Western Buddhism and consensus Buddhism is the Buddhism that has been forged by Western Converts who want to overlook the supernatural or paranormal claims of the Buddha (that is all claims that donot conform with scientfic materialism) and basically cut out the core aspects of Buddhism that have to do with rebirth and kamma and other realms and other worlds..
My experience of "western buddhism" has been quite different. In my experience "western buddhism" mostly accept's the concept of rebirth post mortem as being an essential part of Buddhism, while some do not. Its a mixed bag just like "eastern buddhism", if there is such a thing ...
Western Buddhism also has a decidedly anti-ritual, anti-celibacy,anti-renunciation and anti-monasticism slant to it...the biggest teachers of Western Buddhism are decidedly non-monk such as Jack Kornfield,Joseph Goldstein,Gil Fronsdal
And "eastern buddhists" dont have families? I would say there maybe a more anti-ritual slant, however cutting away some of the dead wood cant hurt (or at least opening up questions about which rituals are proper).
I wanted to get a view whether Western Buddhism sees the things that I have mentioned as non-essential? and can Western Buddhism survive by cutting such things out of the Buddhadhamma
Well I can only speak for myself but I can see some benefit in ritual, as along as its not seen as essential. I can see the helpful aspect of having rebirth view, although I dont see how its essential to have it to be a "Buddhist" (others though from the west would disagree with me).
I think celibacy is good however
So you see there is a mixed bag in myself, not just in "western buddhism". I find generalisations never are accurate descriptions.
Western Buddhism tries to make an assertion that Buddhism is a religion based on atheism when IT IS NOT...Okay It does not have a Creator God..big deal ..But surely acknowledges other realms, rebirth,kamma, superpowers,ghosts,angels and huge plethora of other things of the same supernatural ilk....
The mistake is on your part here as you equate atheism with materialism, however it just does not follow. A person can have no belief in gods etc yet believe in some kind of supernaturalism.
Also I have never come across a "western buddhist" who says that Buddhism is "based on atheism".
I would also like to add that belief in "ghosts, angels" etc is not necessary to Buddhism IMO, yet i'm not a materialist either
Now a religion that incorporates such elements will be NOT be seen as an atheistic religion by the New Atheists or to btter define it--scientific materialists
Yet buddhism is "Atheist" by certain definitions, for example it doesn't teach belief in an all loving, all knowing, all powerful God. Therefore it is A - Theist (theism being all knowing, all loving God etc)