why do atheists believe something that is impossible to prove?
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How is it rational to say with certainty that something does exist when the possibility will always remain that it does not?\n\nNOT believing is what atheism means.
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Because they have never encounted anything that convinced them of a god's existence. Please read the FAQ linked below which explains in more detail.
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An atheist does not believe in a higher power.  An agnostic isn't sure if there is one or not, and typically an agnostic doesn't go seeking for spirituality or answers to that question.
436570
By the same token, why do Muslims, Hindus, Jews, ..... believe in something which has no empirical evidence?\n\nReligion has no affiliation with concrete proof, actually, it is quite the contrary. Most religions do not need to make secular sense since people want to believe in it in a spiritual way, and that's a choice they make.
859494
how can you believe in evolution when there is no proof?
526190
Ask a child if they believe there is a God. Even those not raised nor exposed to a church will believe. It's only as one ages and is exposed to outside influences that belief can be compromised. The inate ability exists even in those that profess not to believe. The strongest atheist, and the staunchest agnostic will call out for God to help them in their darkest hour. So, yes, humans have the inate ability to believe there is a God. To cite a particularly pointed quote, "There are no atheists in foxholes."
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Atheists don't believe in deities, so they cannot be "believers" in that sense.\n\nI'm an atheist who is a "believer" in love, hope, humanity, etc.
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The faithful don't believe without proof. They do not run out and buy every product they see advertised. They read Consumer Reports just like the rest of us. If I tried to sell a theist a "magic potion" that would turn him invisible, or told him that his wife was cheating on him, he would ask for proof.\n\nWe only extend our need for proof one step further. We don't see why proof is needed in every aspect of existence except one.
183571
How can you prove that it does exist?  Faith is not proof it is opinion.
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They are here for my entertainment - i love the fact that they believe in something that they cannot prove to exist. When you ask them for proof, they usually say 'prove he doesn't exist'.\nThe only thing that religeon brings to the world is war and conflict.
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Firstly, thanks for asking this question.  I've probably answered it about twenty times already, but i think you're the first person I've seen with an actual interest in the answer.\n\nYou're asking two questions here.\n1) What proof do we have that God does not exist?\n2) Isn't evolution just a theory and not a fact?\n\nBoth of these questions touch on a more fundamental question:\n"Why do atheists believe what they believe?"  I'd like to address that question first, because it will make it easier to answer the other two.\n\nI can't speak for all atheists (I'm actually agnostic), but many attempt to base their beliefs in scientific reasoning.  Modern science is based on the facts that human knowledge is limited and human perception is faulty.  All the tools that scientists use to discern the truth (falsifiablility, replication, lab controls, measuring devices, statistical analysis, the scientific method of inquiry, etc.) are all designed specifically to limit errors in human perception.  \n\nNonetheless, mistakes are made and scientists are often wrong.  That's why scientific belief is pliable.  You may hear people talk about "margin of believe" and "index of suspicion".  Basically, these terms represent the degree of belief, which varies with experience.  For instance, I have a high index of suspicion that the sun will rise tomorrow.  There is the slightest possibility that it won't.  Based on historical records, mathematical calculations, and what we know of the natural world, it's a good bet that it will.  Similarly, I have a high margin of disbelieve in the theory that aliens abduct cows on Earth.  There is a very small possibility, but it's very unlikely.\n\nWhen we consider a belief's worth, we're really just raising or lowering our margin of disbelief.  Generally speaking, most beliefs are given an "a priori" possibility of 50%.  Evidence that does not support the belief (it fails to conform to theories that we already have good reasons to believe, it is internally inconsistent, it violates known natural laws, it fails to explain certain phenomenon within its scope, it doesn't make accurate predictions, etc.) raises our margin of disbelief.  Evidence that supports the belief (it makes accurate predictions, it's reproducible, it supports existing theories and known natural laws, etc.) lowers our margin of disbelief.   Once the margin of disbelief is high enough, we can treat the belief as an untruth for practical purposes.  (Bigfoot ate my baby.)  If our margin of disbelief becomes low enough, we can treat the belief as fact.  (My car still has gas in its tank).  Basically, not all beliefs are created equal.  We should have more faith in beliefs with lots of evidential support, and less faith in beliefs with little evidence to back them up.  Conversely, we should doubt beliefs that the available evidence doesn't support.\n\nContrary to what many atheists say, it is possible to prove a negative and prove negative existence.  Assume that I state that you have no quarters in your pockets, then force you to turn out your pockets.  If there are no quarters in there, I have proven (within the limits of perception) negative existence.  The problems with disproving the existence of God are matters of definition and perception.  I can say that there is no god in your pocket and show it to you.  You could reasonably respond that God is invisible and we can't see him.  It all depends on how we define "God" and how powerful our ability to "see" him is.\n\nSpeaking specifically of the the Judeo-Christian god, we can say that it is very unlikely that it exists.  The existence of an omnipotent intelligence defies the Law of Conservation of Energy.  The concept that the universe was created out of nothing defies the Law of Conservation of Matter.  These laws, together, establish the basis for all of physic
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Proof is hard. Is there evidence?\nIs it easier to prove presence or absence?\n\nDo athiest have "faith" in a "Void"?
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An Atheist is a believer.  However, they do not believe in the correct religion.
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An atheist can very well have a belief system.  Being an atheist just means that you lack belief in a god or gods.  An atheist could believe in UFOs, alien abductions, Santa Claus, etc.  \n\nI, however, am a skeptic, an Objectivist, a Bright (depending on the nomenclature you are using).\n\nI try to have as few belief as possible.  I try to hold a scientific worldview.  I take in data/information and try to understand what I am learning.  I make guesses/theories about how the data relate.  When I make up a guess, I then test it to make sure it's correct.  If it fails, then I continue to use that theory until a better one comes along.  If a better one comes along, then I reject the old one.\n\nA good example of this is the sunrise.  Do you believe that the sun rises in the East?  I don't.  I have a scientific theory that the earth rotates and revolves around the sun.  I test my theory every day because my theory PREDICTS the sun will appear on the eastern horizon.  \n\nYou might say that a scientific worldview cannot account for everything in reality.  Really?  Like what?  A soul?  I don't believe that exists either.\n\nI could be wrong.  Before bacteria were seen under a microscope, people believed that disease was  caused by disruptions of the 4 humours.  If I was a skeptic back then, I would have denied the existence of bacteria... until a scientific theory could come about and explain and predict their existence.  So if someone were to present to me concrete evidence of a god... then I would admit that I am wrong and become a believer.\n\n-------------------------------\nAgnosticism and atheism are kissing cousins.  Still, does a agnostic believe in Santa Claus?  Why or why not?  There is no evidence for Santa to exist... but there is always the possibility.  I deny Santa's existence, while a true agnostic could never say yes or no.\n\nBasically, there is a ton of bullhsit out there.  There are hundreds, if not thousands, of religions in the world.  This doesn't include ones that have died out or ones that have yet to be created.  I withhold belief until I find evidence for one that is correct.  Sure I could sometimes be wrong with my worldview/philosophy... but science/logic/rational thought has a far better track record in only a few hundred years than all of the history of religions.\n---------\nAlso, I think you have a misunderstanding on what a "freethinker" is.  A freethinker is someone who looks at life/reality without superstition... someone who uses rational thought.  There is no evidence for a supernatural being... so that falls outside of "freethinker".
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cause there is no true viable proof then a book on god and the others
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There is no proof that God does not exist.\nThink about it:  if God does not exist, then there cannot be any proof of His non-existence.  You can never prove that something does NOT exist.\n\nSo, what does that make a person who believes that God does not exist (aka atheist)?  Someone who believes something based on no evidence.  And what do we call a belief based on no evidence?  Faith.\n\nAtheism is just another religion, with all the texts, all the dogma, and all the faith necessary for any other mainstream religion.
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I don't believe I would try to prove God exists. \nSometimes, even with proof, people disbelieve what stands before them. Rather, it seems you may be asking for a reason to have faith. Faith comes without proof... otherwise, it's not faith.\n<warm hugs>