First off, what is an agnostic? The way I explain it to people is an agnostic is somebody who believes that a high power exists, but does not believe in any religion that is out there. 

So, the question begs to be answered: Why are agnostics frowned upon? Whenever I tell somebody I am agnostic, they try to force some religion onto me, saying that I have to believe in something. 

Agnostics don't actually believe in a higher power. Nor do they believe that one doesn't exist. Their main belief is that the concepts of things like the actual creation of the Universe, possibility of Divine being/s, etc, is far beyond our possible grasp of understanding or even remotely knowing. So they are saying that they don't personally believe in a Divine being, but not stating that there definitely is not one. Not believing, but not denying the possibility.

I would say that one who is agnostic is frowned upon by theists because they see no difference between agnostic and atheist. There is a huge difference, but not as far as a theist is concerned.

rcarter2 : The way it was explained to me when I had to pick a religion when i joined the Army ( for burial purposes, if something were to happen to me ) is that agnostics believe there is something out there, they just do not believe in the Christian God, or any other gods for that matter. 

And it is always Christians that frown upon me... 

thing1 : Not surprising. As a whole, Christianity has become the most judgmental and pushy religion in this country. On top of that, add a high sense of superiority. Not all of Christianity is like that, but an overwhelming majority. That is why I am no longer a part of organized religion. Because Christianity is the most common religion here, they think that this is a "Christian Nation" and practically push for Theocracy where the Bible would be the law of the country.

I think it's more clear cut.

I don't think you're simply "agnostic". You're either an agnostic atheist, or an agnostic theist.

1. Someone believing in a higher power, but saying that the knowledge behind his/her assertion is unknowable is agnostic theist. (more like thing1's belief)

2. Someone with a lack of a belief in a higher power, and saying that it's unknowable whether god exists for certain is an agnostic atheist. (more like what rcarter2 stated)

3. Someone who knows for certain that God doesn't exist (with an active disbelief), and believes that it can be proved is a gnostic athiest.

4. Someone who knows for certain that God exists, and believes that it can be proved is a gnostic theist.

Most athiests are agnostic atheists, and most theists are gnostic theists.

These four categories are just the way I learned about it, and while it's pretty clear cut, I'm also pretty sure it's all-encompassing.

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With that out of the way.

I think it's due to a multitude of factors, like the ones mentioned.

But I'll also add that religious hate is almost always of ignorance and of misunderstanding the belief system.

rcarter2 : I hate that you think that Christianity has become 'the most judgmental and pushy religion in this country." I don't know if you've seen the news, but Christians who are actually trying to follow the Bible (think Chick-fil-a giving free food and water to the people who were standing outside the stores and protesting Chick-fil-a) aren't going to be the judgmental people you see. Remember, not everyone who claims that they are a Christian actually are. I know a lot of people who say they're Christians, but I am fairly certain that they are not. These are the people who give true Christians a bad name.

Let me put it this way. Did Jesus command us to go out and judge people, frown upon them, and be annoyingly pushy? No. We recognize that everyone is allowed to believe what they want, and the Bible also clearly states that Christians are to love each person to the extent that we love ourselves, or even past that. The people you're referring to are the people who either don't know what being a Christian is really supposed to look like, or isn't a Christian at all. It's either Ignorance, or impersonation.

Finally, I don't know any Christian who believes America is a Christian nation. It's incredibly obvious that the contrary is true. If America was a Christian nation, would porn be such a major industry? What about divorce? If America was a Christian nation, wouldn't we support Israel? Israel has been bombed countless times (including 365 bombs in 2 days recently), yet where is America? Certainly not defending Israel. Care to share how America looks Christian at all? I could go on, but I won't. America was founded upon Christian principles, yes (just look at who wrote it). However, it's quite obvious that this is no longer the case. How many people are you guys actually getting this info from?

In summary - The behavior that you two have described is inconsistent with the Christian behavior I've observed. Perhaps it's true within your circles, but TRUE Christianity doesn't involve Christians judging others, believing that we're superior, or that you are any lesser either. Also, I know exactly 0 Christians who think that America is primarily a Christian nation. That's an absurd thought for any Christian to have.

mrfe : Which is why I made sure to point out that not all were like that. But the fact of the matter is, even if someone is not following the teachings of Christianity, they aren't just excommunicated from their church. The churches still call them Christians. Kind of how over time, many groups are not the same as they once were. Such a large portion of people who are 'identified' as Christians are more than fine with passing judgement. It does give the Christians who follow the message a bad name, but it doesn't change the fact that those are the ones make up such a large part of the club.

I guess what I meant was not that "Christianity" itself is the most judgmental and pushy, but the ones who are the most pushy and judgmental identify as Christians.

As for the Christian Nation thing, I know far to many who do believe it. When the argument that this country should not be bias to Christianity, I CONSTANTLY hear the argument "This country was founded on Christianity/ Christian beliefs". Though that is completely untrue, I hear that dumb argument all the time. They say this is a Christian Nation and the divorce rates, pornography, etc. is just the Liberals "War on Christianity".

EideticMemory : Let me explain what I think a little more in detail then. 

I believe that there is some higher power. 
All of the religions do not make sense to me. 
Creation does not make sense to me. 
I do not believe in the *poof, there is a world* 
I do not believe in the science theory. 
I that something out there caused existence, but nothing out there makes sense. 

If you have some questions that you can ask me to help me figure out what exactly I am, then feel to ask me. 

rcarter2 : I agree. That is definitely true. Many people say that they're Christian, but obviously aren't. It gives others a bad reputation, and I've been cussed out simply because I mentioned my faith. People don't often enough take the time to get to know me, before judging me for my beliefs. This bad reputation is definitely to blame, and I don't disagree with anything you said in your first two paragraphs.

When I say 'Christian beliefs', I don't mean that they copied the Bible into the Constitution. I mean that many of the founding fathers professed Christianity, and that did spill over into the constitution to a degree.

Agnostic literally means "no knowledge", but that generally isn't what is meant by the phrase "agnostic".

Honestly, what nearly every "agnostic" I've met has told me is that really, they don't care. They're not true agnostics, they're simply apathetic.

So agnostics are frowned upon because the other party sees them as uncaring. "They don't even think about the consequences" will be a common answer from theists and atheists. It's like how political activists, either side of the board, frown on a person that flips a coin for their votes.

Note: I don't frown upon agnostics.

I think a good 90% of people claiming to be Christian are not Christian at all.  Saying someone is "Christian" seems to be akin to saying "He/she is white/black/yellow/purple."

That being said, I hate that people want to divide the hatred anyways.

I think every group out there views themselves as being 'frowned upon'.  I don't think any group is being frowned on more than any other group.  It's simply that... naturally... we victimize ourselves. We see the hatred WE are facing, and it seems a lot worse than hatred other groups are receiving.  Because it's personal and more intimate.

Therefore, answering the question "Why am I so frowned upon?" seems more self-pitying than anything else.  I think we've just been trained not to see it that way.

Singelli : Well, it is not a matter of self-pity. The point I was trying to make was that Agnostics get a lot more hate than belief or religion because we don't believe in anybody's religion or beliefs. That is just how I have been reading it. 

thing1 : Like I said, I think every group can say the same. haha. I've never seen Agnostic's get 'hatred' at all, but I've seen Christians get hatred.  I wonder why that is.  

The atheists too, think they get all the hatred.

It's a matter of how personable it is.
It's like we WANT to be hated.  Or we want to see hatred to somehow shed a light on ourselves.  I'm probably not doing a very good job at expressing my thoughts here.

I see a lot of you making more clear cut statements about Agnostics. But a "straight-up" Agnostic would more closely be following this definition: a person who believes that nothing is known or can be known of the existence or nature of God or of anything beyond material phenomena; a person who claims neither faith nor disbelief in God. Anything else beyond that is not pure Agnosticism. You can be on either side of the spectrum, but if you were a true Agnostic, you'd be in the dead center. 

I'd also like to point out the counterclaim that was used in regards to the attacks on Agnostics/Atheists. Many people that do not fall into these groups fail to see the disdain fired at the two groups rather frequently. There are also certain things that Atheists and Agnostics are barred from doing that people of say, the Christian faith, are not. There are certain states where you are not even allowed to hold public office if you do not have a set belief in a god. There are also plenty of Churches lining the streets, and there is "God" embedded on all the currency, and "God" is even in the pledge of allegiance, so Agnostics/Atheists are left in the dark, and kind of brushed aside. Having little representation, and not even being allowed to some of the time is really an attack/injustice in and of itself. I'm not really going anywhere with this, but I would just like to point it out. 

I identify as an agnostic. I don't know if there is a higher power. I'd like to know, but I'm probably never going to. Deciding to be theist or atheist would be lying to myself. That's what agnosticism is.

As far as theists go, I find that they usually consider me in the same batch as atheists.

thing1 : Same reason the Muslims and atheists are frowned upon, not discriminating) but the media and **ahem** Christians **ahem**  give them a bad rap, pardon me if I'm wrong though

The most judgement religious group that I have seen is also Christians. They judge other religions, they judge other sects of their own religion, they even judge other members of their own congregations for not being as Christian as they are (the Holier than thou attitude).

All religions have people like this. However, like rcarter said, it's the largest group in the country so statistically you are going to see more of them. Add on to that the recent trend of Christians using religious belief to discriminate against others, and you can see how these individuals are giving the entire religion a bad name. And just a quick note, the Bible was used to support slavery and racial segregation back in the day, but we all know now that it's wrong... just saying.

I have a friend who is perhaps the most devout Christian I have ever met in my life... I mean super devout. But he does not act like that, and their behavior appalls him. He doesn't use his beliefs to put others down, and he recognizes that what his Bible says and what the U.S. Constitution says will not always be the same thing, and he is fine with that. If more Christians were like him, I think that the world would be a better place. And I say this as a liberal Pagan.

sop281 : I think you hit the nail on the head.

thing1 : That's actually really easy to explain. First, what you were told about agnostics is right as far as I know. Second, an agnostic is a person that could convert to any religion in a religious person's eyes. If they convert you to their religion, they've saved you from a "wrong" religion.

Agnostics may be the smartest of us all. Agnosticism, by definition, is someone's mindset that the existence of a higher power cannot be proven nor disproven.

I myself am an atheist, because I believe that no higher power exists. But "believe" is the key word here. I am confident that God does not exist, but I cannot prove it with 100% certainty. I could die tonight and find myself awaiting judgment before God. On the contrary, a Christian is confident that God exists, but that also cannot be proven. The Christian could die tonight and find that he simply ceases to exist; that there is no afterlife at all.

Why someone with such a stable mindset would be rejected in society is beyond me. I hold agnostics in high regard.

Heh, all this talk of "right religions" and "wrong religions" reminds me of this video: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=123_1190395606&comments=1

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I personally don't frown on agnostics, but I don't want them to miss the opportunity to hear what I believe is true. Agnostics believe what they want, and I don't want to force anything down their throat. If I do so in any of my posts, just PM me and I will learn to not do so the next time. I would really appreciate it if you find something offensive to you in my posts! If I do sound like I "hate" agnostics, that is never my intention. I love them as I love my brother/ sister!