Agnosticism
Agnosticism is the position of not knowing whether God exists.[1] William Rowe defined it as the view that human reason cannot justify either belief or disbelief in God.[2]
Agnosticism sits between theism and atheism, and sometimes comes close to each. It can shade into atheism, but it also has links with "negative theology", the religious tradition that stresses how little humans can know about God.[1]
Two kinds of agnosticism
J. Adam Carter distinguishes two kinds:[2]
- Agnosticism in principle: the question of God is one that could never be settled.
- Agnosticism on the evidence available: the question cannot be settled with the evidence we have now.
Knowing by not knowing
Agnosticism has an unexpected religious history. Socrates, the Jewish philosopher Maimonides and the Christian theologian Thomas Aquinas are all linked with a tradition of "knowing by not knowing", the idea that true understanding of God begins by recognising the limits of human knowledge.[1] Aquinas combined this negative way with positive knowledge of God by analogy.[1][3]
Meaningless questions?
Some thinkers go further than not knowing. A. J. Ayer argued that talk of God has no basis in experience and is therefore literally meaningless, best understood as emotional or metaphorical rather than as true or false.[1]
Agnostics and near-agnostics
Bertrand Russell is often described as an agnostic, but his views have been called atheistic in effect.[4] The philosopher Anthony Kenny, a former priest, is described as an agnostic who came to see talk of God as closer to poetry than science.[5]
Is agnosticism a real option?
The American philosopher William James thought agnosticism was not a genuine option. He argued that the religious choice is "forced": postponing a decision has the same practical effect as deciding against belief. So, for James, the real choice was between faith and atheism.[6] See Epistemic responsibility.
Divine hiddenness
The existence of thoughtful people who do not believe has itself become an argument. The philosopher Schellenberg argues that some people who are capable of a relationship with God do not believe, through no fault of their own, and that a perfectly loving God would not allow this. He concludes that such a God does not exist. Ian M. Church discusses this as an argument against theism.[7]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Agnosticism". Philosophy of Religion A-Z. Palgrave Macmillan. 2016. pp. 5–6.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Pritchard, Duncan; Harris, Mark (2017). "Are theism and atheism totally opposed? (J. Adam Carter)". Philosophy, Science and Religion for Everyone. Routledge.
- ↑ "God". Philosophy of Religion A-Z. Palgrave Macmillan. 2016. pp. 83–84.
- ↑ "Russell, Bertrand". Philosophy of Religion A-Z. Palgrave Macmillan. 2016. pp. 188–190.
- ↑ "Arguments for the Existence of God". Philosophy of Religion A-Z. Palgrave Macmillan. 2016. pp. 14–16.
- ↑ "James, William". Philosophy of Religion A-Z. Palgrave Macmillan. 2016. p. 105.
- ↑ Pritchard, Duncan; Harris, Mark (2017). "Chapter 6 (Ian M. Church)". Philosophy, Science and Religion for Everyone. Routledge.