The religidiots of Tumblr are at it again…wtf? We’re going to ask them whatever the fuck we want to ask them.
(Because I’m inspired by the article)
1. Why don’t you just believe in Science?
We do. The idea that science is a monolithic force in opposition to religion is every bit as ignorant as the idea that all religious people are equivalent, or all religions believe the same things. This question is simply another way of stating the claim that religious people are less intelligent or logical than a non-religious person. So… yes. It’s offensive.
And science is not in-and-of-itself sufficient to provide morality, purpose, and direction for one’s life. Not even an atheistic life. You might believe in the pursuit of knowledge, but that’s an entirely separate thought from PRACTICING science, or ACCEPTING scientific theories. Science is an ideologically neutral subject that provides direction on how to investigate the world. One cannot worship or have faith in science any more than they can base their morality on a guide to cooking.
2. Why do you have to believe in God?
Just to give atheists someone to argue with. You’re welcome.
There are plenty of philosophical reasons why someone might come to the conclusion that God exists. If you don’t understand those reasons, then I can suggest several great books. It’s offensive because it assumes that believers have no reason for their beliefs and have not given them any thought.
3. If Heaven is real, why don’t you kill yourself?
The value of life and avoidance of sin and whatnot, the fact that we’re not suicidal, life being too short and too wonderful… all likely similar to the reasons atheists might give for not killing themselves(other than sin). It’s almost as if most people are not that different from each other!
4. Who created God?
This is a misunderstanding of the contingency argument. It’s asked either because 1. You’re an amateur “philosopher” who doesn’t understand why asking this question is absurd and offensive to people who actually study philosophy, or 2. You’re asking someone who doesn’t know philosophy solely to confuse them and make them feel stupid without having a good argument of your own.
Either way, you’re being a jerk when you ask this. Or expressing ignorance, which is not so bad, if you admit that’s what you’re doing.
5. Have you read the ENTIRE bible/other holy book?
For one thing, most people would not define a Christian/member of any religion as “someone who has read X book.”- so the question has no philosophical relevance nor does it imply that the person not a member of X religion. For another, reading a book has nothing to do with understanding said book. Many atheists are good examples of that fact.
If the point of asking is to argue about how many people died/rape accusations/genocide/other horrors(which it usually is), then it’s an argument by outrage/appeal to emotion: A logical fallacy that has nothing to do with whether the religion in question is true or not. And arguments by outrage are inherently offensive- they are intended to be.
6. Why don’t you believe in Thor/Zeus/Mithra/Unicorns/The Flying Spaghetti Monster?
Can you give me a single reason why I should? Do you know a proselytizer of Thor that I should really talk to?
If not, It’s a red herring logical fallacy to bring up unrelated ideas to distract from the primary subject: Is MY religion the true one, or is MY belief logically sound? I don’t answer for anyone else’s, and logically, I don’t have to. The question is designed to avoid actual debate while attempting to demonstrate the religious person ignorant for not having an argument against .
7. Why would a loving God send anyone to Hell?
Because universal love and universal acceptance are not necessarily the same thing. Anyone with children could explain this concept: You love them, regardless of the unacceptable behavior they often demonstrate. The real question is, when would you cut your children off from your life completely? If they commit murder? Rape? Torture? If they ask you to cut them off from your life completely?
Hell is better understood as a chosen separation from God. But that aside, belief in Hell(and who goes there) has NOTHING to do with whether or not God is loving. It’s an inadequate assumption of a particular(false) definition of love, and another sort of argument by outrage fallacy.
8. If God exists, why is there evil?
If evil did not exist, then neither would God. The idea of good and evil are moral judgments that would be meaningless in an atheistic universe.
But as an argument against the Christian God specifically? The bible admits that there’s evil. It does a pretty good of describing it explicitly(Pretty sure most other religions justify evil as well). Personally, I think the question is ‘interesting’, but it’s also a philosophical one that’s older than dirt and written about just as much. If you were really curious, you wouldn’t be asking me. You’d read about it.
9. Why should blind faith be considered moral?
The Bible does not teach blind faith. But if a particular religion did, on what basis would blind faith NOT be moral? What is morality, and who decides that?
Beyond the fact that the question itself is logically absurd and poorly defined, it’s also an assumption that the believer is ignorant PURELY on the basis that they have belief. That’s an ad hominem fallacy. And is insulting and offensive.
All this said, the idea that a BELIEF should not be questioned- however offensively questioned- is utter nonsense. Everyone has beliefs. Everyone has questions about other people’s beliefs. Some of those questions will be offensive, because many people are jerks.
Get over it.
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