The Carvaka Indian School was the most atheistic and materialistic in the 6th century. The institution was against the doctrine of Vedas and the notion that a creationist god exists. Notably, other Indian philosophies that were atheistic include the Purva Mimamsa as well as Orthodox Classical Samkhya schools. Although Buddhism, as well as Jainism, rejected the belief of an individual god, they are not Atheists. In western countries, Atheism can be dated back to the times of pre-Socratic Greek philosopher who introduced the concept that the universe can be viewed as a self-reliant scheme (Baggini 110). Diagoras of Melos is believed to be the first atheist who strongly criticized Christianity and mysticism. The atomist philosophers who lived in the 5th century tried to portray the world in a mundane way without referring to spiritual and mystical. Remarkably, Epicurus expounded the problem of Evil that is against the belief that there will be life after death. In ancient times, Atheism faced some difficulties with the executions of Anaxagoras and Socrates in the 5th century (Kennedy 13). In the 1st century, Lucretius a follower of Epicurus claimed that gods were not concerned with humanity and cannot affect the natural world.
The meaning of atheism changed over the classical antiquity (Arguments for Atheism). At that time, Christians were labelled as atheists as they did not believe in the pagan Roman gods (Bremmer). However, the situation was reversed when Christianity became the state religion of Rome under the leadership of Emperor Theodosius in 381 AD. In the 19th century, Atheism religion was still active even with the absence of Napoleon. The religion was present, and people were practicing it. Percy Shelley was kicked out of Oxford in 1811 for his atheist opinions (Wroe 43). Besides, the early feminists of England and the U.S. considered religion as a barrier to women’s’ rights. In the 19th century, after concentrating on the natural world, Darwin eliminated the obstacles that were preventing people from not believing in God. He is the one who made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist (Dembski).
In the 20th century, Atheism was recognized by several philosophies, such as secular humanism, Marxism, and objectivism. Besides, there was a political advancement of the religion when Soviet Russia became the world’s first atheistic state. Afterwards, the Albanian administration announced the closure of all other religions, and by 1970, all nations that were behind Iron Curtain were all atheistic. In the current world, some countries, such as China, Russia, France, Germany, Vietnam, Japan, have registered the most significant number of non-believers. In 2015, 11% of the world’s total population were atheists (Mehta n.p.). Over time, the number of people who claim to be not supporting any religion has been increasing.
Various Aesthetic religions are against the existence of God. Firstly, the Rationalism approaches life from reason and evidence. Religion encourages all ideas that can be tested by experience. Since people are encouraged to think for themselves, they have diverse ideas. Rationalists believe that there is no evidence of God and the current state of the world is a result of the evolution theory. Also, they argue that people should have their fundamental rights together with other animals since they are all living. The rationalists also encourage an open society where everyone can express his or her views without any barriers ("Religion: Atheism n.p."). Their logo is based on Rodins, the thinker.
Secondly, Unitarian Universalism is a religious movement that most atheists fit in. The group supports the importance of one's freedom of belief. Notably, it started in the 18th century as a demonstration against some Christian doctrines. Members are free to develop their concepts of Gods, which are meaningful to them. In their churches, they do not mention God but emphasize human, ethical and social issues. The religion claims that there is only life that we are currently living in. Notably, Unitarian Universalism argues that there is wisdom in most of the religions and each type is essential on what it can tell about the universe as well as humanity.
Thirdly, Postmodernism does not focus on the issues that Christians terms as essential. The religion believes that there are no universal religions or ethical laws, and the current cultural context shapes everything at a particular place, time, and community. In general, the group believe that religion is a human-made phenomenon. The members of the religion select the bits of various spiritualties and create their internal spiritual world ("Religion: Atheism n.p.").
For instance, some Japanese considers the ideas of Shinto as well as Buddhist in their religious life. Besides, in India there exist individuals who believe in Buddhism together with other tribes.
Furthermore, the fourth religion under Atheism is Secularism that focuses on education. They believe that religious schools damage the prospects of a harmonious and diverse community. Secularists are not against the right to have religious faith but on the acts of providing special treatment to particular religious beliefs and organizations. They believe that the provisions of the numerous laws are enough to protect individuals from assaults. Notably, they attribute the reduced number of numbers of individuals who attend church to their diminished faith. Some of the secularists are believers, and they believe that they should not be treated in a special way due to their religion ("Religion: Atheism n.p."). Charles Bradlaugh was the founder of the Britains’s National Secular society.
Lastly, Humanism approaches the world, thoughts, as well as hopes in a positive way. The followers believe that knowledge and ethical principles to abide by are derived from human and rational thinking. Notably, they are against the notion that gods reveal knowledge. Many humanists claim that paranormal beings are not in existence. Instead, the physical universe is the only thing that exists. Besides, they trust that one can use science to understand the world in a better way, and people live once ("Religion: Atheism"). Besides, they trust that individuals’ history, personal experience, and thoughts are the significant source s of moral codes.
In addition, Atheists practice various rituals. Atheists' weddings allow more personalization in comparison to religious ones. In many nations, Humanist weddings ceremonies are not legal, and a civil ceremony is a requirement. Moreover, religion welcomes new babies into both the family and society. In the funerals, the life of the dead is remembered as well as the reflections on their contributions to the world. (Weddings and Civil Partnerships)
Christians and Atheists share some beliefs. Notably, the two adopt the notion that the bible is unreliable. Many atheists ridicule the numerous supernatural stories in the bible. However, Rachel Held who is an author encourages the believers to focus on the theological points that are taught by the Scripture. Moreover, one of the primary reason that makes Atheists be non-believers is the issue of evil and suffering. On the other hand, Abrahamic religions have been faced by the same dilemma wondering the manner evil exists with the presence of God. As a result, many Christians, Muslims, and Jews end up changing their religions. For instance, many individuals may term God as an utter maniac because he allows many miseries to strike the world, such as Cancer. However, for some individuals, the issue of evil increases the faith in God, whereas, the problem causes more destruction and disbelief in others. In addition, many Atheists believe that a deed is right or wrong based on its impacts on the well-being of humanity. As a result, the view of morality follows some social norms since it fails to consider God. The same problem faces Christians in consideration that the Bible lacks the power of influencing individuals. Some Christians judge their actions through personal conscience, opinions, and preferences.
Furthermore, Atheists and believers agree that living organisms may change over time for them to adapt to their surrounding environment. However, differences arise with the macroevolution issue since Atheists believe that the process creates new life forms. The believers disagree with this as they believe in the creator. Both religions agree that the universe started from somewhere, which is commonly referred to as the Bing Bang. Also, Atheists and believers share some objective morals, such as the act of murder is wrong. There are good people on both sides who have done great things to help the world. Remarkably, the significant difference is that believers believe in God whereas that is not the case among the atheists.
In summary, Atheism is a popular religion with many followers all over the world. Just like Judaism, atheists have their reason for associating themselves with their faith. Atheism was founded before the 5th century. The regions had been faced by many challenges in its journey of gaining its current popularity including the execution of its leaders in the 5th century. Recently, Atheism is an independent religion just like Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Various religions fall under Atheism, such as Rationalism, Unitarian Universalism, Postmodernism, Secularism, and Humanism. As noted, Believers and atheists share some beliefs, but their main difference is that the former believes in God, whereas the latter does not.
Works Cited
Baggini, Julian. Atheism. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc, 2009, p. 110.
Kennedy, J. B. The Musical Structure of Plato's Dialogues. Routledge, 2014, p. 13.
Lipka, Michael. "10 Facts about Atheists". Pew Research Center, 2016, www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/06/01/10-facts-about-atheists/.
The Argument from Ignorance - Arguments for the Existence of God - Arguments for Atheism, www.argumentsforatheism.com/history.html.
Bremmer, J. N. (2006). Atheism in Antiquity. In M. Martin (Ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Atheism (pp. 11-26). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Dembski, William A., and Jonathan Wells. How to Be an Intellectually Fulfilled Atheist. Foundation for Thought and Ethics, 2008.
Mehta, Hemant. "Global Survey Finds 63% Of World’s Population Is Religious, While 11% are “Convinced Atheists”". Friendly Atheist, 2015, friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2015/04/12/global-survey-finds-63-of-worlds-population-is- religious-while-11-are-convinced-atheists/.
"Religion: Atheism". BBC, www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/.
Wroe, Ann. "The Necessity of Atheism: Two Hundred Years Young". The Keats-Shelley Review, vol 26, no. 1, 2012, p. 43. Informa UK Limited, doi:10.1179/0952414212z.0000000005.
“Religions - Atheism: Weddings and Civil Partnerships.” BBC, BBC, 27 Oct. 2009, www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/atheism/ritesrituals/weddings.shtml.