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Debunking Christianity

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

The Scale of the Universe
Link. Drag the square at the bottom from left to right and back. Where is God? ;-) Nikita Khrushchev later said after Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin flew into space in 1961 that “Gagarin flew into space, but didn’t see any god there.” Such a comment was…
The OTF for Mormonism
Mormons assume other religions have the burden of proof. They assume human not divine authors to their holy book(s). They assume a human not a divine origin to their faiths. They critically evaluate all other religions by reason and science. They do this…

via: Debunking Christianity

Atheist Revolution

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 12:19:01 -0500

Honoring Darwin
Today is Darwin Day, a celebration of the birth of Charles Darwin on Feb. 12, 1809. Whether we are talking about science or religion, Darwin’s significance cannot be overstated. Darwin Day is a perfect excuse to reflect on Darwin’s contributions and where…
The Catholic War on Women
As we near the 2012 presidential election, continued economic progress means that we are almost certain to see Republicans push wedge issues (e.g., gay marriage, abortion, and President Obama’s so-called war on religion). They had been planning to run…
Why Being an Atheist is Very Different From Not Believing in the Tooth Fairy
I occasionally hear from atheists who do not like the “atheist” label because it does not specify what is believed, only what is not believed. “I don’t believe in unicorns or the tooth fairy,” they say, “and I don’t call myself an ‘aunicornist’ or identify…
Christianity Relies on Indoctrination
I’d like you to join me in believing in some sort of entity I can’t define or explain in a logically coherent manner. I know what you’re thinking: If I can’t explain it, how can I even know what it is that I’m claiming to believe? I believe because it…
Obama: Pandering or Delusional?
In spite of multiple requests from the Freedom From Religion Foundation that he respect the Constitution he once taught in law school, President Obama participated in another National Prayer Breakfast. And the 2,562-word speech he gave suggests that he…
Secularism vs. Theocracy
Freedom vs. theocracy is appropriate for this image because today’s Democratic Party is anything but secular. Instead of standing up for our secular democracy, many have adopted a path of pandering to the religious. For us, regardless of our political…
Romney’s Second Cousin Has Doubts About His Allegiance
The fact that Willard “Mittens” Romney’s second cousin, Park Romney, recently surfaced is not exactly newsworthy. The fact that he’s an ex-Mormon who questions whether Mittens could effectively represent the U.S. without his allegiance to church leaders…

via: Atheist Revolution

Debunking Christianity

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:19:02 -0500

Quote of the Day, With Examples
If the same kind of reasoning produces support for two different conclusions then the reasoning is delusional. By your host here, John W. Loftus ;-)—Example 1) Ontological argumentation for God’s existence equally supports the Oriental conception of…
BBC Program “Phantoms in the Brain” Hosted by V.S. Ramachandran
This is an episode from a BBC program hosted by neurologist V.S. Ramachandran that explains his key findings in certain instances of brain damage that have long been viewed as mere curiosities by the scientific community. There are other parts to be found…

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Atheist Media

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:31:02 -0500

About a Jesus…
via Friendly Atheist (Thanks Josh)
The Reason Rally - March 24, 2012
ReasonRally.org
New Rule: Atheism is not a religion! - Bill Maher
February 3, 2012 on Real Time with Bill Maher The Real Time host brings Mitt Romney’s father-in-law back to the realm of the dead atheist.

via: Atheist Media Blog

Debunking Christianity

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

Is William Lane Craig Dishonest With the Facts? I’ve Drawn a Line in the Sand.
Most people know that I defend William Lane Craig against the charge that he is dishonest as an apologist. Among skeptics I am his biggest defender, perhaps the only one. But I have just asked him three questions about the inner witness of the Holy Spirit…
*Sigh* The Inner Witness of the Spirit Again
Christian, do you agree that objective evidence is external to the knower and can be verified by a third party at least in principle? Yes or no? How then can any third party verify a claim such as someone else’s inner witness of the Spirit? At least someone’s…
The 2011 About.com Readers’ Choice Awards for Agnosticism / Atheism
[Edit: just a reminder] You can nominate your favorite book, blog, podcast, community, Ad and so forth, until February 15th, right here. Then you can vote for your favorites from February 22nd until March 21st. Winners will be announced March 30, 2012….
Richard Carrier’s Book “Why I am Not a Christian” is Excellent!
Carrier’s book can be found here,which I highly recommend. Here’s a brief summary of it: Carrier gives four reasons as summarized by Confessions of a Doubting Thomas: God is Silent: that is, if God is as most Christians describe him, he should be able…
Bradley Bowen: “the devil is in the details”
Before reading what he wrote, Bowen tells us about himself: I was a devout Evangelical Christian from 1970 to 1982. The study of philosophy, especially philosophy of religion, led me to see that my Christian faith was founded on weak and faulty arguments….
What Are the Chances That Christianity is True?
;-)

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:13:08 -0500

An Interview With Richard Carrier About His Book, “Proving History”
Richard Carrier has kindly agreed to answer some questions I posed after reading his soon to be released book Proving History: Bayes’s Theorem and the Quest for the Historical Jesus (Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books. 2012). This book introduces Bayes’s…
Quote of the Day, by articulett on the OTF ;-)
You can believe whatever goofy shit you want— but if you want us to take your beliefs more seriously than you take the goofy shit that others believe in, you would need to give us the kind of evidence that you would require from them to take their beliefs…
You Can Now Pre-Order My Revised Book
Click here: Why I Became an Atheist: A Former Preacher Rejects Christianity.It has 540 pages (not 480). It’s such a massive revision my publisher is treating it as a new book. Reviews: “A thoughtful and intellectually challenging work presenting arguments…
Jesus Christ, CEO, By Dr. Hector Avalos
Faith-based companies are “courting” legal troubles, he argues.
Chris Hallquist: Does Dr. Craig Win All His Debates?
Chris describes himself as one having “a masters degree in philosophy from the University of Notre Dame, but hates academic philosophy.” I like that. From my experience there is either scientifically informed philosophy or there is scientifically uninformed…
Is Scientific Evidence Enough To Show That A Miracle Didn’t Happen?
I previously endorsed Richard Carrier’s “slam dunk” case against a solar eclipse at the death of Jesus. But an interesting discussion took place in the comments concerning scientific evidence and miracles. Here it is for further discussion. clamat: I’m…

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

Quote of the Day, by Kel
Self-authenticating private evidence is useless, because it is indistinguishable from the illusion of it.
An Explanation About the Books I Recommend
I should say something about the books listed in the sidebar that I recommend. There are lots of books debunking Christianity and/or in defense of reason and science not listed. So let me explain my choices since some authors might feel slighted for not…
Defending Christianity Depends on Fallacious Reasoning
Christian apologists probably violate every informal fallacy at some point or another in order to defend their faith. See for yourselves: About.com Agnosticism/Atheism: Logical Fallacies FAQ. No Beliefs: List of common fallacies. Humbug: The Skeptic’s…

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

William Lane Craig: “Christian belief is not based on the historical evidence.”
This is the very last sentence Craig writes that can be read here, which is his conclusion after dealing with the problem of Lessing’s Ugly Broad Ditch. This is where I think Christians are impaled on the horns of a dilemma. Let me explain. First let’s…

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Atheist Revolution

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:19:02 -0500

Asking Why
I had a bit of a rebellious streak in my youth, and I am sure that there were times when I adopted a minority position simply to rebel against authority. This was probably also a contributing factor to how outspoken I was about my atheism during my college…
Delegitimizing Atheists in the Media
Staks over at Dangerous Talk recently brought up a great point about how people - especially those in the media - delegitimize atheism in subtle ways. He notes that atheists who are interviewed on TV or for print media are often referred to as “a self-professed…
Mormonism: Cult, Christianity, or Both?
It is often said that the difference between a religion and a cult comes down to the number of adherents. Longevity seems to be a factor too, as it seems like it is usually the people who belong to older, established religions who use the cult label to…
80s Flashback: The PMRC
Atheists in the United States are often asked why we cannot just ignore the Christian majority that surrounds us. Why can’t we simply let them go about their business and not pay any attention to them? In part, my answer is that they never seem content…
Theirs is a Jealous God
There are many things that bother me about the sort of god that Christians claim to worship. This image captures one of them: the absurdity of thinking that a god so powerful, so wise, so good would demand worship from humans and would condemn them to…
Devil’s Playground
Devil’s Playground is a 2002 documentary about a rite-of-passage called “Rumspringa” that Amish teens go through before deciding whether they will join the Amish church and embrace the culture in they were raised or leave it all behind for the modern…

via: Atheist Revolution

Debunking Christianity

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:19:02 -0500

Delusional on a Grand Scale: Assessing The Inner Witness of the Spirit
William Lane Craig claims the inner witness of the Spirit “trumps all other evidence.” It is “an intrinsic defeater-defeater” for anyone who experiences to it. So even if I don’t have that witness, and even if I don’t like the idea of such a witness,…
Richard Carrier On The Eclipse of the Sun At The Death of Jesus
I’ve received an uncorrected advance reading copy of Richard Carrier’s book Proving History: Bayes’s Theorem and the Quest for the Historical Jesus. I’ll say more about it later after I’ve finished reading it. But he highlights a serious problem for inerrantists…

via: Debunking Christianity

Atheist Media

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 12:31:02 -0500

Alain de Botton: Atheism 2.0 - TED
…

via: Atheist Media Blog

Debunking Christianity

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

“Why We Must Treat the Bible No Differently Than Any Other Book” By Biblical Scholar James A. Metzger
…many theologians and biblical scholars continue to speak of the Christian God in only the most sterling manner: as, for instance, all-loving, just, infinitely wise, and inexhaustibly merciful. But this is not the God of the Bible – not even close….
“On Visions and Resurrections” by Gary J. Whittenberger
The purpose of this essay is to demonstrate that the hallucination hypothesis is a plausible explanation of the post-crucifixion “appearances” of Jesus, and to defend it against some of the current criticisms of Christian apologists. Link

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 05:13:02 -0500

Not Even an Omniscient God Could Convince Me That I Willfully Reject Christianity Against the Overwhelming Evidence
I cannot conceive of an omniscient God being able to do this given all that I know about Christianity, the Bible, theology, philosophy, science, and the history of the church. For God to do this he would have to re-create this universe and basically rewrite…
There is No Hell! There is No Satan! There Is Nothing Here To Worry About!
It’s like evangelicals never open a book by a biblical scholar. Please become informed, please. Stop reading only those texts that agree with your views. Expand your horizons. Read Dr. Alan E. Bernstein’s Formation of Hell: Death and Retribution in the…

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:13:02 -0500

The Christian Delusion is Never More Apparent
Just once—once mind you—I’d like to see just one believer, only one, who will say, “Hey, I’m like most people. What I believe is based on my cultural prejudices just like most everyone else.” I have never heard one believer admit this, not one, even…
William Lane Craig: “No Amount of Evidence or Reasoning Could Convince Me I’m Wrong”
Essentially this is what Bill Craig says in his regular Q&A (Question 244). Just think what the strongest objective evidence against the evangelical belief in the bodily resurrection of Jesus would be, if found. It would be the bones of Jesus, that…

via: Debunking Christianity

Debunking Christianity

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 05:13:02 -0500

Michael Licona Refuses to Debate Me
Michael Licona is a Christian friend of mine. I have met Mike and had pleasant conversations with him. He moderated the debate I had with David Wood on whether God exists, seen here. The first time I met him was at the 2009 Society of Biblical Literature…

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Atheist Revolution

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 12:19:02 -0500

Decline of Christian Extremist Influence Should Not Be Overstated
Every few years, a story appears in the U.S. media suggesting that evangelical fundamentalist Christianity is losing political influence and is on its way out. These predictions never seem to materialize, but that doesn’t stop people from making them….
Anti-Bullying Legislation Cannot Exempt Religiously-Motivated Bullying
If you aren’t familiar with Secular News Daily, you are missing out. Increasingly, I am finding that they are one of my go-to sources for breaking news on the subject of church-state separation and related matters. They recently posted an article by Lauren…
The Fallacy of Atheism’s Public Relations Problem
I think we can all agree that atheists are an unpopular minority in the United States. We’ve seen countless examples of bigotry directed at us by Christians, including elected officials who are supposed to know better. And it is not just the Christians;…
Do You Support Religious Businesses?
None of us has as much money as we’d probably like. Even if you reject the “consumer culture” of the United States and many other Western nations, you could probably think of some genuinely good things you’d like to do if you could afford it (e.g., funding…
Sexism in the Atheist Community: Sexism and Misogyny
Sexism and misogyny are loaded terms in that nobody wants to be accused of either of them. But what do they mean? I have seen many prominent atheist bloggers using these terms interchangeably. This was a surprise, as I’ve always understood them to be…
FFRF Files Complaint in Rhode Island
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has filed a complaint with the State of Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights after area florists refused to deliver an order to Jessica Ahlquist. The complaint alleges “illegal discrimination based on religion.”…

via: Atheist Revolution

Debunking Christianity

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 05:19:02 -0500

It’s Possible God Exists Even Though All Life Has Evolved
The implications of evolution are enormous, as I have said before. But even though all life has evolved it’s still possible for a supernatural force (or being) to exist. To see this all we need to do is look at what dog breeders do on a regular basis….
John Green is Now Writing for “the Other Team”
John Green is a missionary pastor’s son from a Pentecostal background who has written some things for Discipleship Journal and Wittenburg Door. Below is his brief story and an article he wrote on hell.A couple of years ago, after being a Christian for…

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Atheist Media

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:31:02 -0500

Richard Dawkins at the Jaipur Literature Festival
Richard Dawkins and Lala Ward read excerpts from The Magic of Reality and Unweaving The Rainbow (via RDnet and 3 Quarks Daily)
Colorado Springs Billboard: God Is An Imaginary Friend
January 23, 2012 on KKTV 11 News: The Colorado Coalition of Reason or COCORE is behind a billboard that will sit on I-25 and Garden Of The Gods. The billboard will read “God is an imaginary friend. Choose reality, it will be better for all of us,” and…
30 Renowned Writers Speaking About God
Drew Berry: Animations of unseeable biology
We have no ways to directly observe molecules and what they do — Drew Berry wants to change that. At TEDxSydney he shows his scientifically accurate (and entertaining!) animations that help researchers see unseeable processes within our own cells. (via…

via: Atheist Media Blog

Debunking Christianity

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:13:02 -0500

“My Christianity is Right”

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Debunking Christianity

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:13:02 -0500

Romulus and Jesus Compared
Richard C. Miller’s “Mark’s Empty Tomb and Other Translation Fables in Classical Antiquity,” Journal of Biblical Literature, v. 129, no. 4 (2010) is a good read. According to Miller the story of an empty tomb as found in the earliest Gospel owes more…

via: Debunking Christianity