Answering "Questions for Atheists" Posed by Matt Slick of carm.org

A Reasonable and Logical Response to an Apologetic's take on Atheism

A theist posted this to me, in an effort to understand how an atheist views the world. Thirty-one questions, some are reasonable, some are malformed. Some are challenging, some are plain dumb. I don't know how long this link was posted, but nevertheless, I feel compelled to answer them, for the benefit of curious theists. This may also serve as a guide for atheists when they are confronted with similar questions as these. 

1. How would you define atheism?

 -----Exactly as it is. Theism meaning "belief in god" and the prefix "a" meaning "not or without". Simply put, it is a position of non-belief in any god.

2. Do you act according to what you believe (there is no God) in or what you don't believe in (lack belief in God)?

-----This is a very malformed question. Based on the definition above, atheism is NOT a belief, but a REJECTION of a belief. It means that in atheism, you are not exercising any belief. So, to answer the question specifically, I act, and live my life as if there is no god. Therefore when it comes to the god subject, I act according to what I don't believe in. 

3. Do you think it is inconsistent for someone who "lacks belief" in God to work against God's existence by attempting to show that God doesn't exist?

-----In my case, I'm not attempting to show that god doesn't exist. What I do is I REFUTE the arguments for god's existence. There's a big difference here. What I'm doing is very consistent with my non-belief, simply because the burden of proof is always on the believer. I do not believe. Someone who believes will then show me arguments. I refute them reasonably, and therefore I have every right to reject their belief.

4. How sure are you that your atheism properly represents reality?

-----Define reality. Reality is 1) the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them, 2) a thing that is actually experienced or seen, 3) the quality of being lifelike, and  4) the state or quality of having existence or substance. Unfortunately, god cannot be seen, he doesn't exist in any conventional way, and he does not manifest himself to be experienced with qualities of life-like and substance. So, yes, my atheism reasonably represents actual reality.

5. How sure are you that your atheism is correct?

-----I'm not, because atheism is just a REJECTION of a belief. I can continue to reject theistic beliefs because of the lack of convincing evidence. But the moment someone steps forward and show undeniable proof of god, then I would concede and admit that I'm wrong. Until then, I'm sticking to my default position of non-belief. 

6. How would you define what truth is?

-----A statement that accurately and undeniably describes reality.

7. Why do you believe your atheism is a justifiable position to hold?  

-----Because for every argument that I have ever heard for the defense of theism, there are always reasonable and justifiable counter-arguments that refute it. If you're not reasonably convinced, you have every right to reject it.

8. Are you a materialist, or a physicalist, or what?

-----I am neither. I wonder what's these got to do with atheism. If you do not believe in a god, you're automatically an atheist. You're not required to follow other belief systems or worldviews. But for the sake of the question, I am a skeptic. I have a general doubt on things with no reasonable evidence.

9. Do you affirm or deny that atheism is a worldview?  Why or why not?

-----Yes, atheism is a worldview. Atheism, theism, and agnosticism changes the way you look at yourself, other people, and the whole world in general.

10. Not all atheists are antagonistic to Christianity, but for those of you who are, why the antagonism?

-----I'm not, but Christopher Hitchens defended this antagonism by saying, "Religion now comes to us in this ingratiating way, because it had to give so much ground, and because we know so much more. But you have no right to forget the way it behaved when it was strong, and when it really did believe that it had god on its side."

11. If you were at one time a believer in the Christian God, what caused you to deny his existence?

-----I didn't deny, I refuted the arguments for his existence. This is a loaded question, for it presumes a claim that god already exists.

12. Do you believe the world would be better off without religion?

-----Honestly, yes. Every moral teachings that is taught by religion is good whether there is a god or not. Remove religion, and their moral teachings would still remain, because moral teachings does not come from a god. It comes from man.

13. Do you believe the world would be better off without Christianity?

-----Same answer as number 12.

14. Do you believe that faith in a God or gods is a mental disorder?

-----No. Scientists agree that humans have a tendency to seek patterns and formulate meaning to them. Belief in god is a natural brain phenomenon. Still, it doesn't prove a god exist.

15. Must God be known through the scientific method? 

-----Depends. Does that god have a physical effect on the universe? If so, then it is necessary to use the scientific method to determine this god.

16. If you answered yes to the previous question, then how do you avoid a category mistake by requiring material evidence for an immaterial God? 

-----You have just made an assertion that god is immaterial. Prove this first. 

17. Do we have any purpose as human beings?

-----There is no "ultimate" purpose. Humans are entitled to their own purposes.

18. If we do have purpose, can you as an atheist please explain how that purpose is determined?

-----Refer to number 17.

19. Where does morality come from?

-----Morality is not imposed by any supernatural authority, but a product of human progress necessitated by evolution and the progress of civilization. Humans, as social creatures, are required to have a definitive set of relative rules in order to be effective as a group. This allowed civilizations to prosper and refine morals to improve this progress.

20. Are there moral absolutes?

-----No, there is none. That would be disgusting.

21. If there are moral absolutes, could you list a few of them?

-----There are no moral absolutes, but there is a "common moral goal" that every successful civilization has. And this "common goal" is a process that says any action is considered moral if it promotes the well-being and survival of mankind and the progress of society.

22. Do you believe there is such a thing as evil?  If so, what is it?

-----Yes. There are no fixed definitions of evil. People have different viewpoints about it. As for me, it is the behavior that purely promotes the abolition of morals.

23. If you believe that the God of the Old Testament is morally bad, by what standard do you judge that he is bad?

-----Yes. And actually, I can judge him by his own standards. His commandments say that 'thou shalt not kill', but in the first five books of the Old Testament alone, he has killed more people than Hitler. Remember Job? Your god practically wrecked Job's life just because of a silly bet he made with Satan. Remember the Plagues of Egypt, where he murdered infants and innocent boys just to make a pharaoh change his mind? By my judgment, these acts prevent the well-being of people and the progress of society. Ergo, Yahweh is immoral.

24. What would it take for you to believe in God?

-----Divine intervention. Though I would accept perfectly logical and scientific arguments.

25. What would constitute sufficient evidence for God’s existence?

-----Refer to number 24.

26.  Must this evidence be rationally based, archaeological, testable in a lab, etc. or what?

-----Refer to number 24.

27. Do you think that a society that is run by Christians or atheists would be safer?  Why?

-----I think it is irrelevant whether the rulers are christians, muslims, atheists, or whatever, as long as they do not impose their personal beliefs on their subjects. They must remain objective and unbiased at all times.

28. Do you believe in free will?  (free will being the ability to make choices without coersion).

-----Yes. And it's coercion. Sorry :)

29. If you believe in free will do you see any problem with defending the idea that the physical brain, which is limited and subject to the neuro-chemical laws of the brain, can still produce free will choices?

-----No, I don't. The brain produces reactions that trigger thought. Now human thought is unique because it manifests self-awareness, and this is what we call consciousness. There's a heavy debate about the concept of consciousness, and of course, until we discover what consciousness really  is, there's really no reason to use consciousness and free-will to assert the existence of any god.

30. If you affirm evolution and that the universe will continue to expand forever, then do you think it is probable that given enough time, brains would evolve to the point of exceeding mere physical limitations and become free of the physical and temporal, and thereby become "deity" and not be restricted by space and time?  If not, why not?

----First, I feel the need to clarify that evolution is not the Big Bang theory. They are separate fields of study, and I understand both of them enough to affirm their accuracy. Second, I am in no position to make a statement regarding that, since I am not a neuroscientist nor a physicist. As I said before, there is still debate regarding the nature of consciousness, and we cannot prove something using a lack of information.

31. If you answered the previous question in the affirmative, then aren't you saying that it is probable that some sort of God exists?

----Since I answered I don't know (which is a perfectly reasonable and honest answer), then my answer to this is the same.