Would You Prefer...

[daisya]

...to be called an atheist or a realist...and is there a difference?

[RATTER15]

237SJ, I think Naomi has summed it up pretty well. Thank you Naomi, I could never have said it so effectively.

Oh!! and apart from all that all the shops that I want to visit today are closed!! I wonder why,

Oh yes!!

I'ts the Sabbath!!

[naomi24]

Goodlife, you’re cherry picking again – and it’s disingenuous. Shame on you!

Mark 13 – read on – especially to the bit that says ‘… false prophets will appear … to deceive… ' Does that ring a bell? It should.

….and to the bit that reads ‘Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.’

‘Truly’, he says – but it isn’t true, is it? Where is that generation now? Dead these past 2000 years.

[Kromovaracun]

"It must be a sad life to consider that nobody created you, what you do does not need to adhere to any commandments - since these are a fairy story - and that your life is limited to your earthly existence. "

Actually, I find it emancipating. It makes me feel responsible for my own actions and like an independent being capable of reasoning through my own morality. I don't find the idea of a big brother in the sky looking down on me and telling me how to be good very comforting.

To answer the question, my own preference is "materialist". But if asked about my religious beliefs, I respond with atheist.

[Zeuhl]

Personally I prefer 'Rationalist' as that reflects my approach to philosophical issues and fits neatly as a counter to 'Unquestioning Faith'

Also, regarding 'atheist': I dislike the idea of being defined by what I 'don't believe'

[ichkeria]

Atheism:
"disbelief or lack of belief in the existence of God or gods."
Realism:
"the attitude or practice of accepting a situation as it is and being prepared to deal with it accordingly" OR
"the view that the subject matter of politics is political power, not matters of principle" OR
"the doctrine that the law is better understood by analysis of judges rather than the judgements given" OR
"the quality or fact of representing a person or thing in a way that is accurate and true to life" OR
"an artistic or literary movement or style characterized by the representation of people or things as they actually are"

So no, not the same thing really. Of course, some people argue that atheism is a form of realism which I suspect is what the questioner is angling after.

[emmie]

atheist