Show THE WORD AGNOSTIC A correspondent asks the following questions when was the word agnostic first Arst used and by whom and what does it really mean to commence with the last lad question the word agnostic la Is greek derived from the verb to know and the particle a corresponding with the english un or iv iu in words like unwise inhuman etc according to its derivation the word would therefore signify one who to la without knowledge it to is applied however to one wao professes to know absolutely nothing but what hae been actually demonstrated and is 18 in this sense only another name for a certain class of in rne word gnosis is found in the sep as a translation of the hebrew deah and also in the new testament and denotes a full knowledge of the ethics ritual and tenets of revealed religion paul mentions it among the spiritual gifts later it lost this signi fi floa cation tion and was applied to the so 90 called higher knowledge which was nothing but an admixture of heathen philosophy with christian doctrine it t denoted an alleged mysterious infer matlon mation hidden in the letters of the written word and available only to a few superior minds mind while the common people had to be content with the literal meaning of the words A was one who professed to be in posses ston aion of this hidden knowledge the term agnostic Is the very opposite bf gnostic and denotes one who refuses to believe not only the alleged hidden bidden knowledge of the he gnostics agnostics but also we the plain revealed truth unless this is capable of mathematical demonstration in this sense the word is of very recent origin it is in only within the last decade that it has obtained currency iu ia our literature about seven or eight years ago if our memory is not at fault an english clergyman rev bev Machon ochle of manchester attracted some attention by his bis tendency to approach the catholic church in the controversy that ensued be stated that he did not believe la in the dogmas of the church anyway and thet the rites were more or less jess farcical A trial for heresy resulted and this the term agnostic agLi was applied to him but whether the woid was especially coined at that time or hau already obtained a place in t the h e vocabulary of theologians specialists must determine |