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The Improbability of God by Richard Dawkins from Free Inquiry , Volume 18, Number 3. Much of what people do is done in the name of God. Irishmen blow each other up in his name. Arabs blow themselves up in his name. Imams and ayatollahs oppress women in his name.
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities . [ 1 ] [ 2 ] In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] Most inclusively, atheism is simply the absence of belief that any deities exist. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] Atheism is contrasted with theism , [ 8 ] [ 9 ] which in its most general form is the belief that at least one deity exists . [ 9 ] [ 10 ] The term atheism originated from the Greek ἄθεος ( atheos ), meaning "without god(s)", used as a pejorative term applied to those thought to reject the gods worshipped by the larger society. With the spread of freethought , skeptical inquiry , and subsequent increase in criticism of religion , application of the term narrowed in scope.
