Ockham's Razor and Christianity and why I have been scarce

I don't know if anyone has missed me, but I have become scarce around here as John, myself and the rest of the team at Skeptic Blogs have been setting up shop and getting things moving. I have migrated my old blog and revamped it over at SBs: A Tippling Philosopher. On the blog, I have guest posts from Andreas Schueler, Cody Rudisill and Aaron Adair, and accept other decent pieces from anyone else willing to contribute good sound writing to the cause.

Come join in the fun. Here is a piece I posted the other day, which I have embellished a little. Also, I hope to still contribute the odd piece here as time permits - I just thought I'd let you know what was going on.

Ockham's Razor and Christianity:

Here is a definition of Ockham’s Razor:

Ockham's Razor: the principle that entities should not be multiplied needlessly; the simplest of two competing theories is to be preferred.

The Meaninglessness of Sin

P1. If God created us as Christians claim, then God gave us “human nature.”

P2. If human nature allows us to sin, then God is to blame for the problem of evil.

C. Therefore, God is to blame for the problem of evil. Link

No Cross No Crescent, New To Skeptic Blogs

I was raised in the Islamic world...My goal in writing this blog is going to be presenting science and skepticism. I hope to bring more of an international perspective to the table and expose religious doctrines for the harmful they are, and the suffering they cause way too often for women, gays, dissenters and religious minorities. I wish to bring to light the religious roots of some of violent conflicts around the world causing graves tragedies and loss of life, as I think that this is a very serious issue that gets next to no attention in the media. From the threat the rise of dominionist and christian reconstructionists poses to US democracy, to plight of women in Afghanistan accused of “sexual crimes” under Islamic Sharia, I hope to make the issues visible, as the traditional media have always been giving religion the kind of deference it doesn’t deserve and has never earned. Link

Skeptic Blogs is the Reasonable Alternative to Freethought Blogs

Read why here.

A Review of Michael Murray's Book "Nature Red in Tooth and Claw"

Since William Lane Craig continues to tout Murray's book as a good answer to the problem of animal suffering, read what professor Mylan Engel Jr. of Northern Illinois University says about it:

Notung Joins Skeptic Blogs

Ed Clint invited Notung and we're happy to have him with us. He tells us, "My main philosophical interests are epistemology, ethics, logic and the philosophy of religion. The purpose of this blog is to concentrate on these issues, examining them as critically as I can." Link. While you're there check out Maria Maltseva's post, SB responds to Atheism +, where she writes about our kind of skepticism:

We fear being blindsided by groupthink and welcome dissension in the ranks. Even if you disagree with us on some of our goals, you’re welcome to join us and choose which battles you, personally, want to fight. No matter what, we will not dehumanize you (online or off) or allow ourselves to think that we are better than you. Whatever else, we will not hate.

A growing number of people are subscribing by email and following us on Facebook. Join us.

Rebecca Bradley Joins Skeptic Blogs

Who is Rebecca Bradley? She has a PhD in Archaeology from Cambridge, UK, and maintains a strong interest in examining pseudo-archaeological claims. Read her first post and welcome her.

Some Mistakes of Moses, by Robert Ingersoll, Part Two

It is not easy to account for an infinite God making people so low in the scale of intellect as to require a revelation. Neither is it easy to perceive why, if a revelation was necessary for all, it was made only to a few.

Below you'll read extracts from an 84 page paper written in 1879 that my friend Julian Haydon sent me. There were some Christians and even ministers who were beginning to reject a talking serpent in favor of allegorical explanations; but there were millions who regarded every word in the Bible as holy fact. Ingersoll was contending with the latter and defending the rights of the former, pushing them even farther and farther away from the Bible. Part one can be seen here. A bit of his language is antiquated but it is a great defense of freethought.

Justin Vacula Joins Skeptic Blogs

Who is he? See this. We keep getting better and better. More will be joining us. Be sure to subscribe by email.

Staks Rosch: Are Religious Believers Stupid?

Religious believers ask me all the time if I think all religious believers are stupid. My answer to this question is almost always the same. “Of course not; smart people can believe really stupid things too.” There is no doubt that the belief in the all-powerful god as described in the Torah/Bible/Koran based off of no valid evidence is stupid. Depending on how serious this belief is taken, it can even be ridiculously stupid. It would be like me telling people that Voldemort is real based off of my reading of the Harry Potter books. Link.

William Lane Craig vs Victor Stenger: Does God Exist?

Local Atheist Billboards Attack Christian, Mormon Religions

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Two controversial billboards dot the Charlotte skyline just in time for the Democratic National Convention. The two signs appear to attack the Christian and Mormon religions .

What if Satan Is the Good Guy?

Christians concoct wildly implausible scenarios in order to defend their faith, most notably Alvin Plantinga, who supposes Satan causes all natural evils, and Peter Van Inwagen, who supposes that before the fall in Eden there was no suffering even though carnivores and human beings both co-existed on the earth before then. But what if Satan is the good guy? What if he rebelled against God because he was aware of God's evil plan to create this kind of world and with it condemn human beings to hell forever? What if Satan told Adam the truth in the garden and wanted him to have a true knowledge about God that was forbidden him? What if God was the one who revealed a lie, that Satan was the bad guy even though he isn't? What if God also had some innocent sap be crucified and subsequently claimed it represented his love for us? What if God laughs that so many people believes what he revealed? What if God is the bad guy? What if this so-called cosmic war is being won by the wrong guy? What if in response Satan is sending prophets (i.e. intellectuals), to tell believers the truth, that God is a liar, an evil egomaniac, a moral monster? What evidence is there to deny my scenario? Evidence. That's what I'm asking for in any scenario. Probabilities are all that matter. For if any of these scenarios are to be taken seriously then people are within their epistemic rights to believe the Scientology tale too.

Skeptic Blogs Now Has a Facebook Page

Skeptic Blogs (SBs) now has a Facebook page. Like us and you'll be notified of any new posts.

Who goes to heaven? Who goes to hell?

If Christianity is true, then reaching the correct belief (about Jesus) is necessary to avoid damnation.  Here is a brief video highlighting one of the more unpleasant implications of Christian theology. Admittedly it is not a logical argument, however since most believers tend to believe for emotional reasons, bringing up issues like this can be very effective at "putting cracks in the shell" of faith.

My Seven Most Important Living Atheist Authors

By this I mean the five, no six, no seven living atheist authors from whom I have learned the most. This is a personal statement of mine and not to be representative of the most influential atheist authors, for that ranking would surely be different to some degree. There are atheist authors I've read who have said some really important things, but this is about the ones I've learned the most from. And I have not read everything. So, here they are in alphabetical order by last name:

Some Mistakes of Moses by Robert Ingersoll

A Note: These are extracts from an 84 page paper written in 1879 that my friend Julian Haydon sent me. There were some Christians and even ministers who were beginning to reject a talking serpent in favor of allegorical explanations; but there were millions who regarded every word in the Bible as holy fact. Ingersoll was contending with the latter and defending the rights of the former, pushing them even farther and farther away from the Bible. This is a great defense of freethought.

Robert Ingersoll On Being Accused of Lecturing for the Money

The arguments I advance are either good or bad. If they are bad, they can easily be answered by argument. If they are not, they cannot be answered by personalities or ascribing to me selfish motives. It is not a personal matter. It is a matter of logic–not a matter of slander, vituperation or hatred. I presume I am about as bad as most folks, and as good as some, but my goodness or badness has nothing to do with the question. I may have committed every crime in the world, yet that does not make the story of the flood reasonable, nor does it tend to show that the three gentlemen in the furnace were not scorched. I may be the best man in the world, yet that does not go to prove that Jonah was swallowed by the whale.

A New Skeptical Network Blog Has Launched!

I am very happy to announce that a new kid is on the block:

Skeptic Blogs

Skeptic Blogs already boasts an impressive, if small, group of talented bloggers and we expect to expand considerably. I am there. Click around to see the others. If you want to read our mission statement and posting policy see this. As you can tell I'm excited about it. Please, everyone, let others know. Tell them via your own blogs, facebook, twitter, by email, by horseback, train, space flight, and so on. We need the word to get out. We aim to do this right. Don't forget to subscribe by email. (Oh, and don't neglect to help us with our start-up costs by using the Chip-in Widget).

Jerry Coyne Recommends My Book

[L]et me put in an unsolicited plug for John’s new book, Why I Became an Atheist. Despite its unfortunate title, which implies that it’s a personal story of John’s journey from faith to unbelief, it’s really a thoroughly-reasoned and well documented account of the follies of faith. It belongs on your shelf beside the books of Dennett, Harris, Hitchens, Stenger, and Dawkins, and I recommend it highly. Link.

Professor Coyne has recommended it before.

Religiosity Plummets In Ireland And Declines Worldwide; Atheism On The Rise

This Huffington Post article shows the continuing trend away from religion across the world, with new figures illustrating that Catholic Ireland may no longer warrant that description:

Rocked in recent years by sex-abuse scandals and crises in leadership, the Catholic Church in the Republic of Ireland has been struggling to keep its members close.
But this week, a new global survey on faith and atheism has revealed that the crisis of faith inIreland may be much worse than previously thought.

WL Craig’s Use of Michael Murray’s Thesis on Pain Exploded: Insects Reconsidered

"The effect of organophosphates was discovered in the 1930's during World War II. They were used in the creation of nerve gas, which was used in chemical warfare. When used in lethal dosages for humans, organophosphates cause extreme excitability, convulsions, paralysis and in most cases, death.

The Good and the Bad News About Blogging

First the bad news. What annoys me about Blogging is that there are ignoramuses whose names aren't made public who get to act like equals with scholars and credentialed intellectuals. Imagine a written discussion before the rise of the internet. It took place in books, magazine articles, Op-Ed's, journals, and even in the Letters to Editor section of national and local newspapers. The discussion was monitored by editors, so not just anyone could engage in it, or if they did, what they wrote was considered worthy by an editor or peer reviewers to be printed. Discussions of these written works took place in the universities under the supervision of credentialed professors who chose which texts were important to discuss. There were also a lot of discussions in the halls of these universities and in the pubs and coffee shops of the world based on what these editors/reviewers/professors thought worthy for publication and discussion. The rise of Blogging has somehow changed this.

On Animal Pain and Pleasure

Jeffery Lowder Speaks Out Against the American Atheists Billboard

You can see the Billboard below, along with my comments. Lowder writes this about President David Silverman:

Silverman seems to have fallen into the trap, typical among so many leaders of organized atheism, of thinking that the United States is a post-theistic society. It's not and it's delusional to think otherwise.

Since the U.S. is not a post-theistic society, what is the point of the ad? It's not like the attendees at the Democratic National Convention are going to say, "Wow, I was going to vote to nominate Obama, but after seeing that American Atheists ad, I guess I had better nominate an atheist instead." Likewise, I don't think this ad is going to have any impact on how nonreligious voters will vote. I think many pragmatic atheists believe that nonreligious voters do not have the luxury of choosing a viable nonreligious candidate for President: most will vote for Romney or Obama.

From a marketing or public relations perspective, it's hard to see how these ads accomplish anything positive for atheism. As far as I can tell, all they do is create the impression that atheists are rude. Link

We Should Think Exclusively in Terms of Probabilities

What's the probability that my short-term memory is correct and that I agreed yesterday to meet with someone today? Pretty high actually, really high, extremely high, or perhaps even close to being virtually certain. I live my life based on short term memories. If I doubt them and fail to make that appointment, or any agreed upon appointment, I would fail through life in a haphazard dream world of random choices. I would be an unreliable person. Life demands that I trust my short term memories and that I am not now dreaming of thinking I made an appointment I didn't make. Faith has nothing to do with this reasoning process. Probabilities here are all that matter. Faith is superfluous, utterly irrelevant, completely unnecessary, and even irrational. We should think exclusively in terms of probabilities.

Bill Craig's Use of Michael Murray's Book On Animal Pain

I have Murray's book, Nature Red in Tooth and Claw, the one Bill Craig uses to defend the lack of animal pain. I have been planning on posting something about it but so far haven't. Hint: Murray doesn't conclude what Dr. Craig does. In the meantime, I found this story by Harry McCall interesting when commenting on Craig's debate with Dr. Law:

Just Released, the William Lane Craig vs Stephen Law Debate

The topic was "Does God Exist." The debate took place in front of an audience of 2,000 (largely, though not entirely Christian) at the Westminster Central Hall, London, October 2011. Enjoy.

Why Is Everyone on the Internet So Angry?

This internet problem is highlighted by a Scientific American article where the authors write:

These days, online comments “are extraordinarily aggressive, without resolving anything,” said Art Markman, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. “At the end of it you can’t possibly feel like anybody heard you. Having a strong emotional experience that doesn’t resolve itself in any healthy way can’t be a good thing.”

Robert Ingersoll—The Most Remarkable American Most People Never Heard Of

Today CFI-Indiana commemorates the birth of Robert Ingersoll (August 11, 1833) whom the Washington Post described as the Christopher Hitchens or Richard Dawkins of his day. In 1876, Robert Green Ingersoll delivered one of his most famous speeches to Civil War veterans on the circle in downtown Indianapolis. This speech included what has become known as "The Vision of War" which is considered by some to be second only to Lincoln's Gettysburg Address in Civil War oratory.

CFI-Indiana is commemorating Ingersoll's birthday tonight at 7 PM with readings from his speeches in the place where he made his famous Civil War Speech in 1876--the circle in downtown Indianapolis. Tom Flynn, Executive Director of Council for Secular Humanism, Editor of Free Inquiry Magazine, and Director of the Robert Green Ingersoll Birthplace Museum, is their special guest and participant. He will read Ingersoll's Vision of War in the very place Ingersoll spoke it. To help commemorate Ingersoll, Julian Haydon, a friend of mine, will be sending me excerpts of several of his speeches that I'll publish once a week. Here's the first one:

An Update On Two Forthcoming Books of Mine

For anyone wanting new information about my two forthcoming books, no matter how meager, here it is. Dr. Randal Rauser and I just finished the galleys for our co-written book God or Godless. We've also been informed Baker Books is making it into an audiobook with Pee-wee Herman as Randal's voice. (Just joking!) It's a really good exchange and I'm happy to have been a part of it. Then too, I've learned Prometheus Books has subtitled my book, The Outsider Test for Faith, with this: How to Decide Which Religion is True. I wanted them to use a different one instead: How to Decide Which Religion is True (If There is One), but they didn't go with it. Their decision was based on marketing I suppose. That's all I've got for now. Both books will be published early next year. Skeptics and Christians will be able to give them to each other for a great discussion. They would also be great as college textbooks in some classes.

Most Visitors to DC Are New Here

If my readers want to know why I promote my books so much, here is the reason. Take a look at the DC Google Analytics stats graph for the number of visitors I get per month (see below). It tells me that most of them are new to DC (or some mix of them with others who visit once a month).

Paul Tells Us in His Last Letter (Romans) That God Has Alzheimer’s Disease

Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans that "Jesus is at the right hand of God interceding for us" (ἐντυγχάνει ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν = Present Indicative or to keep doing intercession for us) in Heaven. (Romans 8:34, NIV)

Religion at the Olympics

“While many Olympic athletes attract criticism and praise based on their personal characteristic instead of their athletic performance, Saudi Arabia's female athletes get more scrutiny than most due to their country's deep social conservatism. On Twitter in Saudi Arabia, Attar and Shaherkani's Olympic participation has generated hateful comments. One Twitter user, apparently a Saudi Arabian man, started a hash tag calling Saudi Arabia's female competitors "prostitutes of the Olympics," sparking both support and ire. For instance, a lecturer at a Saudi university reportedly tweeted that "You [Shaherkani] do not represent the chaste Muslim women." Other comments on Twitter about Shaherkani's judo participation have been so offensive that her father is trying to sue the Saudi Tweeters. (Good luck to him.)”

What “Free Thinkers” (and others) Can Learn from the Tao

Even as someone that does not associate her/himself with any religion, I do believe there are things we can learn from them. For instance, I believe in the aphorism attributed to Jesus that states “We know a tree by the fruit it bears.” Yes indeed, we do know a great deal about a tree by its fruit, and a person by their actions and words.

This being said, I have been rather disappointed by the actions of many of those who consider themselves “free thinkers” as of late—specifically those so-called “free thinkers” that have gone on rampages against other so-called “free thinkers”--and the chaos that has resulted. Actually, whether one considers themselves “free thinkers” or not, ad hominem, strawmanning, etc, do nothing to promote better ways of thinking. Better ways of thinking come via the dialectical process and arguments. Arguments are subject to counter arguments, and without subjecting them to fallacies, we can come to better conclusions. So I thought I would give anyone who has participated in this type of behaviour something to think about. That is—The Tao.

Making the Case for Atheists (Dan Barker)

A nice collection of clips from one of Dan's many debates.

There Is a War Going On At Freethought Blogs! Are they Self-Destructing?

Thunderf00T seems to have gone on a rampage. Ed Brayton wants to completely censor him from speaking at all atheist conventions. Natalie Reed subsequently blisters the atheist community. Atheistlogic even calls for a new atheist movement. There is a war going on! Natalie Reed writes:

Solomon's Decision Was the Dumbest Judicial Ruling in History

We all know the story told in I Kings 3. Solomon was given wisdom by God more than anyone else. To show us how wise he was Solomon issued a ruling involving two prostitutes who both claimed a particular baby was theirs. To settle the matter Solomon ordered that the child be cut in two, with each woman receiving half of him. This is supposed to be considered wise. I demurr. I think it was the dumbest judicial ruling in history, well, at least one of them. Here's why.

Just imagine Solomon’s so-called “wise” judgment in our day in a courtroom situation in a divorce child custody case. Go ahead. Imagine it. It was anything but wise. We would be morally repulsed if any judge issued such a judgment, for it was always possible that both women in Solomon's story might agree to have the child killed. Even the real mother might have wanted the child killed rather than have it raised by such a lying conniving pretender/thief. If this had happened then the child would have been killed since that’s what Solomon said, and he could not back out of it, could he? Any civilized judge issuing such a judgment would be thrown out of the country it’s so utterly repulsive. It’s actually the dumbest ruling that was ever made.

Did We Invent God?

In series hosted by "God" (Well, Morgan Freeman did play god a few times..;) he asks the question,  did we invent God?  I have watched a few episodes in this series, and they are quite interesting.  In this episode however, I found that the experiments were somewhat flawed in their conception.  (For instance, in the first experiment  children are set up to "cheat" at a game, but the administrator of the experiment never lets on that he thinks cheating is wrong, but in the second part of his experiment, he does imply that cheating is wrong.)

Anyway,  I did find the virtual reality experiments interesting--reminiscent of the "God Helmet."

You might find it interesting to watch too.  Episodes are free to download at Fastpasstv.ms

Enjoy!
_____________
Cathy Cooper

The Case Against Christianity (Dr. Keith Parsons)

This is the excellent opening statement from Keith Parsons in his debate against William Lane Craig.  The full debate can be heard here.

Dan Barker Speaks Out Against Hate Directed at Women

Surly Amy at Skepchick is collecting denunciations of hatred toward women in the atheist community. So far she's collected twelve of them from atheist leaders. One of the most recent ones is from Dan Barker, co-president of Freedom From Religion Foundation. I wholeheartedly agree with what Dan wrote, reproduced below. I would be extremely doubtful any atheist leader or leading blogger would not denounce this and embrace feminism. In fact, I don't think a woman-hater could be found among them, even prior to Elevatorgate.

The First Blurb for My Outsider Test for Faith Book

"Without doubt one of the best books I've ever read on faith. A masterpiece." -- Dr. Peter Boghossian, Portland State University Philosophy Department.

I consider it to be the solution to the problem of religious diversity. An outline of the book can be found here. It's scheduled to be published by Prometheus Books early next year. Of all my books I think this one just might possibly make the most impact.

Fired Pastor Jack Schaap Demonstrates How To Masturbate in the Pulpit

Jack Schapp was fired after admitting he had a sexual relationship with a 17 year old girl. But this amazing video should have provided church people a clue. This is must see stuff!

Is Shariah Law Also Biblical Law?

Dr. Avalos shows how Christians who oppose Shariah Law don't seem to know that much of what they fear about Shariah Law actually derives from Biblical laws. He writes: "Some of the most feared aspects of Shariah also derive almost directly from biblical values and laws." Link.

Back in the Stocks: A Short Treatise on Thought and Eternity (Part II of II)

Continuing with the previous observations, when we die, we die and forget it all. And then the cells that made us up disassemble and become a part of the earth again. Just like their dancing little sub-particle components, they dance and shift around and trade partners like some hand-clapping, toothless country folk with stupid smiles on their faces, as they switch partners in some rural dance hall with flickering neon lights seen from a poorly-paved, two-lane highway...

Having Some Good Biblical Fun With God

John’s post got me thinking about my lake experience last month. While out water skiing, I noticed that when I cut my slalom ski, the spray behind my ski was making a rainbow in the noonday sun. So I decided to have some fun with God as based on his covenant with Noah. According to Genesis 9, God uses all rainbows throughout the world like a string tied around his figure to remind him: “Hey, you don’t need to use water again to destroy humanity!” (How quickly God keeps forgetting about the million he destroyed)!

Was Jesus a Man of Science?

Yesterday a thunderstorm got us. You've seen them approaching. You know their effects. I was thinking as one approached what God had to do with it. No really, what did God have to do with it? At what point did he decide when to send it? Did he violate any known natural laws to do so? Did he make it rain here because of anything we had done or not done? Matthew 5:45 has Jesus, supposedly the Son of a creator God saying, "He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

Heads you win, tails I lose #2

I would like to draw people's attention to an interesting list of historicity criteria for establishing historical credibility in claims about Jesus found in the New Testament (provided by Richard Carrier here). Recently, and showing a similar technique, I posted a piece on how Christians have a tendency to argue things in such a way that no matter what end of the evidential continuum we have, they would claim it as evidence for God or similar:

If the universe had been much smaller, just right for human life on a human scale, then the universe would have been obviously designed for humans, so would claim the same theist. The universe is the direct opposite of that, but still this somehow shows that God obviously designed it, such as the design being based on other purposes, using the analogy of the Sistine Chapel (one marvels at the size and beauty of it but it doesn’t need to be that big; that the awe and wonder derives from its magnitude) and so on.

Quote of the Day, by Dr. Taner Edis

Sometimes it makes sense to speak of an "atheist movement" or the likes in the US, particularly in the context of efforts to increase social visibility and acceptance. But by and large, beyond such narrowly focused concerns, "atheists" are not a politically coherent group...I don't fully accept recent arguments like that by Greta Christina that "atheism demands social justice." Like it or not, people like Ayn Rand and her fandom are significant parts of the landscape of American atheism...To the extent that there is a "we" at all in the sense of "we atheists," we are a remarkably useless bunch in political terms. Link

Is God at the Olympics?

I'm loving the Olympics, I really am. I have even been to see some women's volleyball and it was great. It has all been so well organised (and in so being, it's great to put one up Mitt Romney for his silly comments). However, the good ole sporting problem raises its theological head. Who does God support?