What would YOU do?

Question

I know this scenario is quite morbid, but in light of a conversation I had today, I'm wondering; please tell me what YOU would do in this situation?

Should standing before you be a Christian who has found and accepted God into his/her heart, and an atheist that denies the existence of God, and you were told that you must choose one to die, who would you choose?

Keep in mind:

The Christian will pray for your salvation.

The atheist will instead hope that his own life will be saved.

Normally, one would feel that the Christian should be allowed to live, because he/she has been selfless, and considered even their murderer's salvation, whereas the atheist considers his own life.

However, if you instead allow the atheist to live, you are giving them more time, which in potential, may give them a chance to find Christ.

Obviously, this may complicate the situation for some.

What would YOU do?

[[Please don't waste my time by saying it unrealistic, morbid, etc.]]

Shawn--I don't mean Christians in general, or atheists in general. I mean, specifically, two people; one of whom would hope for you, the other would hope for them.

I am NOT stereotyping. I mean, the two SPECIFIC people in this situation would react this way.

I AM an atheist; I wouldn't stereotype myself, obviously.

The people in my scenario are SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED. NOT just an any Christian/atheist.

Trust me, I realize that the any random person may not be like that, in this situation, which is why I mean them as SPECIFIC people.

Answer 1

I choose the Christian. He won't care cause he'll think he's going to a wonderland in the sky.... the atheist realizes the value of living fully in THIS life!

Answer 2

2 questions: Who is telling me I must choose, and what am I? A Christian or an Atheist?

interesting question.
Given what I understand about Who God is, and what His love means, if I am a Chrisitan myself, I would choose to offer myself in the place of both. Barring that (honestly if it were impossible) I would make the choice to have the Christian killed, and not only that, I would expect that the Christian would be ready and willing to give his life. However since that would be violating the commandment of God not to kill, it becomes a whole other ballgame.

Were I the Christian standing with the Atheist, I would want to be the one to die.

A true understanding of God's word reveals that His love for us is so great, that we understand what this life is. It's temporary. We are here for a time and to make a difference.


I'm not sure where your argument proves that "normally, one would feel that the christian should be allowed to live....etc"
I don't know any Christians who would agree with that.

In the same vane, if you are speaking for non-believers who would be standing in the postition of the chooser, then I could probably see that they might choose the Christian to live, but really, it doesnt' make sense.

Very interesting question.

blessings :)

Answer 3

Your question makes presumptions that are unjustified and perhaps unwarranted. That's not a personal attack on you and if your question is purely hypothetical it can be any way *you* like it to be. I, however, find the following flaws with it:

I have seen a *very* devout Christian plead for their own life when faced with their own mortality. I suppose many will consider them to be "non-Christian" but I suspect that the vast majority of Christians will do the same.

I have also seen an agnostic (not atheist) social worker plead with a man for his own benefit to not shoot them or others - describing how he will be caught and judged, and ruin his life for a few dollars.

Personal experience is not universal but that is a part of my experience that argues against your premise.

Edit: Noted your details to Shawn (presumably applicable to me). My comment: Perhaps this is the way you intended to ask the question but what you *did* ask was:

Should standing before you be a Christian who has found and accepted God into his/her heart, and an atheist that denies the existence of God, and you were told that you must choose one to die, who would you choose?
Keep in mind:
The Christian will pray for your salvation.
The atheist will instead hope that his own life will be saved.

The only details provided about the Christian are that he is Christian, and has accepted God into his heart. Ergo, he will pray for your salvation.

The only details provided about the atheist are that he is atheist, and has rejected God. Ergo, he will hope that his own life is saved.

The structure of your question, therefore, presumes that the Christian will pray for your salvation BECAUSE he is Christian and the atheist will plead/hope for his own life because he is atheist.

Using your presumptions, however, I will contend the following: If you truly believe that Jesus was put on this earth to save mankind then shouldn't you save instead the Christian? After all, by saving the Christian can he not, in turn, save many other's souls? The atheist *may* save his own.

Answer 4

My first reaction:

If there was one person and they had a gun to each of their heads, I would rush the person and try to save them both.

Second reaction:

If it was some morbid thing like in the Saw movies, but I could only save one of them, I'd save the Atheist. God will take Christians to heaven. It wouldn't matter to me if the Atheist chooses to believe in God or not. As long as they have more time to think about it, then I wouldn't be angry about my decision.

Even if it was between saving a room full of Christians or one atheist, I'd choose the atheist. And all true Christians would be willing to give their life for that atheist to have just one more chance to choose Christ.

Answer 5

There are a whole lot of problems with your question. first you assume that the christian is selfless,there are allot of Christians that are total jerks.Second you think that an atheist values his life above all others. Well I've been a Navy corpsman and a paramedic and I have put my butt on the line for people I didn't even know for many years. my choice in the situation you have given is to not kill anyone.but if I have to make a choice the biggest scumbag dies.That decision would be made for the good of the community.

Answer 6

Touch question, I hope we are never put into this posistion. However, it was not hard for me to answer this. I would regretfully have the Christian killed due to the fact that they are ready to face God. The atheist on the other hand is not. So in keeping the atheist alive, they may find salvation before death.

Answer 7

One error in your scenario is that you are considering the Christian to be the better person. The atheist can be equally as selfless as the Christian, even more so. Your scenario is discriminatory and prejudiced to say the least.

Answer 8

personally, I would kill the one I didn't like as much.


But as your question goes.. I would try and kill whatever was forcing me to choose, or I would kill the Christian, reason why...

Christians have their faith that makes them think they are going to heaven, and that is why they live the way they do. So, I would grant them the chance that they would screw up.

Answer 9

An excellent example why you shouldn't judge anyone based on their religion or beliefs. If you must choose between the two, I would decide depending on their age, life experience, responsibilities etc. But never on their beliefs.

Answer 10

I was ready to say the Atheist but you're indepth detail made me think about it more. It DOES make sense to let the atheist live so that they could get a chance to change their mind about God and his existence. If the Christian has already accepted Christ, he will go to heaven.
My answer: the Atheist should live.