When people communicate an idea, they define the meaning. Not the audience. Our world is so hell bent on proving everyone wrong, or being the one that's right, we will add complexities to the expression of others where there is none. To test this I asked 10 atheist's in my life - or perhaps I should say who identify as atheist - what they mean when they call themselves an atheist. Ten out of ten said they don't believe in the existence of God. I asked what they mean by God? They referred to the supreme being. No doubt, there are other 'gods' each of them worship, but they aren't considering them when they describe themselves as an atheist. They mean they don't believe in the Big G. And it's the Big G the people who filled out the survey mentioned in this article, were referring to when they completed the 'Religious Landscape Study' included here. This reply ended up being several pages so I included it as an actual post at my membership page. Thanks Dan - getting us all going! Good on you! https://timothyguthrie.medium.com/defining-atheism-a-written-reply-32378cc0be22