Quote:
Originally Posted by SATCHMO
I actually made the opposite argument, that the term supernatural is contradictory in and of itself, and that I define what we perceive as being supernatural as being something that simply contradicts our current understanding of the nature of reality.
|
I'd go even further and claim that the term 'supernatural' is self-contradictory simply because it refers to a phenomenom that exceeds the natural laws, i.e. the laws of existence, i.e. existence itself, and thus something that simply cannot be, by definition. That is not to say, though, that there are things we as humans yet cannot explain and even seemingly contradict our current understanding of the laws of nature. But they are not supernatural, because obviously they occured and there is a nature-bound explanation to them as well.
Furthermore, and this is by no means directed particularily to you but rather a general statement, I as an atheist can't help but feel ever so slightly offended by the quite common notion of both theists and agnostics, that 'atheism is a belief as well'. Atheism is by definition the
absence of belief in a higher divinity and thus calling it a belief (or even worse, a religion, which happens) is nothing but a cheap trick to try to discredit the 'opponent' (in lack of a better word for the moment) by dragging the discussion onto a field on which the atheist simply cannot win, i.e. where the possibility of a prevalent divinity is assumed. For an atheist no such assumption can be made, by definition. Of course, the reasons for why one is claiming to be an atheist may vary, and some may be less thought over than others and some may even by close examination contradict the definition of atheism. That's a whole different story though, and subject to argumentation on basis of the assumtions behind those reasons.