Month: December 2016

I tend to forget to mention here when I post relevant essays elsewhere.

In case anyone is interested, I am posting a five part essay which serves as a, from the horse’s mouth, introduction to Atheism, Brights, Freethinkers, Humanism, Naturalism, Rationalism, Skepticism, Philosophical, Skepticism and Universism.

The posts will consist of a basic introduction, definitions, ethics/morals, science and concluding musings.

The posts begin here: “_Professing Themselves To Be Wise, They Became Fools_”, part 1 of 5

On Atheism Sunday School

I continue chronicling of atheists not only raising their own children as atheists but everyone else’s as well. Jeninne Lee-St. John wrote an article for TIME magazine entitled: Sunday School for Atheists
The article was a report on atheist parents who seek to ensure that their children are taught to believe exactly as they do. While this is typically what many parents wants it is refreshing that atheists are admitting that they indoctrinate their children as much as, if not more so, than theists-this is part of the reason for the rise of atheism in America.

Atheists are now coming out and admitting that they practice indoctrination of children just like those theistic parents whom atheists have long condemned as child abusers for doing the same thing.The practice of atheism’s indoctrination of children is, of course, nothing new. I know someone whose father used to tuck her into bed a night, when she was a little girl, telling her that there is no God. The difference now is that the indoctrination is becoming institutionalized in the form of summer camps, classes, various media (such as Philip Pullman’s works), etc.The article states:

some nonbelievers are beginning to think they might need something for their children. “When you have kids,” says Julie Willey, a design engineer, “you start to notice that your co-workers or friends have church groups to help teach their kids values and to be able to lean on.”
So every week, Willey, who was raised Buddhist and says she has never believed in God, and her husband pack their four kids into their blue minivan and head to…atheist Sunday school…the weekly instruction supports their position that it’s O.K. to not believe in God and gives them a place to reinforce the morals and values they want their children to have.

Note the qualifiers: reinforce what they want their children to have.

One Sunday this fall found a dozen children up to age 6 and several parents playing percussion instruments and singing empowering anthems like I’m Unique and Unrepeatable.

Here we have atheism hymns and doxologies.I may be reading too much into this but I thought that it was simply fascinating:

Down the hall in the kitchen, older kids engaged in a Socratic conversation with class leader [Peter] Bishop about the role persuasion plays in decision-making.
He tried to get them to see that people who are coerced into renouncing their beliefs might not actually change their minds but could be acting out of self-preservation-an important lesson for young atheists who may feel pressure to say they believe in God.

I do not know if it is a mere semantic accident but note that even while the class leader sought to warn them about the role of persuasion he “tried to get them to…”Ok kids, be thou persuaded to beware of persuasion! Lastly, consider a statement made by one of the parents,

“I’m a person that doesn’t believe in myths,” Hana says. “I’d rather stick to the evidence.”

What evidence? What is “the” evidence? Evidence of what? Evidence for what? I thought that atheism was merely a lack of God belief; what does evidence have to do with anything? Although, the author of evilbible.com calls people who define atheism as such: the “few morons” who are “so damn stupid” for doing so (see History of Atheism for that nugget).The only evidence for lacking belief in God is a declaration that states such lack of belief.
Note that atheists are not content merely indoctrinating their own children but also want to dictate how you are to raise your own children.

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We Don’t Want it and God Does Not Either:
One thing that I can certainly agree with Christopher Hitchens about is that I too “feel very uneasy about it.” This is the way that we are supposed to feel when someone has to do something for us that we cannot do for ourselves, particularly if it comes at great cost to them.

Indeed, I also “don’t want torture, don’t want human sacrifice, don’t want authoritarian blood lettings, smoking temples and altars, incantations of priests around, don’t want it,” and guess what: God does not want it either.

God determined that God alone could bring salvation and established certain rituals for His Jewish people to follow. The Jews had become institutionalized by centuries of slavery in Egypt and they needed to be built up as a nation from the bottom up. God gave them instructions which included smoking temples, altars, incantations, etc. Two important things to note are that eventually, as with all human activity, these rituals came to be done by robotic rote and that these rituals were highly symbolic and prophetic.

“So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ” (Colossians 2:16-17).

On occasion God made it clear that the rituals were not an end unto themselves:

“_Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams” (1st Samuel 15:22).

“This people draws near with words only and honors me with their lips alone, though their hearts are far from me, and their reverence for me has become routine observances of the precepts of men” (Isaiah 29:13).

“Your new moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me; I am weary to bear them” (Isaiah 1:14).

“I will also cause all her joy to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her appointed feasts_My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you from being priest to Me. Since you have forgotten the Law of your God, I will also forget your sons, even I_For I desired mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings” (Hosea 2:11, 4:6, 6:6).

The most vociferous and besmirchful New Atheist could not hope to write a book that is more anti-religion than the Bible.

Christopher Hitchens is very entertaining, emotive, vociferous and expresses his personal outrage very well. However, he often ends up merely succeeding in arguing against his own misunderstandings. He knocks himself out while shadow boxing.

The Illusion of Gratuity:
My five year old son formulated the “problem of evil.” We were walking in the front yard, he in his socks, when he stepped on a goat-head and said, “Goat-heads hurt. Why did God make goat-heads?””Goat-head” does not here refer to a goat’s head but to a little thorny seed. There it was, one of the two greatest ways to prove atheism as conceived by a 5 year old. Well, I explained that we think that goat-heads are bad because they hurt us when we step on them. But the reason that they are thorny is so that they will get stuck to an animal or human who is passing by and thereby be transported to a location away from the mother plant so that a new plant can grow.

Thus, it is apparent evil because we take it personally when the thorn pierces our skin but we are really dealing with a plant that found a way to cut down on competition for resources (see an essay of mine on this issue, The Godhead’s Goathead).

The week after that another event occurred to my 5 year old: he was in the kitchen and for reasons that I will soon disclose he fell with his lower back against the corner of the dishwasher and twisted his leg. I went to him, hugged him, kissed him, looked him over for injuries, asked him if he was alright and the whole daddy thing.After giving him time to stop crying and enjoy the comfort that I offered him I stated that while I was sorry that he got hurt it was a good thing that he was there in that time and place. This is because what had happened was that my 21 month old, whom I will mention in the next anecdote, was standing on a chair, leaned against the backrest and toppled over.By the angling it seemed to me that he would have smashed his little head against the corner of the dishwasher (which is actually a wooden frame inside of which is the dishwasher), probably smashed his little face against the floor and perhaps had his fingers smashed by the force of his weight and the fall between the floor and the back of the chair which he was holding.

It just so happened that as he and the chair fell my 5 year old was walking by and the chair knocked him over, twisted his leg and made him fall back. In the end, both were fine. They certainly cried a little bit-the 5 year old for the fall and the 21 month old for being scared (of course, they were off running, playing and laughing within minutes).

While there is much to be learnt from these apparent evils one thing is for certain: we do have the ability in the here and now to know the reason / purpose for some evils.

Please indulge me in another true story with particular regards to Quentin Smith’s statement, “the pain of a vaccination is in itself bad, but is a means to a greater good.”

Call me strange but when one of my children was born and he was mere minutes old I was thinking about this very issue, the problem of evil. As the nurse came towards him with needle in hand I stared straight into his face as she plunged the sharp metal object into his tender newborn foot. His face instantly turned red and he yelled and cried. This was one of the very first experiences that he had outside of the womb.

There is a lot to learn from this event. I, for all intents and purposes his omnipotent father, did not prevent this evil from occurring to him even though I could have easily prevented the nurse form puncturing his little foot. Am I not good, not potent, not able, not willing, do I not exist?

I allowed the evil to occur because I, not he, knew that it was not gratuitous but that the evil was for his benefit-his blood sugar had to be tested. Now, ask him if he understood what was happening to him and why it was happening. He had no idea, he merely experienced the evil and surely hated it.

As an experiment I told him about this even now that he is 21 months old and he responded by fidgeting a little bit and then turning around and walking away to find something with which to play. Perhaps I will attempt the explanation again in a few years at which time I could tell him that the nurse needed a little bit of blood to make sure that he was healthy. Surely, it will require quite a few more years for him to understand the technicalities of blood sugar levels and the medical minutia that goes with. Thus, it will require the passing of years, perhaps more than a decade for him to have a full understanding of the situation.

What is the relevance? Imagine that at this stage of his development he manages to conceive the following thought, “Why did such an evil occur to me and why did my father do nothing to stop it when he certainly could have.” Yet, he could not understand my explanation. As far as he knows it was gratuitous evil.
However, at some point in the future when he has developed his cognitive abilities further I will explain it to him and he will come to realize that there is apparently gratuitous evil that was, nonetheless, purposeful. I knew that, he did not, I understood it, he did not, I will be able to explain it eventually, he will be able to understand it eventually.

All metaphors break down eventually because they are just that, metaphors. While I do believe that the above true stories are very relevant it may still be argued that not only do we know in the here and now what the purpose was but furthermore, he will find out in the here and now. I do still think it very relevant and elucidating since it occurred to him when he was merely minutes old and it will require quite a few years for him to fully grasp the situation.
Why should we deny the possibility that some day, maybe even on the other side of the grave, God would reveal to us why evil was only apparent and not gratuitous?

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Selfish Morality:
At 16:37 into part 2 Dan Barker’s facade of atheists having pure motives for doing good crumbles:

My statement that “we ought to be good” is only conditional on: if you wish to be a person, a healthy person, who lives in a world with a minimum, minimum of harm in it. If that’s the kind of person you are, you, if that’s the kind of person you ah, you are, you wanna be, then if you wish to be labeled ‘ethical’ by other people then you ought to act in ways that minimize harm. If you don’t then you don’t have to, there’s no universal imperative that says you have to. In fact, many people prove that you don’t have to and they don’t and we do try to protect ourselves from them.
There’s no cosmic imperative that we all “ought” to act in that way. But if you do wish want to continue valuing your existence as a sentient physical organism within this physical environment then, on that condition, then ah, and if you wish to be viewed by your society as “a good person,” if that’s something you wish, then you will act in ways that minimize harm. And again, I didn’t say avoid harm I said it minimizes harm.

Note the various self-centered reasons he offers as a foundational reason for doing good:

1. “if you wish to be…a healthy person” (meaning mentally healthy).

2. “if you wish to be labeled ‘ethical’ by other people.”

3. “if you wish to be viewed by your society as ‘a good person.'”

4. “if that’s something you wish.”

It would appear that the Barkerian ethic is based on gaining the praise of others, being though of highly by others, as well as servicing yourself in seeking to be healthy and as a form of wish fulfillment.

While Dan Barker is a proponent of his own rigid dogmatically authoritarian sect of Freethough, Humanists also demonstrate a feel-good-self-based view of ethics such as is evidenced in their asking and answering the following question (in this case, from the Humanist Society of Scotland):

It’s best to be honest because_ I’m happier and feel better about myself if I’m honest.

Why being honest should make us happy remains a mystery. The point is not morality but self-esteem.

Reginald Finley (aka The Infidel Guy) and Matthew Davis stated,

if one does horrible things to people, that person will eventually have horrible things happen to him.

A member of the Seattle Atheists,

My philosophy of life is: If I can make the world a better place for you, then it automatically becomes a better place for me.

These are all examples of self-centered motivations; good is not to be done for its own sake or because people need good done to them but in order to receive benefit back. This is basically watered down, “My Name is Earl” style, karma.

All this and more, you may recall, not based on doing or not doing anything but based on mere intention. And what if I do not want to be ethical? Well, “you don’t have to.” We also run into another fallacy in Dan Barker’s claim that “there’s no universal imperative that says you have to.” How does he know that there is no such thing? Because “many people prove that you don’t have to.”
He believes that there is no universal imperative but demands that “we ought to be good” and believes that there is no universal imperative because some people do not follow it.

However, another logical option is that there is a universal imperative but that some people choose not to follow it. The fact that some do not follow it does not prove that there is no such thing, anymore than the fact that people drive above the speed limit means that no speed limit exists-see: Is There a Common Misconception Regarding Absolute Moral Claims?

Note also a very sobering thought, “I didn’t say avoid harm I said it minimizes harm.” What if, as actually did happen, the Nazis thought that they did not have to avoid harm but only minimize it? What if they thought, as they actually did, that minimizing it meant slaughtering some 12 million people since that would be overall beneficial to Germany, its majority population and their future?

At 34:40 of part 2, Dan Barker goes on to make a statement that is somewhat mirrored by Keith Parsons the yelling debater:

I don’t believe in punishment…we put people in jail not to punish them but to protect society form the harm that could result from them. Who cares if they’re punished or not?

One can only wonder, but I would assume that the reason for denying punishment, such as putting people in jail, is so that ultimate the concept of divine “punishment” can be denied. Indeed, without punishment Hitler lived a very pleasant life, enjoyed his power, was adored by thousands and then committed suicide when he saw fit-period, end of story. No justice but only the perfect peace of annihilation. Atheism makes evil even worse by guaranteeing that it has no higher purpose, no ultimate meaning, no change of being redeemed, is for the benefit of the evildoer who enjoys committing it and guaranteeing no justice (except that which may, only possibly may, be had by temporal courts).

Arguing according to the Barkerian ethic, and that of other atheists, there may be an additional problem with incarcerating, for example, a person who committed one murder, or one rape, or one robbery: from what are we protecting ourselves?We cannot merely assume that a onetime murderer will murder again, can we justly keep someone in jail from years or decades on our guess that they may still be a danger to society?

If we are not punishing them for their crime then we ought to release them. Moreover, how much time does it take to murder someone? Shooting a gun can take less than one second: can we justly incarcerate someone for years or decades for performing an action that took less than one second?

Indeed, quite logically, our system of justice serves at least three purposes: to punish, to deter and to protect society.

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In one single day a new atheist charity received donations of $80,000 from as many as 3,400 donors-and the donations keep rolling in (apparently from atheists). By day three they raised $113,000.Who said that there were no atheist charities and or that atheists are not charitable?

And as for those of you who though that Prof. Richard Dawkins was an old fuddy-duddy he is more charitable than thou as he committed to match donations up to $9,300.

But what is this hugely successful charity?

A homeless shelter?A hospital fund?A soup kitchen?An adoption agency?A disaster relief organization?A gang intervention unit?A drug and alcohol treatment center?Relief for those suffering from the worldwide financial crisis?

Anything that will actually help someone in need?

Nay.

The “charity” is mean to fund a campaign to place ads on buses in London.I am afraid that this comment will not seem charitable but I think that, at least on rare occasion, atheists should think outside of the box and not simply make statements with which their peers agree and chortle in unison.The ads will state, “There is probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.”

Ariane Sherine, chimed in with another well-within-the-box statement, “Atheists believe this is the only life we have, and we should enjoy it.”1 What is the answer of the theist? “Theists believe this is the only life we have, and that it continues beyond the material realm, and we should enjoy it.”

The Chief Executive of the British Humanist Association, Hanne Stinson, stated, “We wanted it to be a positive message.” I suppose that sometimes what you “wanted” to do does not turn out to be what you end up doing.

“Do, or do not.There is no ‘try.'”-Jedi Master, Yoda

Ariane Sherine, who conceived of the campaign, “said that ‘probably’ was included to ensure that the posters didn’t breach transit advertising regulations, which stipulate that ads should not offend religious people.”2Let us do the math here: if we take the sentence “There is probably no God” and we subtract the regulation required qualifying term “probably” we end up with “There is no God.” I guess this atheist does not understand atheism (or does not adhere to the tenets of the New Atheism).

Oddly, and unfortunately without further elucidation, the Associate Press reported that “Dawkins said that as an atheist he ‘wasn’t wild’ about the ad’s assertion that there was ‘probably’ no God.”3 Apparently, he would have preferred the “There is no God” reading. His reaction may be again the regulations placed upon ads. However, either way he seems to be opting for the positive affirmation of God’s non-existence position. Although, this is quite odd considering that he titled one of the chapters in his book The God Delusion “Why There Almost Certainly is No God.” And I am not aware of any regulatory restrictions being placed upon his book. A Prof. Richard Dawkins inspired ad may have read thusly, “”There is almost certainly no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.”

Furthermore, note that the ad is pretty mild, at least by New Atheist standards. However, never to be outdone by mild statements, Prof. Richard Dawkins chimed in and stated another atheist myth, “This campaign to put alternative slogans on London buses will make people think – and thinking is anathema to religion.”I don’t know what to think about that. Although, Methodist Church Rev. Jenny Ellis stated, “We are grateful to Richard [Dawkins] for his continued interest in God and for encouraging people to think about these issues.”

“The religious think tank Theos said it had donated $82 to the campaign, on the grounds that the ads were so bad they would probably attract people to religion…Theos director Paul Woolley [stated] ‘Stunts like this demonstrate how militant atheists are often great adverts for Christianity.'”4

Two donators donated the following statements along with their funds:”Hoorah for the non-believers!””Spread the word, and consign this superstitious nonsense to the dustbin of history! America, are you listening?”Just what are we supposed to think? “Yes, we heard you loud and clear from across the pond and can see that you are quite please with your quaint British wit but atheist’s urban legends are not the erudition which you claim them to be.”Should ads be placed on buses responding thusly, “There probably is a God. I am not worried and my life is filled with joy. Please, stop wasting money publicizing your personal prejudice and help someone in need.

Considering that, generally but reliably speaking, those who label themselves as “skeptics” are anything but, it is not surprising that the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible is saturated with atheist talking points along with the obligatory common, and some uncommon, misconceptions and lack of scholarship.

Having conducted a study of the relevant biblical texts relating to the doctrine of the Trinity it seemed relevant to consider the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible webpage entitled, How many gods are there?

The page seeks to demonstrate biblical contradictions by referencing texts that affirm that “There is only one god” and those that conclude that “There are several gods.” I will reproduce it in its entirety below but let us first note just how simple it is to reconcile these two.
Actually, “reconcile” is giving the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible far too much credit as the problem is that they are, in truly pseudo-skeptical form, merely quoting texts while not musing upon that which the texts are stating.
Since they are not truly skeptic they are not interested in understanding the texts and connecting the dots but are merely interested in presenting the appearance of contradiction. In fact, the webpage offers no commentary at all They mere present two columns with two titles and, apparently, think that this is supposed to mean something.

The list “There is only one god” is straight forward enough: God affirms that He is the one and only God and that there is no other. The list reads as follows:

Deuteronomy 4:35 Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him. Deuteronomy 4:39 The LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else. Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. Deuteronomy 32:39 See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me. 1 Kings 18:39 The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. Isaiah 43:10 I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. Isaiah 44:8 Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any. Isaiah 45:5-6 I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me. Isaiah 46:9 I am God, and there is none else: I am God, and there is none like me. Mark 12:29 The Lord our God is one Lord. Mark 12:32 There is one God; and there is none other but he. John 17:3 That they might know thee the only true God. 1 Corinthians 8:6

But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him.

For some odd reason, perhaps simply an innocent overlooking of the relevant texts, the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible neglected to quote a very, very relevant text in their “There are several gods” list. They somehow missed quoting,

Now concerning things offered to idols…we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), yet for us there is one God (1st Corinthians 8:1, 5-6).

Thus, yes—and this is key—“there are so-called gods” and these so-called gods are “many” yet, “there is no other God but one.” In fact, note that just above, in the “There is only one god” list they quote the monotheistic affirmation from in 1st Corinthians 8:6a but they did not bother providing the context, which would have done away with their whole webpage, when listing “There are several gods.” Thus, there you have it: since there are many so-called gods who are not gods then references to “gods” and for that matter “goddesses” are references to demons or simply fictitious characters that are worshiped as idols.

Below we will note that Exodus 12:12 is quoted as, “And against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment.” Indeed, and it was in executing these judgments that God demonstrated that these so-called gods were not gods but impotent idols.

Also, below we will note that Psalm 82:6a is quoted as “I have said, Ye are gods” and also John 10:33-34 in which Jesus references that Psalm:

The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?

Perhaps, the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible thought that we would take them on authority or by “faith” yet, when we practice the true and honest skepticism enjoined upon us by the Bible we look up the citation, read for context and note that the Psalm reads:

God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods. How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked? Selah Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked. They do not know, nor do they understand; they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are unstable. I said, “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High. But you shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.”

Arise, O God, judge the earth; for You shall inherit all nations.

The term for “gods” here, as in most places of plurality, is the Hebrew elohim and means “mighty ones” which was used in reference to the judges. Even though God called the judges mighty ones they are His creation and will die like any other person. El, Eloah, Elohim or Eloheinu are titles generically used to mean God, god, gods, goddess, judges, great, mighty, angels or power [im being plural for a masculine Hebrew word, ot being plural for feminine words].

They also do not seem to consider that since God is a Triune being plural references to the one
God are not mistaken or contradictory. In fact, below they quote 1st John 5:7 to which no one making a scholarly theological case for the Trinity would refer as it is known to be a late dated accretion and reads thusly,

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

But do not miss the point: even in the face of a text which makes reference to the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost as being “one” they include it in a list prefaced as “There are several gods.” But how are there “several gods” in view when they are said to be “one.” The answer is twofold: 1) the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible know not what they do and 2) the doctrine of the Trinity affirms one God, one being, in three co-equal, co-eternal, distinct persons.

I designed this illustration of the Trinity and you can purchase this design on a t-shirt by calling the store “Parchments” at (505) 344-2728:

These few facts are quite enough to dispel whatever negative implication the following references were meant to convey:

Genesis 1:26 And God said, let us make man in our image. Genesis 3:22 And the Lord God said, Behold, then man is become as one of us, to know good and evil. Genesis 11:7 Let us go down, and there confound their language. Exodus 12:12 And against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. Exodus 15:11 Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? Exodus 18:11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods. Exodus 20:3, 5 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. … Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. Exodus 22:20 He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed. Exodus 22:28 Thou shalt not revile the gods. Exodus 23:13 Make no mention of the name of other gods, neither let it be heard out of thy mouth. Exodus 23:24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images. Exodus 23:32 Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. Exodus 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. Numbers 33:4 Upon their gods also theLORD executed judgments. Deuteronomy 3:24 What God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works? Deuteronomy 6:14-15 Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you;(For the LORD thy God is a jealous God among you) Deuteronomy 10:17 For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords. Deuteronomy 28:14 Thou shalt not … go after other gods to serve them. Joshua 24:2 They served other gods. Joshua 24:14 Fear the Lord … and put away the gods which your fathers served. Judges 11:24 Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? 1 Samuel 6:5 Ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods. 1 Samuel 28:13 And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth. 1 Chronicles 16:25 The Lord … is to be feared above all gods. Psalm 82:1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty, he judgeth among the gods. Psalm 82:6 I have said, Ye are gods. Psalm 86:8 Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord. Psalm 96:4 For the Lord … is to be feared above all gods. Psalm 97:7 Worship him, all ye gods. Psalm 135:5 Our Lord is above all gods. Psalm 136:2 O give thanks unto the God of gods. Jeremiah 1:16 I will utter my judgments against them … who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods. Jeremiah 10:11 The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. Jeremiah 25:6 And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt. Jeremiah 46:25 I will punish the multitude of No, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with their gods. Zephaniah 2:11 The Lord will be terrible to them: for he will famish all the gods of the earth. John 10:33-34 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? 1 John 5:7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

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Emotions in Motion:
Allow me to begin this segment by pointing out that I could not help but notice that no one has taken Quentin Smith to task for his claim to “prove atheism.” How does one prove a mere lack of belief in god(s) besides by stating, “I lack therefore, I lack”?

Let us consider Quentin Smith’s emotional investment:

“Consider, for example, the Spanish influenza. In World War I (1914-1918), ten million people died. But in three months, from September to November of 1919, twenty million people died — just as many as in the plague in the fourteenth century — from Spanish influenza. Then suddenly, this virus that caused this deadly flu disappeared, and no one has seen it again.”

Now that we are wrapped up in thinking and feeling about what a terrible occurrence that was, Quentin Smith comes in for the rhetorical kill:

“So how could this possibly have occurred if God exists? Is God not powerful enough to kill this virus or prevent it from growing? If so, then He’s not all-powerful and is not really the god of the Judeo-Christian tradition. He’s just a sort of extraterrestrial intelligence. He’s just more powerful than us by degrees, just as we are more powerful than ants by degrees. But that is no god; that is a finite being. You would no more worship this being than you would worship ET. Suppose God is all-powerful and is capable of killing the Spanish influenza virus before it killed off twenty million people. Why didn’t He? Is it because He’s not perfectly good? Because He does not care enough about human beings? That is no god. Sounds like more an evil being governs our universe [sic]. So that’s just one example of many gratuitous evils in the universe.”

Let us review the charges one by one before Quentin Smith informs us as to how theists, apparently Christians since he did not besmirch the gods of Islam, Hinduism or any other religion, respond to these arguments.

So how could this possibly have occurred if God exists?
We must understand that atheists are very theologically minded people. Just as G. K. Chesterton pointed out that “all denunciation implies a moral doctrine of some kind”1 we may likewise state that all denunciation of a particular theology implies a different theology of some kind. Anytime that an atheist states, “Why would God allow_” or “Why doesn’t God_” or “God should_” et al they are speaking from their personal theology. In other words, they have a theological concept and then judge all others according to theirs (see my essay Atheism’s Theistic Concepts).

Is God not powerful enough to kill this virus or prevent it from growing?
The answer could be “Yes,” God is powerful enough but did not do so for reasons that Quentin Smith will refer to as “mysterious.”

If so, then He’s not all-powerful and is not really the god of the Judeo-Christian tradition.Actually, God can be all powerful and yet not be required to perform as Quentin Smith demands.

He’s just a sort of extraterrestrial intelligence. He’s just more powerful than us by degrees, just as we are more powerful than ants by degrees. But that is no god; that is a finite being. You would no more worship this being than you would worship ET.

In some New Age circles aliens are virtually, if not literally, worshipped.

Suppose God is all-powerful and is capable of killing the Spanish influenza virus before it killed off twenty million people. Why didn’t He?
This is the “mystery” to which we shall come in part III.

Is it because He’s not perfectly good?
Perhaps, but one can be good, or perfectly good, and allow evil, or apparent evil.

Because He does not care enough about human beings?
Perhaps, but again this does not necessarily follow.

That is no god. Sounds like more an evil being governs our universe [sic].
Indeed, the Bible states that an evil being is “the god of this world” (2nd Corinthians 4:4).

So that’s just one example of many gratuitous evils in the universe.
It was gratuitous if it was gratuitous but it was not gratuitous if it was not gratuitous. Quentin Smith claims to know that it was.

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Have you ever shaken your head in disbelief at the expounding of certain Christian teachers? Do these people seem to be false prophets, deceivers, ignorant and unstable, promoters of controversies, ferocious wolves, who offer meaningless talk, who are conceited and understand nothing, who exploit you, who tell fortunes for money, and use godliness as a means to financial gain?

If you agree, you have just agreed with the Biblical teaching on this subject. Rather than encouraging the sort of tactics used by these teachers the Bible warns us of them and tells us to be aware and to beware. We are to be ready for them as we are to prepare against theft, regarding these teachers Jesus said, “See, I have told you ahead of time” (Matthew 24:25). In this way false teachers reveal the truth of the Word of God.

How many times have we Christians had to answer for the televangelist with the big hair and big boasting? Or the false teacher crying for money? Or the faith healer knocking people down? Or the false prophet claiming divine revelation? It’s about time we turn the tables and use these wolves, goats and prodigal sons to reveal the truth of God’s Word.

It must be noted that sometimes false teacher are not so obvious, if they come out and preach for two hours it will not necessarily be heresy from beginning to end. Remember that the most believable sort of lie will always contain some truth. And so you might really be keeping up and being drawn into the service and all of a sudden some very odd teachings will surface. Then you are either learned enough, or are lead by the Holy Spirit, to discerning them or you might just get caught up in the excitement of it all. This is why so many of these preachers are so charismatic, because if you fall in love with the person then what they teach is secondary, also criticism of the preacher is harder to accept because you have an emotional bond. This is a cult of personality.

God has been warning us about these sorts of people for thousands of years. And although we cannot judge the motivations of the hearts of individuals, we are told in the Bible some of their general motivations and tactics.

FAITH EQUALS MONEY:
One of the most popular money grubbing tactics used today is to talk us into believing that if we send money to the ministry we are planting a seed and that seed will grow and produce for you 30, 60 or 100 fold. Apparently this does work, for the televangelist anyhow, because they ask for money and they get it. But what if you are on a fixed income and this leaves you in more debt than before? Well, Brother Shambock said that God told him to tell people to give him $2,000 each, and he said that if you are telling yourself that you tried it last year and it did not work then you should try it again.He then repeated the words “try it again, try it againc” and “get to your phone quickly, quickly…” so many times that he could have hypnotized you. It’s really very convenient, if you gave your seed-faith offering and nothing good came out of it, then it’s your own fault because you did not have enough faith. So try it again and again.If this really works then instead of them asking us for money why don’t these televangelist send all the people on their mailing list $100 or $1,000, this way they could get back 30, 60 or 100 fold. If they did this once a month they could get rich by giving us money. But no, apparently this only works if we are giving to them and never the other way around.But what was Jesus talking about when He said, “they who have been sown on the good ground, such as hear the word and receive it, and bear fruit; one thirty, and one sixty, and one a hundred fold” (Mark 4:20). While I might not have 100 houses in my name, I know that I could go anywhere in the world and find a Christian who would be willing to house and feed me (plus our rewards in heaven).

Doubtless that a minister can make a living from his ministry, after all “The worker deserves his wages” (Luke 10:7; 1st Timothy 5:18). But there are fair, correct, moral ways of doing this and there are deceptive ways of doing this.

The Bible Teaches:
Tell the skeptics that while we too are saddened by these doings, we know to expect them because the Bible warns us of them.

Micah 3:11 “Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money.”

1st Timothy 6:3-5 “If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.”

2nd Peter 2:1-3 “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them-bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.”

Acts 8:18-23 “When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money and said, ‘Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.’ Peter answered: ‘May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.'”

MIRACLE WORKERS:
Miracles, in and of themselves, are not credible proof of divine approval. Do you ever wonder why, if these faith healers can really heal, why is it always something that you cannot see? You might hear a great story like a person has had back problems for decades and all of a sudden the faith healer slaps them on the forehead and suddenly they can stand up straight and jump up and down. Why don’t we ever see an amputated limb grow back, cancerous skin suddenly look clean and new, withered limbs return to life, or third degree burns suddenly vanish? Why don’t these healers clearing out hospitals?

The Bible Teaches:

Revelation 19:20 “But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf.”

Matthew 24:24-25 “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect-if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time.”

FALSE PROPHETS:
Some people seem to think that any statement that is preceded or followed by the words, “Thus saith the Lord” is automatically divinely revealed truth. In reality there are many teachers who are notorious for making such statements and proving over and over that they are false prophets.The Jehovah’s Witnesses have come up with a convenient explanation for their various predictions of the world’s end, they say that the light is getting brighter and things are getting clearer and clearer.

First of all, their predictions of the world’s end were not made by mere men who make mistakes and need brighter light. They were made by an organization that claims to be the one and only one that is not only lead directly by the Holy Spirit but who is headed by Jesus Himself ever since He returned to Earth invincibly in 1914. Secondly, if this is their explanation (or excuse) then we should never believe a thing they say because after all everything that the Jehovah’s Witness preach today may just be wrong in a few years when the light get brighter.

The Bible Teaches:

Jeremiah 29:9 “‘They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,’ declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah 14:14, “Then the LORD said to me, ‘The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds.'”
It is very interesting to note that someone can hype themselves up so much so that they can have experiences that they themselves forced to occur.

Deuteronomy 13:1-4 “If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, ‘Let us follow other gods’ (gods you have not known) ‘and let us worship them,’ you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him.”

Matthew 7:15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.”

Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus said, “‘Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'”

1st John 4:1 “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

FALSE TEACHERS:A false teacher teaches odd ideas that are usually a way to get themselves noticed. Their hype and scandal brings them attention, this attention brings them fame, and fame brings them money. Some favorite tactics are taking a verse or passage out of its intended context and forcing it to say what ever they want (a pretext).

Or they might concoct doctrines by attempting to glue together bits and pieces from the whole Bible which in reality have nothing to do with each other. They will also follow trends, when holy laughter is popular they will practice that. When slaying in the spirit is popular they will do that. When health and wealth is popular they will practice that, etc., etc.

The Bible Teaches:

2nd Timothy 4:3-5 “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”

1st Timothy 1:3-6 “As I urged you…command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work-which is by faith. The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk.”

2nd Peter 3:15-16 “Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.”

DECIEVERS:Simply stated these are people who are out to purposefully deceive. In most cases we might suspect that someone might be doing this but when it comes right down to it we cannot judge their heart, their motivation, whether or not they are doing it on purpose or whether they themselves are deceived.However, in some cases the truth comes out, like in the case of Peter Popov. He would claim to have received divine revelation and would know personal things about people such as their illnesses. He would astonish the crowds by this miraculous knowledge.However, he was exposed as a charlatan because as it turns out, before his appearances those in attendance would write down their prayer requests. Popov’s wife would collect them, next she would direct him as to whom to speak with in the crown via a small hearing device that he would wear and she would read from the prayer requests and he made it seem as if this intimate knowledge was coming from God.

You can also see footage of Benny Hinn renouncing every odd practice that he indulged in, he explained why it was wrong and why he is giving them up. However, he is now back doing the same exact things as before. And so in some cases the deception is obvious but we advice caution lest we find ourselves in unrighteous judgment.

The Bible Teaches:

Jeremiah 29:8-9 “Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,’ declares the LORD.”

Matthew 24:11 “many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.”

2nd John 1:7 “Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh.”

SLAYING IN THE SPIRIT:
The concept of getting slain in the spirit is that the Holy Spirit is used like a defibrillator. At hyper-charismatic events faith healers will slap people on the forehead and knock them backwards. The Holy Spirit can be shot out at people so that whole crowds fall over and loose all control, they may yell or act like animals (literally). There simply is no Biblical support for the practice of slaying in the spirit.

The Bible Teaches:

John 18:2-6 “Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. So Judas came to the grove, guiding a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons. Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, ‘Who is it you want?’ ‘Jesus of Nazareth,’ they replied. ‘I am he,’ Jesus said. (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.) When Jesus said, ‘I am he,’ they drew back and fell to the ground. [KJV As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground].”

“My brethren, let not many of you become teachers,knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment others”James 3:1

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A plea: I have to pay for server usage and have made all content on this website free and always will. I support my family on one income and do research, writing, videos, etc. as a hobby. If you can even spare $1.00 as a donation, please do so: it may not seem like much but if each person reading this would do so, even every now and then, it would add up and really, really help. Here is my donate/paypal page.

Due to robo-spaming, I had to close the comment sections. However, you can comment on my Facebook page and/or on my Google+ page. You can also use the “Share / Save” button below this post.