I don't really classify myself as an Atheist, however I do meet the definitions term.

As far as the original posters question, I personally think it's obvious that it is not a religion.

Atheism - a: a disbelief in the existence of deity b: the doctrine that there is no deity
Religion - a: the service and worship of God or the supernatural

How could Atheism be considered a religion if it doesn't follow the definition.

No atheism is not a religion. It is simply a lack of belief in a super natural entity called God. Atheists can have varying beliefs and opinions regarding every other aspect of life.

Theism, is also not a religion. It is simply a belief in the existence of God.

Religion is a set of concepts, beliefs and practices, usually centering around the idea of God. It is a tool for social governance, so it contains rules about what to do and not do, and punishments for those who disobey the rules.

It is possible to have a religion without believing in God - for example Buddhism is a atheistic religion. It is also possible to believe in God without subscribing to any religion. Many people want to believe in the existence of a super natural entity who is responsible for creation and sustenance of the world, but don't want to follow the descriptions of God in the religious scriptures.

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The concept of beleiving in God is pretty easy to understand.

God Qualities= Good, Bright, Omnipresent, wisdom, Calm, Alert etc.

Most of these good Qualities can blossom easily in childs mind because he has no "responsibility".

Responsibility gives EGO because you UNDERTAKE a TASK. Your mind gets fixed on getting it done and getting it RIGHT. Basically, ANYTHING that relates to "You" has to DISTORT your mind. Your mind itself does not know for sure who it really is. If it is good, why does it like BAD things? If its bad, then why it sometimes sides Good things.

TO GET away from ALL this "MIND" questions and to rise above the level of GOOD and BAD. You have to jump / concentrate to an entity which is NOT "you" or "your mind". Lets call this "X".

X -> your best lovers smile, your mom's caring voice ... any "thought" that can assure you, "its gonna be just fine.. everything is alright as it is."

Usually People call this ENTITY ... GOD.

By Deep Devotion to GOD, people do not waste energy in random thoughts but channelize all the energy at a single thought called "GOD".

This gives a RISE in their consciousness or you can say "MORE FOCUS".

MORE FOCUS = Intelligence in -detail- .. basically means HIGHER intelligence.

= You are at a BETTER position to DEFINE/SOLVE the above question which is MORE of a FEELING/REALIZATION than an entity which can be ARGUED by 100 million people in 100 million ways.

A quick definition for religion, found on Google is:

Now, let me clear this up: I'm an atheist, I don't believe in god or any supernatural powers that control human destiny. Being atheist implies that you do not believe in what religion does, so atheism definitely cannot be called a religion! Please, anyone correct me if I'm wrong. Have a nice day, Freedom Overdose

Atheism is not a religion because :

Definition of religion - a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects

1) An atheist does not hold a set of beliefs, he acts on his own accord on the basis of situation.

2) Every atheist is different, has a different moral code, a different belief about the purpose of this world.

As they don't have a consistent practice, nor are they similar in any particular way except by co-incidence, atheism can not be considered a religion.

I wouldn't say that Atheism is a religion. Its just a word used for people that don't believe in any made-up form of god. Thats just the way I look at it. I don't believe in a god, therefore I am an atheist. Religions are more like an organisations of similar beliefs, if that makes sense.