₦airaland Forum

A recent survey on religion caused a stir when it revealed that many Nigerians lack some basic knowledge about their own religious faiths. Another provocative finding indicated both atheists and agnostics are surprisingly knowledgable about a variety of religions.

This prompts us to address a commonly-asked question: What is the difference between someone who defines themselves as “atheist” and a professed “agnostic?”

There is a key distinction. An atheist doesn’t believe in a god or divine being. The word originates with the Greek atheos, which is built from the roots a- “without” + theos “a god”.

However, an agnostic neither believes nor disbelieves in a god or religious doctrine. Agnostics assert that it’s impossible for human beings to know anything about how the universe was created and if divine beings exist.

Source: https://web.facebook.com/forum9ja/posts/1409969572398172

Agnosticism was coined by biologist T.H. Huxley and comes from the Greek agnostos, which means “unknown or unknowable.”

To complicate matters, atheists and agnostics are often confused with theists and deists.

A theist is the opposite of an atheist. Theists believe in the existence of a god or gods.

Like a theist, a deist believes in God. But a deist believes that while God created the universe, natural laws determine how the universe plays out.

Deists are often connected to Isaac Newton’s Clockwork Universe theory, where the universe is compared to a clock that has been wound up and set in motion by God but is governed by the laws of science.

Enlightening.

wow

Op agnostics are atheists. That distinction you made is a false one.

jayriginal:
Op agnostics are atheists. That distinction you made is a false one.

why don't you check it up yourself?

ScepticalPyrrho:
why don't you check it up yourself?

I don't need to my brother. I've dealt with it in the past before.

Ill give you a clue though. An atheist is someone who doesn't believe . . .
You seem to be equating that with "an atheist is someone who believes that there is no. . ."

And that's where your error comes from. An atheist disbelieves, not that he believes in a negative.

Now your definition of an agnostic is one who neither believes nor disbelieves. This is where the issue is. If he doesn't believe, he necessarily disbelieves. Disbelief doesn't mean he believes in the opposite proposition. Basically what you probably meant to say is that an agnostic is someone who neither believes in the existence of X nor believes in the non-existence of X.

They are two different things and I hope you see the contrast.

If a person doesn't believe, he disbelieves and that makes an agnostic an atheist.

As JackBizzle used to say, an agnostic is an atheist without balls. I wouldn't go that far though but you get the point.