Agnosticism is a word coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869. from Gk. agnostos "unknown, unknowable," from a- "not" + gnostos "(to be) known.

Agnosticism presumes that the essential nature of things are not and cannot be known. It is usually relates to religious doubt, but is also used in engineering and medicine to indicate that a device is not dependent on any particular technology or condition. See, for example:

Fixed-mobile convergence, where 'independent' products can work with various proprietary or 'open source' networks, handsets and/or user equipment.

Agnostic alexia, meaning that words can be seen but cannot be read

The most common use of the term agnosticism relates to the view that the truth value of certain claims—especially claims about the existence or non-existence of any deity, but also other religious and metaphysical claims—is unknown or unknowable.

Agnosticism can be defined in various ways, and is sometimes used to indicate doubt or a skeptical approach to questions. In some senses, agnosticism is a stance about the difference between belief and knowledge, rather than about any specific claim or belief. In the popular sense, an agnostic is someone who neither believes nor disbelieves there is a God, whereas an atheist disbelieves there is a God.

In the strict sense, however, agnosticism is the view that human reason is incapable of providing sufficient rational grounds to justify knowledge whether God exists or does not. Within agnosticism there are agnostic atheists (who do not believe any deity exists, but do not deny it as a possibility) and agnostic theists (who believe a God exists but do not claim to know that).

Although Thomas Henry Huxley, an English biologist, coined the word ''agnostic'' in 1869. earlier thinkers and written works have promoted agnostic points of view. They include Protagoras, a 5th-century BCE Greek philosopher, and the Nasadiya Sukta creation myth in the Rig Veda, an ancient Sanskrit text. Since Huxley coined the term, many other thinkers have written extensively about agnosticism.

Defining agnosticism

Demographic research services normally do not differentiate between various types of non-religious respondents so agnostics end up in the same category as atheists and/or other non-religious people. Some sources use ''agnostic'' in the sense of ''noncommittal''. Agnosticism often overlaps with other belief systems. Agnostic theists identify themselves both as agnostics and as followers of particular religions, viewing agnosticism as a framework for thinking about the nature of belief and their relation to revealed truths. Some nonreligious people, such as author Philip Pullman, identify as both agnostic and atheist.

Thomas Henry Huxley defined the term:

Etymology

''Agnostic'' (Greek: ἀ- a-, without + γνῶσις gnōsis, knowledge) was used by Thomas Henry Huxley in a speech at a meeting of the Metaphysical Society in 1876 to describe his philosophy which rejects all claims of spiritual or mystical knowledge. Early Christian church leaders used the Greek word ''gnosis'' (knowledge) to describe "spiritual knowledge." Agnosticism is not to be confused with religious views opposing the ancient religious movement of Gnosticism in particular; Huxley used the term in a broader, more abstract sense. Huxley identified agnosticism not as a creed but rather as a method of skeptical, evidence-based inquiry.

In recent years, scientific literature dealing with neuroscience and psychology has used the word to mean "not knowable". In technical and marketing literature, ''agnostic'' often has a meaning close to "independent"—for example, "platform agnostic" or "hardware agnostic."

Qualifying agnosticism

Scottish Enlightenment philosopher David Hume contended that meaningful statements about the universe are always qualified by some degree of doubt. He asserted that the fallibility of human beings means that they cannot obtain absolute certainty except in trivial cases where a statement is true by definition (i.e. tautologies such as "all bachelors are unmarried" or "all triangles have three corners"). All rational statements that assert a factual claim about the universe that begin "I believe that ...." are simply shorthand for, "Based on my knowledge, understanding, and interpretation of the prevailing evidence, I tentatively believe that...." For instance, when one says, "I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald shot John F. Kennedy," one is not asserting an absolute truth but a tentative belief based on interpretation of the assembled evidence. Even though one may set an alarm clock prior to the following day, believing that waking up will be possible, that belief is tentative, tempered by a small but finite degree of doubt (the alarm might break, or one might die before the alarm goes off).

The Catholic Church sees merit in examining what it calls Partial Agnosticism, specifically those systems that "do not aim at constructing a complete philosophy of the Unknowable, but at excluding special kinds of truth, notably religious, from the domain of knowledge." However, the Church is historically opposed to a full denial of the ability of human reason to know God. The Council of the Vatican, relying on biblical scripture, declares that "God, the beginning and end of all, can, by the natural light of human reason, be known with certainty from the works of creation" (Const. De Fide, II, De Rev.)

Types of agnosticism

Agnosticism can be subdivided into several categories. Recently suggested variations include: ;Agnostic atheism: Agnostic atheists are atheistic because they do not have belief in the existence of any deity, and agnostic because they do not claim to know that a deity does not exist. ;Agnostic theism: The view of those who do not claim to ''know'' of the existence of any deity, but still ''believe'' in such an existence. ;Apathetic or Pragmatic agnosticism: The view that there is no proof of either the existence or nonexistence of any deity, but since any deity that may exist appears unconcerned for the universe or the welfare of its inhabitants, the question is largely academic. ;Ignosticism: The view that a coherent definition of a deity must be put forward before the question of the existence of a deity can be meaningfully discussed. If the chosen definition is not coherent, the ignostic holds the noncognitivist view that the existence of a deity is meaningless or empirically untestable. A.J. Ayer, Theodore Drange, and other philosophers see both atheism and agnosticism as incompatible with ignosticism on the grounds that atheism and agnosticism accept "a deity exists" as a meaningful proposition which can be argued for or against. ;Strong agnosticism (also called "hard," "closed," "strict," or "permanent agnosticism"): The view that the question of the existence or nonexistence of a deity or deities, and the nature of ultimate reality is unknowable by reason of our natural inability to verify any experience with anything but another subjective experience. A strong agnostic would say, "I cannot know whether a deity exists or not, and neither can you." ;Weak agnosticism (also called "soft," "open," "empirical," or "temporal agnosticism"): The view that the existence or nonexistence of any deities is currently unknown but is not necessarily unknowable; therefore, one will withhold judgment until/if any evidence is available. A weak agnostic would say, "I don't know whether any deities exist or not, but maybe one day, when there is evidence, we can find something out."

History

Since Huxley first used the term, several writers have defended agnosticism as a philosophical viewpoint. A number of earlier thinkers and writings have explored agnostic thought.

In Hindu philosophy

The Rig Veda, the oldest existing canonical work on earth and the mainstay of Hindu philosophy that dates back to the second or third millennium BCE takes an agnostic view on the fundamental question of how the universe and God was created. Nasadiya Sukta (''Creation Hymn'') in the tenth chapter of the Rig Veda says:

Through out the history of Hinduism there has been a strong tradition of philosophic speculation and skepticism.

In Greek philosophy

Agnostic thought, in the form of skepticism, emerged as a formal philosophical position in ancient Greece. Its proponents included Protagoras, Pyrrho, and Carneades. Such thinkers rejected the idea that certainty was possible.

Hume, Kant, and Kierkegaard

Many philosophers (following the examples of Aristotle, Anselm, Aquinas, and Descartes) presented arguments attempting to rationally prove the existence of God. The skeptical empiricism of David Hume, the antinomies of Immanuel Kant, and the existential philosophy of Søren Kierkegaard convinced many later philosophers to abandon these attempts, regarding it impossible to construct any unassailable proof for the existence or non-existence of God. In his 1844 book, ''Philosophical Fragments'', Kierkegaard writes:

Thomas Henry Huxley

Agnostic views are as old as philosophical skepticism, but the terms agnostic and agnosticism were created by Huxley to sum up his thoughts on contemporary developments of metaphysics about the "unconditioned" (Hamilton) and the "unknowable" (Herbert Spencer). It is important, therefore, to discover Huxley's own views on the matter. Though Huxley began to use the term "agnostic" in 1869, his opinions had taken shape some time before that date. In a letter of September 23, 1860, to Charles Kingsley, Huxley discussed his views extensively:

And again, to the same correspondent, May 6, 1863:

Of the origin of the name agnostic to describe this attitude, Huxley gave the following account:

Huxley's agnosticism is believed to be a natural consequence of the intellectual and philosophical conditions of the 1860s, when clerical intolerance was trying to suppress scientific discoveries which appeared to clash with a literal reading of the Book of Genesis and other established Jewish and Christian doctrines. Agnosticism should not, however, be confused with natural theology, deism, pantheism, or other forms of theism.

By way of clarification, Huxley states, "In matters of the intellect, follow your reason as far as it will take you, without regard to any other consideration. And negatively: In matters of the intellect, do not pretend that conclusions are certain which are not demonstrated or demonstrable" (Huxley, ''Agnosticism'', 1889). Although A. W. Momerie has noted that this is nothing but a definition of honesty, Huxley's usual definition goes beyond mere honesty to insist that these metaphysical issues are fundamentally unknowable.

Robert G. Ingersoll

Robert G. Ingersoll, an Illinois lawyer and politician who evolved into a well-known and sought-after orator in 19th century America, has been referred to as the "Great Agnostic."

In an 1896 lecture titled ''Why I Am An Agnostic'', Ingersoll related why he was an agnostic:

In the conclusion of the speech he simply sums up the agnostic position as:

Bertrand Russell

Bertrand Russell's pamphlet, ''Why I Am Not a Christian'', based on a speech delivered in 1927 and later included in a book of the same title, is considered a classic statement of agnosticism. The essay briefly lays out Russell’s objections to some of the arguments for the existence of God before discussing his moral objections to Christian teachings. He then calls upon his readers to "stand on their own two feet and look fair and square at the world," with a "fearless attitude and a free intelligence."

In 1939, Russell gave a lecture on ''The existence and nature of God'', in which he characterized himself as an atheist. He said:

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However, later in the same lecture, discussing modern non-anthropomorphic concepts of God, Russell states:

In Russell's 1947 pamphlet, ''Am I An Atheist Or An Agnostic?'' (subtitled ''A Plea For Tolerance In The Face Of New Dogmas''), he ruminates on the problem of what to call himself:

In his 1953 essay, ''What Is An Agnostic?'' Russell states:

However, later in the essay, Russell says:

Leslie Weatherhead

In 1965 Christian theologian Leslie Weatherhead published ''The Christian Agnostic'', in which he argues:

Although radical and unpalatable to conventional theologians, Weatherhead's ''agnosticism'' falls far short of Huxley's, and short even of ''weak agnosticism'':

Criticism

Agnosticism is criticized from a variety of standpoints. Some religious thinkers see agnosticism as a limitation of the mind's capacity to know reality other than material objects. Some atheists also criticize the use of the term ''agnosticism'' as functionally indistinguishable from atheism.

Religious criticism

Many theistic thinkers repudiate the validity of agnosticism, or certain forms of agnosticism. Religious scholars in the three Abrahamic religions affirm the possibility of knowledge, even of metaphysical realities such as God and the soul, because human intelligence, they assert, has a non-material, spiritual element. They affirm that “not being able to see or hold some specific thing does not necessarily negate its existence,” as in the case of gravity, entropy, or reason and thought.

Religious scholars, such as Brown, Tacelli, and Kreeft, argue that agnosticism does not take into account the numerous evidence of his existence that God has placed in his creation. And for this, Peter Kreeft and Ronald Tacelli cite 20 arguments for God’s existence. They assert that agnosticism's demand for scientific evidence through laboratory testing is in effect asking God, the supreme being, to become man’s servant. They argue that the question of God should be treated differently from other knowable objects in that "this question regards not that which is below us, but that which is above us." Christian Philosopher Blaise Pascal argued that, even if there were truly no evidence for God, agnostics should consider what is now known as Pascal’s Wager: the infinite expected value of acknowledging God is always greater than the finite expected value of not acknowledging his existence, and thus it is a safer “bet” to choose God.

According to Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, agnosticism, more specifically strong agnosticism, is reasoning that limits and contradicts itself in claiming the power of reason to know scientific truth, but not religious or philosophical truths. He blames the exclusion of reasoning from religion and ethics for the dangerous pathologies of religion and science such as human and ecological disasters. “Agnosticism,” said Ratzinger, “is always the fruit of a refusal of that knowledge which is in fact offered to man [...] The knowledge of God has always existed.” He asserted that agnosticism is a choice of comfort, pride, dominion, and utility over truth, and is opposed by the following attitudes: the keenest self-criticism, humble listening to the whole of existence, the persistent patience and self-correction of the scientific method, a readiness to be purified by the truth.

According to some theistic scholars, agnosticism is impossible in actual practice, since a person can live only either as if God did not exist (''etsi Deus non daretur''), or as if God did exist (''etsi Deus daretur''). These scholars believe that each day in a person’s life is an unavoidable step towards death, and thus not to decide for or against God, whom they view as the all-encompassing foundation, purpose, and meaning of life, is to decide in favor of atheism.

Atheist criticism

According to Richard Dawkins, a distinction between agnosticism and atheism is unwieldy and depends on how close to zero we are willing to rate the probability of existence for any given god-like entity. Since in practice it is not worth contrasting a zero probability with one that is nearly indistinguishable from zero, he prefers to categorize himself as a "de facto atheist". He specifies his position by means of a scale of 1 to 7. On this scale, 1 indicates "100 per cent probability of God." A person ranking at 7 on the scale would be a person who says "I know there is no God..." Dawkins places himself at 6 on the scale, which he characterizes as "I cannot know for certain but I think God is very improbable, and I live my life on the assumption that he is not there", but leaning toward 7. About himself, Dawkins continues that "I am agnostic only to the extent that I am agnostic about fairies at the bottom of the garden." Dawkins also identifies two categories of agnostics; ''Temporary Agnostics in Practice'' (TAPs), and ''Permanent Agnostics in Principle'' (PAPs). Dawkins considers temporary agnosticism an entirely reasonable position, but views permanent agnosticism as "fence-sitting, intellectual cowardice."

See also

Notes

References

Robert E. Lee (1889) ''Agnosticism'' ISBN 144006878X

Robin Le Poidevin, (2010) ''Agnosticism: A Very Short Introduction'', Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-957526-8

Thomas Huxley, (1919) ''Man's Place In Nature'', ISBN 0-375-75847-X

Bertrand Russell, (1779 - 2009) ''Why I Am Not a Christian'', ISBN 0-671-20323-1

David Hume, ''Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion'', ISBN 0-14-044536-6

Immanuel Kant, ''Critique of Pure Reason'', ISBN 1-4039-1195-9

Søren Kierkegaard, ''Philosophical Fragments'', ISBN 978-0-691-02036-5

A. J. Ayer, ''Language, Truth, and Logic'', ISBN 0-486-20010-8

George H. Smith, ''Atheism, the Case Against God'', ISBN 0-87975-124-X

External links

Why I am Not a Christian by Bertrand Russell (March 6, 1927).

Why I Am An Agnostic by Robert G. Ingersoll, [1896].

''Dictionary of the History of Ideas'': Agnosticism

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry

Agnosticism from INTERS - Interdisciplinary Encyclopedia of Religion and Science

Agnosticism - from ReligiousTolerance.org

What do Agnostics Believe? - A Jewish perspective

Fides et Ratio '' – the relationship between faith and reason'' Karol Wojtyla [1998]

For a utilitarian analysis of religion, see ''The (F)Utility of Religion: Who Needs God(s)?–A Prospective Bible for Non-Believers'' at http://bradmusil.kramernet.org

The Natural Religion by Dr Brendan Connolly, 2008

Category:Criticism of religion Category:Disengagement from religion Category:Epistemological theories Category:Secularism

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