There are several misconceptions that many believers have about Atheists. Some of them are listed below.
1: Atheists are looking for god
2: Atheists know there is a god, but deny god anyway.
3: Atheists “hope” there is no god.
4: Atheists love living a sinful life, so they deny god.
If a person who claims Atheism and also fits any of the scenarios mentioned above, then they are not an Atheist. I will go over each misconception one by one.
1: Atheists are looking for god
-This would describe an agnostic or a seeker if anything. Atheists are not searching for a god. We are pretty adamant that there is no god. I have looked at the arguments for god, the philosophies, religious texts, etc… and I have found no god. No proof of a god. Because of those reasons I believe that there is no god. I am looking for truth and information of how the world works. If that somehow (even though I believe it won’t) produces evidence for a god, I will study the evidence fairly and objectively and then make a fair conclusion based on the evidence presented.
2: Atheists know there is a god, but deny god anyway.
-No. Atheists believe there is no god. The end. We deny the existence of god because there is no evidence for god. It is not as if we are denying the evidence for god, there is no evidence. Someone who knows there is a god and denies him anyway is not an Atheist, that person would believe in god, even if they do not follow that god.
3: Atheists “hope” there is no god.
-Atheists do not hope there is no god. That sort of dovetails into Pascal’s Wager. As in, Atheists do not think there could be a god, but hope there isn’t so that we are right. Once again, we simply believe there is no god. I can tell you that I personally dont hope either way. I do not believe in god because A) it is highly improbably and B) there is no evidence. I do not hope anything about god either way, I do not need to hope things about something that does not exist.
4: Atheists love living a sinful life, so they deny god.
-Once again, anyone who thinks this is not an Atheist. This person would believe in god.
The Grand Rapids Atheist 
Do we really need to define atheism? Is it a cult. I think the only purposeful description can be your personal explanation of why you do not believe in existence of god.
Well, that is a tough job. But to define what is and what is not atheism is not. But by doing so, the non-believers are playing in the hands of religious pundits by using the worst of all tools – propaganda. An atheist needs to say just one thing about atheism, and that is :Why am I an Atheist?
I feel that you are absolutely correct. I fall into the trap all the time when I hear people making claims about what Atheists are or are not.
-GRAtheist-
“Atheists are looking for god
-This would describe an agnostic or a seeker if anything.”
An agnostic is not necessarily searching for god. This agnostic has realized the futility of having a position on god that cannot be proved either way and is completely irrelevant to life.
“An agnostic is not necessarily searching for god. ”
True. I should have said that it “can describe an agnostic”
-GRAtheist-
Regarding #3: According to Webster “hope” is synonymous with the words “trust” and “expect”. It means “to expect with confidence”. The word “expect” points to the word “suppose”, which is synonymous with “believe”.
Since you have no verifiable proof that God does not exist, then all you are left with is hope.
First let me say how cool it is that storbakken checks this blog and contributes, it’s way cooler when people of different perspectives who disagree talk , than folks who congratulate each other on how right they are about everything.
I think storbakken is right in a sense and wrong in a sense. I think it is generally accepted that the word hope has more of a sense of longing and wanting associated with it than expect.
As where I would say that it is more accurate to describe GR Atheist’s position as expecting there is no god than hoping.
Saying that one hopes there is no god evokes the image of the angry tortured soul in rebellion against it’s creator.
Saying that someone expects there is no god evokes a more scientific weighing of evidence.
As where the agnostic says I don’t know, not really relevant.
It makes me want to puke at the thought that so many have sacrificed their lives so that ignorance may be displayed on sites like this by scumbag organizations such as yours. GET A LIFE…and may GOD have mercy on your soul.
Larry O’Grady, how ya doin? Usually people reserve these comments for my email address. Thank you for being brave enough to leave the comment here.
First of all, this is not an “organization” it is just one person, clearly you would have known that had you actually read about this site.
Please tell me, what parts of the site are ignorant? I know that I put forth well thought out and verifiable arguments. Your arguments however resort to name calling and commanding me to get a life, and of course asking an imaginary friend to have mercy on something else which does not exist.
Classy Mr. O’Grady, real classy. You have have represented religious people really well and I am sure they are glad to have you.
-GRAtheist-