A simplified debate of some not-so-simple beliefs
Written by Victoria Nowell
Atheist, theist, deist, pantheist, secularist, non-religious, pastafarian… it seems the list of Godly perspectives has begun to grow in a way comparable to that of Sean Combs’ name changes (Daddy, Diddy, Doodle, who knows anymore?). But if you thought the nuances of terminology were the province of theistic denominations only, think again!
I often hear that all atheists believe there is no God, and that agnosticism is the middle-ground between atheism and theism. You may be surprised to learn that neither of these statements is true, and although they are commonly presented this way, the reality is quite different. For the sanity (and perhaps for the clarification) of many non-believers, let’s muddle the waters.
Let’s first address this issue of belief in God and clear up why not all atheists believe there is no God. To be clear, theism is the belief in one or more Gods, and atheism is the disbelief in, or denial of, one or more Gods. However, here we need to be careful; disbelief is not the same thing as denial. To put it another way, disbelieving in the existence of God is not the same thing as denying the existence of God. Think I’m crazy? Let me use a sock analogy to persuade you. Suppose I tell you that I’m wearing pink socks. Would you believe me? Let’s look at it logically: people wear socks and certainly some socks are pink, but it’s also possible that my socks are not pink or that I might not even be wearing socks (just please let it not be socks and sandals). Now you have come to a standstill: you don’t know what colour socks I’m wearing, or if I’m even wearing socks. Given this, you may feel it’s logical to adopt a position of disbelief (or non-belief) on the subject. You have no positive assertion about my pink sock proposition either way. You don’t claim to believe I’m wearing pink socks, nor do you claim to believe I’m not wearing pink socks. In the same way, “there is no God” is not the default position to “there is a God” because there is also the position “I have no belief in God either way” (in the same way that there’s the position “I have no belief in whether or not you’re wearing pink socks”). It’s entirely possible for an atheist to adopt a position of disbelief while at the same time making no claim about the existence of God.
So what about the atheists that do make the claim: “God does not exist”? How can we tell them apart? There are two main divisions within atheism, and therein lies the difference. Weak (or negative) atheists are the ones I have described above, the ones that make no positive assertions and maintain a position of disbelief. Strong (or positive) atheists are those who believe there is no God and therefore deny God’s existence. Within atheism there is disbelief and denial, which is why the statement “all atheists believe there is no God” is a false one and doesn’t encompass the whole spectrum of atheism.
Hey, wait a minute though, what about agnosticism? Where does it fit into the belief spectrum? The answer is: nowhere. It’s theism/atheism that encompass the realm of belief in God, whereas gnosticism/agnosticism are the realm of ‘knowing’ (about anything, including God’s existence). Agnosticism is not a belief system. So you see, one can be an agnostic atheist, gnostic atheist, agnostic theist, or gnostic theist (in addition to the positive and negative variations of atheism) because agnosticism and atheism/theism are not mutually exclusive. For example, a gnostic theist is someone who claims to know there is a God, while an agnostic theist is someone who claims to believe in God, but does not know for sure if God exists, or acknowledges that the existence of God is unknowable. This is why the assertion that agnosticism is the middle ground between atheism and theism is false (and why the statement that agnosticism is the more ‘humble’ alternative to the two is also false). All agnostics are either atheists or theists. Theism encompasses “I believe that one or more Gods exist,” and everything else is atheism! (I won’t delve into the point that most theists are atheists as well, in respect to Zeus, Apollo, Cupid, Thor, etc.).
Agnosticism can be thought of as a method, or as an approach to truth, but it is not a belief system. If you don’t fall into the position “I believe in God,” you are an atheist, but that doesn’t mean you have to positively assert: “I believe there is no God.” The terms are nuanced and contain just as much diversity within them as the people that they represent.