My response to Epydemic2020’s video “Atheistic Questions, Theistic Answers, Agnostic Conclusions.”
RE: Why nature’s indifference to suffering (natural disasters, wildlife suffering, etc.) clashes with Christianity’s notion of a Benign Omnipotent Creator, and the theist’s resulting cognitive dissonance.
Sources cited in this series:
Epydemic2020’s video The Problem of Evil, Is It a problem? Logical and Evidential Formulations Addressed – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ySUoboxsmI&feature=channel_page
His nine arguments:
(1) God’s purpose is not to provide us with easy, convenient lives. Humanity’s purpose in life is not happiness, but a knowledge of God and relationship with God (an extension of #3, the “suffering benefits us” argument).
(2) God gives us Free Will, and humans cause evil and suffering.
(3) Suffering benefits us (as expanded upon in arguments 1, 4, and 6).
(4) Suffering helps us appreciate pleasure: here on earth, and especially in heaven (an extension of #3, the “suffering benefits us” argument)
(5) We rebel against God and embrace sin (an extension of #2, the Free Will argument)
(6) Temporary suffering can help us later on (an extension of #3, the “suffering benefits us” argument)
(7) Death is actually a blessing: a transition from this life to the next
(8) Moral evils sometimes cause natural evils (an extension of #2, the Free Will argument)
(9) Humans are too finite to comprehend an Infinite God.
My video response called Theists have “answers” to the problem of suffering, but the answers are unconvincing – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d76SG4HC0TY&feature=response_watch
Epydemic2020’s response “Atheistic Questions, Theistic Answers, Agnostic Conclusions” – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yypd0kdMGbg&feature=response_watch
My video series “The Problem of Suffering: the 7 Supernatural Answers vs. the 1 Naturalistic” – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w2pn66VVWk&feature=PlayList&p=2E827A1DF5FDB42C&index=0&playnext=1
YouTuber Evid3nc3’s video “2.0 Deconversion: The God Concept” – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12rP8ybp13s&feature=channel_page
John Loftus’s “Why I Became An Atheist: a former preacher rejects Christianity” – http://www.amazon.com/Why-Became-Atheist-Preacher-Christianity/dp/1591025923/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1249208999&sr=8-1
Lee Strobel’s “The Case for Faith: A journalist investigates the toughest objections to Christianity” – http://www.amazon.com/Case-Faith-Journalist-Investigates-Christianity/dp/0310234697/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1249209070&sr=1-1
By Todd Allen Gates, author of “Dialogue with a Christian Proselytizer” – http://www.amazon.com/review/product/1601450893/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?_encoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
My four YouTube channels:
– http://youtube.com/user/ToddGates – my musician channel
– http://youtube.com/user/ToddAllenGates – where I discuss the ideas in “Dialogue with a Christian Proselytizer”
– http://youtube.com/user/ToddAllenGates2 – where I discuss the ideas in my book “Hunting, Gathering, & Videogames” (such as “Why do we have to work?” and “Why do we have to use money?” and “How should we define ‘success’?”)
– http://youtube.com/user/BlasphemyPiano – where I play the background piano accompaniment for songs in Nick Gisburne’s book of lyrics “Blasphemy! Anthems for Atheists.”
Duration : 0:10:22
Republished by Blog Post Promoter