Theists, Atheists & Agnostics
Religious Studies: KS3, topic 2.6.2
Theists, atheists & agnostics
Theists, atheists and agnostics are groups of people with different beliefs about the existence of God.
Theists
- The word 'theist' comes from the Greek word for God (theos).
- Theists are people who are certain that God exists.
- Some theists are certain God exists because philosophical arguments have convinced them that this is true.
- Other theists are certain because they say God has made himself known to them. So they have ‘faith’ that God exists.
Atheists
- Atheists have the opposite point of view to theists.
- Atheists are people who are certain that God does not exist for many reasons:
- Because they say that there is no evidence for the existence of God.
- Because they see the arguments against God’s existence as the only convincing arguments.
- And because science contradicts a great deal of what religious people believe.
Agnostics
- The word agnostic also comes from Greek.
- Agnostics are people who just aren’t sure what to believe.
- Agnostics may say that there is value in both sides of the argument.
- Agnostics may accept that science contradicts some religious beliefs about God.
- But, they also argue that it does not completely rule out the possibility that God exists.
Test yourself on Theists, Atheists & Agnostics
What do people who are agnostic believe?
For what three reasons do atheists not believe in God?