Post by Padre Romero on Mar 13, 2009 22:20:44 GMT -5
Very well, excerpt from my address at the honors general conference on my (Jesuit) campus
"I thought this would be a good time to state my three questions in their entirety...ben mentioned atheism this morning, and we've all seen my rivals systematically deconstructing them on Facebook (and been submitted to the tide of hatemail that ensued.) My questions have taken many forms, but ultimately they all boil down to questions of epistemology (and, I'm becoming more and more convinced, are all really asking the same question). I've posed them to priests, laypeople, and even a writer for a theology column of a major catholic magazine (he never wrote back).
I think too many people assume these are questions like "Why is there evil in the world if god is all powerful?" or "can god create a rock so big that not even he could lift it?". They generally assume these questions are lodged at THEIR faith, and beat it to death with the typical response ("Faithfaithfaithgodcandoanything")
I'm a big fan of those questions (because I like to piss people off), but these are genuinely aimed at MY faith, not theirs, I am not 'testing your faith', I'm discovering my own
..generally, I'm asking something like "how do you know this for a fact and I don't?". I also believe (usually) that there are good answers to these questions, C.S. Lewis, or the pope, could presumably give me a good answer. I usually say that my break with God occurred not because of some terrible tragedy in my life, but because around sophomore year of high school, I realized I didn't have a reliable channel of communication with him. Then I segway into these questions. I'm going to assume that you're all smart enough to not misinterpret them, so they won't have their usual lengthy explanation."
Number one: How did Abraham know he wasn't crazy, and that it was therefore okay to kill Isaac?
(By far the most commonly misunderstood question...people usually think I asked something like "Isn't god evil because he told Abraham to kill Isaac?" and respond accordingly. People also don't seem to understand that this is a valid question even if the particular story is an allegory.)"
"2: Furthermore, how can we tell the works of god (Be they miracles or prophecy) from the works of Satan, Chance, or a really good illusionist?"
"3: The previous two questions are usually answered by the invocation of faith...this is acceptable, but it's no sure way to make converts from outside the faith...especially since this is a free market of ideas and I'm bombarded daily by multiple faiths who all want me to join them.
My third question is simply: Why should I believe you over every other person who is invoking faith?"
"I don't deny that "Faith" can be used as a valid response to just about every question you could ever pose against religious belief. What upsets me is that there appear to be consequences...in fact, dire consequences, for lacking faith, and assuming "Crazy" over "God", or believing the resurrection account of Paracelsus over Jesus.
And God, if he exists, seems to have declined to provide me with any. "
"I thought this would be a good time to state my three questions in their entirety...ben mentioned atheism this morning, and we've all seen my rivals systematically deconstructing them on Facebook (and been submitted to the tide of hatemail that ensued.) My questions have taken many forms, but ultimately they all boil down to questions of epistemology (and, I'm becoming more and more convinced, are all really asking the same question). I've posed them to priests, laypeople, and even a writer for a theology column of a major catholic magazine (he never wrote back).
I think too many people assume these are questions like "Why is there evil in the world if god is all powerful?" or "can god create a rock so big that not even he could lift it?". They generally assume these questions are lodged at THEIR faith, and beat it to death with the typical response ("Faithfaithfaithgodcandoanything")
I'm a big fan of those questions (because I like to piss people off), but these are genuinely aimed at MY faith, not theirs, I am not 'testing your faith', I'm discovering my own
..generally, I'm asking something like "how do you know this for a fact and I don't?". I also believe (usually) that there are good answers to these questions, C.S. Lewis, or the pope, could presumably give me a good answer. I usually say that my break with God occurred not because of some terrible tragedy in my life, but because around sophomore year of high school, I realized I didn't have a reliable channel of communication with him. Then I segway into these questions. I'm going to assume that you're all smart enough to not misinterpret them, so they won't have their usual lengthy explanation."
Number one: How did Abraham know he wasn't crazy, and that it was therefore okay to kill Isaac?
(By far the most commonly misunderstood question...people usually think I asked something like "Isn't god evil because he told Abraham to kill Isaac?" and respond accordingly. People also don't seem to understand that this is a valid question even if the particular story is an allegory.)"
"2: Furthermore, how can we tell the works of god (Be they miracles or prophecy) from the works of Satan, Chance, or a really good illusionist?"
"3: The previous two questions are usually answered by the invocation of faith...this is acceptable, but it's no sure way to make converts from outside the faith...especially since this is a free market of ideas and I'm bombarded daily by multiple faiths who all want me to join them.
My third question is simply: Why should I believe you over every other person who is invoking faith?"
"I don't deny that "Faith" can be used as a valid response to just about every question you could ever pose against religious belief. What upsets me is that there appear to be consequences...in fact, dire consequences, for lacking faith, and assuming "Crazy" over "God", or believing the resurrection account of Paracelsus over Jesus.
And God, if he exists, seems to have declined to provide me with any. "