Atheists Better Pray to God They're Right

Townhall ^ | May 13, 2007 | Doug Giles

[Kaslin]

Paul (not the lead singer of the Beatles, but the apostle Paul) states that God has made Himself known, via creation, to all men. According to the apostle, God’s revealed Himself not just to Christians and to Jews, but to every one everywhere (see Romans 1:18-21).

This means that from Jo-Jo the Brazilian monkey boy, to the Cameroon pygmies, to the whiny lesbian agnostic smoking clove cigarettes at Starbucks, to the beer swillin’ dillweeds (What’s up, dudes? I’ll see after I pen this column! Keep ‘em cold.), to the brooding British atheists, all people know God exists—even if they can’t really put a finger on some of the finer points of His person.

Yes, through what has been made, God has plastered on the souls of earth’s citizenry the general revelation that He’s present. In addition, they also know when they’re being a jack ass and when they’re being cool (more on that next week).

I know the above 411 hurts the atheists to hear, seeing that they’ve staked so much of their imago on God’s non-existence. But c’mon, you know there’s Someone “out there,” so cut the crap, shave your goatee and find some other way to pick up chicks—okay, James Dean?

Look, if Paul’s right and people know that they know Him (even if it’s in some dull sense of the word), why do some trip over themselves and tie their brains in knots in order to curb this knowledge? Why do people go nuts looking for loopholes and supposed contradictions in the scripture, hypocrisies within the church and some shared semblance to an ape in order to convince themselves that God’s not here, there or anywhere and never has been nor ever will be?

Is it because . . .

They are Johnny Quest truth seekers looking to answer man’s $64,000 question?

They are evolutionary luminaries uncommonly endowed with more smarts than us poor cattle and are here to help us club foot our way up the Darwinian ladder and away from such primal fairy tales? Or is it simply because . . .

The existence of God, His standards and a day of personal accountability really, really, jacks with their efforts at autonomy and their chances of getting laid tonight?

The apostle Paul states it’s the latter.

Atheists, according to Santo Pablo, have suppressed the truth because God really cramps their style. It’s hard to persistently indulge the appetites of the flesh if there is a holy God to whom you must give account. The truth is that all men, who have not bowed their knee to God and His way, hate Him and are intrinsically geared against God. (I know that’s tight, but it’s right)

Jesus put it forcefully up fallen humanity’s tailpipe when He exposed why men reject the knowledge of God when He said, “Men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. For everyone who does evils hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed” (Jn. 3.19-20).

This is easy math, folks: A man who has no remorse and thus no desire to repent from his sins is probably not going to be a big advocate for the existence, person and work of God.

You know that all the various no-God arguments—which, to be sure, are fun to debate and write about and blah, blah, blah—actually stem from the root of the atheist’s refusal to curtsy to what he already internally knows is true. It is this denial and refusal to embrace the general knowledge of God given through creation that officially pisseth off the Lord thy God and puts the atheist in a precarious position. My advice to my atheist buddies is this: you’d better pray to God that you’re right and that He doesn’t exist—because if you’re wrong, eternity is going to be rough.

To be continued . . .

Doug Giles is the creator and host of The Clash radio shows, winners of seven Silver Microphone Awards and two Communicator Awards in the last three years, and a contributing columnist on Townhall.com.

[Enosh]

Additionally, if you are going to accuse God of being a mass murderer, go for the gusto. Genesis 7:21-23

However, you may want to first consider Isaiah 29:16.

[Riptides]

There is no doubt in my mind that God does exist; I talk to Him every day. Pity those that don’t.

[Gondring]

God specifically addressed atheists in scripture 3,000 years ago i.e. they were fools.

Which god are you talking about? If antiquity implies veracity, then I'm trying to understand whether you're talking about Ra, Anubis, Horus, Neith, Isis, etc., or someone predating them.

[grey_whiskers]

The point is that an Atheist isn’t anymore likely to have an abortion than a Christian is.

The two charts you quoted aren't specific enough to conclude that.

Do you not know the difference, or are you used to citing half-assed conclusions and being taken seriously?

Let’s not forget, there were no Atheist on the Supreme Court when they passed Roe v Wade, all 9 on the court were Christians. Not to mention even if they wanted to, there’s not enough Atheist in congress and the state legislators to stop all the Christians in power from passing a Constitutional Amendment banning all abortions, so it’s actually Christians who are keeping abortions legal in the country.

To paraphrase...

If anyone has a nominal connection with Christianity, you *must* count them as a Christian, if any aspect of their behaviour is favorable to "freethinkers" or "brights" or "atheists". But if their behaviour is exemplary, suddenly change your tune to resort to "decoupling" and claim that there is no *necessary* correlation.

Some Christians try to play the same game: but it's false both on logical grounds and theological grounds.

For someone who is attempting to assume the mantle of a superior intellect, a word of advice: please try not to make elementary logical errors at the beginning, unless you are just trolling.

Cheers!

[Gondring]

When you find an astrologer that has risen from the dead, please ping or FReepmail me, will you? I will want to talk to that guy.

Sounds like Emanuel Swedenborg. Not an astrologer, per se, but a psychic after NDE. In fact, it seems that many people who have been declared dead and then revived have reportedly gained psychic abilities. Hmmm...

[Caramelgal]

I agree with you that Christians (or members of any other religion) are not morally superior and everyone else is morally decadent as some Christians suggest.

Every culture developed its own religion and many predate Judaism and Christianity. And nearly all religions have similar moral codes that say that murder, theft, adultery, etc. are wrong. I’ve long believed that religion was “invented” over time by man as a way of explaining the unexplainable and enforcing social order.

The capacity for goodness and evilness is inherent in all humans as is the freewill to follow one path or the other. Since the beginning of recorded history there a numerous examples of “religious” people including Christians who have committed evil often under the presumption that there acts were justified and condoned by their god or gods. Look at some of the followers of Islam who use and manipulate their religion to justify murder on a mass scale as being morally right. Then again in the Middle Ages, Christians also used religion as justification for the Crusades and the murder of other Christian and non-Christians. At the same time Christians were persecuting Jews in Europe long before the Nazis and ever since the reformation Christians have persecuted other Christians; Catholics against Protestants, Protestants against Catholics with Northern Ireland being just one example that extended into modern times.

That’s not to say that religion is a bad thing as many good things are done by religious people but the choice to do good is still a personal choice. The Bible is full of moral contradictions and so it is left up to the follower to choose which to act on and what to ignore.

Even as a child, I questioned the moral contradictions of religion and as an adult chose to not be religious, i.e. an Atheist. That doesn’t mean I reject morality and if Christians want to pity me or pray for me that’s their choice too.

[gitmo]

You claim the country is becoming more moral as it becomes more atheistic.

The immorality is increasing, not decreasing.

1. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.

   Your post illustrates the fact that America is turning from the first measure of morality.

2. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

   This one is interpreted different ways these days. I won't argue it is an issue in modern day US.

3. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.

   Turn on the TV any night, or listen to people at the mall. The second measure of morality if blatently rejected.

4. Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.

   Need I make any comment? The Sabbath has become a regular shopping or sports day. Nobody objects to working on the Sabbath, as long as they get a day or two off each week.

5. Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

   Does anyone think we are honoring our parents MORE these days?

6. You shall not murder.

   Yes, we've had a recent decline in the murder rate.

7. You shall not commit adultery.

   Hard to tell, but it looks like this is more prevalent and openly accepted in the country.

8. You shall not steal.

   The police told us at a recent community meeting on the daily break-ins and home invasions in our neighborhood not to bother calling in car break-ins. They throw those reports away. There are too many for them to bother with.

9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

   During the '90s we were flooded with articles about why lying is actually a good thing.

10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

    We have an entire political party based on coveting the belongings of others.

I will submit that morality is on the decline in the states and in Europe. I find most people who maintain otherwise make up their own definitions of morality to support their particular depravity.

[gitmo]

The same standard you are using that tells you abortion, pedophilia, genocide, rape and slavery are wrong even though not only are these things not condemned in the Bible but often they are greatly encouraged.

Please show us where the Bible encourages abortion, pedophilia, genocide, rape and slavery.

[muir_redwoods]

"God exists. The only thing unresolved is what you are going to do regarding your heart towards Him."

At best, an unsubstantiated, hypothetical assertion. Aquinas failed to prove it, do you want to offer a proof?

[muir_redwoods]

Find the factual error in my first post and I will correct it. If you want to discuss your reaction to my post, I’ll be glad to do so.

[joebuck]

"Thanks again for telling me about Dr. Geisler. I’m looking forward to reading more of what he has to say on his website."

I strongly recommend his book, "I don't have enough faith to be an athiest". It's excellent.

[GraniteStateConservative]

The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God...

"Resort is had to ridicule only when reason is against us." -- Thomas Jefferson

This is a classic logical fallacy, no different from Hillary calling us here at FR a part of some vast rightwing conspiracy (which implies we pose some grave danger to national security for the mere reason that she said so and she should be believed in total). It's sophomoric Ad Hominem.

[GraniteStateConservative]

I could say much the same for your post, what with the generalization fallacy, begging the question, and continuing on to a set of poor conclusions from a flawed starting point.

Wow, that's irony, right there.

[dmw]

I definitely will check it out. Thanks!

[tpaine]

That's not to say that religion is a bad thing as many good things are done by religious people but the choice to do good is still a personal choice.
Even as a child, I questioned the moral contradictions of religion and as an adult chose to not be religious, i.e. an Atheist.
That doesn't mean I reject morality and if Christians want to pity me or pray for me that's their choice too.

Well said.
I too questioned the contradictions of organized religions, and as an adult chose to admit being an agnostic.
That there was a creation event in our universe is irrefutable. Did a God or gods orchestrate this event? No one can prove they know.

[GraniteStateConservative]

They were likely “plants” or people who are really upset about the negative results of organized religion on society and the world, rather than actually caring one way or the other about Kirk’s personal beliefs. There are plenty of calm atheists.

[MHGinTN]

You betray your bias with comments like this: Now if believing in an invisable man in the sky had anything to do with being moral ... It is no 'man in the sky' Who brings into existence all the mass and processes which sustain so delicately balanced a thing as the universe around you. BY your effort to diminish the Creator of the Universe, you reveal your need to deny that which your instinct tells you IS.

I was once where you are, decades ago. It is a perniciously arrogant place to dwell, dependent upon continually asserting that which your inner self knows is an error in your own reasoning. Is it possible to prove a negative? NO. Since it is impossible to prove a negative, why is your philosophy of life based upon the assumption of soemthing in the negative which it is impossible for you to ever have proof of, now or in some hereafter?

The mental position of atheist is supremely arrogant, supplanting the wonder at creation's reality with the little godhood of believing your intellect has seen the proof of a negative. The reality of faith stands in sharp contrast to that pernicious arrogance.

Consider the little child. The arrogance of assuming godhood, to 'know' there is no god has not crept into the little child's heart yet, so the little child instinctively has faith and it drives their life daily, even in unconditionally loving his parents and trusting their guidance. Argue if you will, but to proclaim there is no God is to at once dispaly a pernicious arrogance ... and it would be so easy to just state 'I don't know'.

'God IS, and He is a rewarder of them who diligently seek Him.' If one's morality is based on something less than 'an authority higher than man', the whim of those in power will always trump the life of those who are powerless, for their power rests upon usurpation of what our Declaration of Independence recognized as 'God given and thus inalienable rights'. If your morals are at your whim, I don't want you leading anything in my America ... we have the evidence of a democrat party proving that failed leadership and basing their empowerment upon the blood of more than 44 million alive innocent unborn fellow human beings.

[GraniteStateConservative]

God gave mankind "free will". That gives you the ability to reject Him. That's what mankind did - historically through Adam as well as ever since. That's not God's fault. That's ours (and yours).

See, we atheists have a deep appreciation for the brilliance of your side's racket. You start off by creating a need for your product that can't be refuted at all (You are destined for eternal damnation from the moment of your birth!) and then you provide the equally irrefutable product solution (Believe what I tell you to believe about this entity no one has seen. He promises all sorts of awesome presents when you're dead!) and then you make the customer feel deep guilt if he doesn't buy your product (It's your fault God has to punish you. Just be thankful he gave you a way to escape eternal torture!).

The funny thing to atheists such as qam1 and myself is that believers are able to view this whole thing as a fantastic deal. There is a trilogy of movies called "Saw" where the main characters is a crazy, twisted serial killer with a heart of gold (named Jigsaw)-- totally ridiculous, but that's what believers are worshipping every Sunday. He promises his victims life if they make the right decision. He never lies to his victims, even though his instructions are sometimes very ambiguous. He sometimes gives clear instructions, but they are incomplete. He tells his victims, "Don't use the door." When that is ignored, the victim gets shot in the head, and, obviously, only has himself to blame (it's certainly not Jigsaw's fault, right?). Another victim is only asked to sit and talk to Jigsaw for two hours (like prayer), and when he doesn't, bad things happen to him, but his son is indeed released, alive (that is one compassionate serial killer, right? Let's give him the keys to the city-- or we can just worship him!).

God shifts blame to Adam and to Satan for why bad things happen, when it was God's decision to create Adam as a flawed being easily duped and it was God's decision to put temptation in front of him and it was God's decision to not destroy Satan completely when Satan started a war against God and it was God's decision to let Satan have the power to hang out in Paradise. I mean, really, the whole thing is totally ridiculous to us.

[GraniteStateConservative]

I forgot the final point, which is that we wouldn’t want to worship this douchebag even if he were real.

In fact, it’s just as likely that worshipping this crazy sky person is a test to humanity from the actual supreme being in charge, and qam1 and I will have passed the test.

[GraniteStateConservative]

My youngest son likes to ask, “Whats the downside to believing in God?”
“Whats the downside to believing that Jesus Christ died for your sins?”

It's hard to see how anybody would get into heaven for believing because of Pascal's wager. In fact, it's equally possible that there is a god, in fact, but he actually punishes believers, because he's crazy (he did, after all, not only kick Adam and Eve out of Paradise, but he created a world for them that had all manner of awful things in it-- from one extreme to the other-- thanks for smallpox and ebola, God!).