I describe myself as a heathen agnostic?

Question

I can define this myself but would be interested to read how others might define this.
I don't want rants from people telling me how wrong I am, but would welcome definitions from people of any or no faith.
So..What is your definition and why?

Thank you to everyone for the answers so far, I'm enjoying seeing the different views expressed. I deliberately didn't include my views as I want to compare and contrast what other people think.

I've enjoyed reading everyone's answers whether I agree with them or not. It's been difficult to choose a best answer as I would like to be able to choose more than one. Cheiko made me smile, Mike's consideration of the policitcal aspect of religion in America is an interesting one, StopPanda's comparison with football fans is so accurate and I respect Ymmo's use of heathen in the context of Asatru but don't share that view.
Angelia, don't apologise for your answer, you gave an opinion, that's what I asked for, all opinions are valid, I didn't ask for a factual response.

Answer 1

Well an agnostic as I understand it hold this to be:
"I don't know if there is a god, and I don't care."
I am not sure how "heathen" would modify that. Maybe this:
"Me not know if'm there is god, and me no care."

Answer 2

Sounds like you like to entice the religious type into debate.
I have long since realized that its not worth it ...and that for some, religion is a necessity.
To each his own...if you believe or don't, we still experience life together...and if religion can give some people solace, then so be it, there is no shame in it.
I have to admit that I am not found of people who quote the bible every two seconds, because I do not believe that they practise what they preach..
..sort of like the football fan screaming at the players on the Field that they are bums...meanwhile, they sit there in the bleachers wolfing down Three hot dogs and drinking beer...complaining about how out of shape the player are this season.
I feel religion should be a personal travel...not something flashed in peoples faces or used to measure others worth...
"He's a good guy...too bad he's not Christian.."
or..."you know shes Jewish".....this kind of measurement of a person based on religion is counter productive...yet I see it again and again, by supposed religious people.

Answer 3

The majority of your answerers don't know what Heathen really means, unfortunatelly.
"Heathen" is a term which is used for the believers in one of the Teutonic reconstructionist faiths, for example Asatru, Odinism, Theodism, Irminsweg - Germanic Heathenry, Anglo-Saxon reconstructionism...
The essential part of all these paths is the acceptance and belief in the given pantheon (Odin & Thor/ Wodan & Donnar,.. Irmin...)
So if you don't acknowledge and honour a certain pantheon of gods, I don't think you could honestly call yourself a heathen, sorry.

If you meant "heathen" as an "unbeliever", then I know what you meant, but the word, when describing faith, is nowadays used in a different meaning.

If you're A, you can't be B at the same time because they're mutually exclusive.
That's just my opinion.

Answer 4

To use the two words together is not appropriate:

A heathen is a very distinct 'anti' term - One who does not believe in the God of the three Abrahamic faiths i.e. Judaism, Christianity, Islam - It carries with it the idea of being 'uncivilised' and 'unenlightened'

An agnostic on the other hand does not deny the existence of God and heaven but holds that one cannot know for certain whether or not they exist. The term agnostic was fittingly coined by the 19th-century British scientist Thomas H. Huxley, who believed that only material phenomena were objects of exact knowledge. He made up the word from the prefix a-, meaning "without, not," as in amoral, and the noun Gnostic. Gnostic is related to the Greek word gnōsis, "knowledge," which was used by early Christian writers to mean "higher, esoteric knowledge of spiritual things"; hence, Gnostic referred to those with such knowledge. In coining the term agnostic, Huxley was considering as "Gnostics" a group of his fellow intellectuals—"ists," as he called them—who had eagerly embraced various doctrines or theories that explained the world to their satisfaction. Because he was a "man without a rag of a label to cover himself with," Huxley coined the term agnostic for himself, its first published use being in 1870.

One person has said that an 'agnostic' is an 'atheist' [which in like manner means 'No God'] - who has not thought things through properly.

In my own experience I find that in reality most atheists are in fact agnostics when you get down to discussion

Answer 5

Fellow travellers upon the path of the journey of life. some have belief ingrained from birth, some fall away from the fold, others desirous of a sign, proof to augment or instil belief, some believe but feel the need to become closer to the Holy Spirit, The I within. Some are content and at peace with no knowledge of a god, or desire, but with a firm and sound understanding of people and life sufficient to abide harmoniously with those around them.

We are all at different stages on the progrees, evolution and veritable pilgrimage of life.

Some spiritually awakened, some studying and learning, others still evolving. A silent accord with this simple knowledge begets peace in itself....Be Loved....

Answer 6

I was born in Christian culture USA and now that churches have become political organizations for controlling the masses I no longer attend. Many of the churchies would call me atheist now. I disagreed out loud with some of the election brainwashing and the church halled me out. I then turned them in for violation of their tax exemption status. Unfortunately the government has been completely controlled by Republicans, except recent democratic advances in the Congress(2006). Again religion is being used for corporate power and recruits people with religious political rhetoric. I have many friends from around the world who don't force their religion on me - Shiks, Jews, Hindus, Shintos, Buddists, and even Muslims.

Answer 7

Atheist, Humanist, Naturalist, kind of hard to describe. don't believe in a God or Gods. Belief in the possibility of a creative power, but would have no awareness of us and not caring about how we live our lives. Believe in nature and it needing a balance, think earth is "aware" of us and our impact on disrupting the balance. Think as humans we have the knowledge of right and wrong and therefore should live our lives according, caring for earth and all it's inhabitants. As said hard to describe.

Answer 8

Well heathen is defined differently depending on what faith one is. If Christian then heathen is non Christian, if Muslim them heathen is not Muslim, if Jewish then heathen is non Jewish. You get the idea.

Agnostic is one who doubts the existence of god. So I guess any agnostic would be considered a heather by most religions.

On the other hand not all heathens are agnostic.

Answer 9

I would consider an agnostic to be a person who relies on evidence to accept the world as it really is.

Someone who is also a skeptic. They try to discover answers on their own, by using knowledge, experience, and free thinking skills.

Answer 10

Im an atheist that reads Buddhist literature and meditates. It makes sense to me and i feel that people need to believe in something or else they become cynical. I don't beleive in anything supernatural though, so mohammed and jesus are out of the question as well as reincarnation. Its complicated, as is life.

Answer 11

I'm just guessing here...

I think heathen agnostic means that you question God's existence, but doubt that he exists or has any power.

Sorry if I'm way off :)