Can someone tell me what the difference is between an Athiest and an Agnostic?

Question

I thought they both ment the same and was recently told I was wrong.

Answer 1

They are not the same. They don't even have anything to do with each other. However, the definition of "agnostic" has frequently been used wrongly, especially by religious people. The popular definition of "unsure of the existence of any gods" is fairly meaningless, and not according to the original defintion. I doubt you'll find anybody who really thinks the chance of existence is exactly 50/50. Most lean strongly one way or the other.

The original definition of "agnostic" was "not gnostic". A gnostic is someone who claims you can have direct knowledge of the divine. An agnostic is someone who believes that you can't know anything about any gods. It says nothing about whether the person thinks they actually exist or not.

An atheist is just someone who lacks any belief in the existence of any gods. Two types of atheist have been defined, the "strong" atheist and the "weak" atheist. A strong atheist is one who claims to have evidence of that no gods exist. The weak atheist just hasn't seen enough evidence to be convinced of the existence of any gods. Personally, I'm both. Most gods aren't defined well-enough to make any statements of existence or not. With respect to the vaguely or undefined gods, I'm a weak atheist. It will take some evidence of them to convince me they exist. However, some gods, like the Christian one, though still only vaguely defined, have some claims attributed to them that can be shown to be false.

I hope that clears things up some.

Answer 2

1. "Atheist" redirects here. For the band, see Atheist (band).
Atheism, in its broadest sense, is the absence of belief in the existence of deities. A narrower definition includes only those who believe that deities do not exist, and excludes those who hold no position on the question (see agnostics and other non-theists). In other words, an "atheist" can be defined as either:

A person who does not believe that at least one god exists; or
A person who has a positive belief that no god or gods exist.
Although some atheists tend toward skepticism and secular philosophies such as humanism, naturalism and materialism, there is no system of philosophy which all atheists share, nor does atheism have institutionalized rituals or behaviors. For example, while many atheists reject the existence of the

2. What Is an agnostic?
An agnostic thinks it impossible to know the truth in matters such as God and the future life with which Christianity and other religions are concerned. Or, if not impossible, at least impossible at the present time.

Are agnostics atheists?
No. An atheist, like a Christian, holds that we can know whether or not there is a God. The Christian holds that we can know there is a God; the atheist, that we can know there is not. The Agnostic suspends judgment, saying that there are not sufficient grounds either for affirmation or for denial. At the same time, an Agnostic may hold that the existence of God, though not impossible, is very improbable; he may even hold it so improbable that it is not worth considering in practice. In that case, he is not far removed from atheism. His attitude may be that which a careful philosopher would have towards the gods of ancient Greece. If I were asked to prove that Zeus and Poseidon and Hera and the rest of the Olympians do not exist, I should be at a loss to find conclusive arguments. An Agnostic may think the Christian God as improbable as the Olympians; in that case, he is, for practical purposes, at one with the atheists.

Answer 3

This will clear it all up for you..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ncCNwbb5Jc&eurl=

Agnostic comes from the greek word gnosis meaning to know. With the "A" in front makes it mean "without knowledge." An agnostic, in the religious sense, is a person without knowledge of deities.

An atheist comes from the greek word theo meaning "god" and theism meaning "belief in god" So add the "A" in front an it makes an atheist someone who doesn't believe there is a god.

I am an agnostic atheist. One who doesn't have knowledge of gods and doesn't believe there are any.

Answer 4

Agnosists believe everything is unknown, inherently unknowable, or incoherent and thus irrelevant to life.

Agnostic comes from gnostics. The gnostics believed flesh was evil, including Jesus Christ.

Atheism is the absence of belief in the existence of deities.

Answer 5

I thought an Atheist didn't believe in God and an Agnostic is not sure whether they believe in God or not. I could be wrong though.

Answer 6

An atheist says there is no God, an agnostic is actually open to the possibility. Atheism is irrational since they have no way of proving there is no God, and in my experience, agnostics aren't usually open to the possibility, they just know that saying they're agnostic makes them more rational.

Answer 7

AN athiest DONT believe in a g0d at all. AN AGNOSTIC is not sure there is one. Thats the difference.

Answer 8

An agnostic takes the logical position "I don't know if there is a God since I have not personally experienced Him, though many others claim to".

An atheist takes the illogical position "There is no God because I haven't personally experienced Him, even though many others claim to".

Answer 9

i am an Agnostic and i dont know one way or the other if there is a god
an Athiest says there is no god period
but i will say this the christain god the god of the jews is a man created god

Answer 10

No agnostic, is sort of middle ground, you believe and don't believe, Its like when you straddle the fence, your not on one side or the other your in the middle.

Atheist don't believe in god.