IS AGNOSTICISM HUMBLE?

Wearing a confident grin, my friend Bob proclaimed, “I’m not saying that there is a God, and I’m not saying that there isn’t a God. There is just no way of knowing.”

Bob was convinced that his defenses were impregnable. He knew that atheism was indefensible, since there is no evidence against God’s existence. But he didn’t realize that he had made an indefensible claim that there is no way of knowing. To make this claim he would have to debunk every possible evidence to the contrary - an impossible task.

In contrast, for personal, theological, logical, and even scientific reasons I am confident that God does exist. However, it was apparent that Bob wasn’t amenable to an examination of the evidence.

Although this hadn’t been Bob’s rationale, many agnostics have chosen agnosticism because they are convinced that not-knowing is humble, while claiming to know something about God is arrogant.

But is it arrogant? Scientists write books about consciousness, the origin of life, and sub-atomic particles, and other esoteric subjects, which I regard as far more speculative than the question of God’s existence. However, I wouldn’t call them arrogant or humble for writing these books.

Instead, arrogance and humility reflect more about the heart of the person than about their truth claims. Let me try to illustrate. If Albert Einstein was asked if he had a gift for science, and he answered “no,” this wouldn’t make him humble but perhaps deceptively humble. If instead, he answered “yes,” this wouldn’t mean that he was arrogant, but merely factually accurate.

Likewise, identifying oneself as an agnostic is neither a matter of arrogance or humility. However, it might mask a false humility, as if to say, “Look how honest and smart I am” or “I am free from the need to know one way or another, but you need God as a crutch.”

Nevertheless, Bob is correct that I do need to know that there is an all-loving, just, and all-powerful. Knowing Him means that I can now know myself and why I am here. He fills my life with purpose and provides a bulwark against the pains and fears that seek to devour me.

We are made to serve Someone greater than ourselves. Without Christ, I would have to find a substitute - an idealistic cause, a charismatic figure-head, or to fight the endless battle to prove my worthiness and value to the world. I would be enslaved to do good deeds, whether the recipients needed them or not, whether these deeds would profit them or not.

The Bible promises that if we seek God with all of our heart and soul, we will be found by Him. However, few will persevere. Perhaps it is easier for Bob to deny that we can find a God who we rightly sense has an exclusive claim over our lives and everything He has created.