7 facts about atheists
Here’s what we know about self-described atheists and their beliefs.
Pew has released a “7 Facts About Atheists” post which is pretty interesting about the growing numbers, their acceptance or rejection of religious roles in people’s lives, but there is one “fact” that is completely laughable. #4 states: "Although the literal definition of “atheist” is “a person who believes that God does not exist,” according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, 8% of those who call themselves atheists also say they believe in God or a universal spirit. Indeed, 2% say they are “absolutely certain” about the existence of God or a universal spirit."
You cannot be an atheist and believe in a god. Atheism is not a disbelief in gods or a denial of gods; it is a lack of belief in gods. From a- "without" + theos "a god". Claiming to be an atheist, then saying God exists means a person is simply wrong about their self-labeling or willfully lying. Making a claim you're an atheist who believes in god is like saying you're a person who thinks bald is a hair color.
I remember reading a Pew research where 10% (I think) of Christians don't believe in God.
I think it is more a misunderstanding between atheism and agnostics.
"Alternatively, there are many people who fit the dictionary definition of “atheist” but do not call themselves atheists. About three times as many Americans say they do not believe in God or a universal spirit (9%) as say they are atheists (3%)."
Most agnostics i know would say they don't personally believe in a diety but because they aren't positive they wouldn't call themselves atheist.
Alternatively I know some people who are atheist who still practice the cultural customs of the religion in which they were raised.
Specific to the question I think many may have responded based on having no religion and assuming it meant the same thing.
I think you're right +Bearman Cartoons. "Specific to the question I think many may have responded based on having no religion and assuming it meant the same thing." Likely what happened. Sad, but likely.
"Most agnostics i know would say they don't personally believe in a diety but because they aren't positive they wouldn't call themselves atheist." – right… they're agnostic.
"Alternatively I know some people who are atheist who still practice the cultural customs of the religion in which they were raised." I find that funny-ish. I suppose we still do Christmas. Though we don't have a tree. And we still do Easter… well, not exactly. We have eggs… but instead of baskets we have weapons. We practice Zombie Awareness Day and throw the eggs and zombie cut outs.
But you do realize that according to the literal definition of atheist that you quoted from Merriam-Webster, I CAN be an atheist and believe in a god, right? When one defines an atheist as: “a person who believes that God does not exist,” (emphasis mine) that doesn't preclude atheists from believing in a different deity. While Western thought often treats "without God" and "without a god" as being one in the same, the fact is that those are different concepts.
While I can't speak for the rest of Western civilization, I think that here in the United States, we've come to conflate "God" and "god" in a way that ignores the fact that there are plenty of other deities, or universal spirits, than one can believe in – or not, as the case may be. And I think that there is a difference, and one worth looking into, between "without a god" and "without spirituality." Because "a universal spirit" doesn't have to be a deity in the usual sense.
I also think that there is a difference between adhering to the definition of an atheist and identifying as an Atheist. We tend to view the set of people who identify as x as being bounded by the set of people who fit some definition of x, but I don't know if that understanding is as universal as we sometimes make it out to be.
Am I alone in this 'controversy' reminding me of the kind of infighting that takes place on the fringes of intersectional feminism, etc., where people get all concerned with group identity, in- and out- status, and lose track of the fact that there's real oppression we need to oppose and real strength to be found in numbers?