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First: NO, atheism is NOT part of a religious thought process. Just because Buddhism may be an atheist system does not mean that all atheists are Buddhists! Atheism is simply what I said: The doctrine that there is no God or gods. That does not in any way link me to any religious system at all. In fact, it limits the number of religions I could be part of.
Again, dictionary.com:
<b>re·li·gion</b>
- Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
- A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
- The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
- A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
- A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.
Religion seems to be a rather fixed idea: it *must* have something to do with supernatural things, or a spiritual leader. If one does not belief in any supernatural stuff, nor follows the teachings of a spiritual leader (nor pursues something with devotion), one is NOT religious.
I define religion as dictionary.com defines it: belief in supernatural things, and/or beliefs derived from a spiritual leader, and/or a principle pursued with devotion. All of this means that I am not religious.
As for beliefs: one might say that (by your definition) I do not belief in anything at all - as a scientist I am not convinced anything is true/actual/valid. I must accept that anything I see as true today might be proven false tomorrow - that's the whole basis of scientific research. I must, in fact, accept the possibility that nothing is real, philosophically speaking.
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