Atheism and naturalism
Secular Thought · Europe · from 1700
Atheism says there is no God, or that nothing good supports belief in one. Many atheists also hold naturalism. This says the world is all of nature, and science is the best way to study all of it, even the mind.
What it is
Atheism is the view that there is no God, or at least that no belief in God is justified. The word is used in two ways. In everyday speech an atheist is someone who does not believe in God. In the sense philosophers tend to prefer, atheism is a claim: that God does not exist. Philosophers call the first 'negative' atheism and the second 'positive' atheism.
The difference matters because it changes what an atheist has to defend. Lacking a belief takes no argument. Saying that God does not exist is a claim about the world, and it needs reasons like any other claim.
The main arguments
- The problem of evil. Great suffering is hard to square with a being who is all-powerful, all-knowing and entirely good.
- Divine hiddenness. If God wanted people to believe, the evidence would be clearer than it is.
- Science. Explanations from cosmology and evolution leave less work for a God to do.
- Conflicts inside the idea of God. Some of the traditional attributes seem to clash with each other.
- Evidence first. Atheists generally hold that a belief should rest on evidence, and that the evidence for God is too weak.
A person may reject every God, or only a certain idea of God, such as one who is perfectly good and all-powerful. Atheism comes in global and local forms.
What it looks like in practice
Picture someone who has thought about it and concluded that the universe contains no God. That conclusion, by itself, says nothing yet about how they live. They may be generous or selfish, serious or playful. Atheism answers one question, whether there is a God, and leaves ethics and meaning for other ideas to answer. That is why many atheists also hold a wider view of the world, such as naturalism, or a view of how to live, such as secular humanism.
Naturalism, a common companion
Many atheists also hold naturalism. It has two parts: reality is nature and contains nothing supernatural, and the methods of science should be used to study everything, including the human mind. A narrower form, methodological naturalism, only asks science to use natural explanations and does not by itself deny the supernatural.
Questions and criticism
- Is atheism a claim or an absence? Whether it needs its own proof, or is only the lack of a belief, is disputed.
- Is the evidence really that weak? Defenders of belief argue that the evidence for God is stronger than atheists say.
Close neighbours
Agnosticism asks whether anyone can know whether there is a God, while atheism answers no. Secular humanism and naturalism add a positive view of how to live and what exists, with no God in it.
Written by epchē in our own words, and checked against independent sources on 1 October 2026. The sources are listed below.
Where to start reading
Books for this philosophy, from the easiest way in to the harder ones. Each is chosen for a newcomer, whatever the shop.
Covers belong to their publishers and are shown so you can recognise the book.
What it holds
These are the questions this philosophy cares about most and the side it leans toward. They are our reading of it, and the same positions the walk uses.
- No God who cares · clearly Is there a God who knows us and cares what we do?
- Nothing divine exists · clearly Does anything divine exist at all, such as a god or gods, even one that takes no interest in us?
- All within this world · clearly Is everything that matters found inside this world, or does it point to something beyond it?
- Only evidence counts · clearly Can faith or trust in a teaching show us truths that evidence cannot?
- Everything is physical · clearly Is everything made of physical stuff, or is mind or spirit something more?
- Experience is the best guide · clearly Where does the most reliable knowledge come from: careful thinking, or what we see, hear and test?
Ideas it speaks to
Short articles on the questions this philosophy answers most firmly.
- Is there a God who cares · leans toward: No God who cares
- Does anything divine exist · leans toward: Nothing divine exists
- Does meaning need something beyond this world · leans toward: All within this world
- Faith and evidence · leans toward: Only evidence counts
- Mind and matter · leans toward: Everything is physical
- Reason or experience · leans toward: Experience is the best guide
Compared with
- Atheism and naturalism versus Agnosticism
- Atheism and naturalism versus Epicureanism
- Atheism and naturalism versus Humean empiricism and skepticism
- Atheism and naturalism versus Secular humanism
- Atheism and naturalism versus Theism
Thinkers
Related philosophies
Influenced
- Secular humanism · Secular humanism takes non-belief in God as a starting point and adds a positive ethics.
Reacted against
- Theism · Atheism is the denial of the central claim of theism.
Runs parallel to
- Agnosticism · Both doubt belief in God, but agnosticism holds back where atheism denies.
More from the Secular Thought tradition
Sources we used
- Atheism · Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, read on 1 October 2026
- Atheism and Agnosticism · Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, read on 1 October 2026
- Naturalism · Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, read on 1 October 2026
- Naturalism (philosophy) · Wikipedia, read on 1 October 2026
Where do you stand?
Every philosophy takes sides. Here is one question Atheism and naturalism answers firmly:
Is there a God who knows us and cares what we do?
- Atheism and naturalism leans toward: No God who cares
- The other side: A God who cares
The walk asks about this and the questions around it, two ideas at a time, and shows which philosophies your own answers sit closest to. No account, and your answers stay on your device.