Is Agnosticism Reasonable?

I often tell people that if I had not had the personal experiences I’ve had that led me to Christian faith, I would think that agnosticism is the most reasonable position. I’ve said that because I’ve thought of it as simply claiming ignorance about what we don’t know, and most agnostics I’ve met have seemed to be humble and willing to have an open mind, like a young man named Scott I spoke with.

However, I was surprised when I revisited the definition of “agnostic” and found that the first definition given is a very presumptuous and arrogant one – “the view that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable.”

I call this presumptuous because it makes a dogmatic claim about God similar to the assertion atheists make that God doesn’t exist. The agnostic acknowledges he or she may not know everything about God, but is sure of one thing – that God is unknowable. It is also arrogant in its claim that all the people who do claim to know God are simply wrong.

My answer would be to say that while it is wise to take the approach that God is unknowable by our own efforts, it is also wise to be open to the idea that God would be knowable to us if he makes himself known, and that he could very well choose to do this through other people who know him as well.

The second definition of “agnostic” describes most people I’ve met who identify themselves as such: “one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god”. These are the people who basically just shrug their shoulders when it comes to religious faith and seem comfortable with a non-committal approach.

This too seems humble and open-minded until we realize a truth about non-commitment: not to decide is to decide. How long can someone continue in agnosticism before they become committed to non-commitment?

I think this was true of the Greeks that Paul spoke with in Athens in Acts 17. At first they seemed delightfully open minded: ““May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.”

But then we are given a side note that this openness to new ideas had become a way of life for them: “All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.”

In our information age, I believe we will always be presented with new ideas to consider, and the temptation will be to postpone commitment until we have heard them all. But dig a little deeper into the life and teachings of Jesus, and I also believe you will realize you need look no further.

But be warned, Jesus calls for radical commitment to his Lordship over every aspect of your life: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” It’s a call to commitment, to be willing to die to self as Jesus did.

Agnosticism sounds reasonable, and it may be for a time. But eventually we need to take a stand and be willing to die for something, or we’ll find that we really have nothing to live for. Not to decide is to decide.