[scandium]

Originally Posted by Skybird

Strange what misunderstandings there are about atheism, seem to be more an annoyance that there is somebody who refuses in believing one's own idols. I am atheist myself - and consider myself to be a very religious person.

You cannot be both a "very religious person" and an atheist at the same time. That's more of an oxymoron than "military intelligence". Religion is not just a belief in some form of "higher power", but also a prescribed set of beliefs within an organized body of dogma and usually laid down through a hierarchal structure (Catholicism offering the best example, where you have the Pope at the top, nearly divine, then the arch bishops, bishops, priests, brothers, and then followers in that order from top to bottom). If you are Atheist, then you reject completely any type of God figure and naturally all organized religion attached to it. Agnosticism isn't quite so extreme, it allows you to reject organized religion but remain open to a God figure.

You confuse religion with spirituality. You can be a very spiritual person yet belong to no organized religion or attend any religious ceremonies or subscribe to any of its dogma - or you can be both spiritual and religious (they are not mutually exclusive).

FYI, from the Buddhist material I've read (top of the list is "Buddhism without beliefs" by Stephen Bachelor) I've come to think of it as less of a religion and more of an applied philosophy. But that's just my opinion, I'm still new to this eastern "religion" but I like what I've read of it so far and identify with its philosophy much more so than I do with the Catholic teachings I was raised with.