Counterfeits.

[37818]

My initial response would be a question: "Why are you asking me?"

To understand what you think as to how one becomes a Christian. If you do not want to answer that, how about giving a primary reason you find what you perceive as the Christian faith to be untenable?

[Sparko]

this too belongs to the realm of coincidence and happenstance. There is no empirically verified evidence supporting such a claim.

1. You didn't know my dad, or the people involved, nor do you have more than a brief summary from me as to what happened, so you really have no way to judge whether it was God or not.
2. I already said you would not accept the "good evidence" for God, but yes, it does exist and it is good enough to have convinced billions of people.

[Tassman]

1. You didn't know my dad, or the people involved, nor do you have more than a brief summary from me as to what happened, so you really have no way to judge whether it was God or not.

Neither do you. With all due respect to you and your family during a difficult time, the events and beliefs you describe can just as readily be coincidence and happenstance. You're making a faith-claim. There is no empirically verified evidence to support that it was the work of God.

2. I already said you would not accept the "good evidence" for God, but yes, it does exist and it is good enough to have convinced billions of people.

Certainly very many people have been convinced of the veracity of very many gods over the millennia, but this is not proof that they were right. Obviously, given the many thousand of gods, most were not right.

[Doug Shaver]

To understand what you think as to how one becomes a Christian.

What I think is that, in order to become a Christian, one finds a group that calls itself Christian and then does whatever that group says one must do in order to become a member of it.

[Doug Shaver]

If you do not want to answer that, how about giving a primary reason you find what you perceive as the Christian faith to be untenable?

If I had to pick one reason over all others, it would be that the Christian faith affirms God's existence.

[37818]

If I had to pick one reason over all others, it would be that the Christian faith affirms God's existence.

You have a problem with that because you hold the view that there is no God[?]. How did you come to the conclusion that there is no God? Why is the view point of God therefore untenable?

[Sparko]

Neither do you. With all due respect to you and your family during a difficult time, the events and beliefs you describe can just as readily be coincidence and happenstance. You're making a faith-claim. There is no empirically verified evidence to support that it was the work of God.

I never claimed there was "empirically verified evidence" - there are other types of evidence. Sometimes seeing is believing, so to speak. If God appeared in your room right now and had a chat with you, and answered any questions you asked, then left without leaving any "empirically verified evidence" behind, would you believe in Him?

[Tassman]

I never claimed there was "empirically verified evidence" - there are other types of evidence. Sometimes seeing is believing, so to speak. If God appeared in your room right now and had a chat with you, and answered any questions you asked, then left without leaving any "empirically verified evidence" behind, would you believe in Him?

The real question is why would anyone believe my personal testimony of my purely subjective (possibly delusional) experience.

[Sparko]

The real question is why would anyone believe my personal testimony of my purely subjective (possibly delusional) experience.

No the question is, would YOU believe it?

[Tassman]

No the question is, would YOU believe it?

I would not believe anything unsupported by credible evidence and I certainly don't believe the personal testimony of those who do.

[Sparko]

I would not believe anything unsupported by credible evidence and I certainly don't believe the personal testimony of those who do.

So you don't think God appearing to you and answering all of your questions is credible evidence? You would not believe God if he appeared and proved himself to you personally and directly?

[Tassman]

So you don't think God appearing to you and answering all of your questions is credible evidence? You would not believe God if he appeared and proved himself to you personally and directly?

Not without credible evidence, "that way lies madness". (King Lear)

[Doug Shaver]

How did you come to the conclusion that there is no God?

I didn't. The conclusion I came to was that I had no good reason to believe in any god.

[37818]

I didn't. The conclusion I came to was that I had no good reason to believe in any god.

What would you consider a good reason? How about that God is? Why would that not be a good reason?

[Doug Shaver]

How about that God is? Why would that not be a good reason?

Because your saying so does not make it so.