What is an atheist?

I'm an atheist. Whew, there, I said it. It's not something a lot of people feel comfortable saying out loud. And I am still not saying it out loud, just typing it. It's a bit ridiculous because all it really is is a fancy word for a lack of belief in something. I don't believe in Santa Claus, but there is no word (that I know of) for that. There is such a reverence given to the concept of a god that saying you don't believe is the often times the surest way to start an argument. I think these first few blog posts are going to focus a lot on atheism because while it is not all that I am, it is a part of what I am and affects the way I view the world.

But it's important for me to first clarify what I mean by saying I am an atheist. I've been listening to a lot of podcasts lately that have helped me explore what it means to be an atheist. Two of my favorites are Cognitive Dissonance and The Scathing Atheist and I would like to thank them for helping me to see the world in skeptical terms.

So what is an atheist? Let me give you three sentences: 1) I don't know whether or not there is a god, 2) There is no god, and 3) I don't believe there is a god. The first sentence you may recognize as agnosticism and is often what religious people try to label atheists as in order to diminish their argument as if uncertainty is a weak stance. We'll come back to that one. The second sentence represents absolute certainty and is not really a stance anyone beside those trying to start a fight take. The third is really what being an atheist is about. The skeptical mindset requires evidence when the existence of a thing is postulated. If you posit the existence of a god, but provide no evidence, I have no reason to behave in a manner consistent with the existence of said god. But it is important to note that this stance, the lack of belief, is not mutually exclusive from agnosticism. In fact, if I were stating it in logical terms, I might say that all atheists are agnostics, but not all agnostics are atheists (exceptions may apply). I don't believe that a god exists, but I can't say for certain that one doesn't, either. But I think that merits further examination lest it be thrown back at me as a weakness.

Every morning when I get out of bed I have to choose how I am going to experience the world and I have to make a variety of assumptions. One is that I assume the sun will rise. It has always risen and based on nearly 13,000 days of evidence gathering it is a pretty safe bet that it will do so again. But I don't know that it will. But it would be ridiculous to behave as if the sun wasn't going to rise. Kind of like acting as if the world is going to end and selling your house or giving away all of your money or quitting your job. So because there has been no evidence that god exists or cares about what I am doing, living my life as if he does is wasted energy.

Religious people want to say that I am really still practicing religion in that I believe there is no god. But I don't believe there is no god, I simply don't believe there is one. It is an absence of belief. I can't justify believing something for which there is no evidence.

But here is the big difference between atheists and believers. Are you paying attention? Because this is important. I don't think there is an atheist out there who wouldn't immediately accept that god exists if there was one, irrefutable, repeatable piece of evidence that god exists. However, no matter how much evidence you show a believer to the contrary, they will protect their belief to the bitter end. But that is a topic for another day.

Until then, it is important for me to talk about these things, so if anyone stumbling upon this blog has questions or takes issue with anything I say, now or in the future, I welcome the discussion.