Check out (i.e. read up on, or research) the universal life church. It’s a legally a religion (afaik), but it doesn’t have a specific dogma, hierarchy, etc. . It’s more like a template of religion than what I (and many other people, it seems) think of as an actual religion.
Pretty sure you are flat out wrong on both counts there.
Secular humanism doesn’t claim there is no god and in any case “atheism” is not a belief that there is no god.
That there is no such thing as “God”?
Perhaps you define atheism differently, but that’s the general consensus on the meaning, isn’t it?
I would define Atheism a la Matt Dillahunty. Atheism is a lack of belief in a supernatural being or force.
Which is often expanded to say: Atheism doesn’t postulate that there is no god so much as “we don’t see any good evidence to suggest a god’s existence.”
Neither definition would meet that of “a religion,” any more than NOT collecting ceramic frogs is a hobby.
See the reply below yours.
I don’t claim there is no such thing as god and that is the definition I’ve always used. It is a lack of belief not a claim.
I can’t be expected to to take a definite position on any and all things that could be true so until any evidence is presented I’ll remain without a belief (a-theist).
I don’t think you can say there’s consensus on that, no.
Some people define atheism as the lack of belief in any gods, others define atheism as the belief that there are no gods. Some people even differentiate the two groups by using Atheism-with-a-capital-A to mean the second and atheism-with-a-lowercase-a for the first.
More to the point, SCOTUS ruled that the concepts discussed in the 1st Amendment also apply as negatives. Freedom of speech also includes the freedom to remain silent, and freedom to practice any religion also includes the freedom to NOT practice religion. So regardless of whether you define atheism as a belief or a lack of belief, either way it’s protected by the 1st Amendment.
Buddhism is a religion that is atheistic. Not sure how that would help the claim that atheism is a religion.
Huh, I always thought of you more as an Anthony.
Religeon is the organized relationship with the Supernatural.
At it’s core, Buddhism isn’t a religeon at all…it is a philosophy.
The Four Noble Truths and the 8-fold Way
http://www.sasana.org/sangha_noble.shtml
No mention of gods, souls, or the afterlife.
Perhaps in theory, but in practice I am correct.
Buddhism is *extremely * rich in explicitly supernatural-based practices. Extremely. The pre-existing spiritual practices in Buddhist countries have been thoroughly mixed in with the original Buddhist teachings. There’s not a thing about Buddhism that’s atheistic or agnostic, if you are talking about how it’s actually practiced in Buddhist countries.
What?
No, agnosticism makes a pretty definitive statement: no one knows whether a god of any kind does or does not exist.
Well, that’s why I said “at it’s core”: other native traditions and beliefs had been incorporated/grafted/blended into it as it spread.
I wonder…is there any Buddhist/Christian blends out there?
(btw…in Frank Herbert’s DUNE series, the Fremen believe in a Buddhist/Islamic blend.)
We can make similar comments about Taoism, with its “core” being the Tao Te Ching. Local religious beliefs, and a practice of divination (the I Ching) have appropriated Taoist philosophy.
Re: atheism / agnosticism.
If we’re going to play this game, we need to bring ignosticism / igtheism to the table as well:
The answer to this question depends on the purpose for which it is asked.
The IRS will want a different answer than a philosophy professor.
The IRS considers churches to be tax exempt organization. The IRS Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations (.pdf) gives a definition the IRS uses for what a church is:
In other words, if you can establish that your group has a number of the characteristics listed above, it may be treated as a tax-exempt church by the IRS. However, this does not mean that you, as the religious leader of the church are exempt from personal income taxation, though as the linked publication notes, there are special tax benefits that ministers and similar clergy members may take advantage of.
Be aware, however, that the IRS does prosecute individuals who improperly use an allege “church” structure to avoid taxation.
I’d call nirvana/enlightenment a supernatural concept, but I know others are less picky on that front. Certainly beliefs in reincarnation and ending the cycle of life and death are supernatural. Or the different realms of existence.