I heard someone say the other day that they were a "Gnostic Atheist." To start with, I didn't know that there was such a thing, because that is completely illogical. He went on to say that "I'm a gnostic atheist because I know for sure that there is no god." This form of belief defies all logic, and here's why: It is impossible to prove a negative. This is a well known logical principle. Therefore, you cannot be logically sure that there is no god. That would be completely absurd.
The same thing applies to belief in a god, it is currently impossible to prove. However, a complete assurance in the non-existence of a god or gods (AKA Gnostic Atheism) is more illogical than the complete assurance in the existence of a god or gods (AKA Gnostic Theism, is guess) because, while it is currently impossible to prove either of them, it will NEVER be possible to prove the non-existence of a god. There is still a chance that we will one day find proof of the existence of a higher power. There will never be proof that such a power cannot possibly exist.
So from where does this notion of Gnostic Atheism come? Is this a widely held belief? Why do people believe it at all?
The same thing applies to belief in a god, it is currently impossible to prove. However, a complete assurance in the non-existence of a god or gods (AKA Gnostic Atheism) is more illogical than the complete assurance in the existence of a god or gods (AKA Gnostic Theism, is guess) because, while it is currently impossible to prove either of them, it will NEVER be possible to prove the non-existence of a god. There is still a chance that we will one day find proof of the existence of a higher power. There will never be proof that such a power cannot possibly exist.
So from where does this notion of Gnostic Atheism come? Is this a widely held belief? Why do people believe it at all?
