How to engage the Christian who "knows" everything, Incl. the Bible?

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skeptikus's picture
How to engage the Christian who "knows" everything, Incl. the Bible?

Greetings fellow Infidels,

I would like to share with you a couple of emails between myself and my old youth pastor. I am actively engaged in what seems to me, the Herculean task of getting V to start questioning his many assumptions based on the Bible as well as the teachings of whoever he was originally indoctrinated by.

V is not your average Christian in that he most definitely knows why he believes what he believes, and can quote the Bible better than most, since he always has his nose buried in it. What I'm thinking would be the most effective strategy is to take an approach like a "street epistemologist", ala Boghossian. What I'm not so clear on however, is how to go about this via email instead of a face to face intervention, which "A Manual for Creating Atheists" is definitely geared toward.

The level of faulty epistemology displayed below could very well induce trips to the E.R. resultant excessive head banging and face palming. You have been warned...

Anyway, the email exchange is pasted below.

Thanks for reading.

*****Unbelievable L.  My heart is sad that JT considers himself a person of reason and that you my young friend haven’t rolled up your CS Lewis pipe to actually consider almost everything he says with an heart felt groan of despair.  

He does hit it out of the ballpark when he says that christians don’t act like say they believe.  He could have said it more precise by saying MOST or even a LARGE number.  However he doesn’t know what any one individual is doing to combat hunger, pain, and suffering.  He also doesn’t have any idea how many Christians are living out their lives in a quiet hardworking manner as their given method of evangelism and care for the world just like they are asked to do in the Bible.  No, JT has his idea of what it should be and he judges all by that idea.  

As a atheist how can determine anything about what is right and wrong in anyones' life.  Oh, I know, its by his own godhood.  He tries to do what is best and his way is way all should live and would live if they only gave up their faulty God and accepted his beliefs.  Oh I’m sorry I mean his reasoning.

Lightening is a natural phenomena but hurricanes are caused by the Christian God?  Foolish reasoning!  A person who leads a moral lifestyle, by JTs standard, has the right to heaven, as analogy since it doesn’t exist in his mind, except for Hitchens to hear how wonderful JT can parrot his stupidity, but it would be a travesty to allow an evil person, like Bin Laden - the example given, to repent and get saved after all he has done.  Once again, all by JTs standard of evil and good, alias his godhood.  

I can see why people like listening to him.  He is well spoken and passionate but the logical fallacies he displays, horrible understanding of Christianity and pitiful efforts at seeing the lack of his own poor reasoning are appalling.

JT hits the nail on the head with the word justice!  The problem is that as his own, and wanting to be everyones, god he hasn’t a clue about justice or mercy.  

As we have talked before - the issue has always been, is and will continue to be MORAL.  Who should I say send me.  Tell them I AM send you.

Take Care L,

Love you,

V
On Aug 17, 2014, at 10:08 PM, wrote:

J.T. has some interesting takes on more than a few things. Watch, and I'm sure you will agree. Again, as with everything I share with you guys, you could just as well assume that it's me on the stage, addressing you personally, in that every idea presented, I have thought at one time or another.

Dear Christian 2 - JT Eberhard - Skepticon 5: http://youtu.be/qLU7KW5mED8

Regards,

L*****

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mysticrose's picture
Interesting conversation.

Interesting conversation. Intelligent Christians are hard to debate with but challenging indeed. If you want to have argument with one, ensure that you have intensive knowledge not just on the bible but also about history and science.

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