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I'm an atheist and I'm a non-theist. But mythunderstood is right: Theism/atheism and gnosticism/agnosticism are measures of two different qualities. I consider myself an agnostic-atheist, since I don't think there is any way to absolutely know whether there is a supernatural realm or not, but it makes no sense to me to believe in a deity whose existence is open to grave doubt. I do know that the idea of an anthropomorphic god is ludicrous, as it only reflects the egotism and the paucity of imagination of humanity. If there were a god, it would look like us? Uh-uh.
I can't prove there is no god, but I don't have to. The burden of proof lies upon the believers, and they have not made a good case for it.
To quote Carl Sagan, extraordinary claims (e.g., the claim of a deity) require extraordinary evidence. The burden of proof here is on the believer not the skeptic.
As for the world having become a strange and darkened place... has it not always been so? We are creatures struggling for survival, which can make life, at times, brutal and grim. Has religion lightened the world? Has Christianity? I don't think so. The only light we've ever had is that brought by reason, on the one hand, and by love on the other. Neither of these require Jesus or Muhammad or Buddha or faith. Persistence and courage certainly, but not faith. Not religion.
Why would you want to believe in something that you freely admit there is no proof for? The "explanation" that 'if we could prove it, we wouldn't need to have faith/believe in it' makes no sense. What you seem to be saying is that you believe in it only because you want to.
The mindset which states that you believe and don't even want to be able to proof the veracity of it, yet condemn others because they can't prove their stances, is more than a little illogical. Why does your belief get a free pass?
Many reasons. A person might want to believe that a particular horse will win a particular race. A person might want to believe that a particular crime will go undetected. A person might want to believe that the price of a favorite tipple will halve. And so on.
Why would a person believe in something that he or she admits there is no proof for?
Who knows.
Why would a person believe in something that he or she admits there is no empirical proof for?
Because there is non-empirical proof.
The "explanation" that 'if we could prove it, we wouldn't need to have faith/believe in it' makes no sense.
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