by brotherdan 181 Replies latest watchtower bible
I have not BEHELD the suns rising tomorrow. But I have FAITH that it WILL rise.
non sequitur
You have evidence that the sun will rise everyday. It hasn't not once failed to do so in the past.
Faith for something unseen..."not beheld"...before, is not the same thing.
Your example is flawed.
PZ Myers had this incisive observation about those who complain that Dawkins does not make enough effort to deal with the nuances of faith..
I have considered the impudent accusations of Mr Dawkins with exasperation at his lack of serious scholarship. He has apparently not read the detailed discourses of Count Roderigo of Seville on the exquisite and exotic leathers of the Emperor's boots, nor does he give a moment's consideration to Bellini's masterwork, On the Luminescence of the Emperor's Feathered Hat. We have entire schools dedicated to writing learned treatises on the beauty of the Emperor's raiment, and every major newspaper runs a section dedicated to imperial fashion; Dawkins cavalierly dismisses them all. He even laughs at the highly popular and most persuasive arguments of his fellow countryman, Lord D. T. Mawkscribbler, who famously pointed out that the Emperor would not wear common cotton, nor uncomfortable polyester, but must, I say must, wear undergarments of the finest silk.
Dawkins arrogantly ignores all these deep philosophical ponderings to crudely accuse the Emperor of nudity.
Personally, I suspect that perhaps the Emperor might not be fully clothed — how else to explain the apparent sloth of the staff at the palace laundry — but, well, everyone else does seem to go on about his clothes, and this Dawkins fellow is such a rude upstart who lacks the wit of my elegant circumlocutions, that, while unable to deal with the substance of his accusations, I should at least chide him for his very bad form.
Until Dawkins has trained in the shops of Paris and Milan, until he has learned to tell the difference between a ruffled flounce and a puffy pantaloon, we should all pretend he has not spoken out against the Emperor's taste. His training in biology may give him the ability to recognize dangling genitalia when he sees it, but it has not taught him the proper appreciation of Imaginary Fabrics.
Do you have faith in the quantum singularity? You have not beheld that. Do you have faith in dark matter? Do you have faith that there is not a God? Again, something not beheld. But you've seen proofs that these things could exist or not exist. Religious faith is the same. I have seen proof that God exists.
However, this topic is one that has fueld thousands of philosophers throughout history. So I doubt we are going to pin down a solid conclusion of faith on JWN!
I have seen proof that God exists.
Really?
That has cop out written all over it, cofty
When a believer utters the word "BAH" we know the arguments have run out.
Insults will follow...
HB
I really wasn't trying to turn this into a atheist vs theist debate. It was supposed to be more like a friendly game of Dawkins bashing.
You don't know me too well yet, Hamster. I'm not the insulting sort (unless it's to MadJW or Debator). I'm really just trying to work out what I believe since discovering that the WTS was full of crap.
The onus surely on those who make huge claims like "I have seen proof that god exists" to provide such evidence
What BTS said is worth repeating.
Brother Dan, Dawkins' other works on evolutionary science are excellent.
However, I do agree with you on his anti-religious polemic The God Delusion. It is not well done. It has a bit of dishonesty, as polemics often do. His philosophical arguments are considered laughable by real philosophers. Other atheists have, in fact, done a far better job than Dawkins in their books. Bertrand Russell, for example.
Regarding Ben Stein, from the other side of the argument. He is every bit as bad as Dawkins. Both are crap polemics that will only sway shallow uninformed people.
