Agnosticism

From SkepticWiki

1 Definition
- 1.1 Origins
- 1.2 Quotations
2 Discussion
3 Related Topics
4 References
5 Further Links

[edit] Definition

Agnosticism is the philosophical view that the truth values of certain claims, particularly theological claims regarding the existence of God, gods or deities, are either unknown or inherently unknowable.

The usual concept of agnosticism is that it differs from atheism in that atheists claim there is no God, whereas agnostics don't claim to know anything about any God or even claim not to (be able to) know anything about any God. It should be noted though that this distinction requires a rather strict definition of atheism, sometimes called "strong atheism".

Agnostics may claim that it isn't possible to have absolute or certain spiritual knowledge (this is occasionally called "strong agnosticism"); alternately they may claim that while certainty may be possible, they personally have no such knowledge ("weak agnosticism").

Using this definition, agnosticism is both distinct from theism and (strong) atheism. When it is negatively based on lack of knowledge, it has some resemblance to "weak atheism"; however, agnosticism may be based positively on the existence of equally compelling arguments for and against the existence of God.

Alternatively, it has been suggested^[1] to interpret agnosticism as a statement about our possibility to know whether or not gods exist, without determinating whether or not we should believe in or deny the existence of gods. For example, somebody might be able to believe in the existence of gods, while at the same time claiming that it is unknown (or even impossible to know) whether or not gods exist (such a position is sometimes called "fideism").

Usually, the use of such a definition of agnosticism is also accompanied by a definition of atheism as the union of "weak" and "strong" atheism. This allows the discrimination of the following four positions:

agnostic theism: belief in a god without claiming to know for sure that the god exists.

gnostic theism: belief in a god while being certain that this god exists.

agnostic atheism: disbelief (or absence of belief in) in gods without claiming to know for sure that none exist.

gnostic atheism: disbelief (or absence of belief in) in gods while being certain that none (can or do) exist.

[edit] Origins

Although the term "agnosticism" sounds like an ancient Greek term, it was in fact coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869. Nevertheless, agnosticism is much older than the term used to describe it. The quote "Concerning the gods, I have no means of knowing whether they exist or not or of what sort they may be, because of the obscurity of the subject, and the brevity of human life" by Protagoras (481 BC - c. 420 BC) can be considered as a genuine agnostic statement.

[edit] Quotations

"I do not consider it an insult, but rather a compliment to be called an agnostic. I do not pretend to know where many ignorant men are sure -- that is all that agnosticism means." Clarence Darrow, Scopes trial, Dayton, Tennessee, July 13, 1925 [2]

[edit] Discussion

Although it might seem as if the trilemma theism/atheism/agnosticism covers all possible cases, this is not true. Logical positivism, for example, claims that the term "god" is meaningless. Therefore, the statements "a god exists", "no god exists", "I don't know if a god exists" or "it's impossible to know if a god exists" are all alike meaningless, according to logical positivism.

Agnosticism may or may not be accompanied by a lack of interest whether or not gods exist. Agnosticism combined with indifference is known as "apathetic agnosticism" ("I don't know, and I don't care").

Weak agnosticism can be considered as a kind of default position: while theism or strong atheism are positive claims, which would require argumentative support, weak agnosticism doesn't make any claims and just states a personal lack of knowledge. Furthermore, it has been argued that agnosticism is the natural state of human beings, it just happens that some people become theists or strong atheists while growing up. In contrast, some religions claim that the natural state of human beings is to be religious, and that newborn infants should be considered as theists, since agnosticism and strong atheism should be considered as defective beliefs which are only acquired as a person grows up.