What causes people to make a category like this for religious demographics?

[RB TexLa]

"No religion, atheist and agnostic"

Yes the definition of agnostic can be debated, but I think many would go with there being a possibility of a supreme being unknowable to humans knowledge. Certainly separating it from atheism. I think most all ideas of agnosticism are separate from atheist as they are separate from deism.

No religion could mean any number of things, one could truthfully claim no religion and have as much a belief in a divine being as the most devout Christian.

Of course there are personal beliefs that transcend all kind of lines involving these matters, but I don't think lumping these three answers into one category serves to better understand what people think and feel on this.






I thought about this reading this post
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=post&forum=389&topic_id=3865783&mesg_id=3865783

[Enthusiast]

1. They should include 'Other'. nt

[ProdigalJunkMail]

2. i would think...

that atheist should be in a category by itself as it is not just a lack of belief but the specific belief that there is NO God/god/Goddess/goddess... what-have-you...BIG difference from agnostic...


sP

[Lance_Boyle]

3. you describe a positive atheist position

the negative atheist position is precisely "just a lack of belief."

[ProdigalJunkMail]

5. not sure i get you...

i mean, at any given time you are either believing or not...a lack of belief is like a lack of thought...not really possible...

sP

[Lance_Boyle]

6. but isn't a lack of belief what you've called "agnosticism?"

Positive atheism is formulated thusly: I believe that there is no god.
Negative atheism is: I do not believe there is a god.
The two formulations mean different things. Negative atheism is often compared to agnosticism, which is also sort of incorrect, as agnosticism is more akin to either "I don't care whether there is a god or not" or "I am incapable of knowing whether there is a god or not."

[ProdigalJunkMail]

7. i see...

lack of belief is the terminology issue we are having.

"I do not believe there is a god." IS a belief.
"I believe that there is NO god." IS a belief.

So, in your terms, what I would have described as agnosticism is what you have described as negative atheism. So, in my book we're all good...as I cannot remember what I posted yesterday in this thread. :-)

sP

[rebel with a cause]

4. I don't put much stock in these polls, whatever, anyway.

There is no way to categorize people like this. I might say I was Baptist because I was raised as one, but I am far from being one now. My children were Baptized in the Catholic church, but they neither one are Catholic or any other religion. Spiritual belief is something I feel is personal and not something that you can or should make into a measurable substances.

But if there must be such a poll maybe the best way to put all of these in one category is not belonging to/believing in any organized/recognized religion.

Edited because I keep forgetting to use the spell checker.