Interfaith atheism

In a post at Comment is Free Rory Fenton is arguing that atheists have - and should take - a place in interfaith relations and dialogue, something he favours anyway. I'm with him on that. Towards the end of the piece he alludes to the seeming paradox in his position, also picked up by one or two commenters, that atheism isn't a faith. I don't see why this should be thought of as having any force at all (though neither does Fenton). Atheism isn't a religion, despite what some of its less generous critics say, but it's an outlook on or set of beliefs about the world that relates to some of the same matters that people of faith think about: the ultimate nature of the universe, why we're here (if for any reason), good ways to live and the reasons they are that, etc. These are not unimportant concerns, and it seems like a good idea to discuss them with others who think differently.