A good friend of mine, Clayton Bower Jr., a fellow Catholic apologist who passed away a few years ago, gave a very good talk titled: Atheism's Weakness. Let me dedicate what he said in his memory.

First, we have to state that all Atheism is dogmatic.

• Why?

Because the very definition of Atheism itself requires one dogma or solemn teaching. One must believe:

• That God does not exist.

Without this dogma, Atheism falls flat on its face.

These days you often hear an introduction to Atheism from a group that calls themselves the New Atheists. The problem is there is nothing new about what they are saying. The term the New Atheists is just a re-marketed term to sell their dogmatic belief.

There are three types of Atheism in the world today:

• Philological Atheism, otherwise known as Agnosticism
• Psychological or Adolescent Atheism, and
• Practical Atheism

Philosophical Atheism or Agnosticism

We can admire those who sincerely hold on to a form of philological atheism.

• Why?

Because they sincerely are unsure of whether God really exists, yet are open to  someone showing them, for example, the Five Proofs of St. Thomas Aquinas.

They are a class of faith-seekers who honestly cannot find acceptable answers for why God would exist. This can be justified and understandable based on one's background.

Psychological or Adolescent Atheism

Those who hold to a psychological or adolescent atheism, don't really believe there is no God. Most of the time, kids in their teens hold on to this form of atheism.

It is more of a rebellion against their parents in the younger years of their life.  Since their parents demand they believe in God, they rebel and deny His existence, though many times, they aren't even at an age where they can form their conscience correctly. When they grow older, and especially have a family, their denial of the existence of God usually disappears.

This type of atheism is based, not so much on a true cognitive belief that there is no God, but is a reaction to overbearing religious parents and teachers just to get under their skin. Adolescent Atheism is a reaction to parental or adult demands. There is no real in-depth study of whether God exists, or not. The teenager or youth rebel just to identify themselves and their own identity. They are basically saying: I'm not like this overbearing parent.

Practical Atheism

Practical Atheism is probably the most widely spread form of Atheism today without people being conscious that they fall into this camp. There's an old saying:

• If you were arrested for being a Christian (or a Catholic), would there be enough evidence against you?

. . . and a bumper sticker on the car or a Rosary in the window wouldn't be enough.

• How do our words and actions from Monday through Saturday reflect Catholic Christian principles?

If they hardly reflect them, we are practical atheists.

Practical Atheism says, We can go about knowing there is a God, but behaving like there isn't one.

That said, who we say we are, and what we do, should go hand in hand for anyone who calls themselves a Christian.

I've met people who call themselves Christians but have no problem supporting abortion and so-called gay marriage (There is no such thing as gay marriage.) Their life is a lie.

When someone lives a life where their words contradict their actions, their credibility or believability goes down . . . No matter what they say, they are Practical Atheists.