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Why, after ten years of talking with atheists, I'm still a Christian
Unbelievable? ^ | August 23, 2019 | Justin Brierley

Posted on 08/22/2019 10:35:35 PM PDT by OddLane

Unbelievable? host Justin Brierley shares why he thinks Christianity makes best sense of human existence, value and purpose.

(Excerpt) Read more at youtube.com ...


TOPICS: Evangelical Christian; Skeptics/Seekers
KEYWORDS: atheism; christ
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1 posted on 08/22/2019 10:35:35 PM PDT by OddLane
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To: OddLane

And atheists are sill atheists, after 10 years of talking with a Christian.


2 posted on 08/22/2019 10:40:15 PM PDT by granada
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To: OddLane

When you argue with the common atheist and you here such things as Christianity came into existence because Constatine, King James wrote the Bible, Paul invented Christianity etc. you learn that they are either ignorant and repeating what they heard or they are liars.


3 posted on 08/22/2019 11:12:41 PM PDT by LukeL
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To: granada

Yes, we are. However, I have no urge to “convert” anyone to Atheism, and neither do my friends. I don’t have any problems with Christianity, and I was raised a Catholic. My family is Catholic on my mom’s side, and my dad’s is a mix of Protestant (his dad’s side) and Christian Scientist (his mom’s side). I’d say my dad is probably Agnostic, my mom still Catholic.

No hatred. Just a lack of belief on my part.


4 posted on 08/22/2019 11:22:09 PM PDT by Tacrolimus1mg (Do no harm, but take no sh!t.)
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To: granada
All is vain, unless the Spirit

Of the Holy One come down.

5 posted on 08/22/2019 11:23:34 PM PDT by OddLane
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To: granada

Well its all about perspective no one is going out of here alive anyway


6 posted on 08/22/2019 11:48:53 PM PDT by elosga (my thoughs)
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To: Tacrolimus1mg

Just curious, where do atheists believe that morality comes from? In other words, if there is no God (pushing his morality and holding us to account), why not just look after yourself and to hell with everyone else?


7 posted on 08/23/2019 2:06:23 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: OddLane

Yet archeology in Israel,have proven the Bible correct.


8 posted on 08/23/2019 2:57:35 AM PDT by Biggirl ("One Lord, one faith, one baptism" - Ephesians 4:5)
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To: RoosterRedux

“ (pushing his morality and holding us to account), ”

Why is it that you believe that it is that a person can only be moral if he is forced to by the carrot and stick of religion? The promise of life everlasting or burning in hell.

The atheist I have known are just as moral as Christians.

In full disclosure I am a Deist and the God we believe in makes no requirement but has given us the gift of reason and logic to figure what is right or wrong for ourselves.


9 posted on 08/23/2019 4:20:35 AM PDT by Okieshooter
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To: OddLane

There are too many atheists who are atheists because they don’t like Christians. That’s not a valid reason.


10 posted on 08/23/2019 4:27:31 AM PDT by AppyPappy (How many fingers am I holding up, Winston?)
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To: Okieshooter
You raise a good point about anyone being moral.

My question though is "where does their/our sense of morality come from?" Where did this code come from that you say even atheists can abide by?

"Whose" morality is it that atheists are abiding by? They may abide by it but they didn't invent it...or, if they did, what is the basis for it?

As CS Lewis said, humans have (some do, at least) this powerful inner sense of right and wrong. Did we learn that from our parents, our society? If so, where did our parents and their parents learn it from?

Animals don't have it. Peoples whose civilizations are not based on or influenced by Judeo/Christianity don't have it (our sense of morality that is).

Atheists may be moral as we define morality, but perhaps they are just following the rules of our society...a society founded on the principles of Judeo/Christianity.

11 posted on 08/23/2019 4:33:01 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: Okieshooter
God we believe in makes no requirement but has given us the gift of reason and logic to figure what is right or wrong for ourselves.

The belief that God makes no requirement sounds like something created out of thin air (unless you have something or someone to point to as having heard God say that).

But the other part of your statement seems to be true just by our experience. It does seem that God has written his rules "on our hearts."

12 posted on 08/23/2019 4:36:46 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: AppyPappy
Heheh. There is no doubt that Christians are difficult to like (myself included).

IIRC, Gandhi is reported to have said (I paraphrase), "Jesus I like. Christians? Not so much."

13 posted on 08/23/2019 4:39:23 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: RoosterRedux
Just curious, where do atheists believe that morality comes from? In other words, if there is no God (pushing his morality and holding us to account), why not just look after yourself and to hell with everyone else?

As a general rule you see this in socialist/communist countries.

There is no Golden Rule except to get what one can for themselves.

Human life is degraded.

We're seeing that begin to really develop here in the US.

14 posted on 08/23/2019 4:48:39 AM PDT by ealgeone
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To: LukeL
I always like to ask these two questions for those who deny God's existence:

How does life come from lifelessness?

How does something, say the universe, come from nothing?

It's always interesting watching the wheels try to turn to answer the questions.

15 posted on 08/23/2019 4:50:00 AM PDT by ealgeone
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To: RoosterRedux

People shouldn’t let other people decide their faith. You may as well say “OK Satan, what should I be?”
Everyone is a hypocrite. Everyone is judgmental. Everyone


16 posted on 08/23/2019 4:50:50 AM PDT by AppyPappy (How many fingers am I holding up, Winston?)
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To: RoosterRedux

To quote Thomas Paine “God reveals himself in the creation we behold”.

In other words the complexity of the universe makes it evident there is an intelligent creator, we see no direct evidence that the creator intervenes in the affairs of man. Bible doesn’t count because it is only hearsay not direct evidence.

Perhaps the creator did write the rules in our heart as we see the in the empathy we naturally feel for those in pain.


17 posted on 08/23/2019 5:38:18 AM PDT by Okieshooter
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To: ealgeone
Absolutely.

The Left is pushing moral relativism without considering that it will disintegrate not only our current Judeo/Christian society, but any society.

The Left believes it can imposed its own "tolerant, genderless society" morals on us, but such society doesn't actually exist beyond a few platitudes.

18 posted on 08/23/2019 5:43:39 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: Okieshooter
I don't think the Bible is "hearsay" (i.e. rumor). It is a first or secondhand recording of history and fact by persons who present it as fact.

If an account of a murder were written down by a certain recognizable person, and if such written account and the person writing it could be subject to test and triangulation, it could get a man sentence to death.

The Bible as a written account has been and is constantly being tested both in its facts and in its principles. It is proving to be a document of substance written by men of substance (and having no ulterior motive).

Obviously, we have to go with what we have instead of just assuming "nothing." Assuming nothing is like assuming the American Revolution didn't occur because no one alive or no video evidence can attest to it.

There are vast stretches of history (all of it in fact) that are based on nothing but written accounts. What kind of evidence do you want? Video?

As anyone knows, there are ways of testing and triangulating written and old accounts to get at the truth.

Without written accounts, we would have no account at all.

19 posted on 08/23/2019 6:01:42 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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To: Okieshooter
As an aside, don't let the fact that the evidence for God and Jesus is circumstantial prevent you from getting at the Truth.

Perhaps you are correct in your beliefs...perhaps not.

But don't assume that because the path is difficult (i.e. circumstantial in this case) you can't find the Truth.

You can.

And many men have gone to their death (with smiles on their faces) believing in this Truth.;-)

20 posted on 08/23/2019 6:09:09 AM PDT by RoosterRedux
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