[MineralMan]

"Is it just me or is Atheism a religion?"

Nope. Atheism is not a religion at all. It is simply a disbelief in deities.

That said, there are some atheists who display the attributes of a religious fanatic. These are a very, very small minority of atheists, however.

For most of us, our atheism is not a daily part of our lives or thought processes. We just don't believe in any deities.

We go about out lives and do pretty much what everyone else does. We don't try to convert anyone to atheism...that would be ridiculous, because we don't care whether you believe or disbelieve.

It's not a religion. There's no doctrine of atheism. There are no gatherings where atheists come together to celebrate their atheism. I guess there are a few small groups that meet to discuss the subject, but most atheists wouldn't ever bother with such a thing. There's too much to do, and what would you discuss.

The only central thesis of the atheist is a disbelieve in deities and other supernatural entities. Atheists may be conservatives, liberals, fascists, communists, or holders of every other possible political philosophy.

But atheism simply isn't a religion. It's just a disbelief, nothing more.

If you wish to discuss what a particular atheist seems to do or think, then you have a topic for discussion, just as you might discuss the difference between a cloistered Catholic monk and a televangelist. Both declare Christianity, but they're worlds apart.

[Tribune7]

There is no difference between disbelief or belief.

You believe there is no God. That's faith -- although you can argue that faith and religion are not the same.

[RinaseaofDs]

See, I tend to believe what you are saying. I also believe that self-proclaimed atheists, those that want God taken off of everything public, are something else altogether.

Reason I believe this:

When I consider Hindus, Buddhists, even Pagans worshipping the Sun, I'm not offended. I shrug my shoulders and move on.

I'm a Christian, and part of my responsibility is to spread Christianity, but I'm convinced that example, receptiveness in a prospect, and the Holy Spirit have a lot to do with presenting the case effectively.

Having said that, I'd only get up in my hackles if I saw something on public property that were 'anti' my belief system. A shrine to Satan would qualify. A menorrah would not. Neither would a statue of Buddha, actually, as I'd consider it art in the same way that the statue of Mercury or Hippocrates is used to embody that ethics of a profession.

There can't be many atheists, if there are any, in the world. This is a group that is convinced that God doesn't exist. Most self-described atheists are either anti-Christian or they are agnostic.

If, perchance, you were on your way to the supermarket, and a bolt of lightening hit you, knocked you out of your car, and then a voice claiming Godship spoke to you and gave you commands, would it cause you to reconsider your position on the non-existance of God?

It might. In most atheists it would.

I think the people bringing suit are simply anti-Christian, not atheists or agnostics.