This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines. What is your best reason for being a Christian? For me, what speaks to me about Christianity is its synthesis. The synthesis of man and God. The synthesis of Western philosophy, Western heroic literature and Eastern wisdom literature and Eastern concepts of the divine. I am inspired by the radical philosophy of Jesus... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines. What is your best reason for being a Christian? My personal reason for believing that Jesus is our Lord and our Savior is that I have found a solace and strength in my faith that I could never have found from any other source. My best reason, that is, the one I would... Read more
In light of the interest in the ‘Atheist’ round of my Ideological Turing Test, I’m extending the deadline for submitting answers until midnight on Tuesday night, so keep forwarding the link around! The answers to the ‘Christian’ slate of questions will start going up early Monday morning. There are fifteen answers in all (from the same slate of contestants who participated in the first round). If you don’t want to have too much to slog through when the ballot goes... Read more
This round of voting is now CLOSED, but voting on the second round of answers is OPEN. All the answers in the first round of the Ideological Turing Test are posted, and it’s time to make your decision. The survey has three pages: Background information on your religious beliefs Your evaluation of all fifteen entries Make sure you double check that you fill in your answers on the correct line Your choices are Atheist/Lean Atheist/Lean Christian/Christian ‘Lean’ implies... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines here. What’s your best reason for being an atheist? Frankly, I don’t see, metaphysically, scientifically, you name it, why there needs to be a god, and if the universe and existence and sentience and all that can be explained without one, how could I ever believe one existed? If god isn’t central and... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines here. What’s your best reason for being an atheist? I will begin by quoting Ralph Waldo Emerson, who, though not himself an atheist, raised some interesting points that nonbelievers can learn a great deal from: “There is nothing at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind.” I am very optimistic... Read more
–1– This week, I’ve been posting all the entries in my Ideological Turing Test Contest – a challenge for individual Christians and Atheists to see how well they understand each other. This week, Christians are trying to imitate Atheists well enough to be indistinguishable from them. Next week, the atheists will return the favor. (All inspired by Bryan Caplan’s Ideological Turing Test. –2– For this contest to work, I need you all to vote on which of the answers you... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines here. What’s your best reason for being an atheist? The reason I’m an atheist is that there’s no objectively verifiable evidence that any supernatural being has interacted with humans, while there is evidence that’s incompatible with the existence of those beings as traditionally defined by all the major world religions. One example of... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines here. What’s your best reason for being an atheist? Well, when it comes to not believing in god(s) generally, it’s not primarily the lack of evidence, it’s the lack of additional explanatory power. If religion were true and compelling, it should be a better guide to living than atheism, and it shouldn’t just... Read more
This post is part of the Ideological Turing Test Challenge. Go to the tab above for an overview and remind yourself of the voting and commenting guidelines here. What’s your best reason for being an atheist? My best ‘reason’ for being an atheist is simply the lack of any reason NOT to be an atheist. I find all the personal stories of faith uncompelling for me even if I were to accept their value for the people that experience them.... Read more
Unequally Yoked
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