My dad decided he wanted to have a "conversation".
I've just spent an hour trying to explain to my dad that even people who believe in Darwinism (Though, seriously, how many people "believe in Darwinism" versus people who think evolution is scientific fact? The phrase itself is so very Christian.) are capable of seeing intrinsic value in human beings. He seems to be under the impression that, if you believe human beings evolved from primordial sludge, it must follow that you don't value human beings as moral creatures. When I argued that atheists are capable of a moral system, he thought they must be very confused (philosophically, I presume) and that it was ironic that one could value humans and still believe we came from slime. It's just... it's like banging my head against a brick wall.
My dad apparently doesn't know any actual atheists, but I don't think he'd ever say to an atheist that, "Wow, you must not have morals." Once he knew them and saw that they were a good person, he'd accept that they had morals, I think. But at this moment, he seems to be under the impression that "morality" (whatever that means, because he's willing to accept that atheists are capable of goodness and good acts) can only come if you believe God created humans in his own image.
(Fwiw, he thinks Christians who don't show compassion or twist the Bible to serve their own ends need to examine their hearts to see if they're truly following God's teachings. But there's also a degree of, "Well, they're not 'real' Christians then."--a pronouncement I used to sympathise with, but with which I've lately become uncomfortable.)
I've met atheists who thought Christians were kind of delusional with their whole "God exists" business, and I hate to admit that my own father is the kind of Christian who thinks atheists are the delusional ones.
Brick. Wall.
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My dad apparently doesn't know any actual atheists, but I don't think he'd ever say to an atheist that, "Wow, you must not have morals." Once he knew them and saw that they were a good person, he'd accept that they had morals, I think. But at this moment, he seems to be under the impression that "morality" (whatever that means, because he's willing to accept that atheists are capable of goodness and good acts) can only come if you believe God created humans in his own image.
(Fwiw, he thinks Christians who don't show compassion or twist the Bible to serve their own ends need to examine their hearts to see if they're truly following God's teachings. But there's also a degree of, "Well, they're not 'real' Christians then."--a pronouncement I used to sympathise with, but with which I've lately become uncomfortable.)
I've met atheists who thought Christians were kind of delusional with their whole "God exists" business, and I hate to admit that my own father is the kind of Christian who thinks atheists are the delusional ones.
Brick. Wall.
I prefer comments on Dreamwidth |
comment(s)