Agnostics: "What is the basis for your belief in the possibility of god?"?

Question

First a few points:
1) I'm not trying to divide up the non-believers, but no one ever takes a shot at the agnostics, so I'm really only being fair.
2) It is IMPOSSIBLE to disprove something, no one can prove that god doesn't exist (unless we find a babble fish).
At the same time, it's also (as someone was so good to point out) impossible to disprove the existence of santa claus, the easter bunny, tooth fairy, and invisible pink unicorn. Do agnostics believe that they also might exist, and that we can't be sure, so we should just sit on the fence?

I recently asked a similar question and got reamed out by agnostics, atheists, and religious types alike. Hence the new clarifications.

p.s. If you have 2 really witty responses you can post the second on my original question: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Aj8_zhNB5nX3GanWQ9Xea2jsy6IX?qid=20060918142834AAxkz6v

Answer 1

Well, I sit between Agnosticism and Atheism, as I see it god is unlikely, but maybe possible. As an Agnostic though, I do not believe all religions are equally possible, I think they're all equally rediculous, and believe if there is a god, than I would have no idea what it is.

As usual another good question, and I sincerely take no offence.

Answer 2

It's not fence sitting at all. I was brought up in a rather strict Christian home. I believe there is a higher power, but I don't believe the Bible is all it's cracked up to be. I didn't think it was right that I was being told to believe something, but was not being told why I was to believe it. I was never able to get a straight answer. The only one I got was "Because it's in the bible, God said so." Basically, from what I've seen, is that most agnostics were Christians at one time, then began thinking for themselves. It has nothing with proving or disproving anything. It's, for me anyways, a different way of looking at God, without being told how to worship.

Answer 3

Simple: same basis as my belief in the possibility that there is no God. Lack of evidence either way. I'm not sitting on a fence: I just think it is silly to "believe" in something for which there is no evidence whatsoever. The possibility of the existence of elves is much the same: should evidence come along, I will rationally assess it and make up my mind about them. Otherwise, it's really not worth getting worked up about.

Do you consider yourself to be sitting on the fence concerning a belief that a the interior wall of a sub-atomic particle reflects purple under specific conditions? You probably don't spend much time worrying about whether or not it is true, and, in fact, would think it was weird to begin an argument as to whether it does when neither of us have any evidence one way or another.

The difference between an Agnostic and a religious person is that the religious person is absolutely convinced that such a wall exists, that it is purple, that it provides a meaning for their life, and that it is here to save a soul they can't prove exists...

Answer 4

We agnostics do cop it, the typical put-down being: "you're admitting you know nothing", but we're big enough to handle it.

I converted from atheism to agnosticism mainly because I heard Christians hate agnostics more than atheists, on the basis that at least atheists believe in something. Since then we've had scientists crack the genetic code, create clones, virgin births etc, and it seems to me that it won't be long before we can do pretty much everything the biblical god does in terms of creation, anyway. And we're also getting pretty good at the destruction, unfortunately.

It's quite possible there are beings out there on other planets much more advanced than us, that can do everything better than the biblical god. Whether or not they can be called gods or not is probably not for us to say. Let's hear it from them.

Answer 5

As an agnostic, I have no basis for belief in the possibility of a god. I am just unwilling to make the leap of faith required to believe that there is no god.

Frankly, it isn't a question that interests me much. Were I given solid proof that a god exists, it would not change the way I live.

Answer 6

Well, I am Santa, the Tooth Fairy and the Spring Bunny at my house....so they are real.....maybe. My daughters both have several pink unicorns for their barbies to ride, so they are real too.

It is not impossible to disprove something. However I would think more ppl are looking for proof rather than dis-proof, if you will. The possibility of god matters not to me. I simply do not care if he/she/it exists. And as I have stated b4 I have a fence post fetish.

Answer 7

you mean you DON'T have a babel fish in your ear?
where have you been???
;)