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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Atheism means ‘no god.’ | Ps 14:1 | Radioman2 | 84722 | ||
Atheism means ‘no god.’ Atheism 'The word ‘atheism’ comes from the negative ‘a’ which means ‘no’ and ‘theos’ which means ‘god.’ Hence, atheism in the most base terms means ‘no god.’ Basically, atheism is the lack of belief in a god and/or the belief that there is no god. By contrast, theism is the belief that there is a God and that He is knowable. I need to mention that most atheists do not consider themselves anti-theists. Most consider themselves as non-theists. ' I've encountered many atheists who claim that atheism is not a belief system while others say it is. Since there is no official atheist organization, nailing down which definition of atheism to use can be difficult. Following are some definitions offered by atheists. "An atheist is someone who believes and/or knows there is no god." "An atheist lacks belief in a god." "An atheist exercises no faith in the concept of god at all." "An atheist is someone who is free from religious oppression and bigotry." "An atheist is someone who is a free-thinker, free from religion and its ideas." ' Whichever definition you go by, atheism denies God. ' There are two main categories of atheists: strong and weak, with variations in between. A strong atheist actively believes and states that no God exists. They expressly denounce the Christian God along with any other god. Strong atheists are usually more aggressive in their conversations with theists and try shoot holes in theistic beliefs. They like to use logic and anti-biblical evidences to denounce God's existence. ' Agnostic Atheists, as I call them, are those who deny God's existence based on an examination of evidence. Agnosticism means 'not knowing,' or 'no knowledge.' I call them agnostic because they state they have looked at the evidence and have concluded that there is no God. But, the interesting thing with them is that they say they are open further evidence for God's existence. ' Weak atheists simply exercise no faith in God. The weak atheist might be better explained as a person who lacks belief in God the way a person might lack belief that there is a green lizard in a rocking chair on the moon; the subject simply isn't an issue and they don't believe or not believe it. ' Finally, there is a group of atheists that I call militant atheists. They are, fortunately, few in number. They are usually highly insulting and profoundly terse in their comments to theists, particularly Christians. I’ve encountered a few of them and they are vile, rude, and highly condescending. Their language is full of insults, profanity, and blasphemies. Basically, no meaningful conversation can be had with them at all. 'Two Main Types of Arguments from Atheists ' Atheist positions seem to fall into two main categories. The first is the lack of evidence category where the atheist asserts that the supporting evidence isn't good enough for him to affirm God's existence. The second is the category where they believe that the idea of God existing is illogical and contrary to the evidence at hand. To simplify, one says there isn't enough evidence to decide and the other says there is evidence contrary to God's existence. For those atheists who simply lack belief and exercise no energy in the discussion, neither category applies because are not involved in the debate. ' A typical argument posed by an atheist to show why God does not exist is as follows: God is supposed to be all good and all powerful. Evil and suffering exist in the world. If God is all good he would not want evil and suffering to exist. If He is all powerful then He is able to remove all evil and suffering. Since evil and suffering exist, God is either not all good (which means he is not perfect and not God), or he is not all powerful (and limited in abilities and scope). Since either case shows God is not all good and powerful, then He does not exist. 'Some Basic Tenets of Atheism ' Presuppositions are important to us all. We look at the world through them. The atheist has a set of presuppositions, too. Though there is no definitive atheist organization that defines the absolutes of atheism, there are basic principles that atheists, as a whole, tend to adopt. They are listed below. Please note however, that not all atheists assert all of these tenets. The only absolute common one they hold to is that they do not believe in a God or gods. 'There is no God or devil. 'There is no supernatural realm. 'Miracles cannot occur. 'There is no such thing as sin as a violation of God's will. ' Generally, the universe is materialistic and measurable. 'Man is material. 'Generally, evolution is considered a scientific fact. 'Ethics and morals are relative (http://www.carm.org/atheism/atheism.htm) ps141 |
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2 | Atheism means ‘no god.’ | Ps 14:1 | Radioman2 | 84807 | ||
Mistakes Christians make when dialoguing with Atheists - - - - - - - - - - - - - "Generally, you do not try to prove a negative. If I asked you to prove there wasn't an ice-cream factory on Jupiter, could you do it? Of course not. It isn't a fair request. In fact, it isn't even a good request." - - - - - - - - - - - - - 'Most Christians mean well when they defend their faith. But, too often, many make fundamental errors when dialoguing with atheists. We need to make as few errors as possible, not simply to win an argument, but to help the atheist come to a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus. 'Following are common mistakes made by theists when dialoguing with atheists. 'Asking an atheist to prove there is no God 'Sometimes Christians will attempt to dismantle an atheist argument by demanding that the atheist prove there is no God. Well, to be fair, an atheist can no more prove there is no God than he can prove that there isn't an ice-cream factory on Jupiter. The problem does not lie with the atheist, but with the theist who demands such an impossible and illogical request. 'Generally, you do not try to prove a negative. If I asked you to prove there wasn't an ice-cream factory on Jupiter, could you do it? Of course not. It isn't a fair request. In fact, it isn't even a good request. Let's think about this idea of proving there is no God. 'First of all, how could an atheist prove there is no God? Can he know all things to know there is no God? Well, of course not. If he knew all things, he'd be God. Can he answer every bit of evidence raised in support of theism? Again no. He is not omniscient. There is simply too much information in the world for one person to know. 'Again, in argumentation you don't try to prove a negative. It’s the same thing as making something up and then asking a person to prove it doesn't exist -- like an ice-cream factory on Jupiter. 'Labeling Atheists 'Some Christians have labeled atheists as evil, stupid, devil-worshippers, or morally void. Though there may be some atheists who fit these categories (as would many in the general population), atheists are not evil, stupid, devil-worshipping degenerates with no morals. Many of them are fine citizens, honest, caring, loving, and patient. For a Christian, or anyone, to make a blanket statement about atheists in a derogatory manner is wrong. It is the same thing atheists sometimes do when they accuse Christians of being irrational, psychotic, or stupid. Such accusations have no place on either side of the argument of truth. 'Generally, atheists are not stupid. Many of them have thought through their position over a long period of time. Some were raised in religious homes, have seen what religion has to offer, and have rejected it. Of course, I think that atheists have drawn incorrect conclusions about God, but it doesn't mean they are dumb. Some atheists have presented very cogent arguments against the existence of God -- which need to be addressed -- and rest their eternity on their arguments. 'So, just because someone believes in God and encounters someone who doesn't, that does not mean that either side is stupid. Labeling and name-calling have no place in the discussion. ( . . .) 'Stating that Atheism is a religion 'Atheists will repeatedly tell you that they are not in a religion. A religion almost always is defined to include belief in a deity of some sort. Atheism is non-belief in a deity. It isn't necessarily a "belief that there is no God," but is not believing either way." 'To label an atheist as a religious person is to put up a roadblock to any effective communication. It would be like someone saying to a Christian, "You believe in a mean, tyrannical being who likes to torture people." The Christian would simply role his eyes and think that the person doesn't know what he's talking about. So, how much effective conversation could there be in either instance? Not much. ( . . . ) 'Never admitting when you are wrong 'Pride is a harmful thing. It caused the fall. It ruins marriages. It leads to anger and self-righteousness. It has no place in the Christian's life. Never admitting you are wrong is being prideful. If an atheist, or anyone, proves you wrong in something, be kind and courteous. Admit you made a mistake and go on. Everyone makes mistakes, even atheists. There is nothing wrong with admitting an error. It no more proves you are wrong about Christianity than being wrong about the color of a boat means boats don't exist. But, if you never admit when you are wrong, you will not be able to convince anyone in a discussion of your position. You will simply loose the respect of the one with whom you are debating.' (www.carm.org/atheism/christianmistakes.htm) ps141 |
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Questions and/or Subjects for Ps 14:1 | Author | ||
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Hank | ||
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Radioman2 | ||
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Radioman2 | ||
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Parable | ||
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DocTrinsograce | ||
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arcfault777 |