RE: Question about "faith"
September 23, 2020 at 12:47 pm
(This post was last modified: September 23, 2020 at 12:52 pm by Simon Moon.)
(September 23, 2020 at 11:57 am)John 6IX Breezy Wrote: Here's a quote from one of the founders of my church; it's possibly the most widely read and distributed book within my church, first published back in 1892:
"God never asks us to believe, without giving sufficient evidence upon which to base our faith. His existence, His character, the truthfulness of His word, are all established by testimony that appeals to our reason; and this testimony is abundant. Yet God has never removed the possibility of doubt. Our faith must rest upon evidence, not demonstration. (E.G.W., Steps to Christ)
The reasonableness of faith is nothing new. Perhaps that is why I'm so good at substantiating my arguments with references--it was engrained in me by my church.
OK! Now we're talking!
One of my main motivations in life, is to have a solid epistemology. I want to hold as many true beliefs, and as few false beliefs as is possible.
So, if you can provide me with sufficient evidence, based on a sound epistemology, to support your claim that a god exists, I am completely open minded to being convinced. My intellectual honesty demands it.
I am not 'angry at god', or simply 'want to sin' as my justification to call myself an atheist. I am simply not convinced that any god exists. I used to be a theist, and a sincere believer.
So, you are now claiming (or your church is) to have sufficient evidence to support your claim that a god exists.
Please provide it.
You'd believe if you just opened your heart" is a terrible argument for religion. It's basically saying, "If you bias yourself enough, you can convince yourself that this is true." If religion were true, people wouldn't need faith to believe it -- it would be supported by good evidence.