Totally. I don’t think the idea of atheism should necessarily be promoted, but that the world should just be secular. Kind of like how we don’t have deep conversations about Sasquatch, we just don’t ever mention it.

I wish that it was uninteresting. In a world where theism didn’t capture so many minds, it would be uninteresting. But we live in a world where many people believe this life is just a stepping stone to eternity. And despite their belief in eternity, many still feel the need to spend their time on this “stepping stone” persecuting LGBT folks, preventing responsible birth control, and manipulating children into a false worldview. In that context, the identity of atheist seems pretty important to me.

Why join this community if you think the identity is uninteresting?

It's like one of my toes, it's there, it's part of me, but I rarely focus on it or bring it up until someone steps on it.

Hmmm, How many things are less interesting than my disblief in other peoples imaginery friends?
Pretty much nothing really.
Yet I would rather discuss everything with people who don't have imaginary friends.

UNLESS your past life centered around theism. Like mine - it was a huge part of my identity, so now I'm known for being an ex-convert. It raises interest in people, and starts conversations about consciousness expansion...

I think there is a collective humanist identity being formed via social media partly in response to the surge of religion in the US and religious conficts on a global scale. My personal identity is based on my life experiences, interests and goals. Being an atheist is just one facet.

Never built my personality or persona around my lack of believe. I just happened to be a non believer.

It is a part of me. Not the most interesting part but a part nonetheless. I felt like commenting because while reading your question I realized I'm friends with some individuals and they don't know or never asked about my religious preferences and I realized I don't know theirs either. So I guess in some circles, at least, it doesn't matter at all.

That's exactly how I think - it is not a defining characteristic.

I came here because I didnt want to talk about it that much HA THought we would skip it and move on. I have never felt that strongly about it, just wasnt into the religious thing

Yup. But.

When my kids were young, I didnt actually pretend to be a believer but made a big deal about how the bible was bunk and disliked organized religion which made people think that I was a believer but just disliked church.

When I was finally able to be open about it, I was a bit of an asshole about it and felt compelled to be in your face about it. Which made it a big part of my identity for a while.

Now it rarely comes up in most interactions with people and only becomes known after someone has known me for a while and is part of some other subject being discussed

I did until I came on this site. None of my close friends are religious, I was raised atheist. To me, the weird bizarre people are the ones who believe in organized religion.

To me, it's not all that interesting. Seems to be a lot more interesting to others, primarily believers. I'm not building an identity, I am who I am.

There seems to be a lot of confusion in concerns to the differences between atheism and agnosticism. Atheism refers to disbelief, while agnosticism refers to a lack of knowledge. So an agnostic, is someone who doesn't know, that they are actually an atheist.

I'm a recovering Christian. That defines who I am and who I always will be. After several decades of physical and emotional abuse from my parents in the name of God, I was a dangerous wounded cornered animal.lt took a long time for my wife to heal me. I despise my parents, their church, and their religion. I don't despise their God because there's no way it can be real. I spent 40 years studying the Bible, the history of the Church, Church dogma, and anything else I could find about Christanity because I couldn't make Christanlty fit into reaity. I finaly met a professor in graduate school who had been raised Catholic but no longer belived. I ask him why he didn't beilve. He simply said "It doesn't make sense". That was the answer,and the only answer. Accepting that Christanlty didn't make sense freed me of the burden of trying to make it make sense. I was able to cast off the heaviest buden I had carried in my life. For the first time in my ilfe I was free to think. It was a wonderful feeling. It upset my family, but I could no longer carry the burden of making them happy at the cost of the happiness of my family and myself. My parents died miserable and my sibilngs are still miserable. Nothing I can do about that, but I no longer let their misery become my misery.

Well yes I like to think I'm interesting for things other than being an atheist.I'm a fairly eclectic fellow and apartment smells of rich mahogany and I have many leatherbound books......People like me.

I identify with my lack of liking sports mor!

Jk...I think this whole identity building from a dozen labels is nothing more than navel-gazing. People are largely unique...and yet we share many characteristics with many other people. This is nothing new. Being an atheist doesn't make you special...it's the 100's of different things you are that makes an individual who they are.

It's almost like we fought the civil Rights movement only to digress and want to apply stereotypes to ourselves. "It's okay if I do it"....no it's not.

Yes. I suspect the draw of this website and the reason for the name choice instead of calling it a "liberal intellectual discussion" dating site is that all the people here are tired of online alt-right attacks and Trump nonsense.

I agree completely...I never bring my beliefs up unless we are discussing something that it would apply to. A belief in god or not, seems unimportant, but if attacked over my beliefs...I will make a fast exit!

Yep. Cats are much more interesting.

Not the most obvious. My political and social activist stance is much more relevant.

I do indeed! It ever comes up, except once in a while in passing. When I first came on here, I was gobsmacked by all the questions about "how do I announce...my atheism" What? It's Nobody's business, and IMO nobody wants to hear it, and Why would you make such a big deal about such a private thing? Unless to a " missionary" of some kind trespassing on your porch, I suppose. I did come to understand, however, if you sadly live/work in a Babble Belt area that it can be a scary big deal...but again, why not keep yourself to yourself?

It's just another label that people give themselves. Recently I've come to believe that living under a label is the worst possible decision anyone could ever make.

I have more comments about stuff I do than what I don't do. There are people I don't bring it up around but it is apparent I suppose. I came here not so much for the label's defintion. I came here for what I hoped it meant. As birdingnut put it, "Yes. I suspect the draw of this website and the reason for the name choice instead of calling it a "liberal intellectual discussion" dating site is that all the people here are tired of online alt-right attacks and Trump nonsense."