Chapter 1: What is an Atheist?

Chapter 1 Definition of atheist History of the word Belief vs. Knowledge What do atheists believe? Science & Materialism Back To Index

 Definition of Atheist

  History of the word

The word atheist comes from the ancient Greek word atheos, meaning "without God" and was originally used to describe those who did not worship any God or gods. During the 5th century BC, this meaning began to change.

Atheos, and it's later derivatives (athée in French and atheist in English) became an insult, meaning someone who rejects or refuses to worship the "true" God(s). The early Christians and Hellenists would each accuse the other of being atheos.

This changed again in the late 17th century, when the word theist was coined to describe those who worship God. By the end of the 18th century the word atheist had begun to mean "not a theist", or "without belief in God", returning to its root meaning, although some negative connotations remained.

The word atheist acquired more negative connotations during the mid-twentieth century due to the communist hysteria of the cold war era. In many places, particularly within North America, the term atheist became closely associated, in the mind of the general public, with the secularist communism of the USSR.

Due to the strong emotional overtones often associated with the word, many atheists choose to use a more neutral term to describe themselves, such as non-believer or secularist.

  Belief vs. Knowledge

The words theist and atheist are statements about belief, not knowledge. An atheist or theist might believe their position on God is true without knowing their position on God is true.

To clarify this distinction, we have the words gnostic and agnostic. A person is gnostic if they claim to know their belief is true, and agnostic if they claim they don't know their belief is true.

  What Do Atheists Believe?

The only statement all atheists agree on is "I don't believe any God exists". Beyond that, there is no universal agreement. Some feel there is no rational basis to conclude that God doesn't exist, others think there is. Most don't believe in the paranormal or psychic abilities, but some do. A very small number of atheists even believe in an after-life, without a God behind it.

As atheism is defined solely by the one thing atheists don't believe, the question of what atheists do believe can never be fully answered.

  Science and Materialism

In general, most atheists have a materialistic world-view. That is, the belief that everything which exists, everything that is real, has a basis in the physical universe. In matter, energy and the laws of physics.

That's not to say non-material concepts such as beauty, love and morality are discarded under materialism, but that they too have a basis in physical reality, stemming from the physical processes of the brain, or as emergent properties of complex systems.

Sometimes atheists are accused of accepting the doctrine of science as if it were a religion. However, unlike religion, science is guided by empiricism. Unlike religious texts, scientific theories are conditional, subject to challenge and correction as our understanding of how the universe works improves.

All that science-based knowledge teaches us is how the universe works to the best of our current understanding, nothing more. In essence, the process of science is a tool for gaining a better understanding of reality. Not a perfect tool, nor an infallible tool, but the best tool we have.