[bbc.co.uk]

join one of those.

Yeah but I don't like people that much any way.

If non believers follow certain practices we then become just another religion.

i don't think so. we need to be careful not to be accused of brainwashing. just saying "there is no god, those other folks are crazy" over and over again, or making a useless ritual, will just breed rebellion, and we'll end up with kids in cults. what we need in the home is normal behavior, and be ready to have discussions -- planned, spontaneous and when asked -- about why people take refuge in religion, about how to be respectful of those people without having to respect the religions themselves, about how to tell when religious people are crossing the line and invading your lack of belief, and more. furthermore, i think it should not be announced and drilled that "we're atheists." that makes it sound as if atheism is our religion, or even our belief system (it's not a system!) instead, families should be given to know "we don't have any religion, because we know/believe/whatever there are no gods, and people like us are called atheists/agnostics/whatever, but that's not the name of a religion or anything. it's just a word that means we don't believe in any gods. so if someone asks you what religion you are, you say you have no religion, and if they ask you what god you believe in, then you say you're an atheist, which means you don't believe in any gods at all.

i would hate to see families develop atheist rituals, such as repeating, before dinner, "this looks yummy, and there aren't any gods, amen!" rofl rofl!

g

Secular/Sacred

Today people seem to think that the difference between secular and sacred is similar to the difference between science and superstition, but this perspective ignores the generic sense of the terms. Sacred, in general usage, just means something that is regarded as having the greatest value. And secular is everything else; just ordinary stuff.

There is nothing sacred about superstition and ignorance. Truth is, and always has been, sacred. Science is sacred; superstition is secular (common). Awareness of truth is sacred; ignorance is secular. Atheism, in its current incarnation as the rejection of reified mythology, is a step closer to, not away from, the sacred. Those who own the language of value will own the culture. Be careful who you relinquish sacred language to.

I don't believe that non-believers need a substitute or any type of "secular practice".

In the city I lived (old city of Heidelberg for 15 years) the University was founded in 1386. It started, just as you said, in people's homes with lectures. As the number of attendees grew a school was created but mostly it was about theology and in Latin. In the 16th century a man named Desiderius Erasmus started the movement toward Humanism which is: "Humanism is a philosophical and ethical stance that emphasizes the value and agency of human beings, individually and collectively, and generally prefers critical thinking and evidence (rationalism and empiricism) over acceptance of dogma or superstition." Later, studies were done in the local vernacular instead of Latin. In the old city the University was all around my home along with traditional Fraternities.
Schools, today especially public schools are only about humanism and even private religious schools emphasize what people need to know to get by in the real world.
There is a huge movement (started in Britain) to make more secular ceremonies. Even the Unitarian church's services are secular.
I agree, we need to make secularism more pronounced and positive. We need to get rid of the negative stereotyping put on us by religion. For me a good start is with the terminology. Atheist is traditionally bad so it's time to replace it. One popular, international movement is the "Brights" [the-brights.net] I try to avoid the word atheist and also say I am godfree not godless.

Birds of a feather flock together. I'm lucky to have several atheist agnostic friends sprinkled with a few moderately religious ones and we have game night at least every other week. No rituals but lots of laughter, world problem solving, food sharing plus wine and occasional pitchers of pina coladas and margaritas. Sometimes we even play games. In other words, we understand the value that socialization plays in religion's rituals.

I practice not going to church, not praying, not studying scriptures and using them to assess the righteousness of people around me, etc. I'm happy with my practice. I'm pretty sure if the religious knew how peaceful it makes me feel, they'd give it a try.

What would that practice look like?

Since atheism and agnostism are such personal and individual positions there is no physical movement from anything and there wasn't any organization for the atheists or agnostics also. Thus we find it difficult to act as an organized movement to address our views, wishes and desires.Finding a strong leader and a strong form of rallying point is the only way we will be able to obtain a political position and a social recognition that isn't hostile.