I was riding the bus to class this morning when thoughts started running through my head. They were more of those Christianity vs. Atheism questions I had been compiling, and God was finally starting to give me answers—or, at least, questions to counter with. So since it's been so long since I've written anything, I decided I'd share what God was telling me.
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C: Jesus is the only way to heaven. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
A: There's more than one way to heaven. Truth is all just relative.
C: ... Relative to what?
A: ...
A: Wow. That guy is evil. He murdered his own family. I know I'm not perfect, but at least I'm not as bad as he is.
C: Really? What makes you say that?
A: That guy killed his own family! That's horrible!
C: Have you ever lied to someone? Have you ever been so mad at someone that you actually hated them for a while?
A: Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?
C: What are the seven deadly sins?
A: Wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony.
C: Is murder ever mentioned?
A: No, but...
C: But wrath is. Does rage come from the fact that you killed someone, or do you kill someone because you hate them?
A: ... You kill them because you hate them.
C: So which is worse: wrath or murder?
A: Murder! Come on! The guy KILLED people! That's evil!
C: Yeah, but wrath caused him to do it. So wrath is the source of that evil, which makes wrath worse than murder in the long run.
A: Who cares about "the long run"? We're all going to die and disappear anyway.
C: Then why is murder so bad? The guy just gave his family an early trip to where they were going in the first place. If we're all going to die and disappear, why do we try to live and make a difference? Why does it matter? If there's no ultimate goal in life, no final resting place, no life after death, then there's no reason to do anything. We should all just die now. The book of Ecclesiastes talks about this in saying that everything is meaningless without God. And it's true. The only reason any of us does anything is that we all realize, whether consciously or subconsciously, that there is something more to life, something more after death, a reason to live life to the fullest. And that reason is God.
A: ...
A: There's no absolute good.
C: Then who determines what good is?
A: It's relative. I'm better than that bully over there because I give money to the poor.
C: But how do we know charity is good and bullying is bad?
A: You get punished for doing bad things and rewarded for doing good.
C: I understand that, but who made that rule?
A: Nobody. That's just how it is. Nobody had to make that rule. It was just built into our nature.
C: So that's why little kids are inclined to steal things they want? Why they tend to throw tantrums and hit people when they don't have their way? Their internal sense of right and wrong is telling them to do bad things to get something out of it? Why do we have to learn to do good things to get what we want if we already know that rule?
Think about this: We're both trying to get to Atlanta. You're in Miami, and I'm in San Francisco. Who's closer to Atlanta?
A: I am.
C: How do you know?
A: Because I'm in the state right next to it, and you're all the way across the country. You have more distance to cover.
C: Now what if Atlanta didn't exist? Who would be closer to Atlanta then?
A: Neither one of us because you can't be closer than someone else to something that doesn't exist.
C: It's the same with good. If there's no absolute good, how can someone be better—more good—than someone else?
A: ...
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I hope that helps someone somehow. I'll probably make more Christianity vs. Atheism: Questions and Answers posts as I hear more questions.
Until next time, God bless!
Michael
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"I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing." ~ 1 Timothy 2:8
"I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to live is Christ and to die is gain." ~ Philippians 1:20-21
