I want to present you with a hypothetical conversation between your everyday Christian and your everyday atheist. Christian: “I believe that God is the ultimate cause of the universe.” Atheist: “Why would you believe that?” Christian: “I believe that there are certain things that science can’t explain, and God is the most reasonable explanation for those things such as the … [Read more...]
Richard Dawkins and the 'Absence of Belief'
Richard Dawkins and the New Atheists have popularized the idea that atheism, contrary to other positions, is not a belief; it is simply ‘the absence of belief’ in God or a supreme being. It almost sounds esoteric. Theists believe that God exists and atheists merely lack that belief. Well, on that view, my Chevy is just as much of an atheist as Richard Dawkins, for it, too, … [Read more...]
7 Tips on Engaging Skeptics Like Paul Did in Athens [Part 2]
3 More Cultural Engagement Tips Today, we’re moving on in my new series of posts called, “7 Tips on Engaging Skeptics Like Paul Did in Athens.” In part one, we took a brief look at some historical background and focused on two simple lessons from Paul’s encounter in Acts 17: Care About People Prepare for Insults and Interest In this article, I’ll share 3 more cultural … [Read more...]
A Response to the Friendly Atheist (Part 2)
This post continues a response to the July 30 CNN opinion piece article by Hemant Mehta, “The Friendly Atheist”, entitled “Why are millennials leaving church? Try atheism”. In Part 1, we looked at a number of arguments Mehta makes that I believe are either flawed or weak. Let’s now examine a few more. … [Read more...]
A Response to the Friendly Atheist (Part 1)
It’s rare for me to get worked up anymore over statements that atheists make about Christianity. For many years now, I’ve debated and exchanged dialogs—both in person and over the Web—with many atheists and hatetheists (there is a difference) and have gotten pretty used to the primary arguments of the former group and the flawed caricatures / misrepresentations of the latter, … [Read more...]
Religion and Violence
“Religion poisons everything. As well as a menace to civilization, it has become a threat to human survival.” – Christopher Hitchens (1) We are often told that religion, including Christianity, is the cause of great evil in the world—that in the words of Christopher Hitchens, “religion poisons everything." It is claimed that if religion is removed violence will be greatly … [Read more...]
Biblical Epic: Escapist Fantasy or Private Interpretation?
In addition to music, I am a huge movie buff. All types of movie genres are in my collection. One genre I despise, however, is the genre of the Biblical Epic. Why do you hate Biblical Epics when you love to study the Word? You might ask. The answer boils down to man’s basic spiritual problem, the integrity of the Word. Mankind simply doesn’t believe the Word to be true. This … [Read more...]
Is Atheism a Religion?
At The Richard Dawkins Foundation For Reason and Science you can find a witty and urbane video of TV host and comedian Bill Maher. In the video Maher is primarily arguing that “atheism is not a religion." Maher contrasts the difference between atheism and religion like this: When it comes to religion, we’re not two sides of the same coin, and you don’t get to put your unreason … [Read more...]
Are Most Scientists Atheists?
Oftentimes atheists claim that the overwhelming majority of scientists are unbelievers and attempt to support their position by pointing to a number of polls that query the religious temperature of scientists, which have been conducted over the past decade or so. By offering such data, atheists try and argue that immersion in science dispels the supposed superstitious and … [Read more...]
Do Any Atheists Live In A Moral Vacuum?
Can an atheist really be good without God? This seems to be an age old question and something organizations like the Illini Secular Student Alliance (ISSA) would have you believe with billboards and advertisements to boot. Well, what does God think? Does God agree with this sentiment that someone can be good while not believing in Him? Psalm 53:1 says, “The fool hath said in … [Read more...]