An opening note -- Atheism and agnosticism are not the same, although they are equated in popular thought.
Atheism is, generally, belief that there is no deity. There are, however, many different kinds of athiests, such as:
Anti-Spiritualism/Materialism/Anti-Religionism: The belief that not only is there no deity, but that Religion is the foundation of all human misery. Some extremists believe religion of all kinds should be abolished.
Free Thinkers: generally not so extremely anti-religion, but believe in the power and responsibility of human reason.
Spiritual Atheists: those who believe in some power larger than, but encompassing, humanity, but that reject all literal interpretations of an anthorpomorphic deity.
Secularists: generally those folks who have no interest in religion or deity at all.
Agnosticism, on the other hand, is different. Most agnostics profess ignorance -- they do not reject the possibility of a deity or deities, but confess they cannot be sure based on the evidence. They can generally be categorized as:
Those who don't know if there's a deity
Those who believe there is a "higher power", but no absolute certainty of her/his/its/their nature or will
Those who believe there may be a deity, but are generally indifferent about the matter.
Agnostics are present in every spirituality & religion. They can also be philosophical or scientific agnostics (of which I am one) -- those who reserve judgement on any given matter until evidence is conclusive, and who remain open to changes in view without regressing to dogmatic absolute certainty.
I identify with both atheism and agnosticism for many reasons. I used to be an anti-spiritual atheist, and still retain much of the skeptical, logical worldview. I believe wholeheartedly in using your reason to judge things, no matter your religion or lack thereof. I am also a big logic fan, and love logical and semantic puzzles, as well as debate. I find arguments of reasoning fascinating, and an excellent way to better protect myself from becoming so attached to my beliefs that they are beyond healthy questioning.
In my experience, there are no better debators in existence than atheists. There is nothing finer than watching a particularly learned atheist slicing apart a theist's argument with razor sharp logic (even if it's my own)! Call me a logic groupie, but I find such debates... stimulating...
Being a woman of spirit, as well as logic, I find nothing more annoying than the "sheep" mentality of so many of the religious of the modern world. Buying a party line of any kind, religious or secular, wholesale, is essentially labelling yourself too lazy and stupid to bother to learn anything for yourself. Here's a little something I wrote about the "sheep" mentality:
I implore you to question everything; challenge everything -- to never swallow unprocessed knowledge, but to chew it first in your mind, with your reason. Ask yourself once, twice, a thousand times: "Is this what it appears to be? Could it be or mean something else? What will it mean to me if I believe it?" Never accept the word of any authority, expert, or Holy Person without question -- who knows what terrible path you may then be led on!
But it seems, that in questioning those ideas which are handed to us, that there may then be nothing to believe in. This is not the case -- but you must not believe in anything without first digesting it for yourself. Ask about its ramifications -- about its sense in regard to your experience. Revelation is a valid form of knowledge only to the direct recipient. Reality is never what it may at first appear. Do not let those who do bother to think drag you along like a sleepwalking sheep!
Personal experience, reason, and intuition are the only valid forms of learning. Each individual creates their own reality tunnel, if only they choose to take conscious control. If you do not choose for yourself, someone else will choose for you. If you do not think for yourself, you allow someone else to define your reality. Then, whatever consequences to yourself or others, you will have no say, having given over reign of your reality to another rather than making the effort yourself, and you will inevitably be led into destruction. Choices made for you by someone else without your participation and informed consent, is the surest road to a living hell.
You are a Statistic! Number to be exact. Lucky you.
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