The Religion of Straw Men

Straw man

noun.

    1  a mass of straw formed to resemble a man, as for a doll or scarecrow.

    2  a person whose importance or function is only nominal, as to cover another’s activities; front.

    3 a fabricated or conveniently week or innocuous person, object, matter, etc., used as a seeming adversary or argument: The issue she railed about was no more than a straw man.

Origin: 1585-95                            Dictionary.com

  

I am reading Sam Harris's book Letter to a Christian Nation and have discovered that the straw men are so frequently placed in his writings that if they were all planted in the ground the skies would be dark with crows who were too frightened to find a place to land.

I have to admit to being disappointed. As a Christian I welcome spirited discussion about the existence of God with atheist and others. I, unfortunately, meet a great deal of atheist, and Christians for that matter, who have little working knowledge of the authentic Christian faith which is Biblical Christianity. This leads to the unfortunate circumstance of many of the people who attack as well as defend the Christian faith are attacking and defending the same old straw men, and fail to contribute anything of value to the discourse. Do not misunderstand me. It is not a crime to be unfamiliar with aspects of another person's views on God but the crime that is being perpetrated on both sides of the discussion is intellectual laziness. If you are a Christian or an atheist and are not doing your basic homework before spouting off at the mouth and yelling at each other with your hands over your ears you are doing a disservice to yourself and those who believe your point of view. 

I do not believe Sam Harris has his hands over his ears but I do believe that he has fallen victim to the religious bait and switch that permeates the world of Christianity. What is this bait and switch? The fact is that what is portrayed as the Christian faith throughout much of popular culture is not Biblical Christianity. We are all shown this pop culture knock off of the Christian faith and many of us, including a surprising number of Christians, take it for the genuine article. Trust me; Biblical Christianity is not being represented in your Facebook timeline.

If you are not sure you believe that there is authentic Christianity and a cheap knockoff both being presented to the culture, let’s looks at an example that we can all identify with. Whether you are an atheist or a Christian you are probably familiar with the nativity story of the Christian faith. We have all heard how Jesus was born, laid in a manger, visited by three wise men there, and given gold, frankincense and myrrh as gifts from these wise men. It has appeared in any number of children's books, videos, holiday TV shows, etc. There is only one problem, it’s mostly fiction. If we actually read the story in the Bible we find that the wise men were not at the birth of Jesus but arrived in Jerusalem one to two years later. They then proceeded to the royal palace in Jerusalem to look for "he who was born king of the Jews." Not finding Jesus in the royal palace they followed the star to the house were the young child, not the new born, lived. You can find the Biblical account of the birth of Jesus in Luke 2:1-20 and Matthew 2:1-12.

The facts concerning the birth of Jesus are some of the most plainly spoken, easily understood scriptures in the Bible. If our popular culture version of the birth of Jesus can be so far off from the easily understood Biblical version, how much more can the subtle nuanced Bible concepts like, the love of God, the nature of humanity, the age of the earth, etc., be misrepresented. What is disappointing is how many author's, speakers and public figures do not do the simple diligence of Biblical study before they make sweeping statements about the truth of the Bible.

If you are going to attack or defend the validity of Christian scripture at least consult the basic biblical scholarship through a commentary, or knowledgeable Christian. Yes, whether you are a Christian or an Atheist I am sure you have opinions and questions about the nature of God. Do not be lazy. Consult the plentiful scholarship that is all around you or you might find yourself singing the same words as the most famous straw man of all time – “if I only had a brain!”

A reasonable Question to the Reasonable Atheist

A Short Introduction to the Question

The belief that God does not exist, which is what defines an atheist, is a belief that needs defending. For those of you who would say that the burden of proof is on religion I would say I agree with you fifty percent. Much of atheism is based on its attacks on religion but not, ironically, on attacks on the existence of God. Atheist can play an offensive game, no pun intended, by attacking various religious doctrinal beliefs because the burden of proof is on religion to defend those beliefs.  But atheist must switch to defense when they change their arguments from those of attacking religious doctrine to those of declaring their own doctrinal belief that God does not exist.

Let me further explain my position with a concession. Let’s say for the sake of argument, and just for the length of this piece, I concede those atheists are right about religion. Yes, I am conceding, for the sake of argument, that every religious belief is false. The statement that all religion is false will not definitively prove that God does not exist but it will only prove that every religion has got it wrong.

I will pause here for those few of you who will tell me that you cannot prove a negative,  and use that statement as an argument that atheist do not have a burden of proof for the doctrine that God does not exist. Of course you can prove a negative. I can prove I am NOT a German shepherd. I can prove my water glass is NOT filled with crude oil. I can prove that I am NOT a resident of Mars, although it is true my Martian citizenship has been proposed as a theory for my personality my entire life.

Any dictionary will tell us that atheism is the belief that God does not exist. Saying that God does not exist is a declarative statement that goes far beyond the belief that religion is false.  

The Question

If atheism is not just the faith based shadow of religious belief, 
then what are its reasoned intellectual foundations for the notion that God does not exist?

I look forward to your comments.  

The Two Christianities

When you say the word Christian it takes on many different meanings depending upon whom you say it to. This is true to a large part because those who claim Christ have very different views of what a Christian is. It is even true that one person can show multiple faces or versions of Christianity depending upon the circumstance or who is doing the observing. Some of us are like subatomic particles; the very act of observation changes the behavior of the observed.

This is due to us losing our anchor, a real relationship with God. There are only two ways to relate to God. To pursue him, become a part of his life and fulfilling our true purpose and nature or to pursue our own life, make him part of it and in his name create a standard and lifestyle that justifies ourselves to ourselves and others. These two lifestyles can look very similar but in truth they are polar opposites.

The first example of this is in the Bible. Geneses the fourth chapter tells the story of Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel were both very religious. If you had been able to watch them both worship with the first fruits of their labor you wouldn’t have seen much of a difference yet Abel’s sacrifice was accepted and Cain’s was rejected. Abel’s focus was vertical toward God; Cain’s focus was horizontal to the world around him. Cain could have responded vertically toward God when his worship was rejected but instead he responded horizontally to his brother by killing him. When our relationship with God is not based vertically on us entering his life but instead is based horizontally on God cosigning our life of self-justification to the world around us this gives rise to all kinds of behaviors that don’t reflect the nature of God. In this case the behavior was murder.

Anyone who observed Cain’s murder would have had a very negative outlook of those who worship God. Unfortunately many people observe Cain styled Christians and reject Christ because of it. Christians whose life is based on trying to be justified by rules and regulations instead of being in a real relationship with Christ fall into all types of anti-God behaviors sometimes without being aware of it. The knowledge and lifestyle of God comes out of his Word, the Bible. When we use the Bible as simply a horizontal rule book and not a vertical revelation of the nature of God and his relationship with us we damage ourselves and others. The lifestyle found in scripture grows out of our relationship with God not our relationship with God growing out of our lifestyle. The first is the life of Abel the second is the life of Cain. These two lives can look identical but they lead to very different outcomes.

If any of us say we follow God or reject God based on anything other than a comprehensive reading of the Word of God we are not making an informed or honest decision. Without the Word of God we can’t say we are following or rejecting God. We can only say are following or rejecting Cain.

Poet Ntwadumela

Angel Eyes - (Commentary on missed opportunities)

Bubbling laughter, a flashing smile and eyes that light up her father, at four this girl feels like a superhero, her power, she makes her daddy smile.

One of her mother’s coworkers almost invited her family to church, but got cold feet about talking religion on the job. She also decided that to go to that party of town would be way out of the way for a busy Sunday morning.

Velvet skin, long pig tails and eyes that look to her father, at eight this girl is still a superhero but daddy is no longer around to be affected by her powers.

A pastor almost set up and evangelistic tent in her neighborhood but after a protracted business meeting with the deacons decided instead to fulfill his promise of remodeling the restrooms in the basement of the church.

Tomboy legs and singing dimples and eyes that gobble up the morning, at twelve her powers affect substitutes. Older boys introduce themselves and young men circle closer.

Two church members saw her walking with friends from school and scolded her intensely about the length of her skirt and the tightness of her blouse. They did not however invite her to church or consider her mother’s ability to keep a blooming young girl in cloths that fit.

A little girls voice a woman’s face and eyes that recede from tomorrow, at sixteen this girl has lost all her super powers, for these men that come will sometimes laugh but never do they smile.

Three hypocrites, doing the damage that hypocrites do, saw her walking one cool evening. She took their money like anybody else’s but decided that she would not visit that church anymore for fear she might be recognized.

A little girls face a woman’s voice and eyes that are brightened by her father, at twenty she has discovered late, but it is never too late, that though her daddy is still gone her father never left and when she seeks his face she always finds a smile.

Angel Eyes sharing her Daddy's smile.


Poet Ntwadumela
From the Book: "Christian Poems and Other Radical Explorations"

The Ant That Would Be King

Take a mind trip with me. No, not a drug induced purple haze mind trip mind you, but a mind trip induced from fresh air and a searching heart. A mind trip can be useless or we can learn something from it. You tell me which type of mind trip this one is.

Imagine that ants from your backyard garden have invaded your house and what they don't know is that they are only days away from the exterminator. These ants were content to live in your backyard garden with all its juicy fruits and vegetables until a new leader ant from another anthill put himself in charge of the ants from your backyard. This ant knows just a little more than the other ants do and this ant doesn't want the ants to dig and aerate your soil or guard the garden from harmful insects. This ant has gone as far as to believe he should be in charge of the house and has convinced the other ants that they should have all those goodies from your kitchen.

The question is how could we save these ants from the exterminator? Could we post a danger sign? No, a sign wouldn't help an ant. Could we seal the house? No, ants can always find a way into the house and therefore into death. If we spoke to the ants at the top of our voice would that help? No, ants couldn't begin to understand sound as language.

It seems that these ants our doomed.

The problem is ants don't live on our level. They couldn't even begin to understand a fraction of what we know. You couldn't teach an ant sound as language because they communicate by chemicals. If an ant is in danger it releases a chemical that whips the other ants into a frenzy to fight. If an ant finds food it releases a chemical that says food is found. The ant mind is small and limited to very basic things. You couldn't teach an ant to use a cell phone, to write poetry or to convey even simple ideas like yes or no to his fellow ants. You can't teach an ant any of the most basic things that you do every day. It is beyond them. To make things worse, the ant from the other anthill speaks their language. This ant has released a food chemical trail leading right into your kitchen. The ants from your backyard don't know what else to do so they follow the trail strait to their future destruction.

There is one thing that you can do though. You can become an ant yourself. It is really the only way to save them. If you, a human, become an ant you would still understand about exterminators and kitchens and could help the ants live. No, you still couldn't explain everything to the ants because it would still be beyond them to understand. What you could do, because you are now an ant as well as human, is speak at their level by releasing your own chemical that would lead them back to the backyard garden. The ants would have to follow your path only because they had faith in you and what you communicated to them they could not rely on their limited understanding.

No doubt the ant from the other anthill would try and stop you because he would fight to stay in control of the ants. That ant would release an attack chemical to the other ants whenever you and the ants that follow you are around. This would whip those other ants into a frenzy and cause them to try and kill you and the ants that follow you. The more you and your followers release the chemical of the path back to the garden the more the ant from the other anthill would try to have you killed, but more and more ants would still begin to follow you. Even some of the ants that were tricked into trying to kill you would become some of your faithful followers.

Alas that deceiving ant would think that if he killed you that the battle would be over. So it would only be a matter of time before you would be killed. Your followers though would continue to communicate to the other ants to follow the path you started, and every ant that followed that path would end up back in the garden with all the delicious fruit. The good news for you would be that even when you are killed by the unbelieving ants you would still be human. Only your ant body would die, and since your ant body was from your human body you could bring your ant body back, and because you would have power over your ant life you would have power over any ant life so that all those ants that were killed following your path you could bring back and place them in the garden.

And that old ant from the other anthill days would be numbered because once you were back to yourself you could have the exterminator deal with him whenever you wanted to. You wouldn't do it right away of course, because you would want as many of the deceived ants to come to follow your path as would come. After all you wouldn't want the deceived ants to die along with the ant from another anthill without having an opportunity to choose the right path and live.

That's it, the end of the mind trip. Now that we are done I just have two questions.

Number 1- Was this mind trip useless?

Number 2 - Can anyone help me understand what it must have been like for Jesus to become a man?

Poet Ntwadumela
From the book: "Christian Poems and Other Radical Explorations"

The Atheist and The Train

I was telling my friend the atheist a story. As it turns out he didn't like my story and I don't know why. Maybe you can help me figure it out. The story I told my friend the atheist went like this.


Once upon a time there was a good politician who got a great idea at the train platform on his way to work. Every day he would talk to a homeless man that would come to the platform to beg for change. He would give the man money and after finding out that the man was dying from a incurable liver disease caused from drinking and drug use he felt he had to do something for the people in the city who were homeless and suffering. He would call it the Phoenix Initiative.

On this particular day the good politician was in the midst of crises. It had taken him five years to bring together, politicians, business men, educators, community leaders and public opinion to bring about the Phoenix Initiative. Tens of thousands of people would be helped and the entire city would be uplifted not just in the short term but for generations. Many times his dream to help the city looked like it would die but the good politician was always able to save the day with his skill as an negotiator and his ability to make people believe that we can help one another and create a better world to live in.

This time it looked like even the skills of the good politician could not save the day. The good politician would not give up though. After a week and a half of phone calls and impromptu meetings it looked like he might yet pull it out. One last person had to be brought back on board so he changed into his suit on a Saturday afternoon and with his phone to his ear and raced out the door. He was not able to convince this last person over the phone but he knew if he met with them in person he could convince them to do the right thing. The good politician tied his tie as he ran the two blocks to the train which was the only way he could make it to this person before they left for Europe on business.

The good politician got to the train platform just in time. The train would be there in two or three minutes. He could already see it in the distance. Then a horrible revelation invaded his brain. He had rushed out so quickly that when he changed clothes he didn't change his wallet into his suit pocket. It was at home in his jeans. He had no way of paying for the train. He would miss the last meeting and the Phoenix Initiative would be dead. All he could think was that tens of thousands of people would suffer because he was absent minded.

Just then he saw the homeless man passed out in the gutter just off the platform and the sight of him sharpened the pain of his impending failure. Then an idea that gave him a sliver of hope came to him. He shook the homeless man to ask him for his wine money. Not only did the homeless man say no but he said he would be dead in a month or so and he didn't care what happened after he was gone. He also told the good politician to shut up and go away or he would cut him with his knife. The homeless man then rolled over in the gutter and passed out once more.

The good politician was undaunted. He took a large stone that was lying nearby and lifted it high above his head. The good politician paused for a second and then smashed the stone down on the homeless man's head. While the homeless man's legs where still twitching he took his wine money from his pocket and it was just enough to pay for his train. The good business man made his train and his meeting. The Phoenix Initiative was resurrected and tens of thousands of people where helped and the city was uplifted for generations to come.

The End.

My atheist Friend thought that It was a horrible story. Apparently he thought that the actions of the good politician were less than admirable to say the least.

Our conversation went something like this.

My atheist friend: It is wrong to murder someone for any reason let alone train fair.

Confused me: But many more lives would be saved because of his actions.

My atheist Friend: You can’t arbitrarily take a human life just because you think it serves the greater good.

Confused me: Why not, if there is no God.

My atheist friend: Don't be ridicules. If we do not hold to a human standard of goodness we are doomed. We don't need a creator God to believe that.

Confused me. This is exactly my point. As humans we must choose for the greater good. If you believe life is an accidental combination of inert materials from a primordial soup then the only value it has is what we assign to it. The homeless man was not ever going to contribute to the greater good. The homeless man had been chosen by evolution to perish because of his illness. There was no way to assign value to his life outside of every life being sacred because it is a gift from God. So if there is no God then the greater good was for him to die and for thousands of others to be helped.

My atheist friend: You are confused and obviously unable to understand the most basic tenants of a secular humanistic philosophy as it pertains to the good of mankind.

Confused me: That's strange, your last statement sounded like what is said by many people throughout history that destroyed human life for the greater good. Are you sure you don't like my story?

My atheist friend then stormed off. He still couldn't explain to me why he didn't like my story but I think I may have figured it out. I think it is simply this: "What we sometimes believe in theory is very different when we see it in practice". What is scary to me is that we don't usually discover this until it is too late.

Poet Ntwadumela
From the book: "Christian Poems and Other Radical Explorations"