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To: Dr. Crane [eaglechristianchurch.com]

Subject: Is Belief in God Irrational?

---Original Message---

What should I say to my atheist friend who doesn’t believe in God because “faith is irrational”?

Reply:

While it is true that atheists don’t believe in God, the Bible tells us that God doesn’t believe in atheists! The question is: who are you going to believe? While this answer might seem a little sarcastic, the truth is that whether you believe in God or don’t believe in God—both are systems of faith! The question is not whether “faith” is irrational, but if our faith is “irrationally placed.”

I actually believe it takes far more faith to be an atheist than it does to believe in God. Let me say that even more strongly. Atheism is an untenable position. You might respond to your friend, “I don’t have enough faith to be an atheist,” and see what kind of reaction that gets. Atheism is a belief system—usually held, not for intellectual reasons, but for moral ones.

The word atheist comes from the Greek word “atheos.” “Theos” is the word for God. “A” is a negative particle. Placed together, “atheos” literally means “no God.” Therefore, an atheist makes this faith claim: there is no God.

Let me demonstrate why that belief system is untenable. Imagine for a moment a circle the size of a common car steering wheel which represents all knowledge: past, present, and future. Let that circle represent everything that is, can, and will ever be known. Now, take a moment to shade in the portion of that circle that represents how much of “all-knowledge” you possess. Even the brightest among us dare only make a pin-prick on that circle before we appear arrogant. The point is easily demonstrated: there is far more that we don’t know than we do know.

I would ask the atheist if it is possible that God resides outside the boundaries of their knowledge. Is it? Which is more rational, to state that you KNOW there is no God, or to say that within the amount of knowledge you possess—you have no knowledge of God? Actually, the atheist would be better served by calling himself an “agnostic”—he has no knowledge of God.

While I cannot prove the existence of God, neither can the atheist prove the nonexistence of God. We can, however, demonstrate that belief in God is not irrational.

For further study see: I Don’t Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist, by Norman Geisler and Frank Turek.