Normal Heights Welcomes Nation’s First Agnostic Church

This article is quite pivotal in showing one of the problems with agnosticism, that is, the negative energy that some give off when it comes to being disrespectful to Christianity. By acting this way, people are a lot more apt to pushing the buttons of the people around them due to their less than respectful nature. The article also explains just what the church is doing and the facts surrounding it quite well, thus giving a better picture of what exactly is going on. There is a photo in the article as well that is a great example of the disrespect of this church, as it shows a bible with the MadLibs logo on it, implying that it's fictional. All in all, this is a great article to help identify the point that there are many who are less than understanding to others who are religious.

"Normal Heights Welcomes Nation’s First Agnostic Church." SD Headliner Recent San Diego News Headlines Normal Heights Welcomes Nations First Agnostic Church Comments. N.p., 24 Feb. 2009. Web. 07 Apr. 2013.

This article that I read really interested me, as it dealt directly with the issue that I'm dealing on, namely how to keep from being "hated on" as an agnostic. I think the author makes a lot of good points of how there are quite a few people who could be considered negative examples of agnostics in our current society. The author then goes on to talk about how we may be able to work on this, such as educating or just simply shutting up when it comes to speaking on the idea of religion. The author speaks directly as well abpout his reception by others on the fact of his religious ideologies, which there are not many authors who delve directly into that territory.

Scalzi, John. "Agnosticism Without Pain." Whatever. N.p., 8 Feb. 2012. Web. 07 Apr. 2013.

Bombing at the Box Office: Reviewers’ Responses to Agnosticism in Bill Maher’s Religulous

This article is much different than the last, in that this is showing the reverse of giving agnostics a better name, in fact, making them look quite angry and spiteful. The article goes on to talk about how reviewers did not look positively upon Bill Maher's "Religilous" simply because of the biased agnostic tones. This article shows exactly how many agnostics move the idea in the exact wrong way, making other agnostics look bad in the process. With this kind of article in place, it helps agnostics better understand why exactly the general public may not have a great opinion on them, specifically because there are people like Bill Maher that give them a bad name.

Moore, Rick Clifton. "Bombing at the Box Office: Reviewers’ Responses to Agnosticism in Bill Maher’s Religulous." Journal of Media and Religion (2011): 91+. Print.

Atheist, agnostic groups gain acceptance on campus

Reading this article has helped restore some faith in how people are responding to outward agnostics in the general mainstream. The article states that basically the number of agnostics in the area had grown, as well as the number of people who were polled to understand the worth of agnostics more so. This article is important to the whole of everything my argument is about because it shows how some college kids and anyone else interested in agnosticism to form a positive bond and put it towards creating a better public view of themselves.It also is a way that makes it easier for the agnostic people themselves to become more confident in themselves and their beliefs.

Gorski, Eric. "Atheist, Agnostic Groups Gain Acceptance on Campus." Abilene Reporter-News. N.p., 28 Nov. 2009. Web. 25 Mar. 2013.

Interview Post

The first person I thought of, when I decided to do my paper on agnosticism, was my father. I was raised in an open household and he had always taught me that it was ok to believe whatever you believed, even if not popular. For this reason alone I interviewed my father, a life long agnostic who will openly admit it to anyone who was to ask.

The first question I asked my father was when he decided or realized that he was an agnostic.My dad replied that from a young age he was not really into church, however he did in fact have some beliefs that aligned themselves with the church. As he grew older he thought more about it and became more in tune with his leanings, soon becoming a full fledged believer in the idea of agnosticism. Obviously this did not happen overnight, it took several years of reading books and talking to people to really make up his mind on the subject, but once he had, it was clear that the ideas that agnosticism provided, were directly correlating with those that he had had since he was quite young.

The next question that I asked my dad more directly related to the exact issue of the paper that I'm writing, that being "Have you ever had a negative encounter/reaction to your agnosticism?" My father kind of paused for a minute to really think about the question, then replied with a simple yes. When I asked to elaborate he told me a story about his parent's friend who just happened to have been a priest, who was taken aback when he brought up something about my dad's ideals. In a nutshell of what happened, my dad was having dinner with his parents and their friend when the idea of agnosticism came up. My dad identified himself as agnostic in the conversation and the priest was quick to jump on him. While it wasn't necessarily mean, the remarks about not being "holy" were a little unwarranted and one of the most negative responses he's ever heard. 

The last real question I asked my dad was whether this exact ideal set had ever hindered him in any other ways. This question was answered rather swiftly with a quick no. He said that most people don't really find out so it's not especially an issue.

All in all, I think this interview helped me better understand the lifelong implications socially that this belief set may have on mine and many other people's lives.

Guest Post

Caleb, Here's my Guest post for you;

Caleb Goding is a 19-year-old freshmen, although he may look the age of 20 or 21, attending college at Millikin University. Caleb grew up in the southern suburbs of Chicago, and moved into the northwest of Chicago by the time he was ready for high school. The high school that he did attend was a catholic military school that his parents had chosen for him. The school offered a lacrosse team, which Caleb had joined and loved, but when he came to Millikin, there was no team to be found.

Growing up, Caleb had Catholicism pushed upon him, he was forced to believe in something, he may or may not have wanted. Having something pushed upon you is never fun, and usually makes you not want to ever go back to that topic. This was exactly what Caleb felt. He had been forced into going to this school and probably even church his whole life and wanted a way out. This is where agnosticism came into play. It was a great way to ‘classify’ himself whenever people asked what religion he was. People probably made fun or judged him in his past, which brought up this issue to him specifically.

Today, Caleb grows up even more away from his parents, to explore his own beliefs, whether he sticks to agnosticism or maybe even goes back to his parents ways, is his choice now. His parents can no longer shove their beliefs down his throat, and he is free to choose whatever he may choose at the end of the day.

Emily Talbott

Lingering at the Fringes

This story tells the exact opposite of the first that I have discussed on agnosticism. This is the view that I usually see in my day to day life, that being people seeing me as taking "the easy way" out. The article is damning in the sense that it's exactly most people's opinions; that agnosticism is a cop out for people who are too afraid to make a stand on what they believe in. It's obvious that the author is very negative towards the subject, as it is a Christian blog.

Simplifying our Language

This article was interesting to me because it gave a different view on agnosticism. One of the big points that it brings up is the fact that it's nothing more than a label on someone's thoughts and ideas, not necessarily how one should be judged. The article also notes that many people lump both atheists and agnostics together, thus    making further insinuations about people, as atheists and agnostics are not the same, people still see them as one in the same. This quick generalization makes it very difficult to shake any sort of idea that one would have about the character of an agnostic.