What Do You Want Out of an Atheist Community

Almost every Sunday I get together with a bunch of atheists and we have brunch. This week we talked about community and what we can do to create it.

We realized that we first need to decide why people would come. Even though people who go to church may not actually go there to hear the word of god, that is why the building is there and it is the purpose of the meeting. We were not successful in creating a simple purpose but we thought we could start with what we were hoping to get out of a community of atheists.

Some of the things people wanted out of an atheist community event were intellectual stimulation, belonging, networking, being important to someone who is not obligated to you, support, resource sharing, fun, putting a good face on atheism, and a vehicle for doing good.

We talked about if we should embrace rituals, if it is good or not to re-purpose religious rituals, and what rituals should be like. We also deliberated the effectiveness of a monthly vs weekly set up. There was some discussion about the size, and how it could be most effective.

We also discussed the potential downfalls of a secular/atheist dogma or set of rules and having a leader who has authority over those rules for the group.

So, what do you think the simple purpose should be? What simple purpose would appeal to you? What would you want out of an atheist community? What would you be willing to give in order to have an atheist community? Chime in.