Hart begins by stating his position when it comes to Atheist and their non belief. He states " I want merely to make sure that they have a clear concept of what it is they claim not to believe.(2)" I understand that he wants to help them but to them they know all they need to know. 'You can lead a horse to water but you can't make them drink'. Most atheists were at one point in time believed in the presence of God but they went through a traumatic experience that made them change their views on God and religion altogether. Hart is trying to help some but he is missing the point that some do not want to be helped. So, his efforts to some are a waste because they choose to believe that there is no higher entity. By me being raised in a Christian home I know that it is our job as Christians to save souls and help others find Jesus. But we can only do these things when someone truly wants are help.
Udayana states that there are seven ways to prove that God is in existence; effects, atomic combination, suspension, human skills, authoritative knowledge, Revelation, and atoms. He also calls Him the "all-knowing, imperishable God." He is imperishable God because he is the only one who could create atoms because humans are not able to. Also, humans can not break atoms or destroy them and he is stating that the only person that can do that is God because he created atoms. He mentions the difference between the cause and effect to validate if there is a God. He brings up the argument that "Things like the earth must have a cause, because they are produced by a body (101)." Some deity had to have made the earth for their pleasure. He also relies on objections to prove that God is real. Udayana does bring up good ideas to prove that God is real. The best argument to me is that he created atoms. Humans are unable to destroy atoms or to create them; so they had to be...
I see how you conclude that some people may not want to be helped, but I do not think Hart wants to help convert them, but just make the understanding clear whether they still want to believe or not. Like he says, if something is worth arguing than it is worth understanding. I feel that he is just doing this for people who want to truly understand. If someone reads this and is still an atheist in the end, which is likely the situation, they will have still learned a new perspective and definition of God and I think this is the point that Hart wants to make.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jasmine that Hart's purpose is not to convert but to encourage atheists to think critically about why they don't believe and what it is they don't believe in. As Hart mentioned the definition and understanding of God to an atheist is completely different than the understanding of God to a believer. Many atheists I personally know did not start off as believers but instead cannot imagine an intelligent mind as creator, while others simply refuse to be told how to live by a God they cannot see or touch. There are many different reasons some atheists give for their lack of belief. I believe Hart is trying to address some of those reasons with reason and critical thinking.
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