Windy Sydney

I thought I would take some time to answer some of this guy's questions...

1. Aren't you using chance in the exact same way in which you accuse Christians of using "God of the Gaps?"

No, I don't believe we are.

I think we are using our common sense and reason and looking at all of the evidence to see if something is logical before we believe it.

Is it likely that a being (don't know what created God, do we?) came out of nowhere and for some strange reason decided to create life, the earth, the universe? Or is it more likely that science and something natural made these things happen?

Most Christians think that Atheists believe that the earth was made out of nothing, or made out of "green goo." They are wrong. Believers are the ones who assume that God created the earth out of nothing but magic and pixie dust. Atheists are usually very clear when they say they don't have all the answers... they are just unwilling to place a God in the gaps that you speak of. We don't have the answers now, but if we continue to study and actively research we might come up with answers they don't involve magic and a God.

If an airplane were to crash into my apartment building right now, should I assume it happened because God does exist and God wanted me to die in a fiery blaze because I dare question his existence? Or, should we look at all available evidence and come to the conclusion that it was something like pilot error or mechanical problems?


This guy mentions that Darwinism makes chance in the form of random variation a creative force in biology, and then says that isn't very intelligent in his opinion. This made me giggle.

Mutations happen. All the time. In animals, in plants, in human beings. In some of these cases, the mutations actually assist the specific species and therefore make that species stronger and less likely to fall prey to something else. If animals with the mutation survive longer, they have more opportunity to breed and therefore pass the mutation on to their offspring. The mutation then becomes somewhat normal... It's survival of the fittest.

Would giraffes with short necks survive a long time? No, they would probably have a hard time finding and gathering food to keep them alive (this is a very simplistic example). Therefore they wouldn't have the same opportunity to pass their specific genetic makeup to potential offspring.

God isn't automatically the answer. Hope that makes sense.

2. Why should there be something instead of nothing?

Why should the answer automatically be God?

Again, this man is assuming that human beings are here because something put us here. It is quite possible that the Earth was created by a series of random events. It is quite possible that there is no deep meaning to life, no giant lessons we are supposed to learn, no tests to pass... nothing.

It's not a comfortable feeling, is it?

Thinking that we don't have a purpose and that when we die we just cease to exist completely?

But it's possible. It is. We don't know it for fact, because there is no way to study people who have died and ask them questions, is there?

I suppose most Christians would say that a God is just as possible, but I have to disagree. Especially the God of the Bible. The God that says slavery is okay, the God that asks for sacrifices, the God that drowned everything on the earth except for Noah and the ark in a giant flood, the God that doesn't step in when innocent children are dying from one thing or another. Is the God I just described a loving God? Far from it. Would I worship someone or something that could sit by and do nothing while there is so much suffering in the world?

Absolutely not.

Again, atheists don't automatically put God in the gaps... if we don't have the answers, we seek the answers. If we find evidence of a just and loving God, most Atheists will be more than willing to look at that evidence and decide for themselves what conclusions to draw. We just don't automatically draw the conclusions. That doesn't make us stupid or silly. It makes us careful.

The guy in the video says that everything must have come into existence at some point and time. Yes, this is true. But again, the answer isn't automatically God... is it? If it was God, who created God? Who created the thing that invented/created God? How did that happen? Instead of seeking answers to these questions before drawing the God conclusion most Christians assume this is all here due to some supernatural event.

He says the world was "fixed" to make life possible. I don't really agree with that. I think that it is much more likely that natural events took place that created the perfect conditions for life to evolve. He says that the biological life itself bears the marks of intelligent design. How is this? What are these marks that prove we came from Adam and Eve instead of evolution? His argument on this is very weak and he gives no examples as to what he is trying to say.

Hell, we might never know what started all this... life... but that doesn't mean I should assume it was a God and stop looking for actual evidence! That would be pretty silly in my opinion.

3. The world has something called "moral order." Where do you get your morals from?

Are you kidding me dude?

Really?

I have morals, I know right from wrong, therefore God exists?

No.

I get my morals from the wonderful parents who raised me. The ones who taught me that I should treat those as I want to be treated. Not out of fear of being punished by them, or by God... but because it's just the right thing to do.

I don't understand why so many religious people out there assume people who don't believe in God are automatically baby-eating, drug-taking, car-stealing, maniacs who look for any opportunity to hurt their fellow man! Come on now!

This argument also brings up another point. How many so-called Christians with a deep belief in a God commit heinous crimes on a daily basis? How is it that the God they believe in doesn't keep them from hurting their fellow man? This leads me to believe that morals have nothing to do with a deity at all... instead, you either have empathy for your fellow man or you don't. You are selfish or you are good. You care or you don't.

The "moral order" of the world is another shocking statement to me.

Where in the world is this moral order?



I read about wars, killing, starving children, rapes, murders... you name it. Are all of the people committing these acts atheists? Nope. In fact, most of the wars are started because of one groups' belief in God or some holy turf war. They don't care who they have to kill to get what God wants them to have. They are right. They are justified because God is on their side.

This is some insanely twisted logic.

He brings up the fact that believers in God look to the future about how we "ought" to behave. He says that evolution has something to do with morals. I disagree. Evolution biology, morals and ethics are something different. A form of philosophy (I guess).

Most of the atheists I know are active in their communities. Doing things to clean up the planet, helping animals, fighting like HELL for equal rights (because God doesn't hate anyone... he doesn't exist), trying to make sure that the entire Earth doesn't go to shit so our children and grandchildren will have a place to exist.

The Bible says that God gave humans dominion over the earth, and to quote my favorite comedian Bill Maher, "It is if God said, 'Take this [the earth] and beatith the shit out of it. For it does not matter. It is a rental.'" If we don't do something about the environment our entire future is at risk. Most Christians believe God is going to come to earth and save the good people during the rapture. Do they not care because they won't have to worry about living on the earth? They will be saved so who gives a shit, right? Do they not realize that they could be very wrong? Where is there sense of morality when it comes to this kind of thing?

Morality needs to be explained, he says.

Let me give it a shot... Morality is caring about your fellow man. Not because of a fear of punishment from God, or even a punishment from law enforcement/prison... but because we, as humans (most of us, anyway), empathize with others. God has nothing to do with this. Sorry.

So, if God=Morals, then why are there so many lying, cheating, abusing believers out there? Why didn't I go out last night and rob a bank for more Christmas money? No God to punish me, so why not??? This is soooo stupid. It's a bad argument. Really bad. Frankly, I think he is pretty damned ignorant for assuming these things about atheists. What is he making his generalizations on? Why does he assume atheists are people with dark hearts and no morals? It's somewhat insulting to tell you the truth. He doesn't have a clue.

4. How did morals evolve?

Hmmm... lets see here.

Killing is bad because you are forcing your will upon another living creature. You are taking something that doesn't belong to you (their life) and therefore you have no right to do it.

Do I need a God to tell me that murder is bad? That I shouldn't eat babies for breakfast? That I shouldn't rob the bank at the end of my street because I need more money for Christmas presents? No. I know the difference between right and wrong. I wouldn't want someone to murder me or one of my family members, so I treat them as I want to be treated.

This isn't a question about God/religion at all. This is a question about empathy. It's a question about those who care about their fellow man and those who don't. If you were to do a study on this, I would be willing to bet that there are just as many Christians out there committing horrible acts as atheists. As a matter of fact, there are so many more Christians than atheists that there are probably more Christians committing these crimes than atheists. Does that mean God doesn't exist?

His caveman story made me chuckle.

Atheists are not moral because we want our species to survive. I mean, of course we want our species (and planet) to survive, but that isn't what we base our morals on. If I killed someone in cold blood, I would feel guilty. Not because I had done something to make it harder for the species to survive, but because I took the life of someone else. I took them away from their family, friends and loved ones, and I had no right to do so.

Again, this guy is pretty convinced that our conscience (something that everyone has unless they are suffering from one mental illness or another... sociopaths come to mind) is in fact the voice of God telling us right from wrong. Mormons believe this is the Holy Ghost. I believe this is something that ALL people have, and some people choose not to listen to it. Some people don't give a shit about anyone but them... and all of those people are not atheists, are they?

This argument is flawed. Just because he doesn't understand it, doesn't make him right... haha..

5. Can nature generate complex organisms, in the sense of originating it, when previously there was none?

Again, we don't know what created the Earth... but the answer isn't automatically supernatural. Why draw that conclusion immediately? Study it, look at it from all angles, come up with theories of how this could have happened. Which of the theories is most likely? Do some experiments, study more. Keep looking. Keep learning.

Scientists believe in evolution because it is the most logical explanation. There are fossils that prove species evolve.

But the question is, basically, what starts life? Moreover, what is the meaning of life?

We don't know. Not yet. We might never know... but that doesn't mean that I should live my life according to an ancient book with more holes in it than swiss cheese. That doesn't mean I should believe in and worship a deity that has the ability to watch, observe and stop suffering but chooses not to. That doesn't mean the answer is God.

Instead of drawing that conclusion, I plan on keeping an open mind and looking for real evidence. Not warm fuzzies that have been known to lie, not people who try to scare me into conforming to their beliefs even though they are sexist and homophobic.

This guy's video is full of eye-roll inducing moments, and it gave me a good laugh. I love the way he looked into the camera as if he were trying to show you God's love through the pleading in his eyes. His arguments are not logical, though. As a matter of fact, they are kind of funny (to me, anyway).

Andee