Positive Atheism Discussion![]()
Calvary Chapel Senior Pastor
Spreads Lies About Atheists![]()
From: Rob Robinson, Senior Pastor
To: Positive Atheism <editor@positiveatheism.org>
Subject: You guys are funny
Date: Saturday, September 20, 1997 4:25 PM
I have been a Christian almost 23 years, one thing always amazes me about you guys who claim to not believe in God. I have had numerous incidences where so called "atheists" (which actually means a belief in one God) anyway, where you "non believers" were dying. Guess who you always call out to when you or someone you love is dying ... God!
And if you do not call out to Him when you are dying ... who do you call out to as you pass into the Blackness of nothingness!!! How sad that you have nothing to offer the world but "no Hope" . The First Chapter of Romans Declares that God made you with the knowledge of Himself within your own heart, so you are without excuse ... then He makes a commentary on that by saying The fool says in his heart there is no God.
See ya, Not in Heaven, Oh Well, enjoy Hell
Pastor Rob
===== Cliff Walker Responds =====
Pastor Rob:
I have been a Christian almost 23 years
Cliff:
I can tell you've probably been a Christian for about that long; this is evidenced by your spitefulness, your pronounced lack of thinking skills, and your complete lack of honesty.
Christianity teaches people to prioritize: loyalty over honesty; credulity over reason and observation.
Dishonesty, hatred, cruelty, and uncritical faith are almost sure indicators that one is dealing with either a Christian or a Muslim.
Observe:
Pastor Rob:
Guess who you always call out to when you or someone you love is dying ... God!
Cliff:
This is the most despicable lie perpetrated about atheists -- that we always engage in death-bed conversions. They even said this about Thomas Paine. Have you been present and able to read the mind of every atheist who ever died?
Please stop making slanderous statements about which you know nothing: what goes on in the mind of a thinker.
Bertrand Russell said: "A stupid man's report of what a clever man says is never accurate because he unconsciously translates what he hears into something he can understand."
If you, as a theist, refuse to see the human brain as a precious gift from your god and to respect it as such, please, then, at least have the dignity to stop lying about other people.
Or, does your god's Ninth Commandment no longer apply to Christians?
Cliff Walker, editor
[Positive Atheism]
http://www.PositiveAtheism.org/
===== Jyoti Shankar Also Responds =====
Pastor Rob:
..."atheists" (which actually means a belief in one God)...
Jyoti:
I am also amazed by the steadfastness of atheists, who stand by their unbelief because of the lack of evidence for belief in god, even though the majority [of humans], day in and day out, are brainwashing each other and try to brainwash their wards into believing something that does not exist.
Like I said the progress has been from millions of god to one. From one to zero is a big step in the evolution of human belief.
===== Tim Sullivan Responds =====
Dear Rob,
Your letter is more original than that of some xians I have seen in that you say [A]theists (and I presume you mean Atheism, in general) is a belief in one god. In its "logic" that's where your letter loses its uniqueness in that it is fairly typical of xian "thought". The word "theist" denotes a person or system who thinks religiously or promotes things as such. You think that there are "gods" floating around in the air, monsters under the earth, etc. When you put an "a" in front of many words, it changes the meaning. Much of the time the meaning is an antonym of the original word, but sometimes it puts the new meaning completely clear of the old meaning. When we say atheism (A -plus- theism), we may seem to mean one way or the other. I prefer to use the second way because it does not lend credence to the philosophy of theism. I think many Humanists have trouble with the word "atheism" because they think it does give credence to theism since they ignore the possibility that the universe is not necessarily based on dichotomies. They are wrong.
When some grown-up people die, they call out for mommy. Other people take a nap. Others just fall over. It's a matter of personal preference. An Atheist may call out "god" in this time of duress. You must remember that people do unusual things in situations like this. Some of us were reared in xian "homes" where god "concepts" were instilled upon us from the time we were little babies. We have pretty much escaped the strangleholds of xianity and reclaimed our atheist birthright. But we are all human. Some may fall down in times of duress. Some may call out to "god." And then, what happened? You may cry out for the Tooth Fairy when you croak.
No, Rob. While the chances are very good that there are no such things as jehovah and jesus and the holy ghost floating around in the air. While there may be no such things as monsters in the earth; ghouls under the bed and ghosts in the closet, there are monsters floating around in people's thoughts. These viruses infect our thoughts and turn us into self-loathing parasites. christianity is one of the foremost viruses of this kind in this country.
But, as long as you can scare ignorant people about burning in hell, you can make money. I think this is why Atheists scare you, Rob. Do you have any reality-based skills, or are you afraid that Atheists are going to take the only "job" you may know away from you and force you to get a job as a dishwasher? Dishwashing is not great and it probably won't pay the bills (especially if you are one of those breeder xians who have more than two kids), but it will keep you off of the welfare roles and put you on a crash diet.
Atheists do not believe, they think critically. They observe, ponder, speculate, hypothesize, dream, fantasize responsibly and reach conclusions and convictions. There is no room for belief in an adult's mind much less than the mind of a child. Which brings up another point: All people think with their brains, not their hearts. The heart is a blood pump. The First Chapter of Romans was hashed out by some savage or savage who apparently did not know this. Poetry and artistic license will not save their comment from the scrutiny of thinking minds.
Assuming that I, as an Atheist, knew of the existence of -- say -- your particular god, for example, and knew that everything you said was true about said god, I would rather go to "hell" than serve this hapless "individual." My atheism would still be intact and in my "suffering" my condolence would be knowing that I didn't serve some monster who your bible says tortures and kills little children. But, I fired "this" worthless wretch long ago.
"Hell" is just a bad idea, it is not reality. There are no actual records of its existence. It only occurs in certain people's imaginations. I don't feel sorry for you because we don't share a common neural system. I can only feel my own joys and sorrows, etc. Suffice to say that I cannot go to hell because it would be impossible for me to live inside your brain.
Tim Sullivan
===== Rob Lashes Back at Tim; Cliff Responds =====
Tim:
Your letter is more original than that of some xians' I have seen in that you say [A]theists (and I presume you mean Atheism, in general) is a belief in one god. In its "logic" that's where your letter loses its uniqueness in that it is fairly typical of xian "thought". The word "theist" denotes a person or system who thinks religiously or promotes things as such.
Pastor Rob:
Actually, Tim, the premise of the word "Atheist" began in ancient Rome shortly after Jesus was (historically) crucified and (historically) rose from the Dead. The Romans thought the early Christians were weird because they only worshipped One God and they worship a multitude of god's. This is where the term "Atheist" began, a worship of One God.
Cliff:
Merriam Webster's defines the Greek "atheos" (aqeos) as "godless" -- not "one god." Your interpretation is conspicuously absent from the ancient Greek lexicons I consulted.
Are you making this stuff up as you go, Pastor Rob?
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Tim:
You think that there are "gods" floating around in the air, monsters under the earth, etc. When you put an "a" in front of many words, it changes the meaning. Much of the time the meaning is an antonym of the original word, but sometimes it puts the new meaning completely clear of the old meaning.
Pastor Rob:
No I do not "think" that their are god's floating around in the air, that is a rather juvenile expression and unthinking way to put it. You claim to be a clear thinker, lets think clearly and logically shall we?
Cliff:
Fill us in, Pastor Rob. Please respond to Tim's claims. No fair simply engaging in name-calling (i.e., "juvenile") and merely jumping up and down about it.
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Tim:
When we say atheism (A-plus-theism), we may seem to mean one way or the other. I prefer to use the second way because it does not lend credence to the philosophy of theism. I think many Humanists have trouble with the word "atheism" because they think it does give credence to theism since they ignore the possibility that the universe is not necessarily based on dichotomies. They are wrong.
Pastor Rob:
I do not wish to bantie words with you Tim, I respect your position as an unbeliever, and I respect you as a human being for taking a firm stance on something. One thing I despise about this present world is that People are so "flighty" on what they believe. They change at a moments notice, which tells me they really haven't thought things out. You seem to be a man of conviction and I find that very refreshing.
Cliff:
You are the one who started the word-game by insisting that "atheist" actually means "belief in one god" -- which is a unique and entirely unsupported position.
Tim may have "thought things out" in many respects, but to come up with a correct definition for the word "atheist" requires very little thought. Merriam Webster's can't even get it right, listing, as a synonym for "atheist" the word "wicked." However, Merriam Webster's does not make this stuff up: Pastor Rob is not the first one to lie about atheists; this tradition goes back to the days of Psalm 14:1 and earlier.
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Tim:
When some grown-up people die, they call out for mommy. Other people take a nap. Others just fall over. It's a matter of personal preference. An Atheist may call out "god" in this time of duress. You must remember that people do unusual things in situations like this. Some of us were reared in xian "homes" where god "concepts" were instilled upon us from the time we were little babies. We have pretty much escaped the strangleholds of xianity and reclaimed our atheist birthright. But we are all human.
Pastor Rob:
Well I can certainly relate. I was raised in a "Atheist" family for the most part, my parents did not believe in the Lord Jesus. I was not "searching" for God, I really didn't care. When I was 7 years old I literally was dying and I saw the Lord, long story but, this began a lifelong search for truth, carefully examining every shred of evidence, until I discovered that the "Historical" Jesus was everything He claimed to be. Any sincere seeker, if they are willing to examine the "facts" will come to the same conclusion. Jesus Christ is what He claimed to be. His Life, Death, and Resurrection from the dead is the BEST DOCUMENT EVENT IN HUMAN HISTORY.
Cliff:
Pastor Rob, you weren't "literally dying" as evidenced by the fact that you are still alive. What you saw may or may not have been "the Lord" -- you don't know. This was an unusual experience, complicated by the stress of a medical condition which you still interpret as "literally dying." For you or anyone to make pronouncements of fact based on perceptions made during a vulnerable state of mind is foolish and absurd.
I don't know about examining the kind of "facts" you are talking about (enclosing a word in quotes adds a sense of irony to its commonly understood meaning; you therefore are not talking about facts as the word factscommonly indicates). I, too, have tried to come up with facts concerning a historical Jesus and have found none that I can honestly put into the category of fact.
What I do come up with is a very strong indication that everything the Jesus of the Gospels is alleged to have said is hearsay at best. Upon closer examination, many of the things related about the words and life of the Jesus of the Gospels contradict other things we know about Jews of the times. For example, the Pharisees did not think it wrong or unlawful to heal on the Sabbath (Maccoby, 1986; Maccoby, 1973), but we have the Pharisees of the Gospels arguing with the Jesus of the Gospels on this very matter (John 5:16, etc.).
The Jesus story, as presented in the Gospels, is anything but self-consistent and it contradicts, in many ways, what we can verify about the times and also what we can verify about how physics and biology work (i.e., the alleged miracles).
To say that "Jesus Christ is what He claimed to be" is blind credulity on your part, because we don't know what he said: we only have hearsay evidence, and that evidence has every mark of being part of an anti-Semitic political tract -- with the alleged words of Jesus probably having been placed in his mouth much later, by Paul and his followers. We have no reason to believe that any of the alleged claims of the Jesus of the Gospels were actually made by a man named Jesus.
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Tim:
Some may fall down in times of duress. Some may call out to "god." And then, what happened? You may cry out for the Tooth Fairy when you croak.
Pastor Rob:
The difference is the "tooth fairy" did not come back from the dead, Jesus did, this is the proof that He is what He claimed, God in Human flesh and the Only Savior we can call upon.
Cliff:
Many ancient "saviors" are alleged to have come back from the dead. The virgin-born, crucified, resurrected savior motif is so common in history as to make it seem odd that this claim has not been made about the Tooth Fairy. The Jesus of the Gospels in not unique in this respect. Quite the opposite; the Jesus myth is rather ho-hum compared to some of the others, which told of deities who were actually worthy of awe and respect (except that they were just as mythical as Jesus).
No, Pastor Rob, the difference is that the Jesus myth has survived and has become the dominant paradigm. I credit this accomplishment with the Jesus myth's unique ability to turn healthy, responsible people into willing slaves and arrogant liars and ruthless murderers. No other myth in history has inspired more bloodshed -- though the Christianity-inspired Islam is next in line.
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Tim:
No, Rob. While the chances are very good that there are no such things as Jehovah and jesus and the holy ghost floating around in the air. While there may be no such things as monsters in the earth; ghouls under the bed and ghosts in the closet, there are monsters floating around in people's thoughts.
Pastor Rob:
Tim do you always spell people proper names with "lower case" or is this an act of disrespect? I do not agree with you but at least I follow the rules of grammar and etiquette when I spell your name (Tim)
Cliff:
Most people capitalize the names of fictional characters, such as Tom Sawyer and Buggs Bunny and Jesus Christ. Some atheists, though (Madalyn O'Hair; Goparaju Ramachandra Rao), deliberately write the names of deities in lowercase, so as not to allow the popular conclusion that capitalizing the name is an admission that the character named is real. (Theists actually do this on occasion, in their squirming attempts to discredit atheists.) Still others, such as George H. Smith, use the lowercase to indicate a generic "god" and capitals to indicate a specific deity whose name is "God."
And yes, Pastor Rob, many of us have nothing but contempt for the mythical character and deity jeezus h. christ; to us, no amount of disrespect is excessive. The followers of this deity, more than all other peoples, have done much to prevent people from living as humans are capable of living.
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Tim:
These viruses infect our thoughts and turn us into self-loathing parasites. Christianity is one of the foremost viruses of this kind in this country.
Pastor Rob:
That is interesting that you think of someone who simply came to express His love to you by dying a horrible death as a "virus" If I gave my life for you, would you think of me as just a virus, or could I perhaps actually become your friend?
Cliff:
Rob, you have yet to make your case that a deity named "Jesus Christ" exists -- much less that the accepted story is accurate. You merely huff and puff and state the equivalent of "thus is so" and expect us to believe you.
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Tim:
But, as long as you can scare ignorant people about burning in hell, you can make money. I think this is why Atheists scare you, Rob. Do you have any reality-based skills, or are you afraid that Atheists are going to take the only "job" you may know away from you and force you to get a job as a dishwasher? Dishwashing is not great and it probably won't pay the bills (especially if you are one of those breeder xians who have more than two kids), but it will keep you off of the welfare roles and put you on a crash diet.
Pastor Rob:
Tim, I thought we were intelligently discussing a difference of opinions. I did not write the words or the concept of Hell. Jesus spoke more about hell than heaven, He knew it was a real place and He does not want me or you or anyone to make the choice to go there. What makes God, God is the incredible fact that He is a "SELF DETERMINING BEING" He has the unique characteristic that He can choose His own destiny. In the First chapter of Genesis, we discover that He made you and I "In His Image", simply stated that means that we are created like Him, with the ability to be self determining beings, able to choose our own destiny. We have the choice, which you have made, to reject our Creator or , as I have done, to accept His Love, Mercy and care.
He respects the decision you have made without interfering in your decision. He does not use scare tactics, intimidation or deceit. He tells us the truth, the facts, and then lets us make the decision. Hell was not made for human beings, it was created to place satan and His angels in for their willing rebellion against God. If someone say's they do not want to be with God, that they reject His love, He respects that decision, He allows you to not be with Him. Hell is the dwelling place of everyone who has made their own choice to reject God. But the truth is, God does not send anyone to Hell, in fact He sent His own Son, to this earth to die a horrible death upon a Cross to prove to you the depths He was willing to go to prove His love for you. What a mean "monster" God is, Dying for me to prove His love for me!!!
Cliff:
Pastor Rob, could you please explain to me why an all-powerful god needed the cross to accomplish our forgiveness? Why couldn't he have simply forgiven us?
The fact that nobody has yet been able to explain the cross to me is "Exhibit A" in the case against the Christian myth.
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Tim:
Atheists do not believe, they think critically. They observe, ponder, speculate, hypothesize, dream, fantasize responsibly and reach conclusions and convictions. There is no room for belief in an adult's mind much less than the mind of a child. Which brings up another point: All people think with their brains, not their hearts. The heart is a blood pump. The First Chapter of Romans was hashed out by some savage or savage who apparently did not know this. Poetry and artistic license will not save their comment from the scrutiny of thinking minds.
Pastor Rob:
Actually, in the Greek language the word "believe" is much more descriptive than our English language. It means "To cling to, trust in, rely upon, place all that you are upon". Is there nothing in your Life Tim than you"Believe in, in this context, or are you simply a "thinking Machine"?
Heart, from Gods perspective is not Physical, it is the thinking, feeling emotional part of you which He understands. He knows that you have an inherent need to Love someone and to be Loved, that you are not Just a Thinking Machine, but you have emotions, feelings, and a need to be Loved, He knows this because He made you like Himself, and He is all of these things. God's Love, is something that is completely foreign to the human race, the Greeks had to create a new word to describe it: "Agape". It does not mean to get, it means to give. God's love for you exists even when you do not believe in Him, or love Him. He Loves you no matter what you do or what you have done, You do not have the power to diminish His great love for you even if you fail to "perform", because you cannot earn it or lose it, He loves you because that is His nature. Even as we speak to each other, He knows you fully and completely and He Still loves you. It was this totally foreign love that I discovered that caused me to want to know Him. The last 23 years have been a never ending experience of discovering the depth of that Love, the Giving, patience, long-suffering with me, even when I am the most "unlovable"
Cliff:
Nice try, Pastor Rob: we speak English in this culture; we cannot be held accountable for not understanding one preacher's understanding of something as obscure and questionable as the nuances of an ancient and dead language.
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Tim:
Assuming that I, as an Atheist, knew of the existence of -- say -- your particular god, for example, and knew that everything you said was true about said god, I would rather go to "hell" than serve this hapless "individual." My atheism would still be intact and in my "suffering" my condolence would be knowing that I didn't serve some monster who your bible says tortures and kills little children. But, I fired "this" worthless wretch long ago.
Pastor Rob:
God respect your decision Tim, and so do I. I really believe someone has told you several lies about the true Character and Nature of God, He is none of those things that you have said ... How do I know.... I know Him personally, He is as real to me as you are, How do I know you exist, we have a relationship, we talk and share our thoughts together. Every year that passes, I know Him more and More as I seek Him, It is incredible!!!!!!
Cliff:
Pastor Rob, I come to the same conclusion about the Bible god as Tim does -- he is a monster and I am glad he does not exist -- and I come to this conclusion from having studied the Bible itself.
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Tim:
"Hell" is just a bad idea, it is not reality. There are no actual records of its existence. It only occurs in certain people's imaginations. I don't feel sorry for you because we don't share a common neural system. I can only feel my own joys and sorrows, etc. Suffice to say that I cannot go to hell because it would be impossible for me to live inside your brain.
And there is no proof it does not exist, and their is so much proof that God does exist. Did you Know Tim that you have over 75 Trillion Living cells within your body. That within each one of those 75 trillion cells is another 200 trillion protein molecules. Within each cell their is a DNA strand that is so complex that if you took the coded information within one DNA strand and translated it into the English language it would fill a 1,000 volume encyclopedia? And this is only 1 of the Trillions within your Body. If time would allow, I could give you the most staggering facts about the complexity of your body, the universe and the laws of thermodynamics, gravity and quantum Mechanics, that clearly point to an intelligent creator who is responsible for all that exist.
Cliff:
Pastor Rob, may we refer you to a few lessons in logic and thinking? (or is it in your best interests to obfuscate?) The [Positive Atheism] WEB Page contains several lessons in logic, listed in the Atheism and Awareness Index. We posted these lessons so that people can avoid making the mistakes you make above. We are tired of prividing instructions in logic and expression on the Letters page.
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Pastor Rob:
Thanks Tim for your honesty and heartfelt response to my post, I enjoyed "talking" to you and hope we can discuss this "stuff" more in the future. Feel free to call me at my toll free number 800 330 9673 anytime, I would enjoy talking to you.
===== Pastor Robb Responds to Cliff =====
Here is the long answer to your short question on Atheism. I do not ever make unsubstantiated statements. Why are all of you guys so rude. I had hoped to carry our a civilized discussion with you but every response I get is Hostile and rude. Is this the general type of people that "atheists" are, or are some of you civilized?
ATHEISM
ATHEISM (Gk. atheos, "without God"). The denial of the existence of God. The term has always been applied according to the popular conception of God. Thus the Greeks considered a man atheos, "atheist," when he denied the existence of the gods recognized by the state. The pagans called Christians atheists because they would not acknowledge the heathen gods and worship them. In the theological controversies of the early church the opposite parties not infrequently called each other atheists.
ATHEISM
(a'-the-iz'-m) (atheos, "without God" <Eph 2:12>): Ordinarily this word is interpreted to mean a denial of the existence of God, a disbelief in God, the opposite of theism. But it seems better that we should consider it under four heads, in order to obtain a clear idea of the different meanings in which it has been used.
(1) The classical.-- In this sense it does not mean a denial of the existence of a Divine Being, but the denial of the existence or reality of the god of a particular nation. Thus the Christians were repeatedly charged with atheism, because of their disbelief in the gods of heathenism. It was not charged that they did not believe in any god, but that they denied the existence and reality of the gods worshipped, and before whom the nation hitherto had bowed. This was considered so great a crime, so dangerous a thing to the nation, that it was felt to be a just cause for most cruel and determined persecutions. Socrates' teaching cast a shadow on the reality of the existence of the gods, and this charge was brought against him by his contemporaries. Cicero also uses the word in this sense in his charge against Diagoras of Athens. Indeed, such use of it is common in all classical literature.
(2) Philosophic.-- It is not meant that the various philosophic systems to which this term is applied actually deny the existence of a Divine Being or of a First Cause, but that they are atheistic in their teaching, and tend to unsettle the faith of mankind in the existence of God. There is indeed a belief in a first cause, in force, in motion, in a certain aggregation of materials producing life, but the Divine Being as taught by theism is absolutely denied. This is true of the Idealism of Fichte, of the Ideal Pantheism of Spinoza, the Natural Pantheism of Schelling, and similar forms of thought. In applying the word atheism to the teaching here given, theism does not intend to assail them as wholly without a belief in a Divine Being; but it affirms that God is a person, a self-conscious Being, not merely a first cause or force. To deny this fundamental affirmation of theism is to make the teaching atheistic, a denial of that which is essential to theism <Heb 11:3>.
(3) Dogmatic.-- It absolutely denies the existence of God. It has often been held that this is, in fact, impossible. Cousin has said, "It is impossible, because the existence of God is implied in every assertion." It is true, however, that in all ages there have been persons who declared themselves absolute atheists. Especially is this true of the 18th century a period of widespread skepticism-- when not a few, particularly in France, professed themselves atheists. In many cases, however, it resulted from a loose use of the word, careless definition, and sometimes from the spirit of boastfulness.
(4) Practical atheism.-- It has nothing at all to do with belief. Indeed it accepts the affirmations of theism. It has reference wholly to the mode of life. It is to live as though there was no God.
It takes the form often of complete indifference to the claims of the Divine Being or again of outbroken and defiant wickedness <Ps 14:1>. That this form of atheism is widely prevalent is well known. It is accompanied in many cases with some form of unbelief or prejudice or false opinion of the church or Christianity. Dogmatic atheism is no longer a menace or even a hindrance to the progress of Christianity, but practical atheism is widespread in its influence and a dangerous element in our modern life (compare <Isa 31:1; Jer 2:13,17-18; 18:13-15>). Whatever the form, whether it be that of religious agnosticism, denying that we can know that God exists, or critical atheism, denying that the evidence to prove His existence is sufficient, or dogmatic, or practical atheism, it is always a system of negation and as such tears down and destroys. It destroys the faith upon which all human relations are built. Since there is no God, there is no right nor wrong, and human action is neither good nor bad, but convenient or inconvenient. It leaves human society without a basis for order and human government without foundation <Rom 1:10-32>. All is hopeless, all is wretchedness, all is tending to the grave and the grave ends all.
Arguments against atheism may be summarized as follows:
(1) It is contrary to reason. History has shown again and again how impossible it is to bring the mind to rest in this doctrine. Although Buddhism is atheistic in its teaching, idolatry is widespread in the lands where it prevails. While the Positive Philosophy of Auguste Comte was based on a denial of the existence of God, his attempt to found the new religion of humanity with rites and ceremonies of worship reveals how the longing for worship cannot be suppressed. It is a revelation of the fact so often seen in the history of human thought, that the mind cannot rest in the tenets of atheism.
(2) It is contrary to human experience. All history testifies that there are deep religious instincts within the human breast. To regard these as deceptive and unreasonable would itself be utterly unreasonable and unscientific. But the fact of such spiritual longing implies also that there is a Being who is responsive to and can satisfy the cry of the heart <Heb 11:6>. In his Bampton Lectures Reville has said on this subject: "It would be irrational in the last degree to lay down the existence of such a need and such a tendency, and yet believe that the need corresponds to nothing, that the tendency has no goal."
Rob
Cliff:
Pastor Rob, did you make this up? If not, what are your reference sources?
Also, you call us rude, but your first letter to us ("enjoy Hell!") was polite!?
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===== Russell Ogilvie Jumps In =====
From: "RGOGILVIE"
To: "PositiveAtheism" <editor@positiveatheism.org>
Subject: Positive_Atheism_Letters_Section
Date: Tuesday, May 23, 2000 2:30 PM
To whom it may concern,
'Pastor Rob' in the letters section made a few rather bold (to the point of striking me as quite amusing) statements about cells and proteins in the human body:
[Rob says:] "Did you Know Tim that you have over 75 Trillion Living cells within your body. That within each one of those 75 trillion cells is another 200 trillion protein molecules."
I didn't see any responses pointing this out, so I hope I'm not being redundant. Proteins are made up of amino acids. Let's assume a ridiculously simple human made up of just one kind of protein, composed of nothing more than a single amino acid just to be on the safe side. And to drive the nail in a little further, let's assume it's glycine, the amino acid with the simplest structure: NH2 CH2 COOH. Add up the molecular weights and we get about 75.04g/mol of glycine molecules. Here's the math:
(75E12 cells/body)x(200E12 proteins/cell)x(75.04 g/mol)
------------------------------------------------------- = 1.87E6 g/body
6.022E23 proteins/mol
Let's see -- 1870 kg, that's about 4120 lbs.
So, according what he's told us (and assuming I did the math correctly), an impossibly light human's protein content would weigh in at a minimum of just over 2 tons. (Just the protein -- I'm thinking this human is quite muscular.)
I suppose that is beside the point he was trying to make -- argument from design it would seem -- but did he say he could teach me something about Quantum Mechanics too?
Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to read this, and I hope you get a chuckle out of it. I appreciate what you are doing.
Sincerely,
Russell Ogilvie
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