1 / 18

An Atheist at Christian Camp

An Atheist at Christian Camp. What Atheists can learn from Christians, what Christians can learn from Atheists. Massive Caveat. Everything I say today is solely my opinion! I can only comment about ‘Christians’ and ‘Atheists’ based on the people I have spoken to and events I have attended

willsey
Download Presentation

An Atheist at Christian Camp

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. An Atheist at Christian Camp What Atheists can learn from Christians, what Christians can learn from Atheists

  2. Massive Caveat Everything I say today is solely my opinion! I can only comment about ‘Christians’ and ‘Atheists’ based on the people I have spoken to and events I have attended My comments are not intended to be universally applicable or objectively valid in any sense All observations and conclusions are coloured by my own biases and preconceptions

  3. Some Friends at Summit

  4. The Question Everyone Asks… “If you’re an atheist, why do you spend so much time going to Christian events?”

  5. Deconstructing the Question • I reject both assumptions! Assumption 1: Christians and Atheists are on different ‘sides’ Assumption 2: Christians and Atheists should mostly stick to their own ‘sides’

  6. Against Assumption 1 A controversial claim: At the very most basic level, Christians and Atheists share the same objective. That objective is to find the truth and to help others do likewise.

  7. Against Assumption 1 “If Christianity is true, I want to be a Christian. If Christianity is not true, I don’t want to be a Christian”

  8. Against Assumption 2 Why it is good to spend time with the ‘other side’: Combat groupthink Diversity of friends Challenge and refine own views

  9. Groupthink “Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon… in which the desire for harmony or conformity in the group results in an incorrect or deviant decision-making outcome. Group members try to minimize conflict and reach a consensus decision without critical evaluation of alternative ideas or viewpoints, and by isolating themselves from outside influences.”

  10. Combat Groupthink Groupthink is bad Groupthink is easy to slip into Groupthink can be hard to notice Combat groupthink by listening to diverse viewpoints

  11. Diversity of Friends “I want all my friends (or virtually all my friends) to be people who are very similar to me and agree with me about most important issues” Who (mostly) agrees? Who (mostly) disagrees? If we don’t agree, why do we act as if we do?

  12. People you like to be around People who like to be around you Diversity of Friends: Set Theory Friends you may be giving up! People with whom you agree on everything

  13. People I like to be around Diversity of Friends: My Venn Diagram? People who like to be around me People with whom I agree on everything (possibly )

  14. Challenge and Refine own Views “Every opinion, no matter how sincerely held or deeply cherished, becomes considerably less logical and coherent when first articulated to others” - Albert Einstein, 1913

  15. Challenge and Refine own Views “Every opinion, no matter how sincerely held or deeply cherished, becomes considerably less logical and coherent when first articulated to others” - James Fodor, 2013

  16. A Reflective Comparison Degree of focus on evidence, belief justification Tolerance of disagreement Success with outreach, friendliness, commitment Intellectual smugness/humility

  17. I disagree that Atheists and Christians are on different sides; I think fundamentally we want the same thing • Even to the extent this is true, I reject the notion that one should predominantly spend time with ‘your side’ • Avoid groupthink • Make new intelligent, interesting friends • Clarify and challenge one’s own ideas • Some points of comparison between CU and UMSS • Evidence and belief justification • Tolerance of disagreement • Outreach, friendliness, commitment • Intellectual smugness/humility Summary, Questions, Discussion “If you’re an atheist, why do you spend so much time going to Christian events?”

  18. Gratuitous Quotes “Quid nobiscertiusipsisSensibusessepotest? qui vera ac falsonotemus” – Lucretius „Eigentlich weiss man nur wenn man wenig weiss; mit dem Wissen wächst der Zweifel“ – WolfgangGoethe “For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increases knowledge increases sorrow” – Ecclesiastes 1:18 “If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts; but if he will be content to begin with doubts he shall end in certainties” – Francis Bacon

More Related