The Philippine Atheism, Agnosticism, and Secularism Inc. (PATAS) is a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

for the public understanding of atheism and agnosticism in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. It serves to educate society, and eliminate myths and misconceptions about atheism and agnosticism. It speaks against discrimination of the

non-religious Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and ant ...

, and for equal opportunities as

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

citizens. PATAS encourages harmonious information exchange among its atheist and agnostic members, and encourages its members to come out and speak for their lack of religious beliefs. The society was founded in February 2011 by John Paraiso, who served as the first

chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

and

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, respectively.

First Atheist and Agnostics Convention

On April 21, 2012 PATAS organized the First Atheists and Agnostics Convention in the

. It was a one-day learning event and social gathering of

nonbelievers. The convention, with its theme: "Filipino non-belief—are you ready for this?", also served as a venue for the public exposure for socially-involved and organized community of Filipino nonbelievers.

Religion in the Philippines Religion in the Philippines is marked by a majority of people being adherents of the Christian faith.{{cite journal , first=Barry , last=Duke , date=2011-04-28 , url=http://freethinker.co.uk/2011/04/28/the-pope%E2%80%99s-gonna-have-a-cow-catholic-philippines-gains-its-first-atheist-society/ , title=The Pope’s gonna have a cow. Catholic Philippines gains its first atheist society. , journal= The Freethinker , accessdate=2011-06-09 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701200357/http://freethinker.co.uk/2011/04/28/the-pope%E2%80%99s-gonna-have-a-cow-catholic-philippines-gains-its-first-atheist-society/ , archive-date=2011-07-01 , url-status=dead {{cite web , url=http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/lifestyle/03/19/11/pinoy-atheists-and-agnostics-have-coming-out-event , title=Pinoy atheists and agnostics to have ‘coming out’ event , publisher=

ABS-CBN News ABS-CBN Integrated News and Current Affairs, known on-air as ABS-CBN News (formerly known as ''ABS-CBN News and Public Affairs'' and later ''ABS-CBN News and Current Affairs''), is the news and current affairs production and distribution divis ...

, accessdate=2011-06-09, date=2011-03-19 Atheist organizations Skeptic organizations in the Philippines

First Atheist and Agnostics Convention

See also