"not *believing* in God, NOT believing there isn't a God."
but, since belief is defined as:
1. Assent to a proposition or affirmation, or the acceptance of a fact, opinion, or assertion as real or true, without immediate personal knowledge; reliance upon word or testimony; partial or full assurance without positive knowledge or absolute certainty; persuasion; conviction; confidence; as, belief of a witness; the belief of our senses. (dictionary.com)
wouldnt not believing in a god mean you do not think said god exists. so when you are not believing in god you are also believing there is no said god, because belief denotes acknowledged existence. One cant say, "Well, there is a god, but i dont believe in him". that is just blatant contradiction. you could say that you dont believe anything (nihlism), but you obviously believe you exist to some degree and you have some sort of code of ethics. everything that one holds to be true is a belief. In any case, your two statements are the same and to say that one is true (ie you believe it to be true) and one isnt is like saying "This sentence is false." and just tends to be annoying.
you COULD get more specific and say that you dont believe in the Judeo-Christian God, but that hardly makes you an athiest, it just makes you a pagan(in the classical sense).
Slashdot Mirror
much better explanation. my need for clarification is satisfied.
"not *believing* in God,
NOT believing there isn't a God."
but, since belief is defined as:
1. Assent to a proposition or affirmation, or the acceptance of a fact, opinion, or assertion as real or true, without immediate personal knowledge; reliance upon word or testimony; partial or full assurance without positive knowledge or absolute certainty; persuasion; conviction; confidence; as, belief of a witness; the belief of our senses. (dictionary.com)
wouldnt not believing in a god mean you do not think said god exists. so when you are not believing in god you are also believing there is no said god, because belief denotes acknowledged existence. One cant say, "Well, there is a god, but i dont believe in him". that is just blatant contradiction. you could say that you dont believe anything (nihlism), but you obviously believe you exist to some degree and you have some sort of code of ethics. everything that one holds to be true is a belief. In any case, your two statements are the same and to say that one is true (ie you believe it to be true) and one isnt is like saying "This sentence is false." and just tends to be annoying.
you COULD get more specific and say that you dont believe in the Judeo-Christian God, but that hardly makes you an athiest, it just makes you a pagan(in the classical sense).