Can you persuade me from Agnostic to Atheist?

[wiploc]

I'm a tad confused here with the terminology. Help me out. Ok, this is where I stand, what would I be categorized as?

I do not believe in a god of any sort.

You are an atheist.

However, if a god or the God suddenly appeared before me (or I had enough compelling physical and factual evidence of a god) I would likely begin believing in that god. (i.e. I'm walking down the street. I think to myself "there is no God"...and all of a sudden Jesus drops down from heaven and begins talking to me. I would likely submit and dare not to challenge his authroity unless I was not totally convinced in some way.)

So is that just being a normal atheist?? Or being completely drunk? Or both?

That's just normal atheism.  If we knew whether you believe gods do not exist, we could say whether you are a strong or weak atheist.  

A. Theists believe that gods do exist.
B. Strong atheists believe that gods do not exist.  
C. Weak atheists (everybody else) don't believe either way.  

As a general rule, strong and weak atheists would both come across if presented with evidence of gods that would persuade a reasonable person.  Some of us would come across eagerly, even ecstatically.  I'm not that way anymore, but there was a time when I really wanted to be a Christian.  And many people who have recently left the church would dash back into it if they could just find a logical justification.  

Now lets consider gnosticism/agnosticism:

X. Gnostics know (or think they know) whether gods exist.  
Y. Agnostics (everybody else) don't know whether gods exist.  

Even the gnostic atheist would probably change her mind if the theists came up with a persuasive argument.  

So there is no generally-recognized category of people who would remain atheists in the teeth of compelling evidence.  

I've never met anyone in that category.  Allow me to name the category "obdurate atheism."  

In fact, the only declared obdurate person I know of is Plantinga.  He claims he would be a Christian regardless of the state of the evidence, because he is just personally incapable of nonbelief.  

So, Jeff, you needn't be at pains to distinguish yourself from the obdurate atheists, because, as far as I know, there is nobody in that category.  


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