Friday, August 6, 2010

Ask an Atheist Project: Vestsao

In this blog, you, the reader, get the chance the read several varying atheistic takes on common questions asked of us godless heathens by god fearing folk. We are going to all be answering the same 13 questions, and then we are each supposed to choose a random 14th question to respond to. In addition to this, you are also going to be able to read the take of a (reasonable, intelligent, atheist friendly) Islamic theist (Vestsao) answering from the perspective of an atheist. Sort of a "walk a mile in his shoes" sort of thing.

*This is Vestsao, the theist, answering from an atheists' perspective*

1) What is an atheist?/What do atheists believe?/Don't atheists worship Satan?/Can you prove that god does not exist?

Someone who does not believe in a supernatural deity, entity or is connected to any religious organisation/That differs from individual to individual, some may be objectivist others may be collectivist./Satan would constitute a supernatural entity./The burden of proof is on the positive claim of "God exists," However you cannot apply naturalistic science to a supernatural deity.

2) Aren't there some things that science can't explain? Also, how can you trust science since it's always changing?

That's where scientific advances comes in, and just because X can't explain Y, does not instantly discredit X and exalt Z as the true answer to Y.

As for trysting science:
That's the nature of science, as it changes it's theories it gradually becomes more and more accurate. So rather, as science changes the more trustworthy it becomes.

3) What evidence would convince you that god exists?

Cannot answer.

4) Why is there something rather than nothing?

As far as my knowledge of cosmology goes, even in pre-Big Bang conditions there was still a hot, dense universe which our contemporary universe expanded from. So we are still unaware of any time in history when there was "nothing."

5) Where do atheists think the universe came from?

Differs from individual to individual.

6) If you met god, what would you say to him?

Did I live my life the right way?

7) Everyone believes in god, why don't atheists believe too?

Differs from individual to individual.

8) Where do morals come from, if not from god?

Many places, the literature we read, the films we watch, the corporate marketing we're subjected to, our parents, our friends, ourselves.

9) What's the point of living if you don't believe in god?

You might become an influential politician with a wide purview; your decisions would hold a substantial affect on global events. You might become a postman where it becomes your responsibility to ensure a specific area receives their letters on time.

10) If we came from monkeys, why are there still monkeys alive today?

As far my evolutionary biology goes, we are not related to contemporary monkeys. We share a common ancestor who evolved down two distinctive paths.

11) Don't you atheists wish there was a heaven?

Cannot answer.

12) Why blog, debate on forums, make videos, etc?

Something to do.

13) Pascal's Wager (even though the existence of God cannot be determined through reason, a person should wager as though God exists, because living life accordingly has everything to gain, and nothing to lose, whereas living as an atheist can possibly cost you everything but you gain nothing). Basicallty, why don't you just believe, what do you have to lose? Nothing, but you might have lots to gain!! 

God would be aware of your facade of compliance and genuine faith covering an interior of questioning disbelief; I'm sure he'd rather you lived your life the best you could rather than pretending to believe in him.

5 comments:

  1. "However you cannot apply naturalistic science to a supernatural deity."

    On the face of it, it would seem that you could not. However, if that supernatural being effected the natural world, then you certainly could, since the effects would be empirically demonstrable.

    "6) If you met god, what would you say to him?

    Did I live my life the right way?"

    Hehe :) You slipped up there and answered from a theists' perspective. I think an atheists' answer would start with "HOLY SHIT!" and then go from there :)

    "God would be aware of your facade of compliance and genuine faith covering an interior of questioning disbelief."

    Yep! Greatly stated.

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  2. Your answer to thirteen is exactly how I feel. I like to think if Allah is almighty and omnipotent then he should also be understanding and see that doubt is something he enabled us with and if we did doubt and still hung on to our faith then he should appreciate that from us. I mean, no one is fucking perfect.

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  3. My bad, I read it wrong; but I still hold true to my statement.

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  4. "Islamic Theist" - I'm Catholic.

    That is a difficult response.. It's difficult to decide whether or not an event was the result of divine intervention, or how God would intervene in a situation or if it's simply luck or whether science can offer an explanation with physical evidence and reasoned logic.

    And bollocks.. Well an agnostic atheist might..

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  5. ""Islamic Theist" - I'm Catholic."

    Ya, sorry about that :)

    "It's difficult to decide whether or not an event was the result of divine intervention, or how God would intervene in a situation or if it's simply luck or whether science can offer an explanation with physical evidence and reasoned logic."

    If you are referring to my comments regarding empiracally validating an effect in the natural world due to supernatural intervention, I'd say you're correct, if the naturalistic event(s) is/are in no way contradictory to what we know about the world. If a god created a hurricane, but the formation of that hurricane was in line with what we know, you'd be correct.

    However, the idea of a supernatural entity effecting the real world calls to mind, for me, things that contradict, or supercede, natural law. FOr example, if we suddenly saw volcanoes erupting with absolutely no markers of an upcoming eruption being seen beforehand, that would be suspect. Or dogs suddenly gaining the ability to fly. Stuff like that :)

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