When Faith Isn't Enough?

When faith isn't adequate enough for some they may turn to arguments for god as a reason to believe or a reason that others should believe. As a nonbeliever I encounter these regularly, usually when someone finds out my position, but I wonder how many people have actually been converted this way. Nevertheless these arguments have gained a huge following from god debates to books to argument based religious sites like William Lane Craig's site Reasonable Faith. Several of these arguments for and against the existence of gods date back to the time of the ancient Greeks like Plato and Aristotle yet they have sustained a huge resurgence recently.

Despite this popularity, my skepticism is quite looming as I wonder about the true nature of these arguments. Is this all for show? Is this idea too complex for a simple argument to cover? I'd like to know what you think. 

Do you think anyone has ever been converted in this manner or do you think these are these all merely superfluous syllogisms, constructed to support each side's position?

The Review

Gone No More

Resurrection

Rising this blog from a two week death, I bring to you an interview with Matthew Mccree-Cannon, a fairly liberal Muslim, who, among other unique ideas, gives a rather different view of faith than I've heard here before. My favorite idea of his is on how to deal with interfaith issues,but my favorite moment was probably his thoughts on nonbelievers. Enjoy or send me hate mail, the choice is yours.

Speaking for Ourselves

We're All Quite Different

Many times someone will hear what your religion is and them proceed with "then you must believe x." These often ill-informed, frequently negative, presumptions do little to encourage dialogue as these preconceived notions are rarely shaken by disagreeing and plainly saying what you believe and why you believe it. As a nonbeliever this happens to me constantly, and I grow weary of defending myself from straw-men beliefs, but we nonbelievers are far from alone. We all believe different things for different reasons and because of this I propose a very simple idea: let everyone speak for themselves.

In my rather lengthy second full interview I speak with Jon Goldthwaite, a leader from Columbia College Chicago's Campus Crusade for Christ. He answers the same questions from the last interview but, as with most of us, gives very different answers on questions on faith from everyone else including my previous interview. He is somewhat more pointed then my interviewee in the last interview and quite direct. Enjoy:

First Full Interview

Bless You

...How many times per day do you hear someone say this? I'd imagine, unless you work at home, a dozen or so at the least. This statement, though clearly religious in origin, has lost all religious meaning. Now if you may be so kind tell me why people started saying it? Long before I shed my religion, I stopped saying this because I learned the comical origins of this phrase,but these origins have no bearing on what is now just considered habit or common courtesy but people still look down upon me for this (even though I use alternative phrases). What can this tell us about faith?

Sometimes traditions carry on simply because they go unquestioned and it goes against common courtesy not to follow them. 

Breaking Common Courtesy

Breaking another faith-based common courtesy, I continue to ask people their views on faith. Below are the answers of one Christian, Lamar Smith, a friend of the Truth,who responds in my interview with him on this topic that it is considered common courtesy not to ask about. He is a rather liberal Christian who I have known for many years and spoken with on practically everything but I never really knew any of his positions on this subject.

Answering questions on and about faith,  Lamar tells me, among other things, why he chose his religion, how he feels when someone questions his position and if he fears death. With no further adieu:

Why This Faith and What If You're Wrong?

Not Picking Out of a Hat (Hopefully)

We all have our positions on religion and faith and we frequently think about how current events shape and alter those positions but rarely do we think about why we hold the basic positions and what happens if we are wrong. With the thousands of religions out there why do we chose one particular faith over another? Pascal told us to make a wager but here is what some Christians told me:

I Could Be Wrong
What if you are wrong? How would your life change? Would it change at all? Here's what two Christians told me:

These are the first of many interview clips in which I ask for answers for the big questions around faith but what about you? Why this faith, or non-belief, and how would your life change if you found out you were wrong?

What are Your Answers?

The most important questions (besides these) that we all face:

Do you believe in God?

Why your particular faith?

What if you are wrong?

Do you fear death?

Some answers to these questions and many more from all perspectives coming soon... Have you answered them yet?