quote:

ORIGINAL: mnottertail

I would be all set if one could explain the violations of physics stuff.  Creating bleedin fish and bread from thin air?  How do we set up a double blind experiment for that?  Turning water into wine.  A good capitalist, I must ask, why not gold, and will forego the physics of it, if a credible retort can be given to the gold question.

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ORIGINAL: GotSteel

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ORIGINAL: hangemhigh1953
How do you explain the total lack of evidence for the existence of Hebrew slaves in Egypt, and their subsequent 40 year journey through the desert? Or the fact that Tyre was rebuilt despite the Ezekiel 26:7-14 "prophecy" that it would never be rebuilt?

He's a presuppositionalist his opinion doesn't require any evidence where as any alternative requires not just evidence but to use his word "proof".

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles

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ORIGINAL: mnottertail
I would be all set if one could explain the violations of physics stuff.  Creating bleedin fish and bread from thin air? ... Turning water into wine.  ... why not gold

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles
Violations of physics stuff? Do you really think the creator of the universe, who made everything out of nothing, would have a problem making a little wine, fish or bread from nothing?

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles

quote:

ORIGINAL: mnottertail

I would be all set if one could explain the violations of physics stuff.  Creating bleedin fish and bread from thin air?  How do we set up a double blind experiment for that?  Turning water into wine.  A good capitalist, I must ask, why not gold, and will forego the physics of it, if a credible retort can be given to the gold question.

Violations of physics stuff? Do you really think the creator of the universe, who made everything out of nothing, would have a problem making a little wine, fish or bread from nothing?

quote:

These diseases if present in males also force females to practise sexual selection - i.e. limited adultery - and sexual selection happens to tremendously increase the evolutionary process, resulting in extremely healthy and beautiful progeny.

It so happens that the Christian religion incorporates both a vulnerability for sexually transmitted diseases and sexual selection: it is the winning ticket.

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ORIGINAL: Kirata

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ORIGINAL: vincentML

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ORIGINAL: Kirata

It's a very simple question, Vincent. You said...

Well, for many a literate, thoughtful, and compassionate person the 'then' is that we set about to create a humane and decent life for all sentient beings. We need to at least behave as if God is dead because he certainly seems disinterested in this little corner of an unimportant galaxy among 500 million galaxies in an apparently expanding universe.

And I asked: Why do we need to create a "humane and decent life for all sentient beings"?

Anytime you're ready.

The purpose of people (believers) in a god centered world is to pass whatever tests they perceive handed to them by their priests and so get rewarded in the afterlife.

I like ignorant caricatures as much as the next guy, but the objective of my question was to obtain an answer, so I would appreciate it if you could give that aspect of the matter a little more of your attention.

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ORIGINAL: vincentML

Absent god and heavenly reward humankind is alone in the Universe unless/until sentient life is found and contacted elsewhere. It falls to us to construct for ourselves Meaning to this life. The endeavor I suggested would give us that property.

Ignoring whatever "Meaning" capitalized is supposed to signify, why do we need to do this? Citing an "absence of god and heavenly reward" doesn't explain why this is something that needs to be done. Why is it necessary at all?

So now you have two questions to answer.

K.

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles

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ORIGINAL: GotSteel
I'm referring to having an incredibly low standard of evidence for your pet theory and an impossibly high burden of evidence for every other while actively playing goalie to rationalize the preponderance of evidence away.

It is amazing how much a person has to ignore to say things like this. ;-)

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles
Of course you know that this is not proof that the census story never happened. It is just "proof" that at this time there no evidence for it.

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles

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ORIGINAL: GotSteel
So for example someone who would murder a child they considered good in order to sadistically torture another human being would make for a bad judge regardless of the extent of their knowledge.

What? What are you talking about?

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http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Kings+14%3A9-16&version=NLT
9 You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made other gods for yourself and have made me furious with your gold calves. And since you have turned your back on me, 10 I will bring disaster on your dynasty and will destroy every one of your male descendants, slave and free alike, anywhere in Israel. I will burn up your royal dynasty as one burns up trash until it is all gone. 11 The members of Jeroboam’s family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures. I, the Lord, have spoken.’”

12 Then Ahijah said to Jeroboam’s wife, “Go on home, and when you enter the city, the child will die. 13 All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only member of your family who will have a proper burial, for this child is the only good thing that the Lord, the God of Israel, sees in the entire family of Jeroboam.

14 “In addition, the Lord will raise up a king over Israel who will destroy the family of Jeroboam. This will happen today, even now! 15 Then the Lord will shake Israel like a reed whipped about in a stream. He will uproot the people of Israel from this good land that he gave their ancestors and will scatter them beyond the Euphrates River,[a] for they have angered the Lord with the Asherah poles they have set up for worship. 16 He will abandon Israel because Jeroboam sinned and made Israel sin along with him.”

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ORIGINAL: Kirata

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ORIGINAL: GotSteel

Yep that's right the character Yahweh will murder a child he considers good to spite the father out of rage.

There are three problems here. Firstly, you're just making shit up. The passage doesn't say that Yahweh caused the child's death. Secondly, if there is a Yahweh and he took the child, then the soul being eternal in Christian theology and the child being good, he would only have been recalling it to the infinitely preferable presence of God. And finally, of course, if there isn't any Yahweh, then a non-existent God can't "murder" anybody.

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ORIGINAL: vincentML
Judging speculations and opinions of other posters as vacuous pronouncements without resort to countering those opinions when given the opportunity is transparently the shallow, evasive technique of someone who either is unable to engage in civil discourse, lacks his own convictions, or is merely a game playing troll.

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles
So you are questioning God's judgement?

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ORIGINAL: vincentML
Unfortunately, natural selection also serve to sort out adaptable pathogens to keep abreast of the evolving Christians.

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ORIGINAL: Rule

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ORIGINAL: vincentML
Unfortunately, natural selection also serve to sort out adaptable pathogens to keep abreast of the evolving Christians.

You still do not get it. Such pathogens are good for the evolution of a population.

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ORIGINAL: Rule

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ORIGINAL: Milesnmiles
Violations of physics stuff? Do you really think the creator of the universe, who made everything out of nothing, would have a problem making a little wine, fish or bread from nothing?

Indeed, the Divine is not permitted to violate the rules of physics. Within our universe nothing can be created from nothingness. (Lucretius)