Agnostic vs Atheist
I stumbled upon this clip, viewed it, and liked 99% of the idea. I did not agree with the total conclusion.
Okay, Penn, my thinking as an Agnostic is from this stance:
As an Agnostic, I go with the verb and "believe" from my gut that there is a God but have no proof of anything, have no knowledge. I have my intuition and my philosophies to guide me in my passive quest of understanding God, and one of the prime weapons I see God has supplying me is my capacity for doubt, which is also the source of my Agnostic stance on such things -- "I know nothing." It permits Faith to be living instead of just some following of Religion by rote, being a foolish sheep doing the bidding of some other foolish individual's decree of how the world is defined (we are all fools to some degree). I agree that Atheism is a choice of the action of "not believing." However, in hearing your closing argument example, I was immediately called forth to the same example in the patriarch Abraham in the Book of Genesis, where he was given the command of sacrificing Isaac. Abraham's internal argument as presented in George C. Scott's portrayal of Abraham in the classic John Huston directed film "The Bible" gives palpable demonstration of the rise to agnostic doubt in the partriach of the Hebrew way that is described in the scriptures themselves. The constant questions and demands for proof that God is really God in that unwanted action and its clear result -- "this is not anything your God would demand of you." A long time ago, I was acquainted with the music and philosophies of Mark Heard in which he was interviewed and asked about his studies at L'Abri where the component of "doubt" was pursued as essential to Faith being real. This stuck with me, and I had never realized how liberating and empowering doubt can be. It permits new ideas and frees one from the sediment of dogma.
So, Penn, my answer to your question is: "No, I would not sacrifice my child if God told me to do it," and my refusal does not make me an atheist. Because the God that I believe in would not command such a thing. I doubt any voice that would give me that message as being on the level. ...and God was not on the level in that case and was instead making a point. Doubt may keep me from moving fast enough all of the time in the face of questions or opportunities, but it also saves me from following the dumb ass teachings of those who are lost in their own flights of fancy. I get to be an individual Booha!
So, there, I'm an agnostic, not an atheist. Neener!
Thanks, Penn, for the deep thoughts. Very cool of you, despite my disagreement with your conclusion.
Click to viewOkay, Penn, my thinking as an Agnostic is from this stance:
As an Agnostic, I go with the verb and "believe" from my gut that there is a God but have no proof of anything, have no knowledge. I have my intuition and my philosophies to guide me in my passive quest of understanding God, and one of the prime weapons I see God has supplying me is my capacity for doubt, which is also the source of my Agnostic stance on such things -- "I know nothing." It permits Faith to be living instead of just some following of Religion by rote, being a foolish sheep doing the bidding of some other foolish individual's decree of how the world is defined (we are all fools to some degree). I agree that Atheism is a choice of the action of "not believing." However, in hearing your closing argument example, I was immediately called forth to the same example in the patriarch Abraham in the Book of Genesis, where he was given the command of sacrificing Isaac. Abraham's internal argument as presented in George C. Scott's portrayal of Abraham in the classic John Huston directed film "The Bible" gives palpable demonstration of the rise to agnostic doubt in the partriach of the Hebrew way that is described in the scriptures themselves. The constant questions and demands for proof that God is really God in that unwanted action and its clear result -- "this is not anything your God would demand of you." A long time ago, I was acquainted with the music and philosophies of Mark Heard in which he was interviewed and asked about his studies at L'Abri where the component of "doubt" was pursued as essential to Faith being real. This stuck with me, and I had never realized how liberating and empowering doubt can be. It permits new ideas and frees one from the sediment of dogma.
So, Penn, my answer to your question is: "No, I would not sacrifice my child if God told me to do it," and my refusal does not make me an atheist. Because the God that I believe in would not command such a thing. I doubt any voice that would give me that message as being on the level. ...and God was not on the level in that case and was instead making a point. Doubt may keep me from moving fast enough all of the time in the face of questions or opportunities, but it also saves me from following the dumb ass teachings of those who are lost in their own flights of fancy. I get to be an individual Booha!
So, there, I'm an agnostic, not an atheist. Neener!
Thanks, Penn, for the deep thoughts. Very cool of you, despite my disagreement with your conclusion.