The concept of consistency is a good way to begin to judge the truthfulness of any belief system, including the one in which a person is raised. Instead, the absence of memory function in a human soul means that the god of christianity, the god of islam, the gods of hinduism, and all other major world religions are simply irrelevant. Edited by preston jones find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Have you wondered why everything from atomic particles to vast galaxies is governed by precise mathematical laws. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor. The real reason religion is declining in america why the u. When we ask that question, we are posing in a provocative way the metaethical question of the objectivity of moral values. This includes selfevident axioms cogito ergo sum and, arguably, directly observed hence empiric.
Even on this view, of course, god might still serve a useful role as an epistemic authority. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a. A good god and a bad god the existence of evil in the world is a topic on which much has been written. Jan 11, 2016 we are thankful that dr john lennox was at our church to speak on 28 nov 2015 in partnership with rzim asia. As an apologetic, this book doesnt come down on either side. Bad religion is an american band that plays punk rock music. Because from our religion comes our faith, our beliefs, our morals, ethics, behaviour and ultimately, our foundation for life, our logos we base our lives on our faith or, alternatively, on our. Is belief in god good bad or irrelevant a professor and a. Greg graffin of bad religion sings the national anthem at the reason rally. Is belief in god good bad or irrelevant reasonable faith. For those interested in graffins life and personal theories, or those who are looking for a good starting place to a few fundamentals of naturalism or christianity, is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant. They were created in southern california in 1979 by jay bentley bass, greg graffin vocals, brett gurewitz guitars and jay ziskrout drums. In sum, morality, which concerns itself with good actions and good character,12 does not depend on god.
Request pdf on apr 1, 2007, bradford mccall and others published is belief in god good, bad, or irrelevant. Also 2 i understand that the supernatural defies any attempt to provide material evidence. Apr 15, 20 what unites both positions is the idea that belief in god is only acceptable if there is enough evidence. The fact that two people with such completely opposite viewpoints can agree to disagree and have a conversation is proof to me that there is a chance for a better world with or without the divine intervention of a god or whether everyone even agrees on whether a god exists. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity greg graffin, preston jones. If i see someone displaying typical pain behavior, i take it that he or she is in pain.
Some beliefs are based upon others, so i believe a. Download is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a. It is the belief that we are born sinful, yet with enough good in us to accept christ. While its numbers are growing in latin america and africa, christianity in its historical power bases is in undeniable decline. The belief in god should always be there whatever the circumstances or situations may arise but you should be clear with that he is there with you. One day, on a whim, preston sent greg an appreciative email. The god within malady has infected evangelicals as well, as seen in the socalled prosperity gospel.
Belief in god the inescapable answer denying belief in god, my bright friend responded, regis, but the speculative theories about the multiverse are there for a reason. It is more of an attitude rather than a belief, claim, or belief system. Preston jones greg graffin is belief in god good, bad. Why belief in god is reasonable and responsible, one of the best books at refuting the claims of.
Some people really do believe in this version of god. Religion versus ethnicity as a source of mobilisation. Preston gives good arguments for the christian worldview. Greg graffin is frontman, singer and songwriter for the punk band bad religion. While reading through the religious epistemology section of my copy of philosophical foundations for a christian worldview, i remembered christopher. But evidence suggests that peoples opinion of what god thinks is actually what they believe is right and wrong, not the other way around. Religion creates not only a glass ceiling in terms of how good a cohort of people can be, but also a glass basement in terms of how bad its capable of being. Why belief in god is reasonable and responsible edited by william lane craig and chad meister by rich deem introduction. What is a word that means belief in the good nature of.
Is faith, as in the belief that a god is real even when. It makes a big difference, for example, if one has a relationship with god or with the devil. Given and this is the fundamental thing that gods mercy has no limits, if he is approached with a sincere and repentant heart, the question for those who do not believe in god is to abide by their own conscience. Greg from the group bad religion gives good arguments for adopting the naturalistic worldview, and he corrects many of prestons misconceptions. The law determines the form that will be taken in each new rebirth. Nov 28, 2016 is belief in god a properly basic belief. Aug 16, 2015 the rationality of believing in god part 1. Nov, 2007 t onight, at a debate at bristol university, ive been asked to propose the motion that belief in god is a dangerous delusion. In the greek language the word for belief and the one for faith come from the same root, which means to trust in something.
Good and bad reasons for believing, by richard dawkins. A properly basic belief is a belief that one is justified in holding without any external warrant. He loves rock music and believes that god is not irrelevant. My question concerns the infamous and much maligned pascals wager. Ricky gervais proves a formidable opponent for stephen in a spirited conversation about belief, religion and atheism. I now have decided that belief in god is irrelevant. It would, indeed, be arrogant and ignorant to claim that people cannot be good without belief in god. People think that they brought back punk rock and helped poppunk bands during the late 1980s. Pascals advice is that the person who wants to believe but finds himself unable to do so should attach himself to a christian community and begin to take part in the same spiritual activities that believers engage in. I believe that johns explanation regarding the accident is false. In the history of the world, every culture in every location at every point in time has developed some supernatural belief system. May you be blessed as you hear him speak on a very important subject, is god irrelevant.
Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a punk. My reasonings are that the tanakhbible doesnt support the notion that god is all benevolent unless you read the nt, i guess. He is good to all in that he gives them rain, air, food, and life matt. The rationality of believing in god part 1 posted on august 16, 2015 by asadullah ali. A professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity edited by preston jones. For example, the majority of the population in the u. Many people have been led to believe that science has shown that god does not exist, or if he does exist, he is irrelevant. Indeed, many analyses classify religion either as one ethnic marker. Thus, the volume aims at presentation rather philosophy of religion than critique. Because from our religion comes our faith, our beliefs, our morals, ethics, behaviour and ultimately, our foundation for life, our logos.
It is a series of emails between a professor of church history and a punk rocker who embraces naturalism. My belief regarding the cars color may be mistaken, due to poor lighting. A professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity. The absence of a human soul with memory, or the ability to hear and see, does not mean that god is dead. Good faeries bad faeries pdf download once upon a time, i thought faeries lived only in books, old folktales, and the past. Foundationalism and its rejection the common objection goes like this. National mall, washington, dc, 2012 throughout 2003, graffin was engaged in an ongoing email discussion with preston jones, a historian at the christian john brown university in arkansas and fan of bad religion. I view god sort of as neutral in sense not being good or evil. From as far back as ancient times, there have been religions which actually claimed that there are two gods in the universe.
Preston jones greg graffin is belief in god good, bad or. The book doesnt offer any startling revelations, but it is welldesigned and is an easy, interesting read. Was a good read and very cool that they agreed to publish personal exchanges. Sambanis 2001 uses horowitz definition in his contrast between ethnic and non. The idea is that someone is only rational, reasonable or responsible in accepting theistic belief if they base their belief in god on some other belief. Believing in god makes you fearless, free from all the worries, sets you at a level of stability and significantly makes you live the life in a lovely and peaceful way like he wants his children to. Good and bad reasons for believing, by richard dawkins tell a devout christian that his wife is cheating on him, or that frozen yogurt can make a man invisible, and he is likely to require as much evidence as anyone else, and to be persuaded only to the extent that you give it. Like any good jeremiad, bad religion concludes with what evangelicals would.
And yes relationships are key, but again, truth matters. He is good to all in that he provided his son as a sacrifice for sin so that we could escape the judgment to come john 3. Belief is that state of mind in which one concludes that a fact is true. I really dont understand why people view god as all good. Oxford theologian alister mcgrath will fight back and argue that it. If the divine command theory is true, then it is impossible to know what is right or wrong. Feb 25, 2010 the big man upstairs is getting accolades from mental health specialists who say they are finding that a belief in god plays a positive role in the treatment of anxiety and depression. Its easy enough to spark discussion about the problem of evil can you really read the newspaper every day and continue to believe in an allperfect god. Belonging to a religious group means following its beliefs and practices, which can be difficult. If we believe that god wills everything, good or bad, to happen to us, it gives us some temporary relief from confusion and condemnation, but in the longterm, it slanders god, hinders our trust in god. Belief in god relieves depression washington times. The rationality of believing in god part 1 the andalusian. There is a lot of confusion in our society over some extremely important concepts.
Naivety or optimism are subjective and thus are more interpretations than definition of belief in the good nature of humankind. We can either try to work out whats going on by proposing bold new ideas about the construction of the entire universe. T onight, at a debate at bristol university, ive been asked to propose the motion that belief in god is a dangerous delusion. Have you reflected on life itself its variety, its complexity, and its amazing design. This disputed question, far from being only of historical interest, has important implications for how we conceive of the role of religion in the. If the divine command theory is true, then god s commands are arbitrary. I believe in god and listen to bad religion, guess that makes me a dualist see. Cosmic law of sowing and reaping cause and effect in human life. This means faith belief is the only thing you can do thats not counted as work. If this belief is true, then our actions are irrelevant, and our efforts are meaningless. Or a fixed, false belief that is resistant to reason or confrontation with actual fact.
Belief that there is a god or gods, belief in heaven, belief. Of course, what may be going on is that the argument is seen as a good argument exactly because it is persuasive or, more importantly, is a debatewinner in other words, many people just dont know what constitutes a good argument. God enforces the rule or, if you like, incentivizes us to comply with the rule. Bad religion simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Sep 12, 20 you ask me if the god of the christians forgives those who dont believe and who dont seek the faith, the pope wrote. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and. The nafs desires are not initially bad and must be. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity. One of my jobs as a teacher of bright, mostly catholic undergraduates is to get them thinking about why they hold their religious beliefs. An apatheist is someone who is not interested in accepting or rejecting any claims that gods exist or do not exist. As the second king of israel, david had been anointed king of israel while king saul was still on the throne.
Fewer people are claiming it, and even fewer of those who claim it actually practice it seriously. What doctrines teach that people are inherently good or bad. Preston jones is a history professor at a christian college and a fan of bad religions music. They both cannot be right about the fundamental issues they are discussing. Action is seen as bringing upon oneself inevitable results, good or bad. Ostensibly, it has to do with the ideals, beliefs, and principles each religion holds as true. I believe that jesus christ is the son of god, and is god, born of a virgin, crucified as punishment for the sins of mankind, resurrected on the third day, ascended into heaven, and is coming back.
Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity greg graffin, preston jones subject. Editors william lane craig and chad meister have assembled a collection of the best scholars in christianity to put together god is great, god is good. Since they were created 30 years ago, bad religion has had a lot of members come and go. Oct 22, 20 a delusion is a belief held with strong conviction despite superior evidence to the contrary. Sure, critics argue, it might be intriguing, but only a. God the father, god the son, and god the holy spirit are three persons present in one god. If a belief is internally inconsistent, you dont need to be exposed to any other beliefs to recognize the problems with the inconsistent belief. The same apply to benevolence as it could merely be a learning and not an innate state. The parents are the visible god and the god is our invisible parent who is always with us in all the circumstances. But the goodness of chastity, or honesty, or compassion is still independent of god.
Aug 30, 2010 is believing in god evolutionarily advantageous. This is not to say that islam doesnt provide any good reasons for belief, but that scholars and academics alike are simply not providing them. Many believe their morality comes from their religion. Its combination of overviews with indepth sections makes this volume a. David had waited patiently on the lord to give him the throne. That is because, in this view, it is still not god who makes adultery bad or wrong, chastity good or right. Many people dont believe in god but still behave morally. If god does not exist, the divine command theory must be false. Belief system typically has large categories of concepts defined in one way or another as themselves good or bad, or as leading to good or bad. Again, i dont take the displayed behavior as evidence. Is belief in god good, bad or irrelevant a professor and a punk rocker discuss science, religion, naturalism christianity by array this informed, entertaining and valuable collection of letters shows that people from two quite differing worldviews can still treat each other with respect as they passionately share their own beliefs and. Ricky gervais and stephen go headtohead on religion. Giving price to life doesnt imply the need of a good human nature cf. These beliefs that we accept without evidence are basic beliefs.
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