Are Atheists really as smart as they claim to be?

Question

OK, I am getting really worried. All day on here, I have seen Atheists posting a link to the story of the sick woman who killed her daughter, with a question like the following:

"If there was a God, how would He allow this to happen?"

OK, now you would think that most people would "get it" after being told a few times, but I guess Atheists just aren't that smart after all. It seems like they just can't grasp the concept of free will. They just don't seem to understand that God doesn't "allow" us to do anything, we have free will to do as we please, both good and bad.

Do any Christians have any ideas to dumb down this concept so they might be able to understand it?


Heck, WE may have to create a drinking game of our own. Every time an atheist asks how God allowed something to happen, we take a drink. I'd be drunk by noon.

I don't see how god could keep this woman from killing her child without interfering in her free will. See, you missed the concept again. I guess I didn't dumb it down enough.

-sigh-

Answer 1

Ah yes, of course, all atheists must be stupid because a few are annoying you... of course, of course

Answer 2

Their argument doesn't make sense to me. Maybe I'm just not smart enough but it seems that by virtue of being a supreme being (or anything other than a human) he can do anything he wants and it will automatically be just fine. He can allow that child to be brutally killed. He can personally slaughter as many children as he wants and burn as many cities as he wants as he did in the Old Testament. What does it matter? How can we apply human standards to God the "father", a being who is not even remotely human? How does that make any more sense than applying human standards to other life-forms of vastly different biological properties? Shall we send that Dingo to a human jail for eating the human baby? If he wants to let evil happen in the world than that must be fine too. There is a clear double standard: mortals cannot kill each other, strange super being in the ether is not a mortal. Therefore, he can do whatever the hell he wants.

As for God as Jesus (a human), he was(is) a pretty cool guy. I'm sure even the atheists can agree that there isn't much problem with that fellow.

Note: Jesus is not the one who sends people to hell, that is God the father who does that. Jesus is the guy who dislikes the whole sending to hell thing so much that he got himself killed to stop it.

Answer 3

The point of the post isn't that there is free will, but that Christians seem to pick what God is responsible for. You act as though humans have all this free will. Okay, then everything that happens is just free will, right? Then you turn around and say how God helped you do this, and God helped you do that. Why didn't God help a cop show up at that house at the right time?

You can't just decide that certain things that happen are aided by God, and certain things that happen are completely free will. Especially when all your picking it in an effort to make actions fit with your religion.

And your claim that God preventing the death of this child would interfere with the woman's free will is contradictory to what many Christians claim. I have heard many stories (even in the bible) of God interfering with free will.

Answer 4

A recent study indicated that Atheists have an IQ that is 5.6 points higher than theists. So yeah, we're as smart as we claim to be:

Sources:

1. 2007:

http://danish.newsvine.com/_news/2007/02/05/554043-professor-atheists-are-more-intelligent-than-believers

2. Terman, 1959
Studied group with IQ's over 140. Of men, 10 percent held strong religious belief, of women 18 percent. Sixty-two percent of men and 57 percent of women claimed "little religious inclination" while 28 percent of the men and 23 percent of the women claimed it was "not at all important."


3. Southern and Plant, 1968
Studied 42 male and 30 female members of Mensa. Mensa members were much less religious in belief than the typical American college alumnus or adult.

Answer 5

Feel free to make your own list of drinking questions. I did.

If we evolved from monkeys, why are there still monkeys? What will you tell God on Judgement Day? You lose nothing by believing in God, so why not just be safe? Where is Hell? Who created God? Can God create a [noun] so [adjective] that he can't [verb]? If Jesus had been [killed in a different way] would Christians wear little [related killing method instrument] around their necks? Where is the Garden of Eden? Are God and Allah the same? Why do atheists post in the Religion and Spirituality forum? Why are atheists so angry? Where are you going when you die? Any question that seeks to establish a Right of Victimhood on R&S. Any challenge to "prove" the existence (or non-existence) of God, Jesus, Vishnu, etc. Did people before Jesus go to Hell? Why do Christians hate atheists? Do animals go to heaven? When will Jesus return? Is masturbation a sin? Why do atheists answer questions about religion? Was Jesus gay? If God is omnipotent, why does He make people that will surely go to Hell? Would you give up your faith if threatened with [death, torture, etc.] Does God exist? What is greater than God,more evil than the devil, the poor have it, the rich need it, and if you eat it, you die? Any question that places importance on the year 2012. Should there be seperate sections for each religion in R&S? Why doesn't God heal amputees? Would you kill your child if God asked you to? How many people have been killed because of religion? Will we have sex in heaven? Did Adam and Eve's children commit incest? Is Hitler in Heaven? Why do Catholics worship Mary or the Saints?

Answer 6

Your Christian god granted humans free will, but also created the rules of life, which state if you don't worship him, you will suffer an eternity of torment.

Hence, you are free to choose ONLY one of the two choices he's provided... either obedience to his desire, or disobedience and an eternity of pain. There is no way to "opt out" and not choose, therefore there is no free will. Free will means I can get up and leave the game with no repercussion, if I so desire.

Let me ask you this. Christians claim prayer works. Sometimes, but not always. On September 11, 2001, a large number of Christians were trapped in the World Trade Center as it collapsed. It's can be assumed that in the minutes leading up to, and during the collapse, all these Christians were praying to god to save them. At the same time, all over the United States, and the world, millions, if not BILLIONS of Christians were praying to god in unison for these people to be saved. Perhaps the largest single collective appeal to god for ANYTHING in the entire history of mankind. For a short time, perhaps an hour, God heard and ignored the pleas of millions and millions of his most favored, cherished loved creations.

The buildings fell, EVERYONE IN THEM DIED, and the prayers accomplished ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. BILLIONS of prayers, said in unison, to save innocent people from a death they did NOTHING to deserve, went unanswered.

God didn't allow this to happen because THERE IS NO GOD. If there were, he/she/it is a sick, twisted, psychopath.

Answer 7

Such Bigotry and ignorance!!!!

Firstly - the question is mainly asked by Christians!

Secondly - atheist do not believe in a god - not just your god - but any god.

You are doing a wonderful job of showing Christians to be ignorant, bigot ted and full of human emotions such as false pride, vanity, and making real Christians utterly ashamed to be associated with questions like this!!!

Answer 8

and hows stupid is believing in something with no prove, believing something written by men you have never met not by god, which is so full of contradictions and believing in something without question or doubt.
if man is responsible for all the bad things but god for all the miracles, then why not the other way around, if you had free will how come if you dont follow the bible your going to hell?

Answer 9

First, consider that "freedom" is a greek concept, not christian, and that to be christian means you either accept the doctrine or you are condemmned to hell, doesn't sound like free will.
Secondly, if god is all powerful then why doesn't he stop evil in the world, if he is powerful but not willing to stop it, then he is not good. If he is neither powerful enough nor willing to stop it, why call him god?

Answer 10

I suppose Christians aren't understanding that atheists DO recognize that free will exists, but are puzzled at the notion that God wouldn't prevent someone from using their free will to accomplish such needlessly destructive ends. God isn't UNABLE to prevent us from doing whatever he doesn't want us to do considering he's purportedly all powerful (omnipotent, I'm sure you know the word), so either he WANTS people to kill their children, or he's really NOT all powerful.

You don't think you've dumbed it down enough... OK... Explain it to me like you would to a 4 year old, then: Does God WANT people to kill their children like this woman did, is that why he refuses to interfere with her free will, or is he INCAPABLE of interfering with our free will regardless of whether or not he wants people like this woman to kill her children? Make sure to speak monosyllabically, though. I'm apparently quite dumb.

No, REALLY, explain it to me like you would to a 4 year old. Go ahead. I'm ready.

Answer 11

This nonsense comes up alot. I've never claimed to be smart..but many theists claim that atheists claim to be smart. I've not seen it? We just don't believe in gods or imaginary monsters. Fairly simple.