Agnostic atheism
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Agnostic atheism is the philosophy that encompasses both atheism and agnosticism. Due to definitional variance, an agnostic atheist does not believe in God or gods and by extension holds true one or more of these statements:
- The existence and nonexistence of deities is absolutely or currently unknowable.
- Knowledge of the existence and nonexistence of deities is irrelevant or unimportant.
- Abstention from claims of knowledge of the existence and nonexistence of deities is optimal.
While the concepts of atheism and agnosticism occasionally overlap, they are distinct because atheism is generally defined as a condition of being without theistic beliefs while agnosticism is usually defined as an absence of knowledge (or any claim of knowledge); therefore, an agnostic person may also be either an atheist, a theist, or one who endorses neither position.
Also, one may hold a position of Agnostic Theism in which one disavows knowledge of God's existence, but chooses to believe in God in spite of this.