HAT Forum - Atheism v. Agnosticism

The Humanist Association of Toronto
http://www.humanisttoronto.ca/

Every Saturday we meet on Zoom to discuss a topic decided upon the previous week. These are topics of humanist interest, from a humanist perspective.

The topic of the discussion will be decided in a prior meeting, usually two weeks in advance. This week’s topic is: Atheism v. Agnosticism.

### Atheism:

· Definition: Atheism is the lack of belief in gods or deities.
· Position: An atheist does not believe in any gods, faith or the notion of an afterlife (no supernatural stuff). There are different degrees of atheism, ranging from "strong" atheism (asserting that gods do not exist) to "weak" atheism (simply lacking belief in gods without making any claims about their existence).

### Agnosticism:

· Definition: Agnosticism is about knowledge rather than belief. An agnostic person maintains that the existence of gods is unknown or unknowable.
· Position: Agnostics are often open to the possibility of gods but believe that humans cannot know for certain whether they exist or not. This stance focuses on the limits of human knowledge.

### Key Differences:

· Belief vs. Knowledge: Atheism pertains to belief (or lack thereof) in gods, while agnosticism pertains to knowledge about their existence.
· Certainty: Atheists might have a firm position on the non-existence of gods, whereas agnostics highlight the uncertainty and the limitations in our ability to know.
In practice, some people identify as both atheists and agnostics, indicating that they don't believe in any gods (atheism) but also acknowledge that we cannot know for sure whether gods exist (agnosticism).
Are you curious to dive deeper into any specific aspects of these positions?

Meet our diverse group, trade perspectives in a free and open forum and learn from others as they learn from you!

BTW: don't be concerned if there are not many RSVP’s. Many HAT members attend regularly but don’t sign up on Meetup. Our online meetings have been very popular with 20-30 attendees.

NOTE: The HAT Forum adheres strictly to the City of Toronto Policy on Non-Discrimination (http://www.the519.org/public/content/policy-files/The519SpaceUsePolicy.pdf)

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