Agnostic Quote by Richard Dawkins
““It is often said, mainly by the 'no-contests', that although there is no positive evidence for the existence of God, nor is there evidence against his existence. So it is best to keep an open mind and be agnostic. At first sight that seems an unassailable position, at least in the weak sense of Pascal's wager. But on second thoughts it seems a cop-out, because the same could be said of Father Christmas and tooth fairies. There may be fairies at the bottom of the garden. There is no evidence for it, but you can't prove that there aren't any, so shouldn't we be agnostic with respect to fairies?””
About This Quote
Source Book: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, 2006
The argument claims agnosticism is reasonable when evidence is lacking, but points out that this logic could also apply to mythical beings, suggesting the stance may be a convenient avoidance of belief.
In simple terms: Agnosticism may be a loophole when evidence is absent.
Key Takeaway
Question the consistency of applying agnosticism to all claims.
Themes
philosophy
epistemology
skepticism
Mood
critical
inquisitive
Type
analytical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- debates about religion
- discussions on mythology
- scientific skepticism
- personal belief systems
Key Concepts
belief
evidence
burden of proof
Questions to Reflect On
- Is agnosticism a useful principle or a default excuse?
- How do we differentiate between reasonable doubt and denial?
A Different Perspective
It may ignore practical differences between testable claims and fantastical ones.
![“Well it's fairly straightforward: there isn't one [a god]. And there's no evidence for one, no reason to believe that there is one, and so I don't believe that there is one. And I think that it is rather foolish that people do think that there is one.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/04e/anonymous-1_atheism_well-it-s-fairly-straightforward-there-i_2268045.jpg)
