Apathetic agnosticism

Apathetic agnosticism, in its most widely acknowledged form, is a theological position put forward by John Tyrrell in 1965. Apathetic Agnosticism differs from Ignosticism, in that while Ignostics believe that the very question of God's existence or otherwise is meaningless, apathetic agnostics are aware of the question but apathetic about the answer, believing that regardless of whether or not a god or gods exist, this does not affect us, our universe or the human condition, and so need not greatly concern us. A similar viewpoint is adopted by so-called 'Born-Again Agnostics'; people who have in the past been curious about the existence or otherwise of God, but - having found no convincing case either way - have deliberately abandoned their quest as being pointless, in favour of an 'actively neutral' attitude.

The position can be summarized as: "There is no proof either of God's existence or nonexistence, but since God (if there is one) appears unconcerned for the universe or the welfare of its inhabitants, the question is largely academic".

In 1996, Mr. Tyrrell (almost unintentionally) founded the Universal Church Triumphant of the Apathetic Agnostic, or UCTAA, to share his ideas with the rest of the world.

Although not usually taking itself too seriously, the 'church' maintains that this particular thread of Agnosticism can itself be a positively-held belief, rather than just a vague 'default' name for undecided people drifting-about in the 'grey area' between Agnosticism and Atheism.

Current church membership is slightly over 10.000 people, and growing fast. Ordination is instantly available for those who sincerely hold this belief, and wish to spread the idea.

The church is a loose hierarchy - lower clergy are not under orders from higher-ranking members. The church "creed" is: "We don't know, and we don't care". Both serious theological thought and wry humour are equally valued â€" hence the church's deliberately over-blown name and the somewhat tongue-in-cheek "Articles of Faith".

Articles of "Faith"

1. The existence of a Supreme Being is unknown and unknowable.

To believe in the existence of a god is an act of faith. To believe in the nonexistence of a god is likewise an act of faith. There is no evidence that there is a Supreme Being nor is there evidence there is not a Supreme Being. Faith is not knowledge. We can only state with assurance that we do not know.

2. If there is a Supreme Being, then that being appears to act as if apathetic to events in our universe.

All events in our Universe, including its creation, can be explained with or without the existence of a Supreme Being. Thus, if there is indeed a God, then that god has had no more impact than no god at all. To all appearances, any purported Supreme Being is indifferent to our Universe and to its inhabitants.

3. We are apathetic to the existence or nonexistence of a Supreme Being.

If there is a God, and that God does not appear to care, then there is no reason to concern ourselves with whether or not a Supreme Being exists, nor should we have any interest in satisfying the purported needs of that Supreme Being. However, our apathy to the question of God's existence does not necessarily mean we are apathetic about promoting agnosticism.

External links

*http://apatheticagnostic.com/ (The Universal Church Triumphant of the Apathetic Agnostic)