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Do you consider yourself an agnostic or atheist? Why? I'm just curious about the two perspectives differ, and more importantly how agnostics and atheists differ.
I consider myself a highly skeptical agnostic. As I understand it 'god' is defined as a 'supernatural' entity that is beyond the perception and understand of humans. Such a concept seems completely impractical/useless to me because, by definition, it's impossible to know if such a thing exists because there is, and probably never will be evidence to support or discredit such a concept.
While I do acknowledge the existence of god is technically possible, at present there's absolutely no way we can know, and probably never will. So if something is unknowable, being in any way concerned about it seems like a complete waste of time and energy.
I don't identify myself as an atheist because most atheist I know of seem just as convinced there is no god as most theists are convinced there is. Consequently, many atheists and theists are imperious and self-righteous - personal characteristics that, to me, seem counterproductive.
I'm also completely open to perspectives of theists as well. As a secularist I'm genuinely curious about what motivates someone to be religious when it seems to me there's absolutely no direct evidence that god exists. I've read a couple books and some psychological research that offers plausible explanations, but am also curious to get first-hand perspective of why some persons are convinced of god's existence.
Well, since this is the atheism and agnosticism forum, I thought those were the only two options because they pretty much cover those of us who aren't religious. I mean if someone isn't atheist of agnostic, then they it would seem to follow logically that they have at least some manner of religious belief, wouldn't it?
I could not vote. The poll asks you to choose between two things that are not comparable.
Agnosticism is a position of knowledge. I do not know if there is any sort of god or gods.
Atheism is a position of belief. I do not currently hold a belief in any god or gods.
Which god do you believe in? If the answer is none then you are an atheist.
Most atheists on this forum including myself consider themselves agnostic atheists.
I could not vote. The poll asks you to choose between two things that are not comparable. Agnosticism is a position of knowledge. I do not know if there is any sort of god or gods.
Atheism is a position of belief. I do not currently hold a belief in any god or gods.
Which god do you believe in? If the answer is none then you are an atheist.
Most atheists on this forum including myself consider themselves agnostic atheists.
Agnosticism could also be define as believing that it's impossible to know if god exists. This is different from being convinced that god does not exist. Err, think anyway.
This is the type of meta-thinking I was hoping to entice.
Agnosticism could also be define as believing that it's impossible to know if god exists. This is different from being convinced that god does not exist. Err, think anyway.
This is the type of meta-thinking I was hoping to entice.
Of course it is impossible to know if god exists or not. That is not different from what I said.
Most atheists do not say that it is impossible for a god to exist.
There are a few on this forum who are gnostic atheists, and are confident that they know god does not exist.
We all should be able to decide if we believe in gods or not. It's not a hard decision to make.
Hmm, that's not really what I'm asking. Sure, we can all decide (although how much control we have in making our decision is another complex issue in and of itself). I'm just curious why some of us go one way or the other.
I'm interested in perspectives. I'm convinced there's very little we can 'know' for certain. I'm curious why some persons think they know or don't know anything with a high degree of certainty.
Last edited by Apathizer; 12-30-2012 at 11:35 PM..
While agreeing that it's apples and oranges, I chose the one I most identify with / think of myself as / present myself as, which is atheist.
For me it's not a matter of having a high degree of certainty that there are no god(s), but an extremely high degree of uncertainty that there are any god(s), such that the uncertainty serves no purpose other than as a placeholder for my general openness to any new data that may present itself to me. I think that about as likely as convincing new evidence that the earth is flat or that leprechauns are the real power behind US politics, but, hey, I'm always willing to change my mind where it's warranted.
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