Gypsy, I understand the distinction you're making. However the reason I link the two, Atheist and Agnostic, is because many critics of Agnostic creed ascertain that at its core it is still a form of disbelief. For example,
The Case Against God, the authors argument against agnostic theism is that it is contradictory to state that a being is inherently or currently unknowable, and yet positively assert a belief in its existence. He argues:
"One cannot possibly know that something exists without some knowledge of what it is that exists."
I agree with the author because how can a person be called a “believer” if he has knowledge of what or who he truly believes in.
This is why in Islam, knowledge comes before faith or submission – blind faith is unacceptable. This is why the Qur’an (God) said:
“So know that there is no god but Allah…” (Qur’an 47:19)
Knowledge in fact precedes faith. Knowledge leads to ones submission, through submission and good deeds, faith is planted into the heart.
Early converts used to say “We Believe” – and the response was:
“….Say: You do not believe but say, We submit; for the faith has not yet entered into your hearts; and if you obey God and His Messenger, He will not diminish aught of your deeds; surely God is Forgiving, Merciful. (Qur’an 49:14)
So in fact we say true faith is something God writes on the heart upon ones submission, through knowledge and seeking of the truth, and we say blind faith without knowledge is not acceptable.
Likewise, we say that the people of disbelief won’t be criticized merely for disbelief, but criticized for not using their intellect, contemplating, or giving sincere thought to such a deep topic.
They will say: "Yes indeed; a Warner did come to us, but we rejected him and said, ‘God never sent down any (Message)…They will further say: "Had we but listened or used our intelligence, we should not (now) be among the Companions of the Blazing Fire!" (Qur'an 67:9-10)
If anyone is interested in learning more, with an open mind of course, please drop me a line :)
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You can find me on facebook. Amar Chaudhary, location, Qatar.
"I’d say in a given week I probably only do about 15 minutes of real actual work." - Peter, Office Space
Gypsy, I understand the distinction you're making. However the reason I link the two, Atheist and Agnostic, is because many critics of Agnostic creed ascertain that at its core it is still a form of disbelief. For example,
The Case Against God, the authors argument against agnostic theism is that it is contradictory to state that a being is inherently or currently unknowable, and yet positively assert a belief in its existence. He argues:
"One cannot possibly know that something exists without some knowledge of what it is that exists."
I agree with the author because how can a person be called a “believer” if he has knowledge of what or who he truly believes in.
This is why in Islam, knowledge comes before faith or submission – blind faith is unacceptable. This is why the Qur’an (God) said:
“So know that there is no god but Allah…” (Qur’an 47:19)
Knowledge in fact precedes faith. Knowledge leads to ones submission, through submission and good deeds, faith is planted into the heart.
Early converts used to say “We Believe” – and the response was:
“….Say: You do not believe but say, We submit; for the faith has not yet entered into your hearts; and if you obey God and His Messenger, He will not diminish aught of your deeds; surely God is Forgiving, Merciful. (Qur’an 49:14)
So in fact we say true faith is something God writes on the heart upon ones submission, through knowledge and seeking of the truth, and we say blind faith without knowledge is not acceptable.
Likewise, we say that the people of disbelief won’t be criticized merely for disbelief, but criticized for not using their intellect, contemplating, or giving sincere thought to such a deep topic.
They will say: "Yes indeed; a Warner did come to us, but we rejected him and said, ‘God never sent down any (Message)…They will further say: "Had we but listened or used our intelligence, we should not (now) be among the Companions of the Blazing Fire!" (Qur'an 67:9-10)
If anyone is interested in learning more, with an open mind of course, please drop me a line :)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
You can find me on facebook. Amar Chaudhary, location, Qatar.
"I’d say in a given week I probably only do about 15 minutes of real actual work." - Peter, Office Space