What's the difference? I probably seem ignorant, but I'm honestly curious. Thanks to all who answer respectfully.
2007-01-04 08:04:31 · 33 answers · asked by indiesky 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Agnostics don't know whether God exists or not, or think that the existence of God is unknowable. Atheists believe that God does not exist.
2007-01-04 08:05:56 · answer #1 · answered by . 7 · 7⤊ 0⤋
An agnostic says that they are sort of neutral as to whether or not they believe in god. Many of them believe it is impossible to know. She says “if there is a god, prove it and if there is no god, prove that”
An atheist believes that there is too much evidence that there is no god and they simply don’t believe in one.
I think the main good reason to be agnostic is the “life is to perfect no to be planned” argument, but I still don’t buy it because I think the illusion of perfection can be based on perspective. I’m an atheist.
2007-01-04 08:10:16 · answer #2 · answered by A 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
hmph. A lot of pop culture definitions. The main difference is that an athiest does not believe that there is any possibility of a god/supernatural being. An agnostic believes that there could or there couldn't be, but either way there is no way that humans could ever know. It isn't a title for lazy people who just don't wanna think about it, nor is it for people who want to "cop out" on making a decision about religion. It is a definition of someone who has thought it through and has decided that there isn't a real way to know for sure if there is or isn't a god.
2007-01-04 08:08:46 · answer #3 · answered by hotdoggiegirl 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
An atheist does not believe in and supernatural being or power.
An agnostic concedes the possibility of such a being or power, but does not, for whatever reason, believe anything beyond that. Generally, they tend to believe that the divine is not comprehensible by humans and therefor can not be understood through thought and study.
2007-01-04 08:07:19 · answer #4 · answered by Zafrod 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Atheist say there is absolutely no God and Agnostics are not sure one way or another.
I guess you could say that Agnostics are usually more tolerant of both beliefs that of religious people and that of the Atheist.
I was an agnostic but now I am Christian.
2007-01-04 08:10:50 · answer #5 · answered by bess 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
A person who is agnostic about god believes that the existence of god is unknowable. An atheist believes that no god exists.
Of course, there's more than just those two categories. There are agnostic atheists, or weak atheists--meaning basically that that person is unsure if the existence of a god is knowable, but that they are leaning toward disbelief.
2007-01-04 08:06:59 · answer #6 · answered by N 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
An agnostic believes in spirituality or a god in an abstract sense, but does not believe in terms of any specific religion. An atheist denies the existence of God, spirituality, and anything other than the known material world.
2007-01-04 08:10:51 · answer #7 · answered by isiseamenhotep 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Agnostics are namby-pamby fence sitters who refuse to either believe in a deity or disbelieve in a deity on the grounds that the deity's existence or non-existence can't be proven either way.
An atheist does not believe in a deity and feels he or she has plenty of evidence why there is no such thing as a deity.
2007-01-04 08:08:41 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Atheism is the lack of belief in a god or gods. Agnosticism is about knowledge, not belief. An agnostic simply states that he/she has no way of knowing. If you believe in God, but say that you have no way of knowing for sure, you are an agnostic theist. If you don't believe in God, but say that you have no way of knowing, you are an agnostic atheist.
2007-01-04 08:10:24 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think an atheist is an agnostic who has thought about it more. An agnostic may not have considered it carefully, and decided one way or another. An atheist has considered it and rejected it.
That's also called strong and weak atheism.
2007-01-04 08:07:37 · answer #10 · answered by STFU Dude 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Think of an agnostic as someone sitting in the middle of the fence. They believe that either there is not enough evidence to prove it either way or they believe that it is not possible to prove or disprove the existence of God.
2007-01-04 08:13:11 · answer #11 · answered by Rance D 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋