Implicit "negative" / "weak" / "soft" atheists who lack a belief in God without explicitly denying the concept, includes very young children, those who are unacquainted with the concept or are truly undecided.
on right
Explicit "negative" / "weak" / "soft" atheists who do not believe that God exists necessarily.
on right
Explicit "positive" / "strong" / "hard" atheists who firmly believe that God doesn't exist.
Note: Areas in the diagram are not meant to indicate relative numbers of people.
Part of a series on
Atheism
Concepts
Implicit and explicit atheism
Naturalism
Negative and positive atheism
History
History of atheism
Atheism during the Age of Enlightenment
New Atheism
Society
Atheist feminism
Criticism of religion
Demographics of atheism
Discrimination against atheists
Secular ethics
Secularism
Separation of church and state
State atheism
Arguments
Arguments for atheism
Atheist's wager
Creator of God
Evil God challenge
Fate of the unlearned
Free will
God of the gaps
Hitchens's razor
Incompatible properties
Inconsistent revelation
Nonbelief
Occam's razor
Omnipotence paradox
Parody religion
Poor design
Problem of evil
Problem of Hell
Russell's teapot
Theological noncognitivism
People
Lists of atheists
Julian Baggini
Mikhail Bakunin
Mario Bunge
Albert Camus
Richard Dawkins
Daniel Dennett
Denis Diderot
Ludwig Feuerbach
A. C. Grayling
Sam Harris
Christopher Hitchens
Baron d'Holbach
Lawrence Krauss
Michael Lou Martin
Karl Marx
Jean Meslier
Friedrich Nietzsche
Michel Onfray
Bertrand Russell
Peter Singer
Victor J. Stenger
Books
Atheism: The Case Against God
Breaking the Spell
De rerum natura
The End of Faith
The God Delusion
God Is Not Great
The System of Nature
Related stances
Irreligion
Agnosticism
Freethought
Secular humanism
Atheism and religion
Christian
Hindu
Buddhist
Jewish
Muslim
Theism
Criticism of atheism
Outline
Category
Philosophy portal
WikiProject
v
t
e
Negative atheism, also called weak atheism and soft atheism, is any type of atheism where a person does not believe in the existence of any deities but does not necessarily explicitly assert that there are none. Positive atheism, also called strong atheism and hard atheism, is the form of atheism that additionally asserts that no deities exist.[1][2][3]
The terms "negative atheism" and "positive atheism" were used by Antony Flew in 1976[1] and have appeared in George H. Smith's[4] and Michael Martin's writings since 1990.[5]
^ abFlew, Antony (1976). "The Presumption of Atheism". The Presumption of Atheism, and other Philosophical Essays on God, Freedom, and Immortality. New York: Barnes and Noble. pp. 14ff. Archived from the original on 2005-10-12. Retrieved 2011-12-10. In this interpretation an atheist becomes: not someone who positively asserts the non-existence of God; but someone who is simply not a theist. Let us, for future ready reference, introduce the labels 'positive atheist' for the former and 'negative atheist' for the latter.
^Martin, Michael (2006). The Cambridge Companion to Atheism. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-84270-0.
^"Definitions of the term "Atheism"". Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. 2007. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
^Atheism, Ayn Rand, and Other Heresies - an excerpt; George H. Smith; 1990
^Martin, Michael (1990). Atheism: A Philosophical Justification. Temple University Press. p. 26. ISBN 0-87722-943-0.
"negative atheism, the position of not believing a theistic God exists" / "positive atheism: the position of disbelieving a theistic God exists"; p. 464: "Clearly, positive atheism is a special case of negative atheism: Someone who is a positive atheist is by necessity a negative atheist, but not conversely".
and 26 Related for: Negative and positive atheism information
Negativeatheism, also called weak atheismand soft atheism, is any type of atheism where a person does not believe in the existence of any deities but...
Implicit atheismand explicit atheism are types of atheism. In George H. Smith's Atheism: The Case Against God, "implicit atheism" is defined as "the absence...
Jewish atheism refers to the atheism of people who are ethnically and (at least to some extent) culturally Jewish. Contrary to popular belief, the term...
Agnostic atheism or atheistic agnosticism is a philosophical position that encompasses both atheismand agnosticism. Agnostic atheists are atheistic because...
atheism is a religion has been described as a contradiction in terms. Jewish atheism usually refers to the atheism of people who are ethnically and (at...
existence of God. Accurate demographics of atheism are difficult to obtain since conceptions of atheismand self-identification are context dependent by...
due to a conscious rejection of it". Negativeatheism – refers to any type of non-theism other than positiveatheism, wherein a person does not believe...
Navarro-Rivera's review of numerous global studies on atheism, there are 450 to 500 million positive atheists and agnostics worldwide (7% of the world's population)[as...
literal existence of God. Christian atheism takes many forms and may include an ethics system, cultural Christianity, and a variety of Christian theological...
New Atheism describes the positions of some atheist academics, writers, scientists, and philosophers of the 20th and 21st centuries. New Atheism advocates...
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the lack of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is simply the absence of belief that any deities...
Atheism is the rejection of an assertion that a deity exists. In a narrower sense, hard atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
Criticism of atheism is criticism of the concepts, validity, or impact of atheism, including associated political and social implications. Criticisms include...
atheists may be manifested by negative attitudes, prejudice, hostility, hatred, fear, or intolerance towards atheists andatheism or even the complete denial...
the position that there are no deities. There are ranges from negativeandpositiveatheism. Antitheism is the opposition to theism. The term has had a...
referred to as one of the "Four Horsemen" of New Atheism, along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens. Daniel Clement Dennett III...
rejects agnosticism as a third alternative to theism andatheismand promotes terms such as agnostic atheism (the view of those who do not hold a belief in...
terrorism, and artificial intelligence. Harris came to prominence for his criticism of religion, and is known as one of the "Four Horsemen" of New Atheism, along...
State atheism or atheist state is the incorporation of hard atheism or non-theism into political regimes. It is considered the opposite of theocracy and may...
proposed concept of negativeatheism, the presumption of atheism has become "one of the most commonly proffered justifications of atheism." According to the...
Hindu atheism or non-theism, which is known as Nirīśvaravāda (Sanskrit: निरीश्वर्वाद, nir-īśvara-vāda, lit. "Argument against the existence of Ishvara")...
University Press. ISBN 978-0-87722-642-0. Martin, Michael (1999). "PositiveAtheismand The Meaninglessness of Theism". Internet Infidels. Rauch, Jonathan...
atheists and whose atheism is relevant to their notable activities or public life. Scott Aaronson (1981–): American theoretical computer scientist and professor...
Global Information
