Debt

Well said. I liked that Blair Scott encouraged everyone there to read the bible as well as atheist books by authors such as Dawkins The God Delusion. Education is the key to true freedom of thought.

Nice extrapolation. We're all the same except where we're willing to stop our search for answers about our universe and declare that no more can be known. For some, many important questions were adequately answered millennia ago. Atheists know and love that human knowledge about everything is progressively evolving and that each new breakthrough ignites dozens of new questions to pursue.

Not all Christian Apologists are against exploration of reality..I think balance is key. Faith will never be presented in an evidentiary manner- it goes against it's very definition- belief without evidence. 

I'm glad the debate went well. Would love to read a transcript. 

You know what gets me? That Christians are sometimes put in the light as "non-thinkers". 

My question is this- does being a believer in God, in Jesus make one stupid, or "naive".? 
No. It's just another realm of our being- physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual.

Can't all aspects of our being just get along?  

Hi vp

Believers aren't all stupid by default just as atheists aren't all intelligent by default.

As to your first point, it has always been my experience that I can only push so far in the "exploration of reality" with every believer. How far is dependent on the person and their beliefs, but EVERY believer I've ever dealt with has a point at which they will no longer follow the same logic and evidence that has served them so well in life. It is at that point that that conversation is ended, one way or another, by the believer. It ALWAYS ends with the believer closing the door to possible answers.

Veep, truth is the key.  The world cannot be both only 6000 years old, as Butt says, and billions of years old as every science says.  We must choose.

DF

I agree with all that is above- the world is a kazillion years old. The creation story? Well, It's enough for me to accept that God had a hand in it, and that is simply enough. 

And you are right- there is a point in which believers just say "enough" already. Because it is impossible to prove the presence of God in the open. WE can all have personal revelations, and moments in our lives in which we feel the Hand of God, but that cannot be conveyed to another person with the same convincing. 

"live and let live"= AMEN! Whatever path, whatever beliefs you possess- execute them fairly and honestly- live a life of compassion and kindness. So whatever life you live, live it to the fullest, live it well, and live it like there's no tomorrow!  

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Good points. I've always said you can ask 10 different people what one scripture means & you'll get 10 different answers.

Sadly, there will always be those like Bill Gray that will try to force his beliefs & how he sees the Bible on others. It's all because he & others like him believe they have to work their way to Heaven by telling others what the Bible says.

It's all about that "Soul-Winner's Crown" - they think they have to labor to save souls from the fires of Hell.

Yes- and then they argue that works are irrelevant to salvation. 

Coffee, did you attend?

Hi Senior,

I find your opening comments very revealing.  You write:

As an Atheist I was very pleased with the outcome of the Thursday September 30th debate at the University of North Alabama.  The topic, "God does not exist" was defended by Blair Scott, communications director of American Atheists Inc., while Kyle Butt, christian apologist with Apologetics Press argued against.

Notice that you capitalize Atheist, Thursday, University of North Alabama, Blair Scott, American Atheists Inc, Apologetics Press, etc. -- but, you do not capitalize Christian.  Why?  Was this merely a convenient oversight -- or a purposeful slight?

Most people do not capitalize Atheist because it is not a proper name.  Yet, Christian is a proper name -- a form taken from the name of Jesus Christ.   So, what was it, Senior, oversight or contempt?

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

Bill, haven't you made the claim that atheism is a religion? So I will ask you, why do you not capitalize the word atheist or atheism when you post it? Is it an oversight or contempt on your part, or is it that you don't think atheism is a religion and only make that claim thinking it's some sort of insult? Could you clear that up for us??

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Of course, atheists will not be happy to see that Theocracy come

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Live and let live???? Really?

So if I see my neighbor is about to do something that could potentially kill him I'm just supposed to live and let live and let him die??? What a crock. Maybe you could do that but I for sure couldn't. I would do whatever it took to save him.

They are talking about beliefs fireman. What do you think your neighbor would be doing that might kill him? Anything anyone does in life has the potential to kill them. It's not your place to tell your neighbor they should or shouldn't do something as long as they aren't harming you or anyone else or breaking the law.

I should have been clearer. I meant attend instead of watching it on the net. I didn't do either, but I may read the transcript of it.

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So Coffee, Those dirty christians cut off your nose, or did you cut off your nose

to spite your salvation?

.

The last time I checked, Jesus Christ was a proper name, ergo capitalized. Atheism or atheist is not. Shall we no longer capitalize Buddha, etal.? Why capitalize anything since it obviously takes time away from typing? I thought one point by atheists on this forum is that they follow rules in the same manner a Christian or Jew would, but perhaps not?

How sad that one would capitalize Charles Manson or Adolph Hitler, but not Christ...

Pedantic? Another word that has fallen on hard times it would seem.