Bertrand Russell was asked what he would tell God on judgment day why he did not believe, Russell reportedly said: "Not enough evidence, God, not enough evidence."I'm amazed how short-sighted the argument is. If your child used such an excuse for misbehaving or outright disobeying you, no one I know would accepts "I didn't have enough evidence about what you said was true." Why would anyone think that such an excuse would work on judgment day? One question I would have asked Russel, or anyone who thinks that this is acceptable, would be what do you think God would say your excuse? The truth is using this excuse in telling God, that he didn't provide enough evidence to convince you. How do you think such an accusation will fly with God? What is wrong with you? There was plenty of evidence to convince other people. Maybe the problem isn't with the evidence but with you. Probability isn't enough to determine what you believe. It shouldn't be. We should believe something because it is true, not because it's probable. There are too many example of true things that don't seem probable.
So even if the Christian faith ends up being true there was still no reason thinking people should accept it, because only claims that can be reasonably justified should be embraced. You see, we have to reject a lot of true claims because they have not met their own burden of proof. This is both obvious and non-controversial. Aliens from space might have abducted someone, but without sufficient evidence commensurate with such a claim there is no reason why anyone should believe the person who asserts it. There are surely cases in which someone murdered another person but no one suspects he did the evil deed, because there is just no evidence to lead anyone to think he did. There are many hundreds of claims that we should never believe, even if they are true. That’s the case when it comes to Christianity. Even if it’s true, thinking people cannot believe it because it’s wildly improbable.
Debunking Christianity: Even if Christianity Ends Up True There Would Be No Reason to Believe
No problem with that. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast!
ReplyDeleteMarcus said "We should believe something because it is true, not because it's probable."
ReplyDeleteNo, actually John makes a good point. In the absence of first hand knowledge, we should believe what's probable, because we can't know what's true in the cases he sited.
Should we believe every alien abduction story or take justice into our own hands because we hear on the news that someone was found not guilty of murder, but something about their story doesn't sit right with us?
That's where your line of reasoning leads.
No it doesn't. Who says I don't have first-hand knowledge of God just because you don't? And didn't? That is why I know you weren't born-again, Ryan. If you were then you would know.
ReplyDeleteAh, the Theist's Alamo. RETREAT!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteNonetheless true and for which you have no apologetic.
ReplyDeleteThe good news is that you don't have to stay ignorant of God or continue to be without first-hand knowledge. Hopefully, Ryan, you will really get saved and have that first-hand knowledge.
ReplyDeleteNo, not true, just unfalsifiable. BIG difference.
ReplyDeleteUnfalsifiable? What about verifiable? There is a difference. If you prostrate yourself before God and repent of your sins and God regenerates you and renews your mind...saving you and you become born-again - that would be verification. dare you to try it.
ReplyDeleteMarcus; I've done it, we've been over this, you think I apparently didn't do it "right". And that brings us to why it's most certainly not verifiable, I can't verify your experience and you can't verify mine. It's subjective.
ReplyDeleteThat's why you need the No-True-Scotsman.
It is verifiable. By definition and your own admittance you never experienced being born again. Had you been born again you would still be in Church - professing that Jesus is Lord. Just like faith is verifiable by quantifiable evidence so is your "experience" by lack of evidence.
ReplyDeleteYour scripture even indicates that there are many who are still in your church professing that Jesus is Lord who are in fact false converts.
ReplyDeleteUNverifiable...
Yes, there are people in church who are false converts. So?
ReplyDeleteYou were one of them.
ReplyDeleteYes, there are people in church who are false converts. So?
ReplyDeleteSo you can verify that they are false converts right now, prior to their leaving the church. Or would you say that's something that's unverifiable?
If it is verifiable, you should conduct purges.
Yes, it can be verifiable in many cases but we are not called to do purges. Some these false converts could become true converts. OR they'll leave like you did.
ReplyDelete