Happy Atheist Forum

I have been studying the definitions of each kind of religion (or lack thereof) for a while. This is the list I have come up with.



On the left is what a person with these beliefs would say about religion, and on the right is the name for their beliefs. Below the list is a list of definitions for each descriptor.

"God definitely exists" - Gnostic Theist

"I don't know, but god probably does exist." - Agnostic Theist

"I don't know, but it seems a bit likely that god exists. - Agnostic leaning towards theism

"I don't know, and neither do you" - Strong Agnostic

"I don't know, and I don't care" - Apatheist

"I don't know, but it seems unlikely" - Agnostic, leaning towards atheism

"I don't know, but he probably doesn't exist" - Agnostic atheist

"God definitely doesn't exist." - Gnostic Atheist/Nontheist

"Regardless of god's existance, belief in god is a bad thing." - Antitheist






Here are the definitions for all the different terms:



Gnostic: Means "knowing". If you are a "gnostic", then you know whether god exists. NOONE is gnostic, even though you may claim to be.

Theist: Means "belief in god" or "god exists". You believe that gods exists.

Atheist: The prefix "A" means "without", so it means "Without belief in god". Does NOT mean that you think he probably doesn't. One who is a strong agnostic, since he doesn't affirm the notion of god's existence, is an atheist as well.

Agnostic: Means "without knowing". You don't know if god exists. EVERYONE is agnostic. No exceptions.

Apatheist: "Apa" comes from "apathy", or "not caring". Means "doesn't care if god exists."

Nontheist: "Non" means "doesn't". You KNOW that god doesn't exist. This is an impossible viewpoint. Noone KNOWS that god doesn't exist.

Antitheist: "Anti" means "against". You think religion is a bad thing.




I fall under the category of Agnostic Atheist/Antitheist. I won't say "god doesn't exist", but I will never say "it's likely that he does" or "it's equally likely that he does or doesn't". Baseically, I'm just saying "God probably doesn't exist".

Um, yes. Yes that's my understanding.

I'm also an agnostic atheist. It seems the most rational deduction.

Well given those definitions (which I will accept tentatively for the duration of typing this reply) that would make me an antitheist atheist.

Kyu

I'm an apatheist. I have more important things to do (like oh I don't know, living?) than to worry about God. Don't know for sure, certainly don't care.

Quote from: "Nazzer"If you are a "gnostic", then you know whether god exists. NOONE is gnostic, even though you may claim to be.

Please, speak for yourself.  :hmm:

Think about it.. fire is a material phenomenon just like mind is.

nonthiest and atheist are the same thing.  Both mean you don't believe in a god.  Gnostic and agnostic are just terms which further describe the sort of knowledge you have related to that (non) belief.

Amost every atheist I have met would describe themselves as agnostic.  I don't see much of a point in defining myself as an agnostic atheist if asked my views unless someone tries to claim I think I know everything, have faith in 'nothing,' etc.

I wrote a definitions post a while back, McQ and I think a couple other people, helped adjust/correct the wording: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=830 (http://www.happyatheistforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=830)

Dawkins 1 to 7 scale:
http://christophersisk.com/dawkins-belief-scale-images/ (http://christophersisk.com/dawkins-belief-scale-images/)

How about defacto atheist?  

QuoteDe-facto Atheist: I cannot know for certain but I think God is very improbable and I live my life under the assumption that he is not there.

This is what most agnostic atheists mean when they call themselves agnostic.

^I'm going to add this to the stickied list.

Quote from: "gwyn428"

Quote from: "Nazzer"If you are a "gnostic", then you know whether god exists. NOONE is gnostic, even though you may claim to be.

Please, speak for yourself.  :hmm:

Think about it.. fire is a material phenomenon just like mind is.

Yes, i feel the same way about all of that. They probably don't exist. The reason I say they probably don't exist is that it is unlikely, if it is understood that they are all products of the human mind, that they are real and yet don't have evidence beyond the words of an individual, but still CONTRADICT what we already know.

What do you call someone that believes in the supernatural but not god? I tried "spiritualist", but that's apparently theistic.

Quote from: "Willravel"What do you call someone that believes in the supernatural but not god? I tried "spiritualist", but that's apparently theistic.

Ghost hunter or cryptozoologist.  

Quote from: "Willravel"What do you call someone that believes in the supernatural but not god? I tried "spiritualist", but that's apparently theistic.

A supernaturalizer?     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatur ... ization.22 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural#.22Supernaturalization.22)

Quote from: "Nazzer"No, I won't. I will speak for everyone.

Before I say anything, I want to let you know that I am calm and I do not have the intention to start a little war that could result in both of us being in trouble, ok?

Your statement that I quoted above is something that I find to be arrogant and I think that other people may feel the same way. For me it evokes a feeling of someone who is patronizing, closed minded, and perhaps of a radical mindset.

Quote from: "Nazzer"Knowledge affirming or denying the existence of god is fundamentally impossible.

Do you feel the same way about cow's milk existing on a different planet? Some Hindus believe that there is a planet in our universe that has oceans of cow's milk. I will tell you that I know that there is no such thing because cows, which are mammals, can only exist on our planet and you can comprehend why by studying the evolution of cows and mammals in general.

God, who allegedly has an anthropomorphic mind, simply does not exist. If you study about the variety of gods, you will notice something that they all have in common: they are too much like Homo-Sapiens. Our species is a rendering of evolution by Natural Selection and it just happens to be that the gods of humankind are like their own species? Gods also have a sense of self, which means that they have a mind. As you probably know, mind is a product of matter. Are gods material? No. This means that they cannot have a sense of self or even exist. Does it seem rational to you that a non-physical being could have a mind much like ours but greater? It doesn't to me and not even for one second.

Quote from: "Nazzer"I knew that back when I was still a Christian, for god's sake.

Why would an Antitheist type up "for god's sake" and actually post this on a message board like this one.. or any message board?

Quote from: "Nazzer"I hope you were joking.

By now you may already know that I was not.

And I hope that you are not really such an arrogant person who will think for everyone. Most Freethinkers probably cringe at your attitude.

Quote from: "Nazzer"Yes, i feel the same way about all of that. They probably don't exist. The reason I say they probably don't exist is that it is unlikely, if it is understood that they are all products of the human mind, that they are real and yet don't have evidence beyond the words of an individual, but still CONTRADICT what we already know.

I'd say that they do not exist, just like how I will also boldly state it that an invisible crimson bull with 40,000 horns that holds up our planet does not exist.

I hope that you do not mind me asking this, but, how old are you?

Quote from: "laetusatheos"

Quote from: "Willravel"What do you call someone that believes in the supernatural but not god? I tried "spiritualist", but that's apparently theistic.

A supernaturalizer?     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatur ... ization.22 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernatural#.22Supernaturalization.22)

My son found this when he was looking for a description of himself (apatheist).  It says that those that believe in other supernatural "things' Like UFOs, fate, the Loch Ness Monster, etc are weirdos.  I think it's being serious.  It also talks about ratioanlists and brights.  Kind of interesting. http://www.mwillett.org/atheism/sects1.htm

The definitions originally listed by the OP are ok, but in general, since no atheist can know 100% anything, then there are technically no atheists at all, only different types of agnostics. You need to include beliefs alongside or within the definitions to refine them further. I am an apatheist (or even a Defacto atheist), but I define it differently (as laetusatheos already pointed out in the link to our definitions sticky). Here's what I say"

"I don't know if a god or gods exists. But, because there is no evidence for a god, and, in fact, there is evidence against certain gods (if particular texts like the bible are to be taken literally), then I don't believe in any god, and I really don't care. I believe in the natural world only. By definition, the supernatural does not exist and I have no need for it."

That said, I find it enjoyable to play "what ifs", and I enjoy Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and I really get a kick out of Cryptozoology and ghost hunters. Those last two are just spectacular entertainment for me. I love watching people make idiots of themselves and take this stuff so seriously.    If you can get your hands on it, watch the Penn and Teller Bullshit episodes on Cryptozoology and on ghost hunting.

Quote from: "McQ"The definitions originally listed by the OP are ok, but in general, since no atheist can know 100% anything, then there are technically no atheists at all, only different types of agnostics.

Atheism isn't a belief affirming the non existance of god, it's a lack of a belief affirming his existance.

So if you don't affirm the notion of God's existance, you are an atheist.

All strong agnostics are atheists as well.