Religion

Just a word of caution here, but if we are going to go down this rabbit hole, keep it polite and theoretical, and be mindful of our rules of conduct, please.

 

For the benefit of those who haven't been party to these discussions before, I am not an athiest, although I am often accused of being one. An athiest believes there is no God.
I am more properly defined as being an agnostic, in that I have no idea if there is a God or not. And I really couldn't care less if there is or isn't one (or many). I could make a good argument either way. But this isn't about God, it's about religion, which is an entirely different subject.

I despise organized religions. I think they are the worst invention in the history of mankind. They were invented as a means to control the masses, and they very effectively do, until they cause a war.

To me, the only religious text worth the paper is Gulliver's Travels.

 

An atheist doesn't necessarily say/claim there is no god. They are simply not convinced that there is one. Most atheists are open to the possibility. The others say "No way that there is a god."

You get accused of being an atheist because you are one. You say you are an agnostic? Being agnostic about what? agnostic is just an adjective.

The fitting term for you would be "agnostic atheist"

@Dane for example is a "gnostic theist". He is convinced there is a god. Not just any god. He thinks of a particular one.

Then there are also "agnostic theists" who say for example: "There must be a god, but I am not sure who that is or even if he's the only one.

Finally there are "gnostic atheist" who actually claim that there is no god.

 

Yes, but also "without god".

 

The "gnostics", or "those who know" to use my definition of the term, almost get my vote. They subscribed to the idea that people could believe in something without having someone else tell them what to believe. In other words, religion without the institution of religion. Unfortunately gnosticism evolved into a religion of it's own and defeated it's own purpose, not to mention the christian church tried to exterminate them.

But if "gnostic" means "I know" (my accepted definition), then "agnostic" means "I don't know", which is me, and therefore why I prefer that term for myself.

Whitecoffee's definitions are agreed upon by some, but not by me. Neither of us are right or wrong, it's just how you interpret the term. To me, "athiest" means "no God". So I use "agnostic".

(I find it amusing the spell check keeps highlighting my lack of capitol letters - it's deliberate.)

 

I have tried to explain to my US friends, here and elsewhere, the difference between our two Countries.

Americans have freedom of religion. In Canada we have freedom from religion.

(and for the record, I am 100% in agreement with what Quebec did regarding the religious symbols, I wish we would do it)