{"id":1679,"date":"2021-02-09T14:04:32","date_gmt":"2021-02-09T19:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unbelievable\/?p=1679"},"modified":"2021-02-09T14:05:13","modified_gmt":"2021-02-09T19:05:13","slug":"dont-be-meme-what-christians-can-learn-from-online-atheism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/unbelievable\/2021\/02\/dont-be-meme-what-christians-can-learn-from-online-atheism\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t be meme! What Christians can learn from online atheism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"The online world is awash with memes that critique passages from the Bible. Eric Strandness looks at how the viral images can help challenge and strengthen our faith.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Christian response to atheist memes is usually one of either anger or angst, motivating some to come up with their own clever anti-atheist riposte, while others are left to quietly ask themselves if maybe they contain a kernel of truth. I think there is a middle road where they can be viewed as both an opportunity for dialogue as well as a stimulus to take a deeper look into the Bible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Californian pastor, Dan Kimball, takes atheist memes seriously and feels that they represent an outstanding opportunity to educate the Christian laity to become more biblically savvy. In his new book, <\/span>\u2018How (not) to read the Bible: Making sense of the anti-women, anti-science, pro-violence, pro-slavery, and other crazy sounding parts of scripture\u2019<\/span><\/i>, he tackles the content of many of\u00a0<\/span>those memes and uses them as tools to help Christians read the Bible more effectively. On a recent episode of Unbelievable?<\/a>, Kimball debated the validity of some of the more powerful memes with atheist, Michael Wiseman, host of the atheist podcast, The Bible Says What?.<\/i><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

I was impressed by Kimball\u2019s patience and kindness and a bit underwhelmed by Wiseman\u2019s arguments. I wish Wiseman had made a stronger historical and textual case rather than just expressing his distaste for a violent God. Sadly, given his materialist worldview, it is very difficult for him to justi<\/span>fy his divine disdain when good and evil have no objective content and are dependent on the whims of a given culture at a given time.<\/p>\n

In this blog, however, I want to concentrate on Kimball\u2019s optimism regarding the power of criticism to strengthen faith. I think we all too often dismiss the concerns voiced by our atheist brothers and sisters and miss out on a profound opportunity to reveal the truth of Christianity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Surviving the Cultural Ice Age<\/b><\/h3>\n

The Christian church is under constant cultural attack, yet it seems that every other religious tradition is given a free pass. We\u00a0feel like we\u00a0have been good citizens, yet the villagers relentlessly\u00a0come at us with torches and pitchforks. While others are allowed to meditate, pray and worship, we are told to scold\u00a0our deity\u00a0and make\u00a0Him sit in the corner with an \u201cUnknown God\u201d sign around His neck. Despite all this\u00a0hostility, the Church\u00a0not only survives but also becomes stronger in the process.<\/span><\/p>\n

What is it about Christianity that allows it to survive every cultural ice age? Why has it not gone the way of the dinosaur?\u00a0I would argue that Christianity\u2019s remarkable fitness is not\u00a0due to evolutionary adaptation,\u00a0but rather Divine stability.<\/span><\/p>\n