What is atheism?
The word “atheism” means lack of theism, a lack of religion. Broadly defined, if you’re an atheist, it means you don’t believe in gods or any other deities. Atheists believe that people should take full responsibility for their own actions and treat other beings with respect and dignity simply because it is the right thing to do, not because we feel coerced into doing it out of fear of punishment in a life after death.
Nearly 20 percent of Americans do not identify with any particular religion, according to an October 9, 2012 study by the Pew Research Center. In addition, the number of Americans who say they “seldom or never” attend church has climbed from 25 percent in a 2003 Pew survey to 29 percent in the 2012 study. By 2016, 49 percent of Americans said they “rarely or never” go to church. A growing number of younger Americans are nonbelievers than the general population, too. Fully 32 percent of adults under the age of 30 in the U.S. now claim to have no religious affiliation, compared with just 9 percent of people aged 65 and older, showing younger Americans are more secular than ever before.
People in the atheist/secular community across the country and locally have long been silent, but times are changing and it is becoming clearer that atheists are a significant part of the electorate and an integral part of American society. We are your friends, your neighbors, doctors, mechanics, your letter carriers, your dog groomers and the waiters and waitresses who serve your food at the local diner.
The following video by Hemant Mehta, who blogs as “The Friendly Atheist,” answers the 15 top questions atheists get from people who believe in God:
A Few Famous Atheists:
Atheists are responsible for tremendous contributions to society and humanity. Many famous American scientists, artists, innovators, authors and entertainers are atheists. Here’s a short list:
Isaac Asimov – American writer and professor of biochemistry
Thomas Edison – American inventor who created the electric light bulb, the phonograph (audio recordings) and the movie camera
Dave Barry – American humorist
Famous atheist Ayn Rand, author of the libertarian novel “Atlas Shrugged,” is idolized by many on the American right
Simone de Beauvoir – French existentialist philosopher
Richard Branson – British entrepreneur whose Virgin group includes more than 350 companies
George Carlin – American comedian, actor and writer
Richard Dawkins – British evolutionary biologist
Marlene Dietrich – German-born American actress
Jodie Foster – American actress, director and producer
Ricky Gervais – British comedy writer, director and actor
Katharine Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn – American actress (In an October 1991 interview with Ladies Home Journal, Hepburn famously said, “‘I’m an atheist, and that’s it. I believe there’s nothing we can know except that we should be kind to each other and do what we can for people.’
Wendy Kaminer – American lawyer, author and feminist, writer for the New York Times, Atlantic Monthly and other publications
Tom Lehrer – American singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, Harvard University mathematician and author of The Vatican Rag
John Malkovich – American actor, producer and director
Tim Minchin – Australian comedian, actor, composer, songwriter and pianist whose songs include the environmental mega-anthem hit Take Your Canvas Bags (to the Supermarket)
Penn and Teller – American entertainers
Salman Rushdie – Indian-British novelist whose book, The Satanic Verses, led an Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini to issue a fatwa on Feb. 14, 1989 in which the leader called on Muslims to shoot Rushdie on sight.
Julia Sweeney – American comedian and actress and former cast member of Saturday Night Live
George Carlin once said “I’ve begun worshipping the Sun for a number of reasons. First of all, unlike some other gods I could mention, I can see the Sun. It’s there for me every day. And the things it brings me are quite apparent all the time: heat, light, food, a lovely day. There’s no mystery, no one asks for money, I don’t have to dress up, and there’s no boring pageantry. And interestingly enough, I have found that the prayers I offer to the sun and the prayers I formerly offered to God are all answered at about the same 50-percent rate.”
(from George Carlin, Brain Droppings)
Mark Twain – American writer whose sixty books included The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Frank Zappa – American musician
Kevin Bacon – American actor
Like many atheists, Rodney Dangerfield’s most famous complaint was “I don’t get no respect”
Rodney Dangerfield – American comedian
Marlon Brando – American actor
Billy Joel – American musician
John Lennon – a member of The Beatles
Bruce Lee – American actor and martial arts expert
Bill Maher – American humorist, filmmaker and talk show host
Jack Nicholson – American actor
George Orwell – British author
Brad Pitt – American actor
Ted Turner – American media mogul and founder of the cable news network CNN
Mark Zuckerberg – started Facebook
Charlie Chaplin – American filmmaker
Pitt
Angelina Jolie – American actress
Larry King – American talk show host
Gene Wilder – American actor
Keanu Reeves – American actor
Warren Buffett – American business magnate, billionaire investor, and philanthropist
Jimmy Wales – creator of Wikipedia
Kurt Vonnegut – American author
Famous atheist Jimmy Wales, inventor of Wikipedia, never sued anyone for copying
Marie Curie – Polish physicist and chemist who created the theory of radioactivity and discovered the two elements polonium and radium
Helen Keller – American author and lecturer and the first deaf and blind person to earn a Bachelor’s Degree
Susan B. Anthony – American civil rights leader
Phyllis Diller – American comedian, died at age 95in 2012, and wanted to be remembered has having made kindness her religion
William Shatner – American actor who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek series