Post by Humanist on May 10, 2012 20:07:20 GMT -5
What is an atheist?
An atheist is a person who does not believe in god or gods. Other than disbelief in god, atheists don't necessarily share anything in common.
What an atheist is not (correction of common theist definitions):
- An atheist is not someone who hates god.
- An atheist is not a devil worshiper.
- An atheist is not rebelling against religion or god.
- An atheist is not under the control of some devil.
- An atheist is not something that doesn't exist.
- An atheist is, in general, not immoral.
- An atheist is not someone who believes in nothing.
What is an agnostic?
Agnostic translates as: a (without) gnostic (knowledge) so it means "without knowledge." A purely agnostic person does not think it is possible to know if a god exists or not and, thus, remains undecided.
What is an agnostic (weak) atheist?
Agnostic atheism is simply another name for the broadest conception of the word atheist. An agnostic atheist does not believe in a god yet does not claim to have knowledge of said god's non-existence. A weak atheist's disbelief is largely dependent on a lack of evidence for a god.
What is a gnostic (strong) atheist?
Strong atheism is a position that certain types of gods definitely do not exist. An atheist may be gnostic towards the non-existence of some types of gods yet an agnostic atheist towards other types of gods.
From www.strongatheism.net :
"Strong Atheism is the proposition that we should not suspend judgment about the non-existence of a god or gods. More extensively, it is a positive position against theistic values, semantics and anti-materialism, a rational inquiry in the nature of religious thought, a new way of thinking about religious and spiritual issues."
What is an apatheist?
Apatheism is not having a belief in god and couldn't care less if a god exists or not.
Richard Dawkins' Belief Scale(he describes himself as a 6):
Quote
1. Strong Theist: I do not question the existence of God, I KNOW he exists.
2. De-facto Theist: I cannot know for certain but I strongly believe in God and I live my life on the assumption that he is there.
3. Weak Theist: I am very uncertain, but I am inclined to believe in God.
4. Pure Agnostic: God's existence and non-existence are exactly equiprobable.
5. Weak Atheist: I do not know whether God exists but I'm inclined to be skeptical.
6. De-facto Atheist: I cannot know for certain but I think God is very improbable and I live my life under the assumption that he is not there.
7. Strong Atheist: I am 100% sure that there is no God.
An atheist is a person who does not believe in god or gods. Other than disbelief in god, atheists don't necessarily share anything in common.
What an atheist is not (correction of common theist definitions):
- An atheist is not someone who hates god.
- An atheist is not a devil worshiper.
- An atheist is not rebelling against religion or god.
- An atheist is not under the control of some devil.
- An atheist is not something that doesn't exist.
- An atheist is, in general, not immoral.
- An atheist is not someone who believes in nothing.
What is an agnostic?
Agnostic translates as: a (without) gnostic (knowledge) so it means "without knowledge." A purely agnostic person does not think it is possible to know if a god exists or not and, thus, remains undecided.
What is an agnostic (weak) atheist?
Agnostic atheism is simply another name for the broadest conception of the word atheist. An agnostic atheist does not believe in a god yet does not claim to have knowledge of said god's non-existence. A weak atheist's disbelief is largely dependent on a lack of evidence for a god.
What is a gnostic (strong) atheist?
Strong atheism is a position that certain types of gods definitely do not exist. An atheist may be gnostic towards the non-existence of some types of gods yet an agnostic atheist towards other types of gods.
From www.strongatheism.net :
"Strong Atheism is the proposition that we should not suspend judgment about the non-existence of a god or gods. More extensively, it is a positive position against theistic values, semantics and anti-materialism, a rational inquiry in the nature of religious thought, a new way of thinking about religious and spiritual issues."
What is an apatheist?
Apatheism is not having a belief in god and couldn't care less if a god exists or not.
Richard Dawkins' Belief Scale(he describes himself as a 6):
Quote
1. Strong Theist: I do not question the existence of God, I KNOW he exists.
2. De-facto Theist: I cannot know for certain but I strongly believe in God and I live my life on the assumption that he is there.
3. Weak Theist: I am very uncertain, but I am inclined to believe in God.
4. Pure Agnostic: God's existence and non-existence are exactly equiprobable.
5. Weak Atheist: I do not know whether God exists but I'm inclined to be skeptical.
6. De-facto Atheist: I cannot know for certain but I think God is very improbable and I live my life under the assumption that he is not there.
7. Strong Atheist: I am 100% sure that there is no God.