I'll give you the reason... it attempts to give an answer to the one question that science doesn't have an answer for.

Is there life after death?

Science's answer is that after we die then we're gone.... we end up in oblivion and there is nothing after we die.

Religion gives an answer to this question.... or at least most religions have some sort of life after death ideas....

To those that say atheism (or at least those that say all atheism) is a belief and therefore a religion I put this forward. Religion is belief.
The opposite of believing in something is not always belief in something else. The opposite of belief is disbelief.
One man will say "I beleive in god". Another will say "I don't believe in god".
Notice the second one did not say "I believe god doesn't exist"
Some atheists are about disbelieving in god, not about believing god doesnt exist.

Yes alot of you will say it's the same thing, or same difference, but it isn't.
Alot of christians say they know god exists. To them it is not a belief at all but a knowing.
Yet an atheist might say they know god doesnt exist. Again to them it is not a belief.
A lie detector will prove that point.

And no one living today can realistically say that Ryan isn't correct that people were scared and superstitious,
saying "what's the point if I'm just going to die anyway" and clung onto whatever they could to get through the day.
They just believe they can say that it is or isnt true.

And geeo, oblivion is an answer. It may not be a nice one, but it is an answer.
Religion just gives a nice answer for people to strive for, whether it is true or not.

Mors is right. Religious people don't know more then non religous ones.
They just think / believe they do.
They can only say they knew more after they are dead. If they exist then.
Which doesn't really help us here does it

Just my thoughts, feel free to ignore / mock / praise them (Dreads presing submit, ah well here goes...)
(Please note this post was made objectively and in no way trying to disprove or prove either the existance or non existance of any god of any type)

DH: I agree that oblivion is an answer but it is an answer that doesn't make much sense to me.

And while trying to explain completely why I believe in God and my religion of choice would be futile on a message board there is more evidence for God than not. This just isn't the place for it. And I doubt I could explain it well enough on a message board for it to make sense to anyone else.

I allow everyone to have their own opinion about religion no matter how right or wrong it may be. DH you have the right to think we're all crazy religious lunatics if you want just as long as we can all be civil about it.

I don't think DH was bashing your religions he was basically saying that no matter what religion we are all the same. Religion is an opinion, some lean one way, others lean the other way, and then you got the crowd that is inbetween religion, which I assume DH is apart of, and me as well.

So here is an example of religion and god and his existence.

YES ----------- Maybe ----------- No

Now to me I love to be in the middle of the topic because it includes my own beliefs, not the belief of someone else's system. That's what makes us an individual instead of a blind sheep. Either way, I can guarantee no one person follows religion strictly to the bone so there is apart of you that gets sucked into the blackhole called "Maybe" right in the middle of it.

To be honest though, the world would be better if more people saw it down the middle. I think it's just lame to fight over something when both parties honestly and truely do not know, only what they have been told. Religions are opinions but they should not tear people apart, if we worked as one we would be better off in the world today.

I mean I can easily say I don't believe in God but then christians could label me as 666 and a devil but in all reality, I am just as nice and just as ethical then they are. See the hate it projects against others with different opinions.

Look it down the middle and you will see the light By looking down the middle I do not mean your religion is fake and you should abort it, I'm saying to be subjective on subjects like "GOD" when no one can rightfully and truthfully prove at any given time. I mean it's okay to believe something but it's just wrong to "think" your right any the other is wrong, that is selfish and it is why I don't follow religion... to much hate projected in my opinion.

(No harm intended here just trying to show you what it's like to be in the middle portion )

To Neyro Atheism is a religion they have their OWN belives (i am an Evangalist Christion i know what im talking about)

Originally posted by Armydude

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To Neyro Atheism is a religion they have their OWN belives (i am an Evangalist Christion i know what im talking about)

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Being an "Evangalist Christion" puts you in no position to provide anyone with information concerning atheism. This in no way indicates that you've any expertise on the inherent characteristics of religion or atheism.
Just having beliefs doesn't make a person religious, it takes more than that.

As for the actual argument: Atheism isn't a religion. Atheists don't have group meetings, or any set of shared beliefs (only shared disbelief). A person could be an atheist without ever even hearing about atheism. I don't have any fellowship or camaraderie with people on the basis of atheism. We aren't a collective, we aren't a community. We don't sing songs about how great life is without a god. Atheists just go about living. I don't see how one could classify atheism as a religion. If you do see, I wouldn't mind an explanation; but be specific, I can be hard to teach.

Wow, someone completely either missed the point of my thread, glazed over because it was too in depth, or didn't read it at all.

If religion is being a collective or community, then there are alot of atheists that can't be said to have a religion.
If religion is belief, then there are alot of atheists that can't be said to have a religion.

I think Atheism for most people is less about what they believe and more about what they don't.

I have found while talking to athiests that many of them tell me they don't believe in God because of the experiences they have had either with churches (or whatever other religious institution) or with members of religions. Not because anyone convinced them not to believe in God.

To Armydude:
I never said whether it was or wasn't.
No need to confront me about it...

On the topic of Atheism:
A-, Suffix, meaning "Without".
Theism, Belief in the existence of a god or gods, especially belief in a personal God as creator and ruler of the world. (Taken from answers.com).
Religion,
1a. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
1b. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
2. The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
3. A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
4. A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.
(Taken also from Answers)

Meaning, quite bluntly, without belief in the existence of God or Gods.. This is only if we want to get technical, of course.
And many have their own versions. So it can be a religion to them, who's to say? But in technical terms, it is not.

That's all I have to say about that.

I'm going to cut it right now and curb the atheism part of this.

We had a whole thread go off on a tangent about this earlier... and it didn't end well. Whether or not atheism is or isn't a religion doesn't really matter. The point is why religion? Why are people religious?

So, try and stick to that topic.

That's not science's answer, that's an athiest's usual answer. Science does not only consist of evolution, it also contains alot that God speaks of in the Bible.

Originally posted by geeogree

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I'll give you the reason... it attempts to give an answer to the one question that science doesn't have an answer for.

Is there life after death?

Science's answer is that after we die then we're gone.... we end up in oblivion and there is nothing after we die.

Religion gives an answer to this question.... or at least most religions have some sort of life after death ideas....

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fair enough.... science does not equal atheism... and neither should be treated as such.

I know of plenty of "scientists" in the general sense of the world that are very religious and they personally think that the deeper the delve into their respective fields the more evidence they find for themselves that there was a higher power directing things on earth.

I believe a religion, but I say this...

God may be real, May be not...
He was created in the minds of humans to help lead the people in olden times. For example if a person thought that they could do something bad when no one was watching them then they would start doing bad things all the time. So people created God, so that everyone would be good even when they were not watched. Also God was created, so that people could hope. So that when they had a sick brother or sister, they would not lose hope. I believe in God, because it help me stay a good person and makes me try to do the best I can do anywhere.

lol... that was a big bump, septembern. As for the question, why religion? Because it makes the most sense. My Christianity makes sense because there are so many things that people try to explain away as natural events and such that really only make sense if God is behind them... and because there is no evidence against religion. There's more evidence for it in fact... but anyways, I'm not sure why this is still open after like eight months of inactivity or something like that... nice one, septembern!

I am Christian and i feel life, what happens when you die? Because you won't really have a feeling when you die so I am just really afraid....

If you are a Christian, then there's no need to be afraid. Seriously, we know what's gonna happen when we die, we have absolutely no reason to be afraid.

Yes I am an Athiest too. Religion was created to control people. You get people following a religion, and get them to think theres an afterlife and you should not sin and your sins will be forgiven if you repent etc all makes it easier for religious leaders to controll. After a long time like 2000 years or so, many people still beleive in religions. Many fanatics have died because of them being manipulated into thinking there is religion. My father studies religion in great depth and is an even stronger athiest than me....

I think you've misused a few words there. Religion was not created to control people... however it has been used by some to control.

There are quite a few religions out there that have very little real influence over it's members.

However, I would like to see what you athiests dislike so much about religion being "controlling".

You know, I always have atheists (my best friends, in fact) saying I only believe in the God of the Bible because my parents "nailed it into my head," to which my response is "don't pretend you can read my mind." I believe in religion because frankly atheism doesn't have any answers.

People always tell me I'm blind. The fact of the matter is that theism allows one to see the spiritual world--which side of the spiritual world they see depends on the religion--while atheists rely on scientists to explain questions like where did life come from and what happens when we die. The fact is that atheists are more blind than theists are. I can see God and heaven and the angels, I can see the demons and Satan and hell. All atheists and agnostics see are the physical world. Even my most spiritual agnostic friends fail to notice any difference between demons and angels, which, in response to a previous comment, is the reason I've devoted my life to teaching my friends about God. And if I'm such a sheep, why am I still Christian even when 90% of the people I know aren't?

I don't believe in heaven because I'm fearful of what will happen when I die. In fact, I believe atheism was created because mankind was too afraid to accept the consequences (hell) of not accepting forgiveness from God. A friend of mine said she didn't want to be Christian because she didn't want to limit her actions due to a fear of going to hell. My response was I don't fear hell because I know even if I do break a rule I will always be forgiven.

I believe specifically in the God of the Bible because I've spoken to him, and I've seen his effects on the people I know. When I'm close to God, I can ask him for any favor and he will grant it; I've seen it. He's helped my life, and he's helped my friends' lives, even when the only way I can know is if they tell me via Skype or an online journal. Atheism can't explain that.

Redwaller66: you may be right, you may be wrong. No one really knows because no one was around when relgion was created.
You are right in thinking that it is an easy way to control things, and can be alot more effective then any law can be.
It can be a controling force for both great good and great evil, which is why people should just use it as more of a guideline.

Crawldragon: When people think positive thoughts, like that something is going to help them or look after them, they affect change in their own lives on a subconcious level.
A positive attitude can make great things happen.
Things that the bible says are "sins" may just be in place because of common sense and to help teach others how they should live with each other.
The easiest way to do so is to make others think that some supreme being has said it is do.
Because who wants to face off against a god

The point is, none of you know for certain. You may know "in yourself" and "believe" but you just don't know.