Here is how the OED defines atheism: atheism Disbelief in, or denial of, the existence of a god. disbelieve 1. trans. Not to believe or credit; to refuse credence to: a. a statement or (alleged) fact: To reject the truth or reality of. deny To contradict or gainsay (anything stated or alleged); to declare to be untrue or untenable, or not what it is stated to be. Logic. The opposite of affirm; to assert the contradictory of (a proposition). To refuse to admit the truth of (a doctrine or tenet); to reject as untrue or unfounded; the opposite of assert or maintain. To refuse to recognize or acknowledge (a person or thing) as having a certain character or certain claims; to disown, disavow, repudiate, renounce. Note that the OED definition covers the whole spectrum of atheist belief, from weak atheism (those who do not believe in or credit the existence of one or more gods) to strong atheism (those who assert the contrary position, that a god does not exist). Here is the OEDs definition of agnostic: agnostic A. sb. One who holds that the existence of anything beyond and behind material phenomena is unknown and (so far as can be judged) unknowable, and especially that a First Cause and an unseen world are subjects of which we know nothing.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Aug 2014 16:59:38 +0000
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