That is like saying vicodine, oxycontin was an attempt to make a better painkiller. It is true, but look how it was used, and promoted by big pharma, and took lives, and finally got banned.

That should be the fate of religion. The first three stages match, and if not in name but in effect the last stage, banning religion, is happening right now. Today, big companies, the real powers, care not for religious dissent in their offices. And the idea is spreading everywhere. Today, the only group that cares about religious purity are the politicians.

This is the age of practice, not prayer.

me!

Yup, I'm agnostic but I'm like pretty much an atheist, also tired of all these bits messaging me all day please I need real human contact, send help no idea who is real anymore

Count me in

I dislike the label atheist-as it has too many negative connotations-people assume they know what that means but to me it just means I don't believe in a god or gods. It's like calling someone who doesn't smoke a non-smoker... it's kind of ridiculous to label someone with the aberrant activity included in the label (after all we're not born believing in god/gods any more than we're born smokers). But for the purposes of the original question, I would consider myself an atheist... ;)

We don't need church per se, but I do think we lack the benefit of the social structure and nurturing of community that church supplies to its congregants. In an age where we all feel so disconnected from one another, I do feel a certain empathy for those that attend church seeking community. There are atheist/free-thinker type groups of course, but they are not nearly as accessible as a church on every street corner...

Glad you think so. But it's more logical to say I don't know

Hello , atheist here

Scorp411, I understand what you're saying and I fully agree with you. Love your non-smoker analogy!

IMO, the current dictionary definition and consequently, the perception of atheism is incorrect for the modern time. It should be re-defined and the modern definition should not be with reference to religion *only*.

I wrote an article on this topic last year(2018). You can read it if you wish: https://tashu.gudokin.com/2018-01-31/atheism-religion/lets-redefine-atheism/

BTW, I subscribed to this service and joined this forum just a few hours ago. Why such a deafening silence here?