I like the above image, because it's so absurd. Not that the miracle itself is absurd, but that someone could see such a thing and still dismiss it. A while back, we had a discussion on this blog about the effectiveness of miracles. Not the "oh, my aunt has a friend that knows someone who… Continue reading How Convincing Are Miracles?
Tag: religion
How It Happened: My Deconversion Part 3
Links: Part 1 // Part 2 For most of 2009, I remained unsure of some of my beliefs. Doctrinally, I had a firm foundation -- I knew what I believed and why. But when it came to the subject of who would be saved and who wouldn't, I felt like I was at a loss.… Continue reading How It Happened: My Deconversion Part 3
How It Happened: My Deconversion Part 2
Part 1 can be found here. In studying the doctrine of Hell, I found some interesting things. First, Hell is not talked about in the Old Testament. The King James Version mentions "Hell" a number of times, but that's just a translation issue. The actual word used in the Old Testament is Sheol. Now, we… Continue reading How It Happened: My Deconversion Part 2
KISS
Keep it simple, stupid. One of my college professors reminded us of that acronym constantly whenever we were discussing programming or system design. It tends to be good advice. I was reminded of it earlier today when I heard some people discussing the Sabbath Day. The Ten Commandments tell us that the Sabbath Day is… Continue reading KISS
Can a True Christian Ever Lose Her Faith?
Many Christians believe in the doctrine of eternal security, which teaches that once someone is saved, they can never lose that salvation. It's a very comforting thought, but it's not without controversy. First of all, not all Christians believe in this doctrine, because the Bible gives very mixed signals about it. Secondly, most people who… Continue reading Can a True Christian Ever Lose Her Faith?
The Bible’s Morality
In the last post, I talked about why I still believe in some moral absolutes even though I'm no longer a Christian. In this post, I'd like to dig a little deeper into what kind of morality we find in the Bible. Most of us view things like the Holocaust or the Tiananmen Square Crackdown… Continue reading The Bible’s Morality
Absolute Morality
There are certain things that we all know are wrong -- child molestation, for instance, or murder. But how do we know those things are wrong? Many religious people (and I'm mostly gearing this toward Christians, since they're the group I'm most familiar with) believe that we must appeal to a higher authority in order… Continue reading Absolute Morality
What It Would Take
"What would it take for you to believe in God again?" This is what Ryan asked me recently. It's a really good question, and it's one I've thought about a lot. I've also read the thoughts of some other atheists on this subject; one that I think makes a particularly good argument is found here.… Continue reading What It Would Take
Skeptical Bible Study: Daniel — Aftermath
First post in this series can be found here. The previous 12 posts are the articles that first gave me cause to question the Bible. Until I happened upon them, I had always believed that the Bible was the inerrant word of God, that it contained real prophecies that had actually come true, and that… Continue reading Skeptical Bible Study: Daniel — Aftermath
Skeptical Bible Study: Daniel Chapters 10-12
First post in this series can be found here. This article is not my own, but was originally posted by Darwin's Beagle. The author has given permission for the article to be reposted here. 10.1 Summary and analysis of Chapters 10 through 12 This is the final prophecy in Daniel, and it is the most… Continue reading Skeptical Bible Study: Daniel Chapters 10-12
Finding Truth 