Saturday, July 01, 2006
Famous atheists
I agree with John, this is a great video. Almost worry it should be kept from fundies, might just increase their anti-intellectualism. Though the mention of Bill Gates right when his charity work is getting major press is a great touch. This may be worth spreading around for that reason alone.
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4 comments:
I can't say that I am as enthusiastic as you are. For one, an obvious objection is that one can be smart in one's area of expertise, but still foolish in many ways. I could, for example, point to places where Michael Shermer told falsehoods about Apollonius of Tyana (e.g. that it was claimed that he was put to death by the Romans and rose from the dead). Some of the atheists mentioned have checkered reputations, such as Bill Gates, Sigmund Freud, and Woody Allen.
The video also seems to misconstrue Ecclesiates 4:12, "A threefold cord is not easily broken," which appears to be about people supporting each other, not about God being the third person in a couple's relationship.
Hey J.J., thanks for the comments... although I will have to disagree with you about Ecc. 4:12. I have heard that quote dozens of times in regards to romantic relationships. I heard it all through youth group while in high school and college (before I was an atheist) and also from my christian girlfriend (now ex).
Zakiechan
"I will have to disagree with you about Ecc. 4:12. I have heard that quote dozens of times in regards to romantic relationships."
The fact that Christians take the verse out of context doesn't mean that you should do likewise.
The purpose of creation is a topic that puzzles every human being at some point in his or her lifetime. Everybody at some time or another asks themselves the question “Why do I exist?” or “For what purpose am I here on earth?”
The variety and complexity of the intricate systems which constitute the fabric of both human beings and the world in which they exist indicate that there must have been a Supreme Being who created them. Design indicates a designer. When human beings come across footprints on a beach, they immediately conclude that a human being had walked by there some time previously. No one imagines that the waves from the sea settled in the sand and by chance produced a depression looking exactly like human footprints. Nor do humans instinctively conclude that they were brought into existence without a purpose. Since purposeful action is a natural product of human intelligence, humans conclude that the Supreme Intelligent Being who created them must have done so for a specific purpose. Therefore, human beings need to know the purpose for their existence in order to make sense of this life and to do what is ultimately beneficial for them.
Throughout the ages, however, there has been a minority among humans who have denied the existence of God. Matter, in their opinion, is eternal and mankind is merely a chance product of accidental combinations of its elements. Consequently, to them, the question “Why did God create man?” had and still has no answer. According to them, there simply is no purpose to existence. However, the vast majority of humankind over the ages have believed and continue to believe in the existence of a Supreme Being who created this world with a purpose. For them it was, and still is, important to know about the Creator and the purpose for which He created human beings.
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