I'm going to go out on a limb and be a little controversial here: Just for reference I'm a non-American with a very strong scientific background and also a non-

I'm going to go out on a limb and be a little controversial here: Just for reference I'm a non-American with a very strong scientific background and also a non-confrontational and personal Christian. For me, some American and a few European atheists appear to be as devout as the most strongly religious people I know. They are judgemental of others' beliefs, are absolutely convinced that their views are correct and disparage anyone who is even open or agnostic towards philosophical questions like whether there could be anything external to the Universe. These people dismiss any branch of rationality that is not directly measurable or quantifiable, and on one occasion I had to correct one by saying "yes, philosophy does actually serve a purpose, as a guide for which scientific questions we should tackle next". That's a negative connotation I get when I meet someone who goes out of their way to let me know they're atheist. (This is a generalization which of course needs to be carefully balanced).