My annoyance with agnosticism

[Unveiled Artist]

If five million people told you, you had an adopted mother you never met; and a group of people who met her, and wrote about her, what reason do you have to consider the claim true?

If you knew all your life you have one biological mother, why would you be say "I dont know if I also have an adopted mother"?

Of course, you dont know. Any person could be your adopted mother if you took the claim serious enough to look into it.

As an adult, why cant you say "that is false. I do not have an adopted mother. I know more about my family than you" instead of saying "okay. If all of you say so and it is written by others not related to my family, I will consider it if I had evidence but for now I dont know?

I know you are going to translate this to a god-question. Please dont. If there is evidence you have an adopted mother, it would be a fact. God does not work that way. God existence is not based on factual evidence.​

Since I am talking about a person of flesh and blood (adopted mother Not god) why would you consider you have an adopted mother (even if you dont know) if your reality and upbringing says you dont, the book you read about her isnt written by her family members, and the thousands of people who claim she is your mother do not know your mother personally?

Why not say "you are wrong" And let it be?

 

[Sunstone]

What, if anything, has the OP to do with religious agnosticism?

 

[Deidre]

I think that agnosticism as I've come to understand it, deals more with the knowledge of a deity. No one can ''know'' with certainty or not whether a deity exists, although I feel I do know. But, my ''knowing'' is subjective. Atheism is more of a place or position of belief, or in this case, lack of belief. You can be an agnostic atheist, and simply say without sounding confusing...''I don't personally believe that a god exists, but I don't know for sure.''

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Getting all upset whenever someone acts or thinks differently from the way you think they should act or think is a surefire recipe 4 a frustrating life ...

 

[Unveiled Artist]

What, if anything, has the OP to do with religious agnosticism?

Religious agnosticism?

I'm just asking "if something is not true, why say you don't know."

If you know you do not have an adopted mother, thousands of people say you do, and people who are not related to this mother wrote about her in a book, can you say "you are wrong" or because there is no evidence to prove the claim wrong, do you consider their claim (saying "I don't know) because it's a strong claim even though there is nothing that supports it?

 

[Unveiled Artist]

I think that agnosticism as I've come to understand it, deals more with the knowledge of a deity. No one can ''know'' with certainty or not whether a deity exists, although I feel I do know. But, my ''knowing'' is subjective. Atheism is more of a place or position of belief, or in this case, lack of belief. You can be an agnostic atheist, and simply say without sounding confusing...''I don't personally believe that a god exists, but I don't know for sure.''

That makes sense but the OP isn't about a deity.

If thousands of people say that you have an adopted mother, and you believe because your upbringing and reality tells you otherwise that you don't, would you consider their claim true (be a theist, if one likes), consider that you don't know (an agnostic), or say they are wrong-you believe otherwise (atheist)?

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Getting all upset whenever someone acts or thinks differently from the way you think they should act or think is a surefire recipe 4 a frustrating life ...

How does this relate to the OP?

I just came back from eating, listening to music, and happy that I did my prayers etc. This isn't a big deal. So, how does this relate?

 

[Nietzsche]

Am I just dumb, or are there others having trouble trying to make heads or tails of this?

 

[Sunstone]

Religious agnosticism?

You posted your thread in the Religious Debates section. I'm having a hard time understanding what your thread has to do with religion?

 

[Unveiled Artist]

You posted your thread in the Religious Debates section. I'm having a hard time understanding what your thread has to do with religion?

I should have posted in philosophy or something like that. It's concerning the question of "why say you are agnostic about something you know is false." But I know people would put religious terms to it so if you all want to replace adopted mother with god, you can. I just think it will make the question bias.

 

[Kuzcotopia]

That makes sense but the OP isn't about a deity.

If thousands of people say that you have an adopted mother, and you believe because your upbringing and reality tells you otherwise that you don't, would you consider their claim true (be a theist, if one likes), consider that you don't know (an agnostic), or say they are wrong-you believe otherwise (atheist)?

As a nonbeliever, I'd like to respond, but I'm not sure I'm grasping your hypothetical situation here, or it's relevance.

Edit: Wait, does the person you believe to be your actual mother make this claim too?

 

[Unveiled Artist]

As a nonbeliever, I'd like to respond, but I'm not sure I'm grasping your hypothetical situation here, or it's relevance.

I didn't want to put god in it since god-agnostic threads try to base itself on an assumption that god can be proven if evidence is asked for.

The OP is from the religious person's perspective. Many believers feel god, if one likes, is a fact and they have evidence for it. That's not my debate; but, if I were to make "god" flesh and blood-an adopted mother-and take out the supernatural and just focus on the equation, it just means "why say you don't know something is true if your reality and upbringing tells you otherwise?"

Aka: Why say you don't know god (adopted mother) is real if your upbringing and reality tells you otherwise? Why can't you just say "it's false" and let it be?

Since god is not meant to be proven by facts, it's irrelevant to the question. So, I'm just going for the "idea" of why say you don't know something your reality says is false.

It's somewhat of a philosophical or a conceptual question.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Replace adopted mother for hard polytheist Hindu god Vishnu. Making it religious for sake of forum. If your reality and upbringing tells you that Vishnu doesn't exist, why say you don't know (be agnostic) why not just say "you're wrong" or that' not what I know is true? (regardless if a thousand people said Vishnu exists and it is written in a book)

 

[Willamena]

Perhaps the people who say that they don't know are being honest.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Wait, does the person you believe to be your actual mother make this claim too?

Oh. That puts a twist to it. Uum. We could, but then you'd have a good reason since you trust her. I'd say no.

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Perhaps the people who say that they don't know are being honest.

But in this case, their upbringing says it is false. Why would they contradict themselves and say they don't know? Unless they are doubting-then I can see that. Different from agnostic position.

 

[Deidre]

That makes sense but the OP isn't about a deity.

If thousands of people say that you have an adopted mother, and you believe because your upbringing and reality tells you otherwise that you don't, would you consider their claim true (be a theist, if one likes), consider that you don't know (an agnostic), or say they are wrong-you believe otherwise (atheist)?

The term ''agnostic'' typically only pertains to the super natural, beyond the material, etc. Like I wouldn't say ''I'm rather agnostic if Trump will make a good President.''

 

[Unveiled Artist]

The term ''agnostic'' typically only pertains to the super natural, beyond the material, etc. Like I wouldn't say ''I'm rather agnostic if Trump will make a good President.''

Maybe it's more someone says "Trump is a great president."

Atheist "I don't believe he is"
Theist "I believe he is"
Agnostic "No one can prove either way since we don't know"

Basing it on the concept if "I know it is true; I don't know it's true; I know it's not true."

I can't think of other words. But the analogy was a god-analogy I just wanted to see if it can be answered without the bias of god attached to it. Answered based on the concept of knowing rather than focused on "whether god exists" or evidence for him.