Atheism - What Is It?
Atheism is the belief that there is no God. Some atheists often argue this blanket statement because, they offer, there are two different types of atheists, usually referred to as "strong" or "weak" atheists. Before we continue, let's first define the relevant forms of belief as described in various atheist literature:
Theism - The belief in a god (there are also different varieties of theism, but the common thread is a belief in one or more supernatural deities).
"Strong" Atheism - The belief that there is no god, or cannot be a god (The Encyclopedia of Philosophy describes the most common version of an atheist as "... a person who maintains that there is no God"[1]).
"Weak" Atheism - Lacking belief in a god [2]; lacking belief in a certain god.
Agnosticism - The belief that it cannot be known if there is a god.
Atheism - The Variations Explained
The "weak" version of atheism is problematic. There are essentially only three real positions of belief one can take rationally: (a) there is a god; (b) there is no god; (c) I don't/can't know if there is a god. A "weak" atheist, by claiming to simply lack belief, chooses to not take a stand on the issue. By not taking a stand, he is allowing that there may be a god, and this is simply agnosticism. Often the claim of being a "weak" atheist comes from a desire to (i) deny the existence of a god, while (ii) not having to defend the "strong" position, which, as we'll see below, is very difficult, if not impossible, to defend.
Many modern day atheists prefer the more positive designation "Secular Humanist" or "Materialist," but the common thread among the different varieties of atheism is a lack of acceptance of theism, the belief that there is a god. A true atheist claims to know the truth about whether or not a god exists. Similarly, a true theist claims to know that there is a god. Any other position, that there may or may not be a god, is, again, simply agnosticism.
Atheism - The Burden of Proof
Atheism, by asserting the non-existence of God, carries the burden of proof. The atheist, if he is to assert his belief as fact, must prove that God does not exist. It is under this burden of proof that atheism begins to fall apart, because one cannot prove a universal negative*. For example, while there may not be any evidence that fairies exist, without a complete knowledge of the universe, one cannot assert with 100% certainty that fairies do not exist - fairies may exist somewhere in the universe beyond our knowledge. Such is the case for God. In the case of atheism, a complete knowledge must include that which is beyond the physical universe. Without having full knowledge of every physical dimension and every metaphysical dimension, one cannot know with absolute certainty that a supernatural being such as God does not exist.
Atheism - There is no Evidence that Atheism is True
Atheism, because it attempts to assert a knowable fact, must prove its case by offering evidence. The "evidence" for atheism exists only in philosophy and ideology. It does not exist in any physical, scientific or testable form. The fact is that there exists no hard evidence that atheism is true. Even if it could be scientifically proven that certain beliefs about God were untrue, it would still not disprove the existence of a god, only that a common belief about God was wrong. For example, it may be concluded by some that there is evidence against certain tenets of the Christian faith (i.e., if the theory of evolution could be proven to be true, it may call into question the common Christian belief in non-evolutionary special creation). Certain tenets of a variety of religious beliefs about God may be proven false at some point, but this can, at best, only alter what is believed about God. It cannot determine whether or not God exists.
By contrast, there is evidence that theism is true.
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