Summations Only

Taoism is a religion that clearly has no God. Buddhism is not a monolithic block. There are forms of Buddhism that don't have a God. Even Jainism and a few forms of Hinduism don't have a God. It is an interesting contrast between Eastern and Western definitions of Religion. When People teach Feng Shui or Yoga in Government settings, they are teaching religion according to the Eastern definition, but according to the courts using the western definition, they are not. Yes, I have read their Holy Books and have extensive experience with these believers.

You're still misrepresenting us atheists. Let me spell it out. I see god as like the immaterial pink unicorn. Do you have proof that there is no immaterial pink unicorn? Do you have proof that Zeus doesn't exist? Do you have proof that goblins don't exist?According to your criteria, I'd have to be agnostic with all these things.I could make the ridiculous claim that about 4 light years from here there is a creature called the Overmind that controls a race called zerg. Since you can't actually prove me wrong, are you agnostic about the existence of the Overmind?

Followers of the Flying Spaghetti Monster say that dis-belief in the invisible pink unicorn is a belief. (though not an organized religion.) On a more serious vein, Being a Lawyer is a matter of training and being "ordained" (passing the Bar) much like being a pastor is a matter of training and being ordained. Being a Pastor also requires faith (well usually) Beliefs do not require training or some sort of "ordination." I looked up belief in the dictionary:
be⋅lief
  1. something believed; an opinion or conviction
If you have an opinion or a conviction that there is no God, that is a belief.

Sorry, I don't know enough about Dawkins to know what the test is.

Yep. Don't know and don't care. Absolute agnostic

Um, yes they do. Taoists may not perform animal and human sacrifice to the tao, but they do worship it in one form or other. The tao may not be a clearly defined horny man in the sky that watches you masturbate like the christian god, but it is a deity nonetheless. Their refusal to call the tao a god doesn't mean it's not a god. Again, while many buddhists refuse to describe the buddha as a god, if you've studied buddhism long enough you will have come to realize that buddha after becoming enlightened IS A GOD. If it quacks like a duck... I've been involved in the debate before. They are all religions. And each religion have a set of philosophies (doctrine) that define their religion.Western cultures seem to be more comfortable with deities that like to watch people masturbate while eastern deities tend to have better things to worry about. Well, me too. You know what I concluded after having read their books? I concluded that I was even more confused than before. Why? Because there are certain eastern concepts that simply don't translate well to western language. Here is an example of what I mean.In college there was a time when I was very interested in different religions. I went around and actually interviewed people of differrent religions and asked them to compare their religion to what their view of other cultures (or something like that, been a long time). There were 2 criticisms that I heard that I still remember to this day. 1 criticism was made by a christian toward buddhism. The christian said that he thought buddhism was a fake religion because according to the buddhists themselves the buddha never ressurected like jesus christ. The other criticism was made by a taoist toward christianity. He said that no matter what happens, christians will always be seperated from their god, while taoists could potentially become one with the tao.The reason I brought these things up is because you're doing exactly the same thing as these people. Before I go on, ask yourself one question. What was wrong with these criticisms?Here is what's wrong. The christian made the criticism based on the perspective of a christian. Buddhists don't give a rat's ass about ressurection. They care more about enlightenment. Christianity's central theme seems to be the afterlife and the ressurection. And being a closed minded person, the person who made that criticism couldn't see past his own doctrine.The taoist made the criticism based on the perspective of a taoist. I don't claim to truly understand everything about taoism, but I do know that they view the tao more like a substance that inhibits everything... or something like that. But to a christian, god is suppose to be a seperate being from the universe. The taoist made the criticism because he couldn't see christianity outside of his perspective.And here you are claiming that atheism is a religion because you can't actually understand a point of view outside of religious dogma. This is the typical problem I run into when I explain atheism to religionists. You guys can't seem to understand the concept of absence of faith. You have faith in your god that likes to watch people masturbate and you can't seem to understand that we lack that faith. It's not that we have faith your god doesn't exist, it's that we don't have faith your god exists.

So, are you saying that you are neutral and agnostic about the existence of the Zerg Overmind, Zeus, the immaterial pink unicorn, goblins, and a myriad other fairy tale creatures? Be direct.Commandment IXThou shalt not bear false witness.

While you don't see atheism as a non-belief, did you at least see the difference between a religion and atheism?

Lets see if I understand
No matter how many times you tell me that Atheism does not believe in God, if I believe Atheism is a belief concerning God I am wrong.
No matter how many times a Taoist tells you that Taoism does not believe in God, if you believe Taoism is a belief concerning God, not you, but the Taoist is wrong?

didn't read fully, message deletedEdited by Son, : No reason given.

Well, we can agree that Athiesm is a belief. It may or may not be a religion. re⋅li⋅gion
1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe,
esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
6. something one believes in and follows devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience.
Educate me, does Atheism fit either of these definitions? I am willing to say it is a belief and not a religion, but it seems to fit these definitions. I am willing to be wrong.

I had to stop myself from pulling my hair out... Are you playing dumb or are you genuinely dumb?The taoists refuse to label the tao a god because most people view god as this benevolent being in the sky with a head, a torso, 2 arms, and 2 legs... and possibly a penis as well. Taoists describe the tao as that which is nameless but precedes the universe as a whole. The tao encompasses the universe and everything within it. It doesn't have any shape or form and it simply cannot be measured by any human wisdom or tool. Taoists spend entire lifetimes trying to understand the concept itself.In other words, they don't label the tao a god simply because of everyone's already preconceived notion of a god. It's simply not something that you can pray to or have a statue of. But in a sense, how else would you describe a substance or being that encompasses everything and everyone (omnipresence), precedes everything (omnipotence), and is a path toward everything (omniscience)? In a sense, it sounds an aweful lot like a deity. The difference between that and the christian god is your god seems more concern with people's sex lives.On the other hand, you're trying to label a nonbelief in something as a religion. So, let me ask you again. And please please please don't ignore my questions this time. I've been doing my best to answer all of yours. And don't even pretend like you can't see the following. I'm increasing the size. Do you consider your nonbelief in the immaterial pink unicorn as a religion? Or are you agnostic about Zeus, the Overmind, immaterial pink unicorn, and a myriad other fairy tale critters?

Did you read the answers so far? Atheism doesn't say anything about what you should do so it can't fit 6 and it obviously doesn't fit 1.

Now you have thrown in Zeus. That was a religion, I am not neutral about that. The rest I am

Are you purposely ignoring my questions or you can't read? I threw in Zeus several times now, not just last post.So, let me ask you again. Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion? There is no doubt that there was a religion that worshipped Zeus, but that's not my question. Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion?And since you've ignored my question several times now... probably because you couldn't see it, let me post it several more times so you don't miss it again.Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion?Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion?Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion?Do you consider your nonbelief in Zeus a religion?