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Concisely defining three types of atheism.
January 12, 2011 at 1:15 pm
Atheism is either:
1. Simply not having a belief in god(s) (one form of agnostic atheism).
2. An intuitive or rational belief that the existence of god(s) are more than 50% improbable but not impossible (another form of agnostic atheism).
3. Belief that god(s) are impossible (gnostic atheism).
And obviously, you can be agnostic about your atheism towards some gods but gnostic about your atheism towards others.
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RE: Concisely defining three types of atheism.
January 12, 2011 at 2:21 pm
I'm not sure exactly which I would fall under. Perhaps somewhere between 2 and 3.
I believe that an immaterial god is impossible, so I would be gnostic about that. I do not rule out the possibility of some sort of material god, as some deists would say they believe in, though I find it very unlikely. In that respect, I would fit the description of number two. I don't consider myself primarily an atheist; primarily I am a Naturalist (by that I am encompassing methodological naturalism -- looking for natural explanations is the best route to knowledge --, and metaphysical naturalism -- only the natural world exists. By that, I am also implying materialism). Since that rules out immaterial gods I believe them to be impossible. As Thomas Jefferson said, "To talk of immaterial existences is to talk of nothings." However, unlike Thomas Jefferson and the other deists of that period who filled gaps in their knowledge with god, my modern day scientific knowledge has occupied most of the room for gods. I suppose the origin of the universe is still a gap, but I "have faith" that a natural explanation will be discovered, and even so, to quote Carl Sagan, "In many cultures it is customary to answer that God created the universe out of nothing. But this is mere temporizing. If we wish courageously to pursue the question, we must, of course ask next where God comes from? And if we decide this to be unanswerable, why not save a step and conclude that the universe has always existed?" [Carl Sagan, Cosmos, page 257]
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RE: Concisely defining three types of atheism.
January 13, 2011 at 1:08 am
I would classify your first definition as nontheism, which is technically agnostic atheism, yes. And of course the most popular form of atheism.
The second is textbook agnostic atheism, except I think somewhere in there is the bridge between the lay person identifying themselves as an agnostic or an atheist. This is also what questioners become when they turn to the internet to settle their beliefs, and it's kind of annoying. I speak from some experience with youtube atheists, among which there are few really stimulating philosophers.
Rather rare, and downright rational for Anslem's God. But I wouldn't say it's the belief that gods are impossible, that's just the mechanism we use to get to it. Gnostic atheism is just the belief that god's don't exist.
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RE: Concisely defining three types of atheism.
January 13, 2011 at 8:53 am
(This post was last modified: January 13, 2011 at 8:57 am by Edwardo Piet.)
Technically if you genuinely believe God is exactly 50% probable you are both an agnostic theist and an agnostic atheist (type 2).
It's possible to be a gnostic atheist (type 3) and therefore believe you know God doesn't exist but nevertheless still believe he could have existed in the past or may come into existence in the future, in which case you are not denying his impossibility. That would be a rather odd form of gnosticism atheism but nevertheless still a form of it.
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RE: Concisely defining three types of atheism.
January 16, 2011 at 7:11 pm
(This post was last modified: January 16, 2011 at 7:20 pm by GANIMEDE.)
All Gods are inventions of human imagination which satisfy specific human needs. They allow humans, with predatory personalities, to exploit, manage and dictate the behavior of persons with weaker personalities.
I believe there is 100% chance that no gods exist, because it only follows logically; if "allmighty deities" did exist, and these sit around idley by as millions suffer unjustly, it would mean that these deities are inherently immoral at best, and downright sado-mosochistic at worst!
Therefore:
I know absolutely, in the deepest corner of my existance,
THAT NO GODS EXIST
and I am much the happier for it!
The existance of a "God" is a moral impossibility.
