(August 9, 2020 at 4:39 pm)Fake Messiah Wrote: Evidence can't change Christian's mind because they are not open minded.

Well, my impression is that, based on the many posts in this forum and considering the likes of Richard Dawkins and Lawrence Krauss, it appears that a good number of us atheists are just as guilty of not being open minded enough. I suspect Christians that are not of the fundamentalist type are more open minded than many of us here.

There isn't a single shred of evidence for any wish granting magic sky pixie.

(August 9, 2020 at 4:45 pm)Grandizer Wrote:

(August 9, 2020 at 4:39 pm)Fake Messiah Wrote: Evidence can't change Christian's mind because they are not open minded.

Well, my impression is that, based on the many posts in this forum and considering the likes of Richard Dawkins and Lawrence Krauss, it appears that a good number of us atheists are just as guilty of not being open minded enough. I suspect Christians that are not of the fundamentalist type are more open minded than many of us here.

There's also general ambiguity of what to do in the face of falsifying evidence. For example, theories can either be discarded or modified to account for contradicting data. So it's up to people whether they wish to modify or discard their beliefs when something doesn't fit. Discarding one's beliefs isn't the only appropriate response, but it's often the only response people expect.

And although data is objective, evidence itself is subjective. Evidence by it's very nature requires interpretation. In other words, evidence is theory-dependant. Data only becomes evidence when you look at it through a particular lens. And that lens can always be reinterpreted and exchanged.

So I agree that people can sometimes be closed minded. But even when a person is open minded it does not mean they'll reach the same conclusions we expect from them. Not changing one's mind about something, does not mean a person is closed minded. They could have understood the information, processed it, and concluded that it did not warrant a change of mind.

(August 9, 2020 at 5:31 pm)John 6IX Breezy Wrote: Evidence by it's very nature requires interpretation. In other words, evidence is theory-dependant. Data only becomes evidence when you look at it through a particular lens.

You mean like when scientists proved through radiometric dating that shroud of Turin is a fake made 630 years ago, but Christians insist that it's the scientists who are wrong because (as they claim): Masonic lodges interfered with the testing; radiometric testing doesn't work anyway; Jesus was full of radiation when he resurrected so it interfered with radioactive carbon, etc.

Because yeah, that's closed minded. Christians are the one trying to falsify the evidence with their wishful thinking, while scientists just provided the evidence with no "particular lens" on scientists side.

(August 9, 2020 at 5:04 pm)no one Wrote: There isn't a single shred of evidence for any wish granting magic sky pixie.

Are you open minded enough to acknowledge that's not what a lot of Christians believe in?

(August 10, 2020 at 12:39 am)Grandizer Wrote:

(August 9, 2020 at 5:04 pm)no one Wrote: There isn't a single shred of evidence for any wish granting magic sky pixie.

Are you open minded enough to acknowledge that's not what a lot of Christians believe in?

Just go to any (Catholic) church and look at paintings there to see what most Christians believe in, especially if you look at the ceiling

(August 10, 2020 at 12:53 am)Fake Messiah Wrote:

(August 10, 2020 at 12:39 am)Grandizer Wrote: Are you open minded enough to acknowledge that's not what a lot of Christians believe in?

Just go to any (Catholic) church and look at paintings there to see what most Christians believe in, especially if you look at the ceiling

This painting shows what exactly?

I'm convinced you're not as open minded as you make yourself to be.

(August 10, 2020 at 1:07 am)Grandizer Wrote: This painting shows what exactly?

It shows what all paintings in churches show: gods and how Christians perceive them (as sky pixies). You don't think they show Chuck E cheese founder Nolan Bushnell?

(August 10, 2020 at 1:32 am)Fake Messiah Wrote:

(August 10, 2020 at 1:07 am)Grandizer Wrote: This painting shows what exactly?

It shows what all paintings in churches show: gods and how Christians perceive them (as sky pixies). You don't think they show Chuck E cheese founder Nolan Bushnell?

I'm not a Christian but I suspect this artwork is meant to be symbolic and not literally depict what God is or looks like.

(August 10, 2020 at 1:37 am)Tulayhah-Asadi Wrote:

(August 10, 2020 at 1:32 am)Fake Messiah Wrote: It shows what all paintings in churches show: gods and how Christians perceive them (as sky pixies). You don't think they show Chuck E cheese founder Nolan Bushnell?

I'm not a Christian but I suspect this artwork is meant to be symbolic and not literally depict what God is or looks like.

Well it's not symbolic if you look what is written in the Gospels and the rest of the Bible, unless everything is symbolic and God is just a figure of speech.