There is a distinct difference the moron fails to recognize. Believing God exists is not the same thing as questioning one's faith in God. Two entirely different things. I can believe God exists while questioning whether my "version" of God is correct.I think he is just making a distinction between what people say and the inner doubts that every has about anything from time to time...especially after praying for decades with no answer most people will start to wonder and they may never admit that to you out of fear of being perceived as weak or faithless or even worse, an unbeliever......
My original point was that most religious believers in God have, at some time, questioned their faith. Not that they doubted God existed... an entirely different argument. Prager pointed out that most Atheists are reluctant to question their beliefs. He cites a symposium he attended where he was debating an Atheist before a predominately Atheist audience and he asked them for a show of hands to his second question, "Do you ever have doubts about your beliefs?" Not a single hand went up.
I don't know if this means much but I found in an interesting contrast with "believers" who constantly question their faith. I'm not entirely sure I agree with Prager on this. In a recent study on Atheism in Denmark, the most Atheistic country on the planet, some interesting facts emerged. While nearly 66% profess to be "Atheist," when the follow-up question was asked, "Do you believe there is absolutely no possibility of any God whatsoever?" Only 32% of the 66% answered affirmatively. So, only a third of self-professed Atheists were willing to go so far as to say there is absolutely no possibility of any God whatsoever. And that seems to dovetail nicely with many early responses to this thread, where several of USMB's most Atheistic posters refused to acknowledge their own Atheism, if favor of a more "intellectual" Agnostic position. Some even went so far as to associate Agnosticism with Atheism as if they are one in the same.
As I've said before, some "Atheists" are bigger believers in God than some "Christians."
What gets me about atheists is that one minute they say that God is an evil bastard for allowing evil people to get away with doing evil things without intervening and the next minute say that God is an amoral heartless bastard for intervening and destroying the very same people who they complain about getting away with perpetuating evil.
Seems like their entire argument is based solely on derision.
What gets me about Christians is that they are calling for the death of gay people.
What you say- most Christians don't say that? No- but there are Christians that do- just as there are Atheists that say stuff.
As an atheist- I don't believe in God- so I don't say God is an evil Bastard- because he doesn't exist. Long ago I did question why the God of the Bible killed so many people- but I long ago moved on from that- if pressed I could question why you believe in a God that has killed so many- and ordered so many killed- but asking why people believe in some fairy in the sky is fruitless.
Of course you are right. Glad you moved on..
The way I see it not believing that God is some sort of evil bastard isn't really any different than believing that he is an evil bastard except that trying to emulate an evil bastard tips the scales.
If someone knocked on your door acting as if he thought you were an evil scumbag wouldn't you slam the door in his face and throw him out into the darkness?
Let me ask you, what is this obsession with the unfairness of death as if some other earthly life form doesn't die?
Can't you see that life exactly as it is and has always been is a very good thing however many numbskulls are running amok?
And what is so hard to believe that in the past like now some people attribute their evil actions to some supreme authority, God made me do it?
Still there is much relevant information essential to good mental health to be found as in kosher law that demonstrates wisdom and a knowledge of the inner workings of the human mind uncharacteristic of the superstitious human beings of the time that surpasses even our own.
Isn't that enough reason to keep digging deeper? That discovery alone changes forever the image of God in the rational mind into a being worthy of the title..
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