the world militant is generally regarded as a positive adjective. it means you are actively pushing for something. =)

I think it refers to an atheist who wants to educate people who do believe in a god. some atheists just sit back and laugh at religous people. Militant atheists think religous people harm the world and try to stop them.

I believe that a Militant Atheist is a person who is an 'active' Atheist. Someone who wishes to share the Atheist view, and perhaps convert others to this view. I have also heard the term used simply for people who were publicly honest about their Atheism, not hiding it for fear of persecution. I think the term "Militant",when used with animal rights activists, or Muslims (at least in our current culture), is generally meant to imply a willingness to break the law and, in some cases, use violent means to get their message heard.

It's used somewhat like the term "militant feminist". In other words, a feminist/atheist who refuses to pretend not to be, will be called "militant". They will also be called "militant" if they refuse to consider quitting just because that person told them to. I don't think it is related to the prostelyzation issue, I think it's more of a "you refuse to convert to my point of view, therefore you are stubborn and 'militant'" thing. It doesn't really relate to animal activists or other political radicals that have resorted to violence to demonstrate their points. I don't see any violent atheists or feminists shooting up a place or blowing something up for the cause, so it's really an exaggeration of the speaker's disgust at their ideology in this case. Some people would probably call me a militant atheist (and a militant feminist!) but I certainly don't identify in those terms. And yes, it is a slur, or meant to be.

It's not indicating enthusiasm, but it isn't a slur either. You can be enthusiastic without being militant. I think of militancy as not wanting to participate in a dialog. If you're enthusiastic, you're eager to talk about atheism. If you're militant, talk is over.

The only people who use the term "Militant whatever" are people who are not "whatever". So, yes, I'd say it's a slur.

I think that "militant" didn't start out a bad thing, but in a culture where it isn't cool to have strong feelings about--anything--the word has become an ugly term.

When I think of a militant anything, I think of someone who is willing to force their beliefs off onto other people. This may be in the form of trying to pass laws to enforce one's point of view or it may involve actually breaking the law and resorting to violence and/or destruction of property. With this in mind I would say that a militant atheist would be someone that wants to force religion out of all public discourse. A militant atheist would be someone who mocks religion and disrespects those of us that do believe in a higher power. Someone who simply does not believe in a higher power and tries to convince others of this view through respectful dialogue I would not call a militant. ************* Born again atheist wrote, “What does "No religious test" mean to you? For a bonus try looking up the Treaty of Tripoli.” No religious test means that you can't ask about a person's religious affiliation when considering their qualifications for public office. It does not mean that you can stop people from talking about their religion in public discourse. As for the Treaty of Tripoli, I believe that the relevant clause is Article 11: . "As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries." . 1. That says nothing about religion not being a part of public discourse. It just says that one religion was not to dominate the government and that religious differences were not affect the relations between the US and the Islamic nation of the time. 2. This still does not address the fact that those who wrote the 1st Amendment actually created the offices of Chaplains for each of the Houses of Congress (http://chaplain.house.gov/histInfo.html , http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Senate_Chaplain.htm). Note something in the first link. The early chaplains actually held Sunday services in the House chamber on a weekly basis. Once again, if the men who wrote the Constitution had meant for their to be a complete separation between church and state, then why would they have allowed worship services to be conducted inside of such an important government building. . Note something here. You are citing written words to justify your position. I am citing the ACTIONS of those that wrote the words. If you want to know what people really believe, then look at their actions. These people showed through their actions that they did not believe in a complete separation between church and state because they did not create a government that made a complete break with religious influences. They invited ministers into their chambers to open sessions with prayer. They invited ministers to hold church services within the House of Representatives itself. I am sure that you are familiar with the old saying, “Actions speak louder than words.” Well the actions of the founding fathers are shouting what they thought of the idea of excluding all religious influence from government. Are you willing to listen to what they are saying?

"Militant" usually describes a person that will ask you what you believe, tell you you're wrong, then tell you what they believe and try to get you to believe it too.

a militant atheist is not just someone with strong beliefs or even one who is over the top about preaching their beliefs, but the ones who are fighting every day to remove crosses off war memorials, have In God We Trust taken off the money and demanding nobody can pray in a public place if they hear it because their rights are somehow violated, those are the militant ones.