Dear Atheists..

[Grassland Blue]

The confusion of definitions isn't just with religion either...it goes right across the board into politics and other common issues of the day. Labels cause wars.

All a bit Marmite if you ask me.

 

[I'm With Stupid]

The burden of proof lies with the fantastical claims that there is life after death and god created the universe.

As an atheist I'm comfortable just getting on with my life until there are further developments.

I'm not holding my breath, time is short. Death is a hard deadline.

Not for everyone, apparently. ;)

 

[I'm With Stupid]

No, 'genius', "Higher Power" in reference to any of the 3000+ type 'gods' that isn't classed as Abrahamic. Not a reference to celestial bodies.

I'm not bothering with the rest of your word vomit as it's just nonsense that amounts to "atheism bad".

Well yeah, it's pretty obvious that you haven't bothered with it if you think I was arguing against atheism. But thanks for keeping up the traditional good-natured atheism-religion debate where no-one ever jumps to conclusions or acts like a dick.

 

[johnny crossan]

The burden of proof lies with the fantastical claims that there is life after death and god created the universe.
As an atheist I'm comfortable just getting on with my life until there are further developments.
I'm not holding my breath, time is short. Death is a hard deadline.

Most folk (+85%) would think being an atheist is a pretty fantastical claim.

 

[johnny crossan]

As per @GortonBlue62 above what you’re describing is the strongest possible definition of atheism. But that’s not related to agnosticism.

Agnosticism and atheism are not mutually exclusive positions. Gnosticism describes knowledge, and theism describes belief, these are two different things. Atheism is the de facto opposite of theism. If you don’t believe in god, you are an atheist, your level of certainty has nothing to do with whether you believe something or not.

Dawkins describes the definition you provide as “strong atheism” or “gnostic atheism”. That is an affirmative assertion that there is definitely no god, taken from a position of holding some absolute knowledge. It is a position that not even Dawkins himself associates with. He says that he is a “de facto atheist”, somebody who sees god as tremendously improbable but has a non-zero chance of existing.

Frankly if being an atheist meant saying you knew 100% there was no god, then many of the people who are renowned atheists would not be classed as atheists. Very few hold this position. In fact I don’t know a single one. All the ones I know of are agnostic atheists.

With respect to you and Dr Dawkins, agnosticism is a term specifically coined by Huxley to distinguish his position from atheism. It is not a step along the road to belief or non-belief in God but characterises both creeds as either unknowable in principle or currently unknown in fact.

 

[GortonBlue62]

Most folk (+85%) would think being an atheist is a pretty fantastical claim.

I'm honestly not taking the Micky but would you tell me what you believe in one shortish paragraph?

Seems fair as I asked the question that I go first...

I believe that my life is bounded by the moment of conception (before which I didn't exist) and the moment of death (after which I will cease to exist). I am absolutely confident that no theistic god exists. I am 99.9999% sure that there is no deistic god.

No arguments or justifications on either side just a statement of what you belive to be true.

 

[johnny crossan]

I'm honestly not taking the Micky but would you tell me what you believe in one shortish paragraph?

Seems fair as I asked the question that I go first...

I believe that my life is bounded by the moment of conception (before which I didn't exist) and the moment of death (after which I will cease to exist). I am absolutely confident that no theistic god exists. I am 99.9999% sure that there is no deistic god.

No arguments or justifications on either side just a statement of what you belive to be true.

I'm a paid up member of the God club now friend, at my age it's prudent. For many years I think 'agnostic' in the sense of ' uncommitted interest' best described my approach but definitely a militant atheist when at uni. At that time Anthony Flew was my go to authority and his much later conversion (although controversial) certainly influenced on my own thinking.

 

[tonea2003]

Ah yes, 2012 and the same issue, proving a negative. Still think you can :-)

https://forums.bluemoon-mcfc.co.uk/conversations/re-the-missing-thread.238039/

ah the old switcheroo,

the onus is on you

you are well versed with sagan's extraordinary claims

 

[tonea2003]

Most folk (+85%) would think being an atheist is a pretty fantastical claim.

no more so than being a deist

 

[GortonBlue62]

I'm a paid up member of the God club now friend, at my age it's prudent. For many years I think 'agnostic' in the sense of ' uncommitted interest' best described my approach but definitely a militant atheist when at uni. At that time Anthony Flew was my go to authority and his much later conversion (although controversial) certainly influenced on my own thinking.

But do you believe Jesus is the son of God? Or is your god Einstein's non dice player.

Again, not taking the piss, just genuinely curious.