this post was submitted on 23 Mar 2026
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The textbook definition: disbelief in the existence of God or gods.
That doesn't logically follow. You're ignoring the third option of simply not having an opinion.
Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact.
That's very different from a strict disbelief.
Disbelief just means not believing something. Not believing that a claim is true is not the same as believing that that claim is false. A lack of belief in any deities is not the same as a belief in a lack of any deities.
The prefix a- means without. If one is without theism, then they are a-theist. There is no third option. You have theism or you don't. Having no belief one way or the other means you don't have it.
Also, it often means "on," "in," or "at" (e.g., abed, ashore) or indicates a state of being (e.g., ablaze). It can also mean "in a manner" (e.g., aloud)
But now you're getting into etamology, not colloquial application.
Atheism, at it's heart, is an ideology. Agnosticism isn't.
You want to get into colloquial application? Here's some colloquial application
Here's some more. If you know who Rationality Rules is and don't like him, then it's worth noting that this came out before his controversy
Here's some more
Here's Wiktionary's take. That page lists both definitions.
Colloquially, I call myself an atheist. That's not an ideology, it's just an answer to the question of whether or not I accept the claim that there is at least one deity.
Disbelief means rejecting it, not having no thoughts or opinions on it
I'm about to flip a coin.
Can we make sure we're on the same page regarding the definition of belief? As I understand it, belief means accepting a claim. Disbelief means not accepting a claim.
Do you accept the claim that this coin will land heads? This is a yes or no question. If you withhold judgment, that means you do not accept that claim. You do not believe it will land heads. This is notably different from accepting the claim that it will land tails. Not believing that it will land heads is not the same as believing that it will land tails.
The most reasonable position is to not accept either claim. It's a 50/50 chance.
Theism means accepting the claim that there is at least one deity. You either do that or you don't. Any option you take that involves not accepting the claim that there is at least one deity means that you aren't theist. You are without theism. There's a word for that.
you can suspend judgement. that's the reasonable thing to do. it's literally the middle ground between accepting and rejecting a claim.
I really don't know how many other ways I can put it. Theism is defined as accepting the claim that there is at least one deity. You either do that or you don't. You're either theist or you're not. If you're some third option, that means you're not theist. if you're not theist, you're without theism. The word for when you're without theism is atheist.
agnostic is a viable third option
There's no third options here. You can't simultaneously accept the claim that there's at least one deity and not accept the claim that there's at least one deity. If you're doing the former, that rules out the latter. If you're doing the latter, that rules out the former. This shit is Boolean bro
you don't need to accept either claim. you can suspend judgement.
try reading into epistemology
I'm glad we finally agree. Not accepting either claim means you're an agnostic atheist. Have a good day