RE: Blind faith and evolution
July 20, 2013 at 2:50 pm
(This post was last modified: July 20, 2013 at 3:00 pm by Simon Moon.)
(July 20, 2013 at 1:18 pm)christcahinkilla Wrote: theist - "i believe gods exist, but can't prove it"
atheist - "i do not believe gods exist, but can't prove it"
There is no need to have proof that a god does not exist as long as the person making the claim that a god does exist has not met their burden of proof.
You really should investigate the difference between 'knowledge' and 'belief'. You seem confused.
Quote:both of these ideas say the same thing: i KNOW but can't prove it to be true
No they are not.
Atheism is the response to a claim, not a claim itself.
Quote:agnostic - "i do not have a belief on the subject because I have no way to test the idea"
Nope.
The formal definition of agnostic is one that takes the position that the existence of a god is unknown, and possibly unknowable.
The vast majority of atheists hold this position.
I hate to break it to you, but if your position is that you do not have a belief (because the existence of a god is unknown) you ARE an atheist. Atheism is the absence of belief in a god. It is not the assertion that a god does not exist.
Quote:belief = disbelief = hypothesis to conclusion without experimentation; dogma
Still wrong.
Belief is the psychological state n which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true. It is not a conclusion, it is a provisional position. As long as there continues to be insufficient demonstrable evidence and reasoned argument to support the claim that a god exists, I will continue to disbelieve the claim.
Quote:agnostic atheist is therefore oxymoronic
Nope.
Agnostic concerns the (lack of) KNOWLEDGE.
Atheism concerns the (lack of) BELIEF.
I do not claim to know that a god does not exist. Therefore I am agnostic by definition.
I disbelieve a god exists because the case has not met its burden of proof. Therefore I am an atheist by definition.
The 2 positions are not mutually exclusive.
Quote:nobody has been able to challenge the fact that no person on this planet has the knowledge of whether or not gods exist
True.
Quote:but people choose to believe true or false on the subject (conclusion)
Disbelieve is not a conclusion.
Let's try this.
Theist - "a god exists"
Atheist - "I don't believe your claim. Please provide me with demonstrable evidence, reasoned argument and valid & sound logic to support your claim".
The atheist in the above example is not making a conclusion, he/she is only responding to a claim that has not met its burden of proof.