Is it bad to be an agnostic? (page 2)

the dreamer dreaming

as an agnostic I can say, I believe there is an ultimate reality with a true nature and that I have found no way to tell what that is...and dont believe anyone else has either...and that is honest.

I have met plenty who claim to KNOW that God is real....how? by faith! they tell me... to which I respond that is not knowledge, that is pretending to know what you only believe....or lying.

a true man of faith can be an agnostic, ie, honest.

you can have FAITH in God without pretending to KNOW you are right.

your experience of God does not mean it WAS God...the experience was REAL but your belief about it does not follow just because you have a FEELING of certainty and another belief that this feeling could not be wrong.

blueviceroy

I had a friend who taught me a lot about life he was about 15 years older than me and was a bit of a mentor he said once" Feelings arent facts" he also said "because we feel something doesnt mean we have to act on that feeling" those words freed me from some of the worst behavior and mental traps that I suffered from but they also posed a whole set of questions that disrupted my world view like " If I'm not the center of the universe what is?" hence my jouney to REAL humility began and the casting off of old notions like " I know God and he knows me" With humilty comes the understanding that we dont have any answers not even one and if someone says they have the answers they are a LIAR and a FAKE all we have are ideas and an idea can not be proven but only the outcome of the idea can be proved . Maybe I'm rambling but people falling under the sway of an IDEA or a FEELING are living an unexamined life and I'm sure we all know the value of that.

wings

"Reality is what is still there when you stop believeing in it" that was the quote of the day on my msn page one day last week.

I feel so much like you. Sometimes I can feel like I am getting close to God.....most of time I feel like a looser XJW. As I move farther down this path I hope to find a more comfortable place within the mystery of it all....you know....not needing to KNOW EVERYTHING, UNDERSTAND EVERYTHING, just be content with the knowledge and experience I gain along the way. And most of all, I want to appreciate creation...life....and....love.

ex-nj-jw

Hey blue,

I read your thread 4 times and after reading I sat and thought. I can relate to almost everything you wrote. The only thing I feel different about is being created. I can't say that I know I was created. When I see a beautiful sunset or I look at pictures that the hubble telescope has taken I think "wow, that is amazing". How did all of this happen?

I don't think you are wrong or bad for the way you feel. Everyone is entitled to the way they feel, their faith or lack of faith. I sometimes think that this life is all there is and I'm ok with that, I feel that I have had a good life. I don't really care for the choices my parents made for me but, I do think that they "thought" they were doing the best for me and my siblings. They had and still don't have any idea the impact of being raised the way we were had and in a way still has on us.

All you can do is try to move on, at your own pace. Sometimes we have to take baby steps and sometimes we can jump. Some of us move on at a different paces and I'm glad that JWD is here so that we can help each other to move on, to give a shoulder (or an ear) to cry on. To support each other and just be here to comfort, especially to those who have lost everyone in their lives as a result of this cult.

nj

onacruse

ex-nj-jw:

I can't say that I know I was created. When I see a beautiful sunset or I look at pictures that the hubble telescope has taken I think "wow, that is amazing". How did all of this happen?

That is perhaps the very best definition of "agnosticism" that I have ever seen. At the very least, it is the best definition of agnosticism insofar as my own "cruse" through life has led me.

To put a broad brush to the picture: You can't know anything until you know everything, and as our own physical existence as mere bags of salt and water and a few minerals indicates, we are not in a personal position to absolutely determine anything.

And every word I've used in this post is proof positive of this negative.

worldtraveller

Unless you were there at the beginning of time, how could anyone actually have their facts straight? Agnostic simply stated is just an open mind. Better than being brainwashed, better than assuming a totally athiest viewpoint. When you find reality you will be fully able to accept it!

Gopher

Agnostic simply stated is just an open mind. Better than being brainwashed, better than assuming a totally athiest viewpoint.

I see it differently. Agnosis is common to everyone -- nobody living on earth can scientifically prove or disprove a god, i.e., nobody knows FOR SURE. We're all agnostic. Even close-minded people (on either side of the argument) don't know for sure.

There are open-minded people who choose to believe for various reasons, and there are are open-minded people who choose to not believe in god because they are skeptical.

Those who assert their agnosticism are indeed honest, but they haven't taken a position on an important question in life - do they or do they not wish to live their life with the constraints and/or perceived advantages of belief in a god?

OUTLAW

It`s worked for me..LOL!!...OUTLAW

The-Borg

I believe we were created . I believe life has a purpose. I believe I will never find the ultimate truth and I'm ok with that . I believe Im glad I am alive and posting on this site.

Great post, I feel the same.

Is it bad to be an agnostic?

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