do so. In the event that it does, the only belief involved is that whether gods or a god exists is knowable and known. Typically when people refer to atheism being a belief, they are interested in the idea that atheists believe other things, like metaphysical naturalism, rather than this one modest belief. The latter is not atheism, as defined by most atheists.

[Huggy Bear]

Atheism is a response to a single question. That question is "Do you believe that a god exists ?"
If you answer Yes, you are a theist. If you answer No, you are an atheist.

That is the only thing that makes anyone an atheist.
Atheism contains no positive beliefs. It is not a belief. It is a rejection of a claim.

"Do you believe in bigfoot ?"
No. The answer of no would make me an abigfootist if such a term existed.
The non belief in bigfoot is not a belief.

Also I would say that all agnostics are also atheists. They don't have a belief in a god and as such, that makes them an atheist, by definition.
They may not like the label of atheist, but that is what they are.

What beliefs do you think atheism is based on ?

Atheism is undoubtedly a belief, don't delude yourself.

Belief in this case is referring to an ideology / idea.  Atheism is an ideology, ("ism" in 'atheism' means "a distinctive doctrine, theory, system, or practice") hence why you guys are constantly trying to form tactics to try and actively counter theist arguments...

How many "abigfootist" forums have you joined?

[Deesse23]

Belief in this case is referring to an ideology / idea.  Atheism is an ideology, ("ism" in 'atheism' means "a distinctive doctrine, theory, system, or practice") hence why you guys are constantly trying to form tactics to try and actively counter theist arguments...

How many "abigfootist" forums have you joined?

Please describe the belief all atheists have in common.
Please sum up the atheist *ideology* all atheists have in common.
What doctrine do all atheists have in common?
What theory do all atheists have in common?
What system do all atheists in common?