I am an atheist and am beginning to experience hostility for it...?

Intolerance is generated by all organized religions including Christianity and Islam, both.

Well...a good family friend of our's is atheist, and I have known him all my life, and never have we pushed our views on the other. If someone is going to accept you for you they should care less about your leanings, one way or the other. I know a lot of people that believe in this or that, but if you're a good person that's all that should matter. I am Christian, and he, as an Atheist, is a better person than most of the Christians I come across.

By the way, I understand what you mean about the Catholic's condemning everyone. I went to Catholic school when I was younger, and I thought me not being a Catholic meant I was somehow aligned with Satan. They have a very condescending outlook on any other beliefs.

You'll experience hostility for being vocal about any religion, including atheism. Especially atheism, actually, since it's widely considered the emo/goth religion of pointless rebellion, or the religion of the religiously ignorant (and easily convertible)..

My advice is to keep it to yourself. Take a world religions course. The more you can blather on about other religions, the more you can avoid talking about your own beliefs. Or just wear a cross around town and pretend to go along with it. Take it from an agnostic - Nobody wants to hear your religious beliefs unless they coincide with their own.

Also, if your identity is that wrapped up in your religion, then your identity kinda sucks and losing it won't be a huge loss.

That's unfortunate. While Christians are compelled by their faith to witness and try to convert, doing it in an antagonistic fashion is foolish and counterproductive. It just serves to convince you that these idiots who talk about "love thy neighbor as thyself" are just hypocrites.

There is a saying that religion and politics are topics to be avoided, and in many cases they should be - in a business setting, when teaching children in a public school, and so on, it would not be appropriate to try to impose your religious views on others, whether they are Christian or atheist. In a social setting, the PC rule about "knowing your audience" seems like a good rule of thumb. If someone else brings up religion, you have every right to bring up yours and defend it if it is attacked. If you want to bring up the subject first, you'll have to play it by ear and realize that religion is a topic that some feel very strongly about, and some people will feel harassed if the topic is brought up, or at least if the topic is brought up and you disagree with them.

Catholics in the early days (when Rome was persecuting them) had the dilemma of hiding their faith or paying a severe price; while the price you are paying isn't THAT severe, I wish that all Christians were more aware of our obligation to treat all of God's children with respect.

I too have been an Atheist for three years. Though I find hostility among older people. I am pretty tight among my peers. I don't make a point of being an Atheist. And only discuss it in an appropriate climate. I know that I am not evil and it is sad that anyone would think like that.

Love & Kisses Betty B.

I tend to pick my battles, but still, every once in a while, somebody clearly begins to get agitated because they simply can't reconcile my atheism to the fact that I'm such a nice, considerate, courteous and helpful guy. They seem to want to stick it to me, but don't (at least, this is how I perceive it). This is especially true when I (respectfully) completely obliterate any (ignorant) possible argument they throw at me.

There's really nothing you can do. They just have to mature enough to accept that not everybody believes in their god, or even A god for that matter.

The best thing we as atheists can do is rise above the hatred, bigotry and intolerance and continue being good examples of people without gods. Maybe others will come to realize that people don't need gods to be generally good people. :)

I feel your pain. It's as if you wrote my feelings. I lost a best friend, or at least I thought was a best friend, because I told her I was Atheist. I can't tell my parents, because it would break their heart and they probably wouldn't accept it. My sister would most definitely hate me. My extended family would be much less welcoming. And hell, I'm only in high school.

Atheists are a minority.

Minorities are treated unfairly, and that's just a fact.

Blacks, deaf, blind, Atheist, Asians, etc. have all been treated unfairly and are at least to some degree still are.

But, look on the bright side.

Christians, when they first revealed their religion, were condemned and treated unjustly just like a lot of Atheists are. Now they've practically dominated the world, and have been for thousands of years.

I guess we just have to wait a couple hundred years.

First, Catholics ARE NOT taught individuals who are non-Christian are evil nor is it even implied. We have many wonderfully written document like Nostre Aetate and the Catrechism that flat out says Non-Christians are NOT evil, are God's Children and are part of his plan of salvation.

Secondly, stop and think if you are asserting yourself with hostility and negativity. If so then that would explain the response. If not then why would you consider trying to or want to develop a relationship with someone that was hostile for no reason? How could a relationship with a person like that possibly be meaningful or healthy?

Edit: Brainstorm that is any easy question, it does not have the FORM (physical composition) of human flesh.

After reading your question, I feel compelled to recommend the book "The End of the Affair" by Graham Greene (which was also remade into a great movie in the 90s). It is about a baptized Catholic who becomes an atheist, but later in life begins to "find herself among the evil", if you will. I really don't know what to say about your situation that can't be summed up in that book or movie, should you choose to read or watch it.

Seriously, go to Blockbuster and check it out. It's one of my favorite movies of all time. It might change your life.

Any extremist is basically an unhappy person who hates themselves. It is the Freudian concept of projection. They project their own self loathing onto others but have to use something as an excuse. So some pick one religion or another, some Atheism some pick a political ideology. Heck some pick little league baseball. Have you ever seen some of those parents? Violent whack jobs. Whatever the cover, what lies underneath is the same. A sad, hateful person.

As a Christian I face the same situation only reversed from your situation. As a Christian I will not exclude atheist from being in my circle of friends, but I feel it is a part of my faith to express my beliefs. I would never have an atheist girl friend because she would not share in my deepest beliefs. I don't find atheists evil unless they attempt to stop me from spreading my beliefs in an appropriate manner. Communism as it was practiced in the Soviet Union was evil because they banned the Bible and would not allow Christians to practice their faith. My atheist English professor is probably not evil. I have run into zealots of all kinds of faiths and they usually are annoying even to other believers.