RE: On the nature of evidence.
October 26, 2014 at 2:26 am
(This post was last modified: October 26, 2014 at 2:28 am by trmof.)
(October 26, 2014 at 2:23 am)genkaus Wrote:(October 25, 2014 at 4:05 pm)trmof Wrote: I think you might be setting your standards too high. As someone who I presume lives an ordinary life without major worldwide repercussions, it might be unreasonable to ask God for something so major that he has to make the laws of physics jump through hoops. He has to take into account the butterfly effect this would have on everything in your immediate vicinity and beyond.
He doesn't seem to have any problem with making laws of physics jump through hoops in any of your scripture. The standard of proof here is the same it was 2000 years ago - that's not setting the bar too high.
(October 25, 2014 at 4:05 pm)trmof Wrote: In my experience God is much more likely to communicate with people through strange circumstances which speak to them personally, as these are much easier to engineer. I would suggest you ask humbly for a very simple sign of this kind, and don't immediately write it off as a coincidence when something unusual happens; but ask God to provide a larger, bolder sign to confirm the first. If he is an active personality as I believe, he will see fit to give you these signs and make them more and more obvious. However, if you DO receive these increasingly obvious signs and still refuse to acknowledge them as circumstantial evidence, then God will eventually stop trying.
Been there, done that, got nothing. What's next?
What you do next is irrelevant to the discussion.
(October 26, 2014 at 2:25 am)genkaus Wrote:(October 25, 2014 at 4:12 pm)trmof Wrote: Let's assume for a second that you did experience just such an Old Testament miracle.
A) why would you assume it actually happened if a simpler explanation is that you imagined it and are developing mental illness.
Because there would be others corroborating it.
(October 25, 2014 at 4:12 pm)trmof Wrote: B) What would you expect to be the reaction of other atheists with whom you shared this experience? And assuming you believed what had happen to you, how would you convey this knowledge to another person besides simply telling them and hoping they believe you?
OT miracles weren't limited to one person at a time. They were witnessed by many and they left verifiable, tangible evidence.
Groups of people all around the world report instances of miracles all the time.
