Atheism and the supernatural

[Oneofthediaspora]

On another thread someone has (quite accurately) pointed out to me that an atheist whilst not believing in Gods, could still theoretically believe in the supernatural.

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Thanks,
Mike.

 

[quatona]

I guess we could call anything we can´t explain (yet) "supernatural". If, when and as soon as we can explain it we will call it "natural".

Beyond that I can´t think of a meaningful definition of "supernatural". Besides, if I would believe there was something outside nature I wouldn´t know why to call it "supernatural" instead of "extranatural".

 

[Nooj]

On another thread someone has (quite accurately) pointed out to me that an atheist whilst not believing in Gods, could still theoretically believe in the supernatural.

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Thanks,
Mike.

The trouble is what you would define as supernatural. If it exists, isn't it by definition natural?

If you define supernatural as something that we have no evidence for, I'd point out Buddhists who by and large (not all) don't believe in a creator God, but believe in such concepts as rebirth. There are some Buddhists in the NCR section, perhaps you could ask them.

 

[Andreusz]

If the supernatural means 'something that exists but has no material being', then I don't believe in the supernatural. No ghosts, no demons, no angels, no bogeys. I also don't believe in werewolves, vampires or astrology.

 

[God-free]

Ditto what Andreusz said (except I think he meant "astrology").

~Barbara

 

[Nooj]

If the supernatural means 'something that exists but has no material being', then I don't believe in the supernatural. No ghosts, no demons, no angels, no bogeys. I also don't believe in werewolves, vampires or astronomy.

[edit] scooped by God-free.

 

[Andreusz]

^ Embarrassment! I've corrected it. Thanks for pointing out the error.

 

[God-free]

^ Embarrassment! I've corrected it. Thanks for pointing out the error.

Don't be embarrassed. That kind of goof is easy to make. I always need to think twice about those particular words.

~Barbara

 

[jayem]

As a naturalist, by definition I don't believe anything exists that is not a function of matter, energy, and the natural properties thereof.

And even if there should be some kind of parallel universe, that has a totally different composition and behavior than ours, we can't really know anything about it. Because if it left any information we could detect, then it would have to operate according to the same laws of physics as do we. As others have said, if we can objectively perceive it, then it also has to be a natural phenomenon.

 

[selfinflikted]

If by "supernatural" you mean ghosts, magic, divination, etc. Then my answer is a no.

 

[Tinker Grey]

No.

 

[keith99]

^ Embarrassment! I've corrected it. Thanks for pointing out the error.

Perhaps the error was ordained by God!

Just joking. But the error is not as big as it might at first seem. At one point astronomy and astrology were if not one and the same at least inseperable. The stars do in fact predict some things, the seasons! Astronomy predicted other things like an eclipse. So why not more?

Over time the things that did not work ended up under astrology and the ones that did under astronomy.

There is a chance that similar things may happen under 'PSI Powers'. I can't see predicting the future, but meing able to communicate mind ot mind or telekinesis may eventually turn out to be possible. But if the latter is possible I'll opt for the form of 'The Three Matches' over it as a super power.

 

[Oneofthediaspora]

^^^ This hombre, he speak the truth.

It's worth pointing out also that science started in alchemy and magic and has progressed from such shabby beginnings to the noble pursuit of truth we have today.

 

[Amathystmoon]

Okay here is my take on this... I do not believe in ghosts and spirits ( I am not one of those witches sitting around with a ouigi board) I do believe in the power of the earth itself ie: earth, wind, fire, and water. i also believe the moon has great power. and I believe in reincarnation.

 

[Garyzenuf]

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Thanks,
Mike.

If you mean unexplained by supernatural I guess I sort of fall into that category....

I'm a member of a 12-step recovery fellowship, as part of my recovery process, I pray and meditate everyday, and receive positive direction from the expeirence. Is it a self-fulfilling mantra, a self-hypnosis
exercise (ala Dawkins), or some kind of Pantheistic God at work I don't know. In fact its got me so confused about how to label myself, that I got rid of my faith icon altogether.

I hope this doesn't mean I'm going to have my subscription of "Atheists Quarterly" stopped again.

 

[pantless rationalist]

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Absolutely not. I've no reason to waste time on superstitions or fairy tales.

There is a chance that similar things may happen under 'PSI Powers'. I can't see predicting the future, but meing able to communicate mind ot mind ... may eventually turn out to be possible.

Already been done, no supernatural powers necessary.

 

[Tenka]

On another thread someone has (quite accurately) pointed out to me that an atheist whilst not believing in Gods, could still theoretically believe in the supernatural.

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Mike, I can't speak for all atheists but for many, atheism isn't the starting point from which we form opinions, scepticism is, atheism is simply one of the conclusions made from our sceptical look at the world.
Do I have enough reason to think werewolves, ghosts and magic are real? Nope.

It may be possible for an atheist to believe in whatever magic or supernatural stuff but a skeptic probably couldn't.

It's worth pointing out also that science started in alchemy and magic and has progressed from such shabby beginnings to the noble pursuit of truth we have today.

Well really, science isn't about 'the truth' as much as finding useful explanations for what we observe. In this sense, it started with early spirituality and we've been replacing beliefs with what works better since then.

 

[tanzanos]

On another thread someone has (quite accurately) pointed out to me that an atheist whilst not believing in Gods, could still theoretically believe in the supernatural.

I was wondering, of the atheists here, do any of you have any belief in the existence of anything that could be termed supernatural and if so what does this mean to you?

Thanks,
Mike.

Yes Quantum physics; It doesn't get any weirder than that!

 

[Pliny the Elder]

There are supposed eye witness accounts of dragons, mermaids, minotaurs, ghosts, people walking on water and many other supernatural entities and events yet there is no supporting evidence of any to this day and we have plausible and logical explanations for all of them, so no I do not believe in the supernatural.

 

[quatona]

There are supposed eye witness accounts of dragons, mermaids, minotaurs, ghosts, people walking on water and many other supernatural entities and events

So what would be supernatural about them?