CHRISTIANS – An Atheist Is Seeking Answers. Can You Supply Any?

 CHRISTIANS – An Atheist Is Seeking Answers. Can You Supply Any?

To all who visit this page and attempt to offer an explanation: Thank You. In your comment please refer to which question you are addressing (#). If you wish, most of these questions can be found listed individually under the QUESTIONS FOR GOD AND HIS BELIEVERS category. Also, and this is important, please do not answer with ‘faith’ or by using scripture. Remember, I may have once been a die-hard Christian and may have studied the bible extensively in its many forms, but I am now an Atheist and the bible no longer holds any authority for me. I am merely trying to understand how people still believe the way I once did. How do you personally justify your beliefs, NOT how others justify them for you. If you visit my main page you can get a clearer understanding of where I’m coming from.

• 1) Will the saved in heaven miss their skeptical friends and family who are doomed to eternal torment in hell? The bible says there will be no sorrow. Are you the same age in heaven as you were when you died? Child, old man? Or in your ‘prime’? Who decides? You? Will they have bodily functions? The bible mentions feasts in heaven? If you eat in heaven will the resulting bodily functions occur? Will they always be ‘pleasant’? Is there sex? How will we recognize each other if we don’t have a recognizable form? Will we have wrinkles? Gray hair? Be bald? Fat? Male or female (if no sex then why different sexes? Why genitals at all?)? Teeth (if no eating, no teeth)? Noses (nothing smells, no need)? Will lost appendages be restored? Infirmities erased? What about birth defects? Will a born cripple still be a cripple in heaven? If you’re beautiful in life will you be beautiful in heaven? The same with ugly? In other words, will anybody stand out? Will we all look alike? Same race? If not there will be certain discrimination in heaven as there always is with those that aren’t alike. Luke 22:29, 30 – “And I appoint unto you a kingdom … that ye may eat & drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel.”

• 2) God is so zealous in his obsession that man be circumcised that one wonders why he created such a flawed body that requires such an operation in all of mankind in order to be worthy of God’s acceptance. And long before these operations were safe or sanitary. God tells Abraham to circumcise boys at age 8 days but Abraham himself wasn’t circumcised until he was 99 years old. Gen 17:24 Because Moses’ child with a Midianite woman isn’t circumcised, God loses it and nearly kills Moses. Moses is only saved because Moses’ wife chops off the child’s offending foreskin with a sharp stone, casting it at Moses’ feet. In order to purchase Saul’s daughter, Michal, for a wife, David kills 200 Philistines in order to obtain their foreskins to present as a gift to King Saul, and Saul only asked for 100. Why is this wee bit of skin so damn offensive? Could it be that it so closely resembles an ape’s (animal’s) penis and this reality frightens believers?

• 3) It is a statistical fact that the more inteligent, highly educated a person, the less likely they are to belive in a god. In other words, the less educated, or more ignorant a person is, the more likely they are to believe in a god. If it was proven that the less educated, or more ignorant a person was the more likely they were to drive a Ford or wear Addidas sneakers, and you realized you drove a Ford or wore Addidas, wouldn’t you reconsider the car you drove or the sneaker you wore?

• 4) So, say a married man dies (car crash or something) and goes to heaven. His wife remarries and lives a long happy life with her new wonderful husband. Many years later the wife dies but her second husband goes on to live quite a few years longer. When the wife arrives in heaven are the original married couple reunited in bliss? And what happens when the second husband dies and arrives in heaven? In heaven is one marriage more legitimate than the other? Is the first always more legitimate than any marriage that follows? What if the first was miserable (abusive spouse)? Or the second? Or the third? The answer seems to be that arrival in heaven results in an immediate divorce. In Mark 12:25 Jesus states that there will be no marriage in heaven. Husbands and wives will be no longer. So why the requirement for marriage in the first place if it’s just going to be voided upon death? Be fruitful and multiply was the command. God didn’t mention anything about first signing some unrealistic, legally-binding contract and having a silly ceremony. How can a person look forward to arriving in heaven if it means losing the love of their life?

• 5) Why do so few of God’s creation (humanity) believe in him? Isn’t that a terrible failure on God’s part considering that all the non-believers are doomed to burn in eternal hellfire? Why has God allowed so many thousands of gods to be invented and worshiped by his creation? Why aren’t we all naturally inclined to know of and believe in our ‘creator’? How do Christians justify dismissing all gods mankind has invented over countless generations as fictitious and yet, lacking any evidence more legitimate than the worshipers of these other gods had, claim that their god is absolutely, undeniably genuine?

• 6) None of the Gospels claim that more than a few besides the disciples saw Jesus after the resurrection, but in I Cor. 15:6 Paul claims there were 500. Where did this number come from? Why is Paul the only one to report a number anywhere that large? And if that number is accurate, few seemed to be impressed, for at the first meeting after Jesus’ ascension, only 120 people showed up (including the disciples and Jesus’ relatives) Acts 1:15. Why did Jesus’ time on earth, his miracles preformed, his resurrection and ascension into heaven impress so few people. The Jews were longing for the Messiah’s arrival and yet very few followed Jesus. Strange how only after a great many years have passed and the stories can no longer be proven/disproven, that so many now choose to believe. But still not the Jews! Why did God do so little to ensure that his chosen people (the Jews) accepted Jesus as the Messiah? Why did God bother to send Jesus down to earth, have him be born from a virgin, do all that he did, being the self proclaimed Messiah and savior King of the Jews, destined to die for them, be resurrected and rise into heaven, only to be rejected by God’s chosen people (the Jews)? What a waste. But then there is always Jews for Jesus.

• 7) The writers of the bible clearly believed there was more than one god, more than one deity who could grant powers to those who followed/worshiped him just like the Christian god. If God is the only true/real God, then who granted the Pharaoh’s sorcerers the ability to match Moses’ magic with their own special ‘rods’? Ex. 7:11, 12, 22. If you try and suggest it was Satan, then please clarify; are you stating that Satan is a god? Are you saying the Pharaoh and all the others were Satan worshipers? Knowingly or through deception? Are you saying that the writers of the bible didn’t know it was Satan who was standing in for all of these deities? God didn’t think to let them in on this little fact? And, most importantly, what are you basing this opinion on?

•  8 ) How is this not child abuse? It seems that in order for religion to really stick (last a lifetime) it must be introduced (indoctrinated) as a child. A child’s untried mind, peopled with fanciful characters as real as any (Santa Claus, Tooth Fairy, etc.) represents just the level of thought processes necessary for acceptance of a religious system so rooted in superstition and mythology. An adult tells the child of Santa Claus and the child believes, whole heartedly that he exists. If that child was protected and isolated from those that would tell him otherwise and surrounded by those that would continue to encourage his belief in Santa, would said child ever stop believing in Santa? How is this different than belief in God (Jesus)? If you believe that the parents who taught their naïve children that David Koresh was in fact the second coming of Christ were doing something wrong, how do you differentiate that from teaching a naïve child about your particular religion and god?

• 9) Rev 17:8 – “And they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world.” Rev 20:15 – “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Wow! What a Revelation! Where did this ‘book of life’ come from? Why did no one ever mention such an important book before Revelations? And if the names of those that will be allowed into heaven are written in it ‘from the foundation of the world’ then why, according to the bible, aren’t those that were born before Jesus allowed to have everlasting life?

• 10)Why do non-Jews follow the Bible? Specifically the Old Testament? The bible is a book about the Jews, their history, customs, lifestyle, superstitions and religion. Gentiles (non Jews) should have no interest in it. Their treatment by Israelite armies at the direction of their God is so vindictive it should horrify any non Jew. Remember, Jesus called Gentiles (non Jews) “dogs“. Joseph Smith was so put off by how little the bible had to do with his people (Americans) that he actually rewrote it to suit him and started his own religion (Mormonism).

• 11) What happened to thou shalt not kill? “If thy brother … or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying Let us go and serve other gods … Thou shalt surely kill him … and thou shalt stone him with stones that he die.” Deut 13:6, 9, 10. So if someone you love wants to be another religion and asks you to consider joining their religion, you should disobey the Ten Commandments, and righteously kill him, condemning their soul to eternal torment in hell? This is the command of a god you want me to worship and love and dedicate my life to? Really?

• 12) How many children has your god doomed to burn in eternal hellfire? At what age are children judged to be responsible for making their own decisions about religion? They are born sinners according to the bible. If an atheist if guaranteed a place in hell, then how about that atheist’s 5 year old child? How about their 6 month old infant? Do they get a free pass? If so how about a ten year old? What is the cut off age? What about Mormons? According to Christianity, all Mormons are doomed to hell. What about their children? The children of a Mormon are being raised in their religion. They believe what their parents are teaching them (Santa!). They aren’t being given a choice. Will they be punished for innocently believing in their parents teachings by being sent to hell? Are the kids who died in the Waco, Texas compound fire with David Koresh in hell?

• 13) What happens to people who have physical and mental infirmities that prevent them from hearing, or reading, or understanding? Is God a devil who would doom them to eternal hellfire OR is he a tender and merciful God who grants them free access into heaven? And what level of retardation is required to acquire this free pass? Is a person with downs syndrome exempt because they can conceivably make decisions for themselves? What about a person who was once ‘normal’ but as a result of a brain injury became mentally retarded? What if they were an Atheist before the accident? A Scientologist? A Serial Killer? Will they be judged for who they were before or after the accident?

• 14) On the topic of free will; how does your god judge those who don’t have free will? Such as a person suffering from a mental disorder such as schizophrenia or bi-polar disorder? How about someone with a major dependency issue, such as an alcoholic or meth addict? How about someone with some sort of mental retardation? How about a child whose decisions are made for them?

• 15) Are all who are naïve of Jesus’ existence (Amazonian Tribes) doomed to burn in eternal hellfire? If yes, then God is a devil and unworthy of worship by anyone who would call themselves good. HOWEVER, if God is indeed a merciful God, then those that are naïve of Jesus’ existence will not be punished for their innocent ignorance and will be granted entrance into heaven. If the later is the case, however, then wouldn’t the people of the world be better served by missionaries not coming to their lands? One minute the tribesman has a free pass to heaven from a good and merciful God, the next a missionary arrives and tells him to stop worshiping his god and worship Christ. The tribesman, not understanding, or not trusting this pale faced foreigner decides to continue worshiping as he and his people have for countless generations. The next day a jaguar attacks the tribesman and kills him. Fastpass to HELL for the tribesman. The very introduction of the missionary into their tribe dooms them. Thanks God! Thanks do-gooder Christians!

• 16) How does God decide who he is going to have casual conversations with? In Gen. 25:23 Rebekah asks God about her pregnancy symptoms and God apparently isn’t busy so he replies, “Two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels.” Another fine example is in Acts 10 – Peter is fasting on a rooftop and God decides Peter can be done fasting and sends down a sheet full of four-footed beasts and wild beasts and creeping things and foul and speaks to Peter, saying “Rise, kill and eat.” God the Almighty has just preformed a bit of magic and spoken directly with Peter, commanded him really, but does Peter obey his Lord? No, he refuses! Is God so unimpressive? God actually repeats his command three times but still Peter refuses. Finally, God gives up! Don’t these examples strike anyone as odd? And why are such pedestrian conversations unfathomable now? Even a Christian would think someone claiming to have such informal conversations with God is mad or a liar.

• 17) During the God mandated wandering the Jews did before being allowed to enter the Promised Land, God provided manna, which was sweet and like coriander and could be made into cakes (using no other ingredients?). Just what sort of nutritional value could manna have had? What would happen to the human body if forced to eat nothing but manna for forty years? And if you answer with the typical pat, ‘God would make it so they wouldn’t get ill’, then you are required to answer the follow up question as well. If God is going to actively interfere with the bodies of these people, why not just make it so they don’t need to eat at all?

• 18) How many people have died as a result of a single passage in the book of James? “And the prayer of faith shall heal the sick.” James 5:15

• 19) Why do female televangelist clearly defy God’s commands about appearance? I Tim. 2:9 – “In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array…”

• 20) What existed outside of the Garden of Eden? God created the Garden of Eden and inhabited it with all the creatures in existence (silly and mathematically impossible) and created a man to name and oversee everything and a woman to serve him. But what existed outside of the boundaries of the Garden? Was it a barren wasteland? Considering how many millions of years old the beautiful natural wonders of the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls and Yosemite are, to name just a few local sites, it seems unlikely. When Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden, what were they cast out into? And why were all the animals cast out of paradise as well? Why were they punished for man’s sins? In the Garden the Lion and the Lamb were bros., outside they were the predator and the prey, the eater and the eaten, the fed and the food. And how long would man and animal have needed to remain vegans outside of the Garden? Obviously many generations of animals would have needed to be born before they could be killed for their flesh (and coats), otherwise they would have quickly been rendered extinct. And were blood sacrifices really prudent at this point? And how did all these animals that are currently native only to a few very specific regions of the earth manage to get there? Would you argue that all the continents of the earth were one single land mass just a few thousand years ago? And finally, where the hell is the Garden of Eden now? Where did it go?

• 21) If Public Schools require the teaching of creationism alongside evolution, would you require your Private Christian School or church to teach evolutionary science? If not, why not?

• 22)Do Angels really have wings? Do they really need wings to fly? If not, then why do they have wings?

• 23)Which came first; Dinosaurs or Adam and Eve?

• 24)Do you believe in Jack and the Beanstalk as well? In Num. 13:33 the scouts for the Israelites advise against entering Canaan because they claim to have seen giants there. Giants appear a number of times in the bible, most notably in the tale of David and Goliath. David and his servants slay a number of other giants as well, including one with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. Why is it in the most archeological excavated locations in the world (those mentioned in the bible), that no evidence of these giants have ever been found? Could it be because giants are creatures of Myth, just like Dragons, which are also repeatedly mentioned in the Bible as if they were real? Neither Dragons nor Giants exist. Never have.

• 25)In Luke 24:37 when Jesus rises from the dead and appears to the eleven apostles, they are terrified. Didn’t they know he would be returning? How little faith did they have in their own Messiah? Why so little preparation for his return? Most of Jesus’ followers just went back to life as normal or went into hiding. Lazarus’ return from the dead was met with more enthusiasm. Why do the disciples have such an insignificant reaction to Jesus’ resurrection and ascension? They seem relatively unimpressed by these incredible feats. They don’t tell anyone and aren’t tempted to tell anyone. Nobody gloats to the scribes and Pharisees. Nobody tells Jesus’ mother (!). Nobody celebrates. Nobody says, “I told you so!” They don’t assemble a crowd for the ascension. And if they really believe what Jesus said about his second coming is true and that it will happen in their lifetimes, why weren’t they hotfooting it to try and ‘save’ as many Jews from hell as they can? Don’t they have any friends, family or loved ones they would like to see get into heaven?

• 26)Can God make a rock so heavy he can’t lift it?

• 27) Every religion–Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Mormonism, Scientology, Buddhism, etc. claims to have religious experiences. If EVERY supernatural belief system boasts religious experiences, then doesn’t that pretty well devalue religious experiences as an indicator of actual truth?

• 28)Why won’t any religious person pray that an amputee’s limb grows back? Is it because you know that it is impossible and praying for the impossible is foolish? Why can’t an all powerful god heal an amputee? Why don’t parents who wanted a baby boy but got a baby girl pray for the baby to change genders? Why do Christians so rarely pray for anything that is completely impossible?

• 29)A simple scientific test for the validity of prayer. Gather up the religeous leaders of your particular religion and put them and 200 of their most loyal and feverent followers on an airplane. At 35,000 feet, the pilot and co-pilot will exit the plane via parachute. Autopilot can not be used. At this point every person remaining on board will begin to pray for the plane’s safe landing and every passenger’s survival. If God’s hands guide the aircraft to a safe and smooth landing, prayer’s efficacy will be proven. If the plane crashes, the power of prayer will have been disproven. Would even one of these believers step foot on that plane to participate in this test? Any volunteers?

• 30) Aren’t you an Atheist almost exactly like me? Do you believe in Baal? Do you believe in Ammon Ra? How about Zeus? Or Wotan? Or Poseidon? Or Apollo? Guess what? Me neither! If I made a list of every god ever worshiped by man I bet you would check them all off as being false just like me. The only difference between you and I seems to be the one god you would leave unchecked that I would include with the others. Not much of a difference between us after all is there? You exclude your god from your atheistic beliefs whereas I include him. That’s all.

• 31) Should the church be able to prevent someone from donating a kidney to their dying sister? Does the kidney belong to the person whoes body it resides in? Is it theirs to do with as they please? How about a tumor? A tumor is a living, growing mass of cells. A tumor doesn’t necessarily cause any harm to the human whoes body it is growing in. Does a person have the right to have it removed, even if it’s not currently causing them harm? What about if it might kill them to do so? Does the tumor belong to them? How is a fetus (a living, growing mass of cells) any different? Because it is human? Fine, then is the fetus capable of making the decision? No? Then who should the decision logically fall to? How can it be anyone other than the person whoes body the fetus/tumor/kidney resides in?

• 32)If an ancient Aztec text was discovered and in this text it was reported that their leader commanded an offensive tree to uproot itself and march away into the jungle, would you believe that this actually occurred? If not, why not? There is no evidence that the events depicted in the Bible actually occurred, in fact quite the contrary, so why would you blindly believe those stories but not the one depicted in the Aztec text?

• 33)If a Christian does not spend every waking moment of their lives trying to ‘save’ people in order for those people to go to heaven when they die, can they truly call themselves a real Christian? How can a real Christian just sit idley by knowing that, according to the Bible, of the thousands of people who die every day, the majority of them are going straight to hell?

• 34)Why isn’t knowledge of God a natural part of our existence? Why aren’t we born knowing him? In other words, why if a man is born and left alone, and he never encounters a Christian or reads a bible, he would live his whole life never knowing or believing in God? If God is real and deserving of our love, why has he stacked the deck so highly in favor of mankind eventually finding themselves in hell rather than heaven?

• 35)Did Adam and Eve have sex in the Garden of Eden? If so, did they do it purely for procreation purposes? Who taught them how to have intercourse? God?

• 36)Did pain exist before Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge? If so, why? If part of the punishment for eating the fruit was pain during childbirth, does this mean pain receptors didn’t exist in the female body before this? How else would childbirth have been free from pain?
• 37) If God intended for his religion to be (embraced) for all (not just the Jews) why did he make it so restrictive and exclusive? Invading, attacking, and slaughtering all who weren’t his chosen people hardly seems like an invitation.
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