agnostics vs atheists?
413424
The terms come from Greek.\nGnosticism is a historical term for various mystical initiatory religions, sects and knowledge schools which were most active in the first few centuries. These systems typically recommend the pursuit of mysticism or "special knowledge" (gnosis) as the central goal of life. \n\nthe "a-" prefix in Greek means the negative/un-/not \n\nA-gnostics were opposed to this...as such that includes Christianity.\n\nTheists, believers in a god (not necessarily the Christian God), have only this in common.  \n\nA-theists, only reject the one proposition, ie that God exists.  Atheists aren't all necessarily rational, ethical, logical, or anything else. \n\nGeneralizations and assumptions about all theists are just as invalid and unwarranted as generalizations and assumptions about all atheists.
153583
whos more logical, the one who believes in a God he can't prove exists; or the one who is offended by a God he doesn't believe in?\n\nif religion is a crutch, then atheism is a coma
461642
Agnostic is not a religion.\n\nAgnostic means: One who believes that it is impossible to know whether there is a God. \nOne who is skeptical about the existence of God but does not profess true atheism. \nOne who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.
47954
Sometimes.\nIf you think about it this way, sometimes a person might think that a very religious Christian or Muslim might be blind because they think from an exclusively religious perspective and has little room for the flexibility of an agnostic, or the freedom of a free-thinker.\nThis is because there is God, and end of story, everything has to go through the "there is a God" screening process and they can't bear to think how something, a siutation or thoery can be without the grace of God's work, or His presence in it.\nYet, when you think of this stubborness to step away from all that and see a bigger picture (meaning don't go from the ultra-religious viewpoint), try comparing it with an atheist.\nHe too, thinks from a ultra-stubborn point of view. "There is NO God!" He states.\nAnd everything runs through the "there is no God" screening process, and he can't bear to think that there might be the very real possibility of God encompassing the human being's life, that the very product of Science is the product of God's work.\nHe too, is stubborn, and often inflexible.\nThus, from this viewpoint, one can make a statement that the atheist is as blind as the religiously faithful.\nI'm not at all saying the agnostic triumphs. But an agnostic does not necessarily "sit on the fence", nor does the agnostic throws his hands up in the air and is confused.\nAgnostics constantly lean to one side of the argument, but leave a possibility of this other. An agnostic is constantly in transit, has room for ideas, no matter how outrageous and runs a balance of logic and faith, constantly he's in between following his heart and mind, and being guided spiritually by God, or an unknown force (maybe it's his conviction and rational belief?).\nEither way, yes, I do think an atheist is blind, but not in the absolute sense, he is blind in indignance, rebellion and the ego and accomplishments of mankind and his discoveries, relying most of his explanations in mankind's humble abilities in enquiry and research.\nAnd in the same way, an absolutist religious fanatic that cannot relate to human science is just the same, on blind faith.
853325
That all depends.\n\nAn agnostic believes theres some greater force out there, but cant put a name to it, an Athiest believes that physics and science is all there is. That when you die you cease to be. Wicca is it's own religon (or can be described as a group of diffrent faiths if you're not reffering to Wicca as the Brittish Wiccans) If you believe in many gods or one god interpreted as many gods, and that god is nature, then I'd say wicca, or pagan. \n\nTruth be told, spiritual but not religous sounds more agnostic to me. You know theres a higher power, but you dont wrap that Higher power in archaic customs and hokey religons
306766
Agnosticism is the philosophical view that the truth or falsity of certain claims—particularly theological claims regarding the existence of God or gods—is unknown, unknowable, or incoherent. Some agnostics infer from this that these claims are irrelevant to the meaning of life.\n\nMyself on the other hand, I am a Christian and a firm believer that God dictates everything that happens around me. Everything happens for a reason. I do NOT believe I evolved from prime-apes.\nPeople who are Agnostic obviously have not put enough faith into God, even though the small miracles in their lives everyday like waking up, seeing the beauty outside their own door and being provided with abundance of blessings each day should be enough proof for them that a kind and caring God DOES exist.
801933
Sigh...this is the sort of thing that makes me twitch.  Okay, here goes:\n\nAn atheist believes that there is a logical contradiction inherent in the idea of a/the God.  Because it is otherwise impossible to prove that something doesn't exist (for example, try to prove that there is now or never was any such thing as a unicorn), atheists hold that the idea of God is logically impossible.  Atheism is usually opposed to the traditional omniscient, omnipotent, omnibenevolent God of monotheists.  In other words, atheists find it impossible to believe that a being can be all-knowing, all-powerful and all good at the same time.  They usually cite something like the problem of pain.  (If God is all-good and all-powerful, how can He let bad things happen?)\n\nI realize that there are atheists that are complete materialists and reject the idea of anything that can't be perceived through the senses.  However, usual usage of the term "atheist" is one who doesn't believe in the Christian/Muslim/Jewish God.  (Let's be honest:  how often do you see atheists and Hindus duking it out?)\n\nAs for agnostics, there are two kinds:  1) those who think that it is impossible to know if God exists and 2) those who think it is possible, but aren't convinced one way or the other.\n\nHere is an example to clarify.  You're walking down the road, and a big light from the sky suddenly shines on you.  You hear your name and are told to repent.  Would you acknowledge the possibility that you had just witnessed a miracle, or would you immediately assume that you've done one too many acid trips?\n\nThe 2) kind of agnostic would believe that it is possible and that it might even be the proof they were looking for.  The 1) kind of agnostic would lay off the drugs for a while; he doesn't believe that a God, even if He/She/It exists, can interfere in such a way in human affairs.\n\nI realize that this might not be the simple answer you were looking for.\n\nThe quick answer is that atheists say no and that agnostics say maybe.\n\nSome agnostics are convinceable, and some are not.
168223
How do you do? I'm an agnostic.
1187065
an agnostic is someone who only questions faith, but does not really believe it themselve
340186
The dictionary definition for ATHEIST is a person that does not believe in God. That doesn't necessarily mean that all atheists believe in nothing. I'm an atheist & I believe in things that can give me evidential proof e.g. the prior existence of dinosaurs for example, but I do not believe in anything religious.
862902
Theoretically, if they are saying the phrases you describe then they are not actually atheists. how can someone you don't believe in damn anything? Seriously I don't get especially annoyed by this one thing that atheists do but there are other things such as being illogical and pigheaded which usually bother me more!!
433623
I became an atheist when I was 16.  At 20, I became agnostic, because I think you can't prove or disprove anything epistemically.  But I know where you're coming from.
1163226
I would agree that I'm not sure you can be both.\n\nMy understanding of Agnostic is one who is unconvinced on the existance of a higher being...which would leave it open to their possibly encountering something that convinces them. Basically they don't know one way or the other, so they choose to err on the side of caution and not put their faith in something intangible.\n\nWhile an Athiest is someone who is adamantly convinced there is no higher power.\n\nOne of my favorite lines from the tv show "Northern Exposure" is "I respect Athiests, I think it takes a lot of faith to not believe in God."\n\nI personally beleive in God, while not subscribing to any particular organized religion, and so far this is working out pretty well for me! :)\n\nTake care and God Bless you too! :)
843219
An athiest does not believe that there are, wre, or ever will be any god or gods, deities, higher powers or anything like that.\n\nAn Agnostic accepts that there MIGHT be something beyone ourselves, but that it is not possible to know or understand anything about what the nature of that may be...
696190
Proof is hard. Is there evidence?\nIs it easier to prove presence or absence?\n\nDo athiest have "faith" in a "Void"?
1019658
Agnostic is someone who believes that it is impossible to know wether there is a God.\nSo he would have to be referring to Creation. Since Evolution has nothing to do with creation.
246197
You are indeed agnostic.