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Religion
In reply to the discussion: Dartmouth physicist, known for doubting skeptics, wins 2019 Templeton Prize [View all]Mariana
(15,111 posts)5. About what, exactly?
The professor says, You may not believe in God, but to affirm its nonexistence with certainty is not scientifically consistent.
For starters, he mentions only one particular god, but lots of people who don't believe in that particular god believe in other ones, and therefore are not atheists, by definition. There have been thousands of gods proposed, and atheists don't think any of them are real. Furthermore, there isn't any certainty about it for most of us. We don't believe there's such things as gods, but we don't pretend to know for sure. If anyone ever comes up with some compelling evidence for the existence of this or that god, most atheists would then accept the existence of that god.
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Dartmouth physicist, known for doubting skeptics, wins 2019 Templeton Prize [View all]
guillaumeb
Mar 2019
OP
I think the professor's point is that one can't be certain of deitys nonexitence, so atheism
Karadeniz
Mar 2019
#20
How many theists do you know allow for the possibility that god does not exist?
Major Nikon
Mar 2019
#23
So that shows his claim that atheists in general "believe in non-belief" is wrong
muriel_volestrangler
Mar 2019
#24
I thought the "Professor of Natural Philosophy" title refered to philosophy
muriel_volestrangler
Mar 2019
#28
You mean the same Templeton Foundation thas has ties to the Cato Instutute...
Act_of_Reparation
Mar 2019
#6