Is agnosticism a religion? If not, how would you classify it?

Question

Is there a perticular message agnosticism gives about how an individual should lead their lives? I am aware that it talks about the not having proof for the existance of god/s. But I am concerned as to how it helps the spirituality of a being.
Thank you!

cyanideprincess0008 mentioned that agnostic believers will only know about the existence of god only after death.
Is there any form of belief in Agnosticism about what happens after death?

Answer 1

An agnostic, in my view, is a seeker after truth, not an adherent to a system whereby one believes he or she has already found truth. When one settles on a truth and does not discern and test daily, one begins to fall into the dogma trap. This often takes the form of the vehement defense of a religion no matter what it says or does officially, just because it is the religion one has previously chosen.

Basically, I'd define agnosticism as a search for truth that does not necessarily require the concept of a deity or deities to fulfill it. I don't rule out the uses of magical thinking or scientific rigor in the search for truth; however, I do hold one belief--the truth is not singular; it is plural and non-exclusive. There is no need to have a system and then mold everyone to fit that system whether it is right or not. It is reductive and dangerous and denies freedom of thought and individuality, especially when a religious system approaches the level of theocracy.

There are many truths; it is not an absolute given that man cannot know these truths, but my framework so far is that man has glimpses of truth, as in the Buddhist concept of satori; but once glimpsed, it is not unchanged. Like the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, the watcher, the experiencer changes what he watches or experiences. The experimenter affects the experiment; Man is not separate from the Universe, and he cannot observe it as a putative God would. However, I do not discount the possibility that there are unknown forces that allow depersonalization and temporary ego-abnegation, so that greater insights into our place in the Universe might be gained.

Now, if I confused everyone, my apologies; but does this not sound like a philosophy, rather than a religion? Cheers!

Answer 2

I don't think agnosticism can be labeled a religion. Religion is based on a shared belief and personal practices. Where agnosticism is basically people agreeing on that they personally do not know and some agree that there is no way of knowing. So it does not seem to be a religion more of a philosophy.
P.S. Some of the "Christians" seem to be throwing stones more trying to answer your question. Read that book again if you ever did in the first place and you will realize that its not about hate its about love and how you should convert people not push them away and judge. You are hurting the religion you claim is so important to you. How much time do you spend reading the bible and how much time do you spend watching the TV. This goes for all religions not just the Christians. But a few "Christians have made some "points" that did not seem reasonable.

Answer 3

No, it's not a religion -- it's lack of religion.
It could be classified as a philosophy or a belief system.

It would be difficult to say it "helps the spirituality" of someone, since both agnostics and atheists generally hold that there is no such thing as "spirituality." Since there is no evidence for "spiritual" things, spiritual things aren't part of agnostics' or atheists' lives.

A person does not have to be "spiritual" to be moral, a good person, kind, caring, etc. Most agnostics and atheists care about other humans because of the certainty that we are all related through our humanity, that all life is valuable, and that the best way for us all to get along in this life (the only one there is) is to treat each other with kindness and respect. They don't need a "god" or "spirituality" to teach them that, it's just common sense :)
Peace.

Answer 4

No. Agnosticism is not a religion, and has very little to do with belief. It's all about knowledge of a God or gods (the prefix a- meaning "lack of" and gnosis meaning "knowledge"). I'm agnostic because I know nothing about the true nature of God. I don't know if it exists, or if it's all made up.

Answer 5

Agnosticism is not a religion, it is accepting the fact that there is no evidence for or against any God or Gods. On many levels, it is roughly akin to watching people in Oklahoma fight over whether or not Holden Caulfield lives in Barbados at an undisclosed location.

I'm a happy Agnostic.

What is interesting is how many religious people feel that Agnostics are against their religion... I don't know any Agnostics who are against ANY religion. By the same token, I don't know any Agnostics who are against Santa Claus.

Answer 6

I don't believe it is a religion, it is just more of a belief. The dictionary defines "religion" as being the worship of a god or the supernatural. An agnostic questions as to whether or not God exists. The atheist believes that there is no god.

Answer 7

Agnosticism isn't a religion, there are no value statements or rules that you have to adhere to.

Agnosticism is just a statement of reality, I don't know if there is a God or not. I don't have enough faith to say with certainty that there is a God, and I don't have enough information from Science to say there isn't a God.

Its just being honest

Answer 8

I don't think that agnosticism has a philosophy like Atheism might. It just means that the person doesn't know if there is a Higher Power or not. Many actually attend a Church.

Answer 9

Agnosticism is a philosophical stance, not a religion.

It simply states that there is no way to know whether or not a God exists.

A (without) Gnosis (knowledge): From Greek

Like Diagnosis: Dia (with) Gnosis (knowledge)

^v^ ^v^ ^v^ ^v^ ^v^ ^v^ ^v^ ^v^

Answer 10

They're open to all possibilities and claim nobody can know for sure if there is a God or if there isn't. It's really a difference in ideas and beliefs and not in religion.