Why do people have issues with me being agnostic?

That's why I am an apatheist, and you avoid these conversations all together.

If you don't have a belief in the existence of gods, you are an atheist whether you like the word or not.

Agnostic is from the Greek words, "a", meaning "without", and "gnosis", which means "knowledge". It means you are without knowledge of the nature of god (existent or not existent). It can also mean that one is claiming the nature of god is unknowable. Whichever way your use that word, it says nothing about what you "believe". So what do you believe? If you cannot honestly say you believe there is a god, you are an atheist. If you can honestly say you do believe there is a god, you are a theist of some kind.

Religious is not the antonym of atheist, theist is. There are non-theistic religions.

I am an agnostic atheist (don't know, don't believe). Agnostic is not a stand alone term. There is no fence between believing and not believing.

EDIT: one reason some people get annoyed with you calling yourself an agnostic is because you are giving only a half answer to the question. And if someone asks you, "do you believe there is a god", and you reply with, "I don't know if there is a god", you aren't answering the question that was asked. In addition, it is kind of irritating that some people who have no belief in god and call themselves solely agnostic belittle other people who have no belief in god and call themselves atheists. That's rather ludicrous, is it not? Plus, it's bothersome to some people when language is misused or poorly used.

EDIT 2: It is irksome when a few people decide to make up definitions for commonly used words and expect everyone else to automatically know what they mean when they use the words and accept that their new definitions carry more weight than the definition in use by millions of people. I see by your additional details that you still either don't understand the difference between "knowledge" and "belief", or you have your own definition for those words as well.

Whatever you believe IS your choice. If you don't believe anything, then you're undecided and haven't made a choice. However, you aren't using the word properly which might be part of the problem. Agnostic is an adjective, not a noun. It's not possible to be just an agnostic.

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Theist: I believe in god.

Atheist: I don't believe in god.

Agnostic theist: I accept that god cannot be proven or disproven, and it may remain that way forever, but I personally believe that god exists.

Agnostic atheist: I accept that god cannot be proven or disproven, and it may remain that way forever, but I personally believe that god does not exist.

Gnostic theist: I KNOW God is real and that's a fact.

Gnostic atheist: I KNOW God is not real and that's a fact.

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-edit-

"I don't care" in regards to theism is called apatheism. So that's the correct label (even if labels aren't your thing). Labels can be annoying, but also save you from a lengthy explanation.

I could tell people, "Although gods cannot be proven or disproven, and that may never change, I personally do not believe that a god exists" ... or I could just say, "I'm an agnostic atheist" ... just saves time.

Well, "atheist or religious" is a false dichotomy, as there are atheists who follow atheistic religions (such as some sects of Buddhism).

You are, however, either an atheist or a theist. "Do you believe in a god?" is a yes or no question. You might also be agnostic, which is an epistemological position that I share, but you still either believe in a deity or don't. If you don't, you're an atheist.

My problem with many self-described agnostics is that they don't even seem to know what being agnostic means. It's not the middle ground between atheism and theism. It's a position on knowledge, on what we can know and justify. Theism is a belief, and atheism is just the absence of that belief.

@Snow Fox

> "If I was an atheist then I would believe he doesn't exist" <

Generally taken, that isn't what atheism is, so Michelle isn't wrong. You are simply mistaken.

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@Kai Kiki

> "they're just telling me what an agnostic is" <

Well, you don't seem to know, so correcting your misunderstanding seems like a reasonable first step.

> "my question is more of a : Why do I have to choose?" <

Even if you don't choose, and regardless of what you're willing to admit it, you still either believe in a god or don't. To phrase it as a statement, "I believe in a god" is either true or not true.

I would go so far as to say you don't really choose what to believe. Rather, you choose how to think about things, which in turn produces your beliefs. If you're a poor thinker, you're more likely to have a poor handle on reality. If you're a critical thinker, you're at least less likely to be duped by illogical, evidence-lacking claims.

Wow, where to start....

The opposite of being religious is not atheist, and atheist is not the opposite of being religious.

Agnostic is not some mid point between atheism and theism.

Agnostic is not some mid point between religious and non religious.

An agnostic doesn't claim to know, but DOES either believe in a personal god, or doesn't. There is no midpoint on belief.

If someone says "do you believe this?" The answer "I don't know" is irrelevant, you weren't asked what you know, you were asked what you believe.

"I honestly don't think most people even know what agnostic means"

Yup, and seemingly you're one of them.

Now, please try again.

Honestly, how can so many people think belief is the same as knowledge?

It doesn't matter that you don't KNOW you'll be alive in 24 hours, but you DO either believe it or you don't, there's no mid point.

What you know and what you believe are two separate variables. That means four possibilities.

Everyone falls between two points on this cross.

Because it's a neutral position and, people feel like you are being indecisive and playing it safe. Honestly sometimes I have my uncertainties but I feel as though there is most likely a God so when people ask I say yes I believe because I do do I ever doubt? Of course I think everyone on both sides doubts but, is it to the extent where I am going to deny God or wear my insecurities as a label? No because the doubt is reasonable and, my faith is way stronger than my doubt. Honestly I don't have anything against agnostics I used to call myself one and I was one but, I feel like I have gotten closer to God even in times of anger. It's okay that you're unsure you are being honest and you are being yourself if it makes others uncomfortable that's their problem not yours. People are annoyed by agnostic too because of dogma and, they don't want someone to remind them of that side of them they want to forget but, are too arrogant to admit.

Being agnostic is more logical than being atheist and of course than being religious, those people claim they know something they couldn't possibly know.

Don't worry about what they say, you don't even have to give a ****** **** about religion.

Because the question do you believe in a god has two answers, yes and no.

Yes=theist

No=atheist

Gnostic, agnostic deal with absolute knowledge.

I know there is/isn't a god=gnostic

I don't know if there is a god=agnostic

Everyone is one of each group.

Because they define atheist as "not theist" and it makes sense to do so.

You can't "neither believe nor disbelieve".

If you are 'agnostic' about parallel universes, then you do not believe in parallel universes, even if you say 'there's not enough information to make a decision.

An agnostic is a person who is keeping his options open, but is currently unmotivated to search out what his/her specific beliefs are. In reality, you are apathetic about the existence of God. Your middle-of-the-road position as an agnostic really means you are straddling the fence, and you really don't care about either side. You may be content with that for now, but sooner of later, you WILL be forced to make a choice, or the choice will be made for you.

Revelation 3:14-22 addresses your specific situation.

Surprise but you do have to choose. Not by word of mouth but by how you live your life. And you do have to live your life.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ edit

Let me explain. Do you have a moral code; a means of telling right from wrong? If you do, I presume you chose it for yourself which means that you "assume as true" (i.e. believe) that God doesn't already have a universal morality that He expects us to live by.

Do you have a purpose in life; a reason for living? I hope you do and I presume you chose it for yourself which means that you "assume as true" (believe) that God didn't already give you a purpose in life.

You're usurped the authority of God and you believe that it is safe to do so.