Is Religion the Root of All Evil?

from Google Images

Often the accepted leadership of the new atheism, Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens,[1] Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett (also referred to as the Four Horsemen) have argued that religion is not only a delusion but a dangerous delusion. It seems that they believe religion is at the root of all our problems. They not only advocate separation from religion but desire to separate religion from public affairs. In other words they advocate religious impotence. No religion of any kind (but especially Christianity) should have a public voice, including in education. It seems, according to their point of view, if religion should become irrelevant, many, if not all, of our problems would be solved.

 

What is Genocide?

from Google Images

Some Biblical critics have accused the God of the Bible of being genocidal or an ethnic cleanser.[1] However, I believe such accusations betray both an ignorance of the context and of the examples history has shown to be genocide and/or ethnic cleansing. I don’t believe the Bible comes close to revealing God as genocidal. In fact, he says he has no pleasure in the death of the wicked and would rather they repent and be saved from judgment (Ezekiel 33:11). Moreover, he claims that if the wicked would repent, God would repent of any judgment he had made against them (Jeremiah 18:18). Does this sound like a genocidal maniac? Remember, if we are going to use the words of the Bible to accuse God of evil, we must take all of his words into consideration to preserve context and prevent misunderstanding.

 

Why Doesn’t God Spare the Innocent?

from Google Images

Many Biblical critics are repulsed by God’s treatment of the Canaanites, no doubt intensified through their ignorance of context. Nevertheless, they raise questions which need to be answered. It is never prudent to permit accusations questioning God’s integrity or mercy to go unanswered. Such a thing would lend unwarranted credence to those accusations. So, why didn’t God simply spare the innocent among the Canaanites? Why did God command through Moses that no one should be shown any mercy (cf. Deuteronomy 7:2)?[1] This scripture seems to contradict what other scriptures claim about God’s love for mankind. How should we address this argument against God’s integrity and love for mankind?

 

Was it Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing?

from Google Images

One of the new atheists, Richard Dawkins, describes Israel’s taking of the Promised Land as genocide and ethnic cleansing.[1] The problem is the Scriptures don’t describe the event in the same manner as Dr. Dawkins does; nor do they allow for racial hatred, which is a prerequisite fuel for ethnic cleansing. On the contrary, Israel was to love the stranger who dwelt among them and protect him and welcome him in their land. Nevertheless, it seems that Dr. Dawkins isn’t as interested in accurately portraying the language of the Scriptures as he is in swaying folks over to his worldview by choosing words that tend to evoke negative emotions, which he does against ancient Israel and the God of the Bible. Notice how he words his argument:

 

Does God Wish to Enslave Everyone?

from Google Images

Some would have us believe that God is actually seeking to enslave all mankind. The modern critic often abuses Scripture by force fitting ancient language attributed to a monarchy / theocracy into modern more democratic terminology. The servant of the king becomes the king’s slave, because under a democracy all citizens should be equal. Therefore, the word servant must be synonymous with slave. This is hardly true, because any holder of public office in a democracy is a public servant, but the Biblical critic hardly desires to let something like this spoil his point of view.[1]

 

The Mosaic Law and Human Sacrifice

from Google Images

Does the Mosaic Law ever condone human sacrifice? I must conclude the answer to that question is no. The idea that the Mosaic Law does condone such a thing is born in the hearts and minds of the Biblical critic, whose bias simply will not permit a proper and contextual reply to Biblical difficulties, They draw their conclusions by reading into the text that God simply didn’t like it when Israel sacrificed their children to other gods,[1] thus, emphasizing their bias against a proper and contextual point of view. Nevertheless, I’ll try to point out a few more of their common claims and show where their understanding deviates from the context of Scripture.

 

Be Ye Holy for I am Holy!

from Google Images

The Hebrew word for holy (H6918) simply means set apart. Israel was to be holy or set apart from its neighbors. What would it mean to be set apart from another nation? Well, in 1776 we in America set ourselves apart from our mother nation, England, and our king. We eventually became an independent nation, governing ourselves. However, in 1812 England’s navy not only hindered our international trade, but also sought to steal away citizens of America on the high seas and induct them into the service of England and her king. Such activity not only humiliated the United States, but it also didn’t recognize our national sovereignty, and war ensued between our two countries for 2 ½ years. Our set apartness had been violated. When Charles De Gaulle visited Canada in 1967 and implied he supported an independent Quebec, he was rebuked publicly by Prime Minister Pearson, and as a result De Gaulle cut his visit to Canada short. He intruded on the sovereignty of a nation that was set apart from France.

 

Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness

from Google Images

I have heard the phrase cleanliness is next to godliness from the earliest days of my youth. I imagine nearly everyone who grew up with me in America during the latter half of the 20^th century had heard the phrase at one time or another, but what does a clean body have to do with godly behavior. Can’t someone who is sweaty and dirty act godly? Are good deeds or is a good, kind word somehow tainted, if one’s body hasn’t been bathed? While it is true that this phrase cannot be found in the Bible, it stands closer to its context than one might at first imagine![1]

 

Holiness and Religious Pretense

from Google Images

The phrase ‘one nation under God’ is recited daily by every American child as he begins his school-day. Its implication is also probably the understanding of many Christians who live in this country. Nevertheless, the United States government does not see itself as under God in any matter. Although some Christian organizations added these words to the Pledge of Allegiance in the late 1940s, the phrase under God wasn’t officially added to the pledge until 1954. That was during the 50s’ communist scare and the McCarthy era. While it may sound good to a Christian to ‘say’ his nation acts under God, which means he believes its deeds are approved of and directed by God, in reality a nation under God is a theocracy, not a democratic republic as ours is.

 

God Pays It Forward!

from Google Images

My wife and I were on vacation in 2003, and the movie, Pay It Forward, was featured in the motel’s HBO entertainment list of programs. We watched it and thoroughly enjoyed its theme. In fact, I’ve watched it several times since then at home, but, whenever I do, I always seem to recall that first time in the motel room with my wife.

 

Does God ‘Settle’ for Less than Perfect?

from Google Images

No doubt one of the biggest errors the new atheists have made, regarding the persona of the God of the Bible that they paint for their readers, is their assumption that, because the Bible mentions a thing, that thing is automatically approved by God.[1] This, of course, is not true, and their argument is even denied in Scripture, itself. David, the man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), power raped Bathsheba, and then had her husband, David’s close friend, killed in order to hide what he had done. Did God approve of what David had done? Of course not! He sent his prophet Nathan to confront him about his sin (2Samuel 12:1-7a).

 

Redeeming Mankind

from Google Images

It is often difficult for believers to defend what the Bible says, particularly things found in the Old Testament, especially when we claim it contains the word of God and cannot be contradicted (cf. John 10:35). For example, who today would advocate stoning one’s wife, child, sibling, mother or father, if that one advocated worshiping another god and not the God of the Bible (Deuteronomy 13:6-11)?[1] While we are able to sincerely interpret such passages in a New Testament context, it is difficult to respond to the new atheist, who really doesn’t seem to be interested in an honest explanation.

 

God’s Word – Timeless Wisdom?

from Google Images

One of my favorite TV programs a few years back was The West Wing (1999 – 2006) with Martin Sheen starring as President Josiah (Jed) Bartlet. I thought Sheen did a very good job expressing what it might be like to hold the most important public office in our country, and, arguably, the world. One of the most memorable scenes[1] (at least for me) was when Sheen appeared before a small gathering at the White House where a woman, Dr. Jacobs, apparently a popular TV or radio personality who hosted a program where people called in to ask questions concerning how they should live their lives, sat in an informal gathering in the White House waiting for the President to ‘drop by’. In the scene President Bartlet was troubled over Dr. Jacobs’ glaring faux pas, concerning her lack of respect for the office of the President. She remained seated while everyone in the room, including President Bartlet, was standing.

 

Did God Bully Abraham or Isaac?

from Google Images

The new atheists of today often point to the binding of Isaac as an immoral act and one of God acting as a bully to get Abraham to willingly sacrifice his son, Isaac.[1] Moreover, they make it seem that Isaac, a mere child (which I show not to be the case in a previous blogpost), was bullied directly by Abraham who seemed intent on carrying out God’s command, and indirectly by God who is responsible for the entire event. Notice how Dr. Richard Dawkins puts it:

 

Worshiping and Praising God

from Google Images

What would it mean to worship or praise God, or anyone else for that matter? The Bible concludes that mankind does worship idols, so, whether or not we think it is proper, worship is not exclusive to God. In fact, we often hear of the term idol used of movie stars and famous musicians, whose admirers flock to auditoriums, stadiums and places that advertise the appearance of their favorite celebrity, and fans (short for ‘fanatic’) look on adoringly hoping to touch or speak with the one they worship so much.