Agnostic.com

42 7

Gnostic Atheist, Agnostic Atheist, Agnostic Theist, or Gnostic Theist?

Was Carl Sagan an atheist? Where are you on this spectrum?

At times I identify with Sagan's admiration for William James’ definition of religion; which I think suggests he was more of an agnostic looking for that, “feeling of being at home in the Universe”.

Looking at the spectrum of Gnostic Theists; Agnostic Theists; Agnostic Atheists; & Gnostics Atheists I sometimes wonder where I fit in at any given time with the rest of the world's population.
[agnosticsinternational.org]

It's just amazing and fascinating how many ideas are out there!
[ozgurnevres.com]
[amp.reddit.com]


"Carl Sagan was a scientist, but he had some qualities that I associate with the Old Testament. When he came up against a wall—the wall of jargon that mystifies science and withholds its treasures from the rest of us, for example, or the wall around our souls that keeps us from taking the revelations of science to heart—when he came up against one of those topless old walls, he would, like some latter-day Joshua, use all of his many strengths to bring it down.

[…]

He believed that the little we do know about nature suggests that we know even less about God. We had only just managed to get an inkling of the grandeur of the cosmos and its exquisite laws that guide the evolution of trillions if not infinite numbers of worlds. This newly acquired vision made the God who created the World seem hopelessly local and dated, bound to transparently human misperceptions and conceits of the past.

[…]

Carl wanted us to see ourselves not as the failed clay of a disappointed Creator but as starstuff, made of atoms forged in the fiery hearts of distant stars. To him we were “starstuff pondering the stars; organized assemblages of 10 billion billion billion atoms considering the evolution of atoms; tracing the long journey by which, here at least, consciousness arose.” For him science was, in part, a kind of “informed worship.” No single step in the pursuit of enlightenment should ever be considered sacred; only the search was." - Sagan’s widow, Ann Druyan
[charterforcompassion.org]
[washingtonpost.com]

Where do you identify in the spectrum?

  • 8 votes
  • 21 votes
  • 4 votes
  • 0 votes
  • 1 vote
  • 15 votes
SergeTafCam 5 Apr 24
Share

Enjoy being online again!

Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.

Create your free account

42 comments

Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.

14

Welcome to the asylum. Enjoy your stay.

I'm an atheist. Period.
The rest of that stuff is nothing but semantics to me.
Not crazy about labels.

Agreed. The point I was trying to make earlier in the post.

Did you just slam "Semantics"? How dare you? ,,,,,,,,They are the best doo-wop band ever.

Why does your comment remind of "Hotel California"?

10

Are you mad or just stupid? No, I don't mean that about you. I'm just demonstrating one of the problems of a forced choice. It doesn't encompass all of the possibilities or subtleties of choice.

Agreed.

I just spent two hours thinking trying to answer your question. I didn't know it was rhetorical.............

A choice of two is a choice of four: one, the other, both, or neither. We should always allow for these expressions.

@Untheist very true but still limited. I think that whenever we create boxes we limit our imaginations, our expression and definitions. I hate boxes.

9

No vote for, could not care less.

Good point. Updated the poll. Thanks!

8

Spectrum schmecktrum. I'm just atheist.

8

Atheist. My research leads me to feel strongly that humans made gods up. They do not exist. There's are things science has yet to answer, and it may take a very long time, but it will. History supports that. It doesn't support gods.

6

Athiest Anti-Theist

6

Hey stop that. You know we can see you, right?

@PondartIncbendog Yup! Can't stop it! I'm too attracted to him!

5

Not surprised that Agnostic Atheist is winning. That's where most atheists reside (based on what I've seen). Appreciate the post!

5

Atheist here.

You need to get out. You're looking stressed.

@PondartIncbendog

5

Atheist Atheist

gearl Level 8 Apr 25, 2020

Are you calling your dog?

@PondartIncbendog WOOF!

@anglophone Hey! Ya gonna vote for me up there ? ^^

@PondartIncbendog What? Are you suggesting that I should vote? 😉

@anglophone Yeah!

@PondartIncbendog Suggestion declined.

(It least that isn't as bad as seeing "Transaction declined" on an EFTPOS machine.)

4

apathetic agnostic - don't know, don't care.

I usually don't give a rats pitoot! But when interacting with some people it make it go faster/easier. That is when I need to talk and get a point across or a thing done. But I let it take long enough to annoy them. By neither confirming or denying you deprive them of a target.

many years ago I needed a minor surgery. I went for my preflight check. The woman saw my ankh about the time she was asking my religion, (so if you suddenly look like death, they call the right shaman). She said oh christian, or Catholic. I said no, she said oh that's an egyption cross! I corrected her with no, it is an ancient Egyption Ankh. She then laughed, blew that off in mock disgust. I sat up straight told her I worshipped the Sun, every day, as is proper. And my silly old thing was a reveared religious symbol 3 Thousand Years before that Jewish fellow you claim existed was declared a God.

At that point she froze, she realized I would not accept her obnoxious comments about any beliefs I may have.

She was deer in headlights frozen.

I said , my wife is Catholic I am sure if I am near death she would want a priest, that is no issue, but I do not believe in any god you can name. OK?

She got her wits about herself, and finished my intake.

@praytothemilkjug one should give the sun praise each day as we would be up a creek with out it! 😉
I am glad surgery went well!

4

I'm an agnostic theist vegetarian atheist but I still eat meat.

4

i am not on a spectrum. i'm just me. i don't believe there are any gods. i also believe there are no gods. whatever that makes me, call me that. if you have food i might respond.

g

4

Nothing but an Atheist!!!

4

This is the sort of post based on these graphs and charts that, as an atheist, makes me figuratively weep, as I see non-religious people fracture and splinter like something out the 'People's from of Judea' scene from Monty Python. Divided we fall.

4

Labels labels labels, i am just an atheist. None of them can produce a god no matter what belief system. I consider atheism a non belief. Labels. Ugh, it is kinda like different groups that have a base of inequality because they think it is a better way to believe. A way to say believe what i am saying rather than have a non belief.

Labels, tribes,,,they all need definition or they are worthless. Lots of it.

@PondartIncbendog Defined or not still worthless.

I have said this before, labelling Athiest as a belief system is like calling "off" a TV channel

3

I can't prove there's no 'god' or 'higher power', but I feel confident in my conclusion that it doesn't exist.

If a god does exist, I don't care.

I'm an apathetic, agnostic atheist.

3

Atheist Anti-Theist

3

Just.....why?

3

I never use labels. In fact, I hate labels. I just don't believe in bullshit.

3

I'm so close to gnostic atheism that the teensy bit of Agnosticism is statistically irrelevant.

3

Number 4; I ain't believing shit bro! Call your friends. Call your ememys! Call your dog! Vote here! Free POPCORN for the next hour!!

Thanks for your vote Cyk!

Thank Veronica.

@VeronikaAnnJ I read too many comic books as a kid.

Com'on Folks! I need your votes! I want second place!

@VeronikaAnnJ Betty was a dish!

@VeronikaAnnJ You already did. Thumbs up. We are in third place!!!! Yay!

@VeronikaAnnJ I think I got one stuck in my tire in the desert.

@VeronikaAnnJ It didn't make any noise when I ran over it and didn't lose a pound of air.

3

<--- Atheist since age 13.

You need to add more options to your poll.

I just did. Lost the original vote counts though. I tried to capture them in a comment. Hopefully that helps. :/

3

I am a gnostic atheist about both the God of the Bible and the god of the Torah. I am an agnostic atheist about all other gods.

I am the God of Hellfire,,,,,,,,,I think,,,,,,,,,,,or magnetic tape...........

@PondartIncbendog 6250 bpi nrzi, perhaps? 😉

@anglophone I don't discuss personal matters. I'm kinda biased............LOL

@PondartIncbendog Please, PLEASE, stop stealing my write rings!

@anglophone If you'd stay off my track this wouldn't happen.

@PondartIncbendog But punched paper tape was much more fun! Did you ever play 1,000 card pickup?

@anglophone Saw em. Worked on mag core memory. That cap board would age ya a few if you got across it.

@anglophone Worked on this in the AF.

@PondartIncbendog That brings back memories: a 4K (24 bit words) memory box that measured 10" on all three sides. (Today's kids have never had it so good - to paraphrase Harold Macmillan.)

@anglophone Ha. I worked on some of the first 10k drives. I think we called them winchesters? Should we start a group "identify this piece of vintage electronics"?

@anglophone What was the application for the memory box?

@PondartIncbendog Perhaps we should. I worked in one place that had what we called (multi-platter) "cake stands".

@PondartIncbendog An old ICL 4130. The first one I encountered was at university (1972-1974), and later at a zinc smelter where the same model ran the plant process control system until it was retired in the late 1980s. I got one of the memory banks for free and took it home.

@anglophone I've seen those. I started a group, lets see how it goes. Lots of retired techs and engineers here.

@anglophone The group is pending. Its called Vintage Electronics and old farts.

@PondartIncbendog Thanks for the heads up.

@anglophone please tell me that zinc smelter wasn't in Pt Pirie. I worked on the computers that ran that plant from '86.

@Cyklone Sorry, I cannot answer your question directly without giving away my identity. Let's just say that the two companies that you and I both worked for were once owned by the same global holding company.

@anglophone gotcha. 😃

2

Surely every thinking atheist would become a theist overnight if there was evidence found of the existence of a god. Since there is no evidence I have to be an atheist. And since it would be unlikely to find material evidence I am an agnostic atheist.

Write Comment
You can include a link to this post in your posts and comments by including the text q:488830
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.