[[File:Atheism.jpg|thumb|alt=atheism|right|175px|[[Paul-Henri Thiry]], Baron d'Holbach (1723 - 1789), was an early advocate of atheism in [[Europe]].]]
[[Atheism]], as defined by the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the ''Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', and other [[philosophy]] reference works, is the denial of the existence of [[God]].<ref>[http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/atheism-agnosticism Stanford Encyclopedia of Philisophy - Atheism and Agnosticism]</ref><ref name="cw">[http://creation.com/atheism-is-more-rational Is Atheism More Rational?] by [[Creation Ministries International]]</ref><ref>[http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm Atheism - Etymology]</ref> "The Merriam-Webster dictionary '''definition of atheism''' is "a disbelief in the existence of deity".<ref>http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atheism</ref>
In the late 19th century and more broadly in the latter portion of the 20th century, the proposition that the definition of atheism also include a mere lack of belief in God or gods began.<ref>Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"].</ref> It is now common for atheists/[[agnosticism|agnostics]] and [[theism|theists]] to debate the meaning of the word atheism.<ref>
*[http://www.apatheticagnostic.com/articles/meds2/med40/med796.html The Atheism Vs. Agnosticism “Debate”]
*Day, Donn R. (2007). [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"]. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
*[http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/atheism Oxford Dictionaries]. Oxford Dictionaries, due to their British influence (Atheism is more popular in Britain than in the United States and many other countries where English is spoken, see: [[Atheist Population|Atheist population]] and [[Secular Europe]] and [[Atheism statistics]]), now offers the definition of atheism to be "Disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods." which is a departure from its historical meaning before a broader definition of atheism began to be more widely advocated in the latter portion of the 20th century (see: [http://www.thedivineconspiracy.org/athart3.htm "Atheism - etymology"])</ref>
== Some purported varieties of atheism ==
Also, Christians need not deny the existence of the gods of other religions, and hence can not truly be called atheists with respect to them:
*A traditional belief in Christianity (see 1 Corinthians {{bibleref|1Corinthians|10:|20}}) is that the gods of other religions may be demons presenting themselves as gods. So, a Christian may not deny the existence of Zeus, but understand Zeus very differently from how his worshippers back in ancient times would have (as an evil demon rather than as a good spirit)
*Another Christian belief is that other religions are distorted versions of the religion originally revealed by God. As such, they do not believe in different gods, but in the same God as the Christian; but only the Christian has an undistorted view of God, while the other religions are laboring under distorted ideas of His nature. It is like comparing a distorted rumour about a person to an accurate account; the accounts can be so different that they seem like different people, even though they are actually both about the same person (but one is accurate, the other highly inaccurate). So too may it be for the various religions and God.
Atheists claim that atheism is not a religion; that "calling atheism a religion is like calling baldness a hair color". But, to answer this question properly, we need to ask, what actually is a religion? Religion is a difficult concept to define precisely, given the immense variety of different religions that exist. Not all religions believe in God; a good example of this is many forms of Buddhism. So, the mere fact that atheists reject belief in God, does not necessarily imply they are not a religion.
Many of the leaders of the atheist movement (, such as [[New Atheism|New Atheist]] [[Richard Dawkins) ]], argue for atheism /agnosticism with a religious fervor - atheism . Atheism plays a role in the life of Dawkins', or other [[Atheism and leadership|atheist leaders, ]] similar to the role which Christianity plays in the life of a Christian minister or author.
Religion scholar Ninian Smart has identified seven dimensions which make up religion: narrative, experiential, social, ethical, doctrinal, ritual and material. It is not necessary in Smart's model for every one of these to be present in order for something to be a religion.<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>. However, it can be argued that all seven are present in the case of atheism:*''Narrative'' - this dimension is concerned with stories which explain the origin of the universe and the human life. For Christians, there is the Book of Genesis. For atheists, the Big Bang, abiogenesis, the theory of evolution, etc., play a similar role<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>*''experientialExperiential'' - this dimension is concerned with personal or spiritual experiences. Many religious believers report experiences of being near to God. Many atheists report an experience of "liberation" in the moment when they first rejected God<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>*''Social'' - the social dimension of religion is concerned with religious leadership and community in congregations. Contemporary atheism has its own leadership (authors such as Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris) and social gatherings (e.g. the Global Atheist Convention held in Melbourne, Australia)<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>*''Ethical'' - this dimension is concerned with the ethical teachings of a religion. Logically speaking, if there is no God, how can there be any objective ethics? Ethics is reduced to each person's individual whims. Despite this, the leaders of atheism are insistent that they do have ethics, and even claim to have better ethics than religious people<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>*''Doctrinal'' - this dimension is concerned with the philosophical teachings of a religion, its claims about the ultimate nature of reality. Some of the central dogmas of atheism include the non-existence of God, the non-existence of afterlife or an immortal soul, that all which exists is ultimately reducible to matter ([[materialism]]), and that faith is illegitimate<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref>*''Ritual''<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref> - this dimension is concerned with rituals, the celebration of rites, ceremonies or festivals. Although atheism at present has few rituals, there are explicitly atheist versions of rituals to celebrate major life events (birth, marriage, death), and some atheists have proposed annual festivals to substitute for Christmas or Easter, such as Charles Darwin's birthday*''Material''<ref>[http://creation.com/atheism-a-religion "Atheism: A religion"], Daniel Smartt, Creation.com</ref> - this dimension is concerned with the physical artifacts of a religion, such as buildings, monuments, art, etc., and with physical places considered sacred. Many atheists argue that all nature is sacredIn conclusion, all of these seven dimensions are present for atheism, and hence atheism is a religion under Smartt's model. Although atheism possesses some of these elements more strongly than others, Smart's model does not require all of these dimensions to be present, or present equally, for the existence of religion to be established.
== See also ==
*[[Atheist factions]]
*[[Definitions of Atheist and Agnostic]]
*[[Atheists doubting the validity of atheism]]
*[[Resources for leaving atheism and becoming a Christian]]
*[[Essay: The question atheists fear|The question atheists fear]]