5 ms·
What sysk is saying that atheism is not the belief that no god exists, but rather the lack of a belief in a god. It's also not as if any two unsubstantiated an
by eivarv 10y ago
What sysk is saying that atheism is not the belief that no god exists, but rather the lack of a belief in a god.
It's also not as if any two unsubstantiated and unprovable positions are just as likely to be true; see Russell's teapot[1].
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_teapot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell%27s_teapot
- sysk 10y agoYes, that's what I meant.
- tomp 10y agoOk, then we're using two different definitions. I use agnostic for the one you describe as "atheist".
- eivarv 10y agoAgnosticism is the stance that what we are talking about is unknowable, as opposed to gnosticism. I think what you refer to as atheism seems closer to antitheism than anything else. The difference here is the same as the difference between "asocial" and "antisocial".
- tomp 10y agoSo is there any difference between agnosticism and atheism (as you use it)?
- eivarv 10y agoYes, but they're not different points on a scale that goes from religious to irreligious, if that is what you mean. One can be an agnostic christian, for instance, in which case one would believe that it is unknown or unknowable whether the divine or supernatural exists (and believe in it still). What I'm relating to the difference between "asocial" and "antisocial" is the difference between "atheist" and "antitheist".