Atheism: The Lack of a Belief

Atheism tends to get a bad rap when compared to other religions, but that's just the thing about atheism: it isn’t a religion at all. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines atheism as “a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods”. And it is just that the lack of a belief, or in simpler terms, the lack of a religion.

To a lot of religious people, saying you are an atheist tends to bring about very negative reactions. To some people, they would imagine an atheist as a devil-worshipper who goes out of their way to destroy their relationship with their god. But that isn’t the case in any sense, that disbelief in a god would also mean a disbelief in the devil.

A common misconception of atheists is that, without religion, where are they going to get their morals from, and what is going to stop them from murder? For atheists, those morals come from other places, and they’re able to remain good people. Just like how there are people who do bad things in the name of God, there can be good people who do good just for themselves and the people around them.

In America, there tends to be this assumption of religion on everyone, even though the separation of the church and state is supposed to exist. While countries like China exist with a larger majority of their populations being atheists. There is a way for both religious countries to exist, like the Vatican City, and non-religious countries to exist in tandem, like Sweden or Japan.

There is another connected term that often fits a lot of people, that word being agnostic. It is broadly defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or any gods”. Being agnostic is a term that isn’t as well-known as atheism, but there are surely a lot more people out there who would personally connect with the word.

Another aspect of being agnostic comes from the viewpoint that the status of a higher power is unknown and will likely stay unknown. To some, there is comfort in not knowing, and there is no desire to dive deeper than what we are living with.

There can be a variety of reasons a person would identify as agnostic or an atheist. Just as people can inherit their religions from their families, people can be born into families without religion. Another pretty common way is when people who inherit religions from their families can start to branch away from that and decide it isn’t for them anymore. Religion can be a very divisive subject, and for some people, there can be a lot of trauma attached to it. Atheism, for some, is putting that past behind them.

A lot of people tend to view atheism as an attack against religion, when that isn’t the reality at all. It is its own concept that is focused on the absence of something. You won’t find atheists gathering in buildings and making plans on how to dismantle global religion. It is just something people are or become, or even no longer identify with.

Growing up religious, not believing in God was something that never would have crossed my mind. But as I grew up in the church, I started to question my relationship with God and religion in general. I eventually came to the conclusion that it just wasn’t for me. When asked about my religion, I usually answer “non-religious”. This term is great for me because, although I don’t feel a personal connection to any god, I do believe in the people who believe. 

That’s what it all boils down to, personal choice, personal faith. Some take solace in their God and their religion, while others find ways without. All ways are completely valid.