Christianity reminds me of when you’re trying to get out of a conversation with a used car salesman. You tell him no, you’re not interested in buying today – maybe you’re just browsing. You tell him why with concrete reasons. Your current car is fine, you didn’t find anything at the lot you like, you didn’t find anything you can afford – whatever. All good reasons to walk away. But that salesman keeps retorting with pleas and “reasons” to give him more time, to listen to his pitch and give him a chance to sell you a car. And it’s almost pathetic in a way that this guy basically throws himself at your feet in desperation or how he may even resort to bullying tactics to persuade you. No matter what you say he has a comeback, and each comeback is more absurd than the last.
I was listening to a program online today where a caller and the host got into a discussion about religion and whether God exists. The host asked the caller if he believes the earth is literally 6,000 years old. The caller danced about, dodging the question before eventually conceding that it’s a matter of interpretation and he doesn’t actually believe the earth is this young. Basically the conversation devolved into the caller being unable to really articulate his position at all, eventually claiming “well you just have to have faith – there is no evidence, and that’s why you need faith.”
I mean that’s the most absurd and desperate conclusion you could come to – faith? Just believe something because you want to or because it is popular? How could anyone think faith in anything is a virtue. How can someone be talked down until they eventually come to the conclusion that their position is unfounded, yet they don’t want to abandon it so they throw faith out there as the last defense. You can’t refute faith.
If there were a God, then why wouldn’t it reveal itself without having to rely on faith, and beyond that why would it intentionally mislead or misrepresent what we see in the natural world? That’s just evil. Wouldn’t it be more virtuous to base your conclusion on the evidence presented and stay honest to yourself, rather than deny scientific facts? It seems to me that keeping faith in some God and the bible – literally – despite all contrary evidence is just sycophantic.
