Discussions for Christianity, religion and atheism are very common nowadays. The following is a breakdown of some of the key arguments in defense of Christianity against the main arguments of atheists / agnostics.
Happy debates!
Argument
from atheist
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The
answer of the Christian
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Related
articles
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Religions
are fairy tales
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This
is a generalization. Be more specific.
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Jesus
Christ never existed
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Many
saw Him. Many wrote for Him. Many died for Him. What more proof do you want? For
many historical figures we have much less evidence.
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Resurrection
is a fairy tale
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Actually
the opposite is true: Death is a fairy tale. Which is based on many
philosophical dogmas (belief in the notion of change, in time, in senses
etc). Read Parmenides.
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Whoever
wrote about Christ was a christian
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They
turned into Christian because they saw Him. And they weren’t rewarded for that.
Exactly the opposite: They died for that.
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God
is a fairy tale
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Which
God do you refer to? Explain to me what you are talking about. God as the
First Cause is perfectly logical. Aristotle himself had arguments in favor of
that. God as the One in which we all belong has also deep philosophical roots
from the time of Parmenides. (just to mention two examples)
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Articles
related to “One”
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Modern
science has made religion obsolete
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Science
deals with the how. Religion with the why. Even the Global network of Science
Academies accepts that. Not to talk about great scientists. In the past
religion and science were not separated. They are both needed to reach the
truth. Biology is a nice science. But it is not theology nor philosophy. As
much as it is related to viruses, it is not at all related to God.
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Articles
related to “Science”
and “Scientific
models”
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When
I get sick I go to the doctor, not to church.
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And
that is a good thing you do. Religion heals the soul. Not the body. Nor does
it compete with science for the things on this earth. Religion deals with
metaphysical matters.
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Articles
related to “Religion”
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Medicine
heals. Not the belief in metaphysical beings.
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Modern
medicine relies on Christian philosophy (love towards the weak). What is
more, medicine is not in any way against religion, which deals with other
matters.
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Science
will someday explain everything
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Actually
the only thing that science has proved is that it will never prove
everything. Read Gödel.
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Science
proves. Religion is based on faith.
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First,
science proves based on unproved axioms. Thus, it does not prove anything.
Secondly, religion is also based on logic (see the arguments of Aristotle for
the Immovable Mover) and on empirical facts (see the cosmic parameters which
have been set to the exact values needed for the existence of life for
example, witnesses to the resurrection etc), while faith in religion is by no
means what we call “blind faith” but faith which supplements the existing
logic and the aforementioned evidence.
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Every
religion says a different story.
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I do
not care. I am a Christian. I will not apologize for other religions.
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Religion
is responsible for all bad things.
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No,
the exact opposite is true. Atheistic regimes are responsible for the
greatest massacres. Christianity is the basis of the European civilization,
including humanism and Renaissance. In the colonies Christianity helped
countries set the proper foundations for structured free states.
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Articles
related to “Religion”Religion:
Its contribution to society (and other subjects)
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Why
shouldn’t I believe in the Flying Teapot instead of God?
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Everything
is a matter of definition. How do you define this teapot? If you give it the
same characteristics that the Christian God has, the name is not an issue per
se. If you just define it as a flying teapot then this has nothing to do with
God. How can a flying teapot create the cosmos?
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Religion
is old fashioned.
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And
that is a good thing. Values should not change according to fashion.
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How
does religion explain evil?
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Actually
the problem is not the existence of evil but the existence of good in such a
world. And that existence of good despite the harsh conditions is an argument
in favor of God. Evil is just the result of man’s free will.
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Why
do good people and children die in this world made by God?
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First
of all death means nothing for the Christian but the portal for the eternal
life. Secondly, how come an atheist be frustrated about this? If we are only
matter then what does it matter who dies? Are you upset about matter? Are you
upset about stones? About wood? Dirt perhaps?
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Why
should I listen to religion to be moral?
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There
can be no ethics without a stable reference point beyond the personal beliefs
of men. If you are a good person because you decided so, good for you, but
that means that you can easily decide not to be good at any other point in
time. So this means nothing for the morality of your actions per se. Don’t
forget that Nazis killed Jews because they thought that this was a good thing
(and they even had a state law forcing them to do so).
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Articles
related to “Ethics”
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Only
old men believe in religion.
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Mainly
young people believe in atheism. Old men are wise. Young men are usually
arrogant and ignorant.
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Articles
related to “Atheists”
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Religion
oppresses me.
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In 2019?
Are you kidding me? The exact
opposite is happening: Christians today are under persecution!
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Church
condemned Galileo.
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And
was correct in doing so! Read first about something before speaking about it.
Galileo was first of all wrong in everything he said, from a scientific point
of view! Secondly, his stance was highly arrogant and offensive against a friend
of his (the Pope) and during a time period in which the church fought the
external bitter challenge of the Scripture from heresies.
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Articles
related to “Galileo”
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The
Church had the Holy Inquisition!
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And
rightfully so! This institution made its appearance in Spain during an era of
constant turmoil. If some of the heresies fought by the Holy Inquisition back
then had prevailed (e.g. the Cathars) there wouldn’t be any Christians left
in Spain. Remember that the church has not only a theological/ philosophical
aspect but also a cosmic one. And the latter is often involved in politics.
Try not to mix these three aspects. Mistakes in one of them does not mean
anything for the others.
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Articles
related to “Holy
inquisition”
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I am
a free thinker, so I believe in nothing!
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Actually
you are a sheep and for that reason you react against religion. Atheism is in
fashion these days, so being an atheist today just shows that you follow the
flock. If we lived in the middle ages, you would probably be the best and
most obedient worshipper.
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All
clergy is corrupted.
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Many
priests are indeed corrupted. But their percentage in the church is smaller
than the percentage of the same corruption in society. This doesn’t mean nothing of course. The goal is for everyone to be a saint. But no one achieves
that. People who go to church need Christ, they have no already achieved
sainthood. Should they be perfect? Sure. As much as the scientists should be perfect too. But they are not. The church is made of flawed people. Don’t judge
Christ and His teachings via those people.
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Middle
Ages were darkness.
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No.
This is a view promoted by the Enlighteners to promote the idea that
Enlightenment is light. This view has now been strongly disputed. In the
Middle Ages we had an overdevelopment of the humanities (and they need those
the same way we need exact sciences). We had humanism and the Renaissance.
The first universities were built back then. Actually the whole modern
European civilization is based on the foundations laid during the Middle
Ages.
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I
believe in nothing.
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Good
for you. So you don’t believe that you have free since it hasn’t been proved
yet. You don’t believe that tomorrow it will dawn since this is not proved
beyond the shadow of a doubt either. Or perhaps you are not consistent with
what you believe and believe things which are not 100% proven? Faith is
another thing than blind faith. Don’t confuse them.
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Saying
“I don’t know” is the most honest answer we can give in metaphysical
questions.
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If
you say "I don't know" to everything that has not been proven with
100% certainty then you should say "I don't know" about everything!
Nothing has been 100% proven! And neither will they ever! (See Gödel) This is
the only thing that has been proven. Are you honest enough to do that? Or do
you simply cover up your anti-Christianity sentiments with the cloak of the
"agnostic"? Christianity has painted a picture for the world. Picture
your own and convince yourself that it is better. Don't hide behind the "I
don't know." Culture and science never progressed with "I don't
know".
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Articles
related to “Agnosticism”
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Religion
is convenient and makes you feel better. It is the opium of the people.
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The
exact opposite. Christianity constantly reminds you of how much effort you
need to be good. The last thing it does is make you feel better! If you want
to feel better, become an atheist, believe that nothing matters (since
everything is matter) and drink some wine. Not for a second believe that
Christianity is the easy way out. Most saints became martyrs.
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The
Old Testament is a despicable book.
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Actually
it is despicable to say stupid things about things you do not understand. The
Old Testament states the obvious: that when you do bad things you will be
punished. (Remember: causality is the cornerstone of science. Why deny it in
life?) Modern man cannot stand that. He wants to be free and do whatever he
likes. And as a spoiled child, he does not like his Father to punish him for
anything.
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I
am an atheist! Blha blah blah blah blah…
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Why
should I discuss with you? Aren’t we all random sets of matter? Why does your
opinion matter? Why does anything matter?
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I
am an agnosticist. Blha blah blah blah blah…
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Why
should I discuss with you? Why does your opinion matter? If nothing can be
proved, how can you be certain for what you say?
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Articles
related to “Agnosticism”
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I
am not stupid to believe in miracles.
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And
yet miracles happen all the time. First and foremost the most important: your
very existence. But if you want miracles that meet your scientific criteria,
you can look in literature for cases of Near Death Experiences. There you
will find many interesting cases published and in medical journals.
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