Why I am Not a Christian

Discovering the failings of young-earth creation was just the first domino in my deconversion... but the process was more akin to a Rube-Goldbrick contraption than a straight line to a final domino. The journey to the destination is windy and varied. In the end, the specific first domino is almost irrelevant.
Recently, well-known Christian apologist Dr. William Lane Craig made some wildly speculative and inaccurate assumptions about my personal faith journey… and while his guesses were irresponsible, it occurred to me that I haven’t actually made public a more comprehensive general view of where I currently sit on the proposition of Christianity that Dr. Craig might have been able to use as more accurate reference. This is something I will try to remedy today. Hopefully this summary will clear up some confusion, and be of some help to Christians and non-Christians alike in some way in examining their own views.
Some more detailed videos on some of the topics addressed...
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[@Paulogia]

ERRATA - - Rube-Goldberg machine, not Rube-Goldbrick

[@john-r-edge]

Which is the North American standard for whacky machines. In the UK people refer to "Heath Robinson" inventions. Great video Paul!!

[@john-r-edge]

@Desperadox23interesting, please educate us as to the difference.

[@bdf2718]

@@john-r-edge Shirley you mean Hearth Robertson.

[@john-r-edge]

@@bdf2718 en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._Heath_Robinson

[@sekara9866]

@NotACapitalist Might want to re-post this in the main chat-list rather than as a response to a n unrelated correction

[@Two_Ravens]

Kent Hovind didn’t make me an atheist, but he made me much better at science. When I was a young man I read about his big reward offer, 250k if I remember correctly, for proof of evolution. I was kinda naive and took this as a legit offer. Every time I provided information he would move the goal posts, and I would go gather more info and talk to local college professors on the specific topics to address his “multiple types of evolution”. After lots of back and forth with Kent Hovind making changes to what he wanted proven, I asked if we could get a lawyer to set the exact terms of the contest to stop the goal posts from moving. He sent back an email with only a bible quote and wouldn’t respond further.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Yeah unfortunately that challenged the spoiled down to you had to prove God didn't do it but you can't because unfortunately we don't know exactly what cause life to initially start up same thing as we don't do exactly what caused the Big Bang itself I don't even know what exactly happened even a few nanoseconds after

[@BAZZAROU812]

Ken is nothing but a charlatan praying on the mentally ill..

[@JamesRichardWiley]

Kent Hovind is a known liar, ex con and charlatan who preys on children. You are wasting your precious time and facing aggravation trying to do business with him.

[@Two_Ravens]

James Richard Wiley this was about twenty years ago. He was my first real introduction to charlatans.

[@martainroth2588]

When you are dealing with a believer, they will always come back with something new and they is no possible way for you to convince them that they are wrong, even you questioning them usually makes them want to believe more.

[@moviesmarts06]

I find stories of losing faith endlessly fascinating

[@BAZZAROU812]

Blind faith... 👌

[@stylis666]

Cool! Because I find them boring as shit. For a video shorter than 12 minutes I gladly watched it anyway and I'm glad I did and wasn't bored this time.

[@JamesRichardWiley]

Religion is so fake and boring.

[@Zethneralith]

@Blaster Master This is generally true, but...

[@Zethneralith]

Mind if I share my own, then? I grew up as a fundamentalist Christian. I "struggled with my faith" from time to time, in that I didn't see much evidence of it in reality, but I told myself it was just an issue between myself and God. I studied apologetics at the private Christian school I grew up in. I distributed Kent Hovind DVDs that my father gave me. (Met him once. He's actually a really nice guy, even if he's wrong.) I *never* thought there was even a remote possibility that I would be an atheist. Even so, it wasn't until I was 29 years old (and a few months ago, at that) that I did become an atheist. The process probably started a year prior, but really began to pick up speed after looking to the Flat Earth Theory. Of course I love science, especially physics, so I had no trouble understanding why such a theory was a load of garbage. But what really stood out to me was how dogmatically people could believe something so verifiably false. This made me wonder if I was guilty of the same thing. The Dunning-Kreuger Effect comes to mind. Did I have any beliefs that I would defend to the death that I had no rational justification to believe? Some of the same KZbin channels that regularly debunked psuedoscience like the Flat Earth Theory also talked about religion and Christianity. The more of them I watched, the more things started to make sense. I learned about all the logical fallacies that I was previously using (or at least believing arguments based on) to justify my faith. Clearly, my faith couldn't withstand real scrutiny. I couldn't argue against facts. The world of rationality is much more trustworthy than a deity that claims to love me but never once directly responded to me. The explanation of "He was never there to begin with" makes more sense than whatever mental gymnastics were required to suggest that a god "might be" there. It was an emotionally taxing experience to say the least. Definitely the most emotionally difficult thing I've been through, since my entire life up to that point had been based off of the existence of God. While I miss some of the comfort that came from my faith, I am definitely happier to be on this side of it. I care too much about what is true to continue to trick myself.

[@oscargr_]

Raised Christian, but disappointed that everyone around me seemed to get these magical personal conversations with god, while I didn't. Then decided I could pretend I have them too... Then I figured out that's probably what they are all doing.

[@borttorbbq2556]

I was never Christian because every time I ask God himself today he never did never once

[@oscargr_]

@@borttorbbq2556 You have not asked deeply enough.... I think.🙄

[@borttorbbq2556]

@@oscargr_ I was about to flip out but I am assuming you're poking fun that was many Christians would likely say

[@oscargr_]

@@borttorbbq2556 LoL .. good call.

[@borttorbbq2556]

@@oscargr_ I'll put it like this when I was doing that I was hurting badly mom died and I felt like my heart had been ripped from my chest and I really needed someone I'm a very hated person so I turned to god for help unfortunately God or Jesus or whoever Krishna whatever wasn't willing to help ease my pain slightly then they are not worth My Worship what so ever. I would have accepted a middle finger at that point honestly and I got nothing

[@gustavlarsson7494]

"Don't wait for a bonus life" made me get up from my couch. Thanks, friend!

[@patrick7775]

Foolish short sighted thinking .

[@the_polish_prince8966]

@@patrick7775 Foolish oversighted thinking

[@TheDizzleHawke]

@@patrick7775 Foolish wishful thinking.

[@iexist1300]

@@patrick7775 what is shortsighted about prioritising what we can almost know exists rather than something that is one of an infinite amount of other possibilities that are all unfalsifiable and unprovable. I could say that it is shortsighted that you don't worship the flying spaghetti monster because you could end up drinking stale beer for eternity.

[@clownsforclowningaround]

I sunk deeper into mine

[@deathofanotion]

"Truth cannot be harmed by facts." - Paul

[@Zethneralith]

I also like the phrasing "The truth fears no scrutiny."

[@patrick7775]

@@Zethneralith The bible certainly doesn't fear the truth

[@Zethneralith]

@@patrick7775 How so? (Unless I interpret that to mean that you cannot fear what you ignore the existence of.)

[@patrick7775]

@@Zethneralith The bible is the truth , it can stand up to all scrutiny.

[@Zethneralith]

@@patrick7775 I used to believe that, until I scrutinized it. I found that I had no rational justification for my belief in God. This is after 29 years as a fundamentalist Christian. If you're interested, I encourage you to take a similar look at the rationale for your beliefs. If you find a good reason, please feel free to share it with me. While I'm open to evidence for God's existence, many years of his silence and inactivity will be difficult to surmount.

[@juholaaksonen7455]

Paul is such a likable person. Honesty is a powerful tool.

[@thsguy259]

Juho Laaksonen I first read that as “honestly he is a powerful tool.” Threw me off for a sec lol

[@thehumanistisin9924]

Juho Laaksonen to which "Paul" are you referring to? I think that this requires some clarification, given the replies to your comment.

[@kevincorvus3298]

@Jubei Yang I personally know multiple people named Paul, so I'm completely certain you are incorrect.

[@thehumanistisin9924]

@Jubei Yang I was not talking to you.

[@bdf2718]

As opposed to WLC, who is just a tool.

[@knutthompson7879]

My search for supernatural truth ended with a campus preacher earnestly presenting the watchmaker argument and Pascal's wager to me and acting like he completely nailed it. All I could think was, "Wow, that's all he's got?"

[@stylis666]

Mine started with trying to explain how lives get entangled and wishes sometimes come true. It ended when I started to understand causality better. That's also where my fascination with chaos and quantum theory started. Throw a little interest in biology and psychology in the mix and all superstition will die quickly. At first I was afraid to see the world as factual and to see it lose all beauty. As it turns out, the more I learn, the more amazing and beautiful reality is. Not only that, I now have much more control over it. Knowledge = freedom.

[@RiordanJohn]

It should start with your own introspection and logic.

[@JayMaverick]

The Spiderman / New York analogy is so accurate, I love it. I also love the standard response that some religious people give to that analogy "But we know that Spiderman is a made up character." Like yeah dude that's exactly the point.

[@michaelsommers2356]

Troy exists, therefore Zeus exists.

[@sdozer1990]

Wait! Spiderman is a made up character?........ *Cries like a baby* :(

[@pleaseenteraname1103]

Actually it’s a complete strawman.

[@bbelindamorris6384]

Pleasernteraname1103 Which is a complete strawman?

[@LogicAndReason2025]

Why I'm not xtain: A god who sacrifices himself (temporarily), to himself, to save his creation from himself, is a non-starter. No need to go any further.

[@historicalbiblicalresearch8440]

The idea that the way only for God to forgive us for our sins is to sacrifice his only son is such nonsense but we can start earlier than that with the equally illogical story of Adam and Eve

[@riplettuce8076]

@@historicalbiblicalresearch8440 Illogical but doesn't matter since that story is impossible and has no evidence for it

[@sonnythecuckoobird650]

I don’t think that’s a good explanation of Christianity

[@brianmi40]

@@sonnythecuckoobird650 It's not an "explanation" of Christianity. It's a tenet of their beliefs that is utter BS upon simple honest examination, just like most every one of their beliefs. Jesus was DEAD WRONG in proclaiming the "mustard seed is the tiniest", as any son of the creator, or worse, the actual creator in human form, would well know. Orchids were cultivated for 100 prior to that time in the Middle East and the seed IS TINIER. That is but ONE EXAMPLE of all the failures that believers are unaware of, or never investigate to even try to confirm that what they believe is based upon DEMONSTRABLE TRUTH. Then there's "god" promoting slavery in the bible and handing down LAWS that allow any slave owner to beat their slave to death, Paul supporting this slavery in his "letters", "god" committing unspeakable acts of genocide, the subjugation of women by the church, the fact that Evolution has disproven any Garden of Eden origin of man, which when wiped away means NO original sin and no need for Jesus to "wipe clean our sins" at all. As stated, it is a House of Cards that falls apart on even the most basic honest examination.

[@sonnythecuckoobird650]

@@brianmi40 dunno dude, I’m not christian but it seems like u misunderstood Christianity and have a false idea of it

[@1991stratplus]

i am not a Christian for the same reason i am not a Muslim, i just don't believe it.

[@0x777]

That's also my problem: I cannot believe. I can follow an argument and consider it valid, but for that it has to be consistent with reality. Unfortunately the holy books I have encountered are not. And if there is a god, I'm fairly sure he wouldn't be happy if I just pretend to believe. I, for one, would be quite angry if I was a god, and omniscient and hence know whether someone is really worshiping me, and notice that someone is just going through the motions without actually believing in me. So if I'm damned either way, either for not believing and not doing anything or for not believing and pretending to do so, I can as well avoid the busywork.

[@firstaidsack]

@@0x777 I find it fortunate that these holy books are not consistent with reality :D

[@SnakeWasRight]

Queue "but christianity, unlike Islam is actually consistent!"

[@michaelsayad5085]

@@0x777 "I can follow an argument and consider it valid, but for that it has to be consistent with reality." How is God's existence not consistent with reality? The majority of people believe in the objectivity of moral value. If God does not exist, then objective moral value does not exist. Therefore, the existence of God is consistent with reality or at the very least our perceptions of reality.

[@0x777]

@@michaelsayad5085 If the bible is one thing, then not consistent with what most people consider moral. At least if you're at least critical to the idea of genocide.

[@FGuilt]

The fact that those ancient naturalists were able to deduce what they did with as little equipment and technology as they had baffles me. the fact that so many of our fellow humanoid apes TODAY with all we have, access to knowledge, technology, and awareness of history who demonstrate greater ignorance than our ancient counterparts also baffles me...and makes me sad.

[@machintelligence]

I fear you are exhibiting the fallacy of survivor bias. Survivorship bias or survival bias is the logical error of concentrating on the people or things that made it past some selection process and overlooking those that did not. There were plenty of miserably wrong deductions, some of which persist to this day. If you only consider the ones that conform to our current view of the world, and ignore all of the wrong ones, you get a biased view of the ancient philosophers.

[@FGuilt]

@@machintelligence I don't think you understand my overall point. back then, EVERYone was ignorant to a level we can't comprehend. even then these men were able to deduce what they did, which is amazing. today however, NO one is nearly as ignorant as they were back then (although he he...that may be debatable). back in the day, not only were most everyone illiterate, special schools were literally the only place to learn things such as Pythagoras' school or ancient universities or monasteries etc. correct information was terrifyingly scarce. today, with all the vast knowledge and access to knowledge we have people STILL display ignorance to an embarrassing level and there's simply no excuse for it. EVERYone in antiquity can be excused for having dumb beliefs about how the universe works. NO ONE today has any excuse for this level of stupidity.

[@Sesuaki19]

​@@machintelligence Yeah, aristotle had some questionable views of animals and chemistry

[@kellypearsall7490]

I like the analogy of the house of cards. After my deconversion I told people I always knew Christianity was a house of cards that stands or falls with the Bible. Once I was shown errors in the Bible, the house of cards fell.

[@LuminesBreezer--]

Upon my deconversion, with time did I see the bible as a book full of fanfiction taken too seriously amongst people around the world. And by far over the course of years and so on will it only remain this way.

[@ronferrante2486]

Thomas Paine - "The Age of Reason, Part Second" was my bible exit! The man is a post-mortem hero to me!

[@wildmohn2457]

WORD

[@trybunt]

I am not a Christian because the entire story is literally unbelievable to me. I was raised by a mother who believed in ghosts, psychic powers, and all sorts of supernatural phenomena, but she was intellectually honest enough to say "I don't know" when I asked about what happens when people die. I was told that different people believe different things, that I should look at the world with an open mind, and decide for myself. Of course the biblical story appealed to me, a powerful god, eternal happiness after death, but the problem is that I can't make myself believe. I don't control my beliefs, I simple absorb information, and beliefs are formed consequently. Some one says "it's raining" I lool outside, see rain, and believe it's raining. This is a very important point, because the entire biblical story hinges on the fact that belief is the key to salvation, but I was faced with the paradoxical position that apparently a loving god created a completely unfair system, which punishes people for something they have absolutely no control over, their beliefs.

[@2fast2block]

So if it is unbelievable, how did you make it past the first verse about God creating? Real science says nothing does nothing. Real science says if there was something there already it must fit with the evidence of what we know. We know the 1LT says there's a conservation of energy. It can change forms and neither can be created or destroyed. Creation cannot happen by natural means. The 2LT has various aspects, one being the universe is winding down, entropy. Usable energy is becoming less usable, so at one point usable energy was at its max. This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. When I read how it can happen otherwise, ALL the fools resort to science-fiction. Once a supernatural creation is accepted, then the next step is finding proof of what supernatural power did it.

[@montagdp]

Exactly. And I will add one more point to your summary: Jesus himself almost certainly didn't say that you need to believe he is the Son of God to be saved. If he didn't say you need to believe that, why should any follower of his think you need to? This isn't the religion _of_ Jesus, it's a religion _about_ Jesus that only appeared after his death.

[@baloyishane3223]

Jesus said it that if you believe that his the Christ, you shall be saved and your sins shall be forgiven.

[@dionnabass1699]

​@@baloyishane3223 yep

[@NaifYooobi-nw3xf]

اليهود حرفوا الدين بعد موت المسيح وجعلوه إله والحقيقة انه نبي

[@sandakureva]

I feel like even if Dr. Craig watched this video, he'd still misrepresent your positions unfortunately.

[@insnprsn]

With a never ending all you can eat word salad of bullshit fallacies impersonating reason.

[@fred_derf]

Well he misrepresents everything else, so I think that's a fair prediction.

[@FangtheDragoon]

maybe, but it's still best to give him the opportunity to be honest, even if he fails to take advantage. if he isn't given the opportunity to learn a position, he can't be expected to know it

[@barbaraannen3340]

bc lying for jesus is exempt from the ten commandments

[@Heretical_Theology]

As a Christian who has seen him debate, I would agree it's probable that he would indeed.

[@davemaier68]

“I wake up every day, every single day, in a world where the majority of people believe in batshit crazy stuff, that is also evil, and contributes to the destruction of society...” - Matt Dillahunty, The Atheist Experience 23.25, 6/16/19. (Timestamp 55 : 02)

[@greggor07]

These stories are fascinating to me because I've never really been religious. I was also very lucky to have the kind of parents who when I asked if God existed, told me they didn't know and literally asked me: what do you think? They also told me that some people believe, some don't and encouraged me to decide for myself. I did try to be a Christian for a while, but just couldn't convince myself. The Bible didn't sit well with me to say the least. Now one thing I am incredibly grateful to all of the atheist channels for, is getting me to finally stop declaring myself as a Christian and to start supporting the cause, especially when it comes to people recovering from religion. Without you guys that probably would not have happened, because in Denmark where I'm from, people often consider themselves cultural Christians even if they don't believe in any God, Christian or otherwise. Also religion here isn't a big deal one way or the other. Ps. Paul, you are such an amazing person!

[@eratoisyourmuse659]

Thank you for thatx story. I find as an atheist, I am surrounded by fellow believers who were once religious. Althought I understand where they are coming from, its not my experience. I grew up in a secular household and was never religious. This isnt my parents doing, because they believe a persons spiritual position is a decision of the person involved and no one else. My parents never tols me to be an atheist or not to believe in god, they just gave me the tools to observes claims and the woels around me: curiosity, critical thinking and love for knowledge... All knowledge I am a 3rd generationa athiest who raising my own kids.so

[@PyroSparton117]

Hi Paul I love you and your videos have a great day!!! Much love from the Deep South!

[@cyclenut]

Deep South as in bible belt? Where everyone SAYS they are a christian?

[@PyroSparton117]

Paul Hayden and the people who do say they are don’t even remotely act it? Yep. That far south.

[@jimlemoine7460]

1. Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? - Then he is not omnipotent. 2. Is he able, but not willing? - Then he is malevolent. 3. Is he both able and willing? - Then whence cometh evil? 4. Is he neither able nor willing? - Then why call him God? ~ Epicurus

[@Lumine777produccines]

False dilemma. Perhaps you should try something more interesting like the natural problem of evil, but it is not something that we Christians cannot answer.

[@Lumine777produccines]

@Smarticus Well, this is a non sequitur at all if splendour. And I do not want to be rude, but it is extremely pathetic affirm that God is limited in relation to the absurd logic that these exemplifying The paradox of omnipotence shows that you don't take into account what omnipotence is, it's not doing EVERYTHING do you. So, "your unanswered question" is nothing more than careless reasoning regarding God's attributes. Stop seeing Aron Ra and Paulogia, because these “character” make the same regurgitated internet arguments, not academy. I recommend you to seek real objections to Christianity like Graham oppy's or Bart Erhman's (Some).

[@danteanise3013]

I discovered your channel about 6 months ago. I just want to say that you are an inspiration. I look back and I can say that I have been an agnostic atheist most if not all of my life but because of my situation I would sometimes struggle with my wish to want to belive and the reality that could not. I would think, "Everyone one else does so why I can't I?" I just could not. I even became a Baha'i in my attempts but alas reality kept calling. While I do not make any videos myself you and others like Viced Rhino keep making me think I should. 🤔 Thank you for work, your honesty, your intelligence, your integrity, and your humor.

[@Thezuule1]

Why I'm not a Christian: Because it isn't true.

[@firstaidsack]

So you're not a Christian because you believe that Christianity isn't true? So you're not a Christian because you're not a Christian?

[@EstrellaViajeViajero]

@@firstaidsack He didn't use the word "believe". Of course, even though Christianity isn't true, a lot of people believe it. I think implicit in his statement is the assumption that he values truth and will seek to know it.

[@peachbun]

God is real, loves you, offers eternal salvation. You're not a random speck. Prove that it's not true rather than believing assumptions.

[@jmincks74]

Tracey M you......you want him to prove a negative? Do you know why that’s not possible? Do you know how messed up our legal system would be if we had to prove our innocence, rather than someone proving our guilt? The burden of proof is on you (theists) to prove the existence of God and the biblical Jesus, not on Atheists to prove they aren’t true.

[@peachbun]

@@EstrellaViajeViajero I can say even though darwinism isn't true, a lot of people believe it. What is truth when you don't have all the answers and still have to have faith one way or another?

[@FatAlbert-444]

I was a Christian before the video now I’m an even stronger Christian

[@FatAlbert-444]

@@BenJones-tn4yo cool

[@Johnathan1800]

Nobody cares

[@thefonzies6895]

It makes you comfortable. You should believe in Spiderman as well. Ninja Turtles and X-Men are real too. Indoctrination is one helluva drug. Grown people who supposed to be smart will believe anything. I guess it allows laziness too. Just believing gets you into heaven that's the way the european colonizers wanted it while they were enslaving and unaliving the whole planet for resources. If this Jesus and he'll was so real why was Christopher Columbus King Leopold doing what they were doing 😂😂

[@thsguy259]

I am disgusted and appalled that you would dare insinuate that the great Abraham Lincoln was not a Vampire Hunter. Good sir, I expect a full redaction.

[@borttorbbq2556]

That was a surprisingly good movie

[@borttorbbq2556]

@Smarticus its not bad its worth seeing least once not worth buying but ya

[@Emiliapocalypse]

Well I don’t see any vampires around, so that’s proof enough for me 🤷‍♀️

[@theentiretyofhumanity8679]

@@Emiliapocalypse I don't know sounds like something a vampire would say

[@Balstrome1]

I wonder if Paulogia understands how scary the things he talks about in this video are to believers?

[@borttorbbq2556]

I imagine he does

[@oscargr_]

He understands.

[@fish4souls3]

Believer here, not scared at all. Just disagree.

[@TheDizzleHawke]

It’s not so much fear as it is denial. When I was a Christian, these things didn’t scare me because I was convinced that my beliefs were true. Christians are programmed to dismiss any and all counter arguments as blasphemy or the “work of Satan.”

[@brianmi40]

@@fish4souls3 Noteworthy that you present no counter arguments tho. typical. It's as if all of you recognize that if you DID honestly engage in rational discussion, your faith would end up in the toilet. I've had literally hundreds of discussions with believers who may engage for a moment of two, but then disappear as soon as it gets too uncomfortable for them. Paul is spot on with Truth has nothing to fear from Facts. It's just that the overwhelming majority of you could care less that what you believe is demonstrably true. It's simply human nature to rationalize to any extent necessary to maintain your beliefs, and only the rare person is willing to be honest with themselves enough to face Facts and be willing to change their beliefs to comport with reality. Paul was one of those in the minority.

[@marlie4872]

I was never really Christian, but I became 100% atheist when I watched a Christopher Hitchens debate.

[@TheFunGun5]

@Doctor Drywell In retrospect, a vast majority of those 100,000 were most likely theist. So I guess he won in the end.

[@TheFunGun5]

@Graham Hancucked Imagen being so damn butthurt that you can't even tell when someone is agreeing with you using dark humor. Holy shit man try and be less triggered all the fucking time.

[@michaelgordon264]

Hitch slap.. aww yeah.

[@bilalhussein9730]

So sophistry convinced you? It's odd that William Lane Craig, a respected professional philosopher, is accused of word salad to hide bad arguments but atheists not only agree with but defend Hitchens doing exactly that. Confirmation bias is truly incredible.

[@SNORKYMEDIA]

@@bilalhussein9730 wlc uses the kalam to prove God when God is not mentioned in the premises or the conclusion.

[@donsample1002]

Even if it was true, the sort of character ascribed to God by most Christians isn't worthy of worship.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Monstrous is what I would describe God has

[@mandarinablue8438]

The worst serial killers are not as bad as He would be.

[@borttorbbq2556]

@@mandarinablue8438 you know only innumerable numbers of serial killers have done it for God

[@ethancswartz3657]

Paul I'm a Christian and I love how you make people think as it is necessary for faith. I give you the thumbs up for calling out Christians for overstating their claims and speaking against their careless and poorly thought out responses. Though I don't agree with everything you say I like that you make me and others think. I will still pray for you but in these areas I mentioned it has believe it or not grown my faith and made me confront certain areas of questioning giving me a better conclusion on why I believe in Jesus.

[@2fast2block]

You're such a doofus for even thinking Paul makes people think. He's a joke. How did he get around the first verses of the bible with God creating and giving life? Real science says nothing does nothing. Real science says if there was something there already it must fit with the evidence of what we know. We know the 1LT says there's a conservation of energy. It can change forms and neither can be created or destroyed. Creation cannot happen by natural means. The 2LT has various aspects, one being the universe is winding down, entropy. Usable energy is becoming less usable, so at one point usable energy was at its max. This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. When I read how it can happen otherwise, ALL the fools resort to science-fiction. Once a supernatural creation is accepted, then the next step is finding proof of what supernatural power did it. We KNOW these laws. We have NO doubts about them. We also KNOW that the laws of nature can't come about without a Lawgiver, God. So if you want to pretend to be smart, please give me the laugh by giving your science how creation really happened by natural means. Also, throw in how we got the laws of nature, naturally. Life only comes from life. Law of biogenesis. God is the reason for us and all we have. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJqwoq2ElL6Gjrc The odds are NOT there. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jWLCfHiMlqisl6M kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4icmJStr79_qc0 kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpXEooarqdlol9k

[@todmorrison2056]

I get so excited when I get your notification of your new video. So thank you for all you. Much Love and Respect good sir. Look forward to the next one.

[@ShannonQ]

I fall more in love with you every day

[@staticinteger]

Awe! So sweet ^-^ Love you both!

[@maingun07]

(note: grumpy old man speak) You two are so cute. Nauseatingly cute. Never change.

[@Wistful77]

@@maingun07 I read that to myself in Rick Sanchez' voice. Hehehehehehe

[@evolutionisalie1576]

Shannon Q wait. Are you two together now? I thought that he had kids and a wife. Maybe I’m just confused.

[@terrym45]

Could you fall for a 74 year old with 2 cancers, some hair loss, a little lame (chemo) I volunteer but great personality. Don’t tell my wife. We could run away to Tahiti. 🤪🤪 You both are fantastic and and inspiration

[@meghanworkman6449]

While I have some additional reasons why I'm not a Christian anymore, I agree with all of yours presented here and I arrived at my conclusions in the same way you did: by seeking honest answers and the best arguments on both sides of the issue. When I stepped back and examined the evidence (or lack thereof) that I found, my Christian house of cards crumbled.

[@DutchJoan]

Thanks for sharing your personal deconversion story/path as a whole. Your videos are always a pleasure to watch and listen to, and this one is no exception. I know the former religiosity of deconverted people is criticized with all the wrong non-arguments ad nauseam. Really have to admire your composure.

[@ColinTimmins]

I like to thank you for your videos, they are clear and to the point. Growing up I had friends who were very religious and their father tried hard to push his views on me. Being a kid, I found it uncomfortable. I kind of wanted to believe but in the end what was told to me didn't add up. It would be nice to be comfortable in death, but that doesn't make it true. Increasing my knowledge of the world around me, comforts me in the fact that I know what the truth is...

[@LarkLaTroy]

Mr. Craig and others actually don't care about your reasons. They only care that you are sharing your lack of belief because you are helping to reduce the funds in their coffers and their control over others. This is why they have to try to shut down the conversation, and do not give a rat's tail about your VALID research. We appreciate your candor, and Mr. Craig and his ilk can go play in traffic.

[@Zethneralith]

As an ex-Christian, I can say that it's very likely that apologists are *not* motivated by greed or power when they argue against "unbelief." They genuinely believe that they are doing what their god wants them to do, that they will be rewarded in the end, and that they are doing the world a favor by spreading the "truth." It's sad, but well-intended. That said, there likely is a sub-conscious urge not to have to deal with the cognitive dissonance that arises from finding blatantly true evidence that disagrees with the world view you've built your entire life around. This was a painful, but necessary, struggle for myself, as well. (For background, I spent the first 29 years of my life as a fundamentalist Christian.)

[@LarkLaTroy]

@@Zethneralith I would have to disagree. I spent 35 years as a fundigelical, raised in it, groomed to be a pastor for it, educated in it. While there may be some that believe they are doing gods work, I can tell you from first-hand experience, not the ones I was involved with. Greed was an enormous driving force, it is the top reason to sell, sell, sell, that xtian faith. Fill those pews so more money can be collected. The pastor needs a new Caddie, this one is a year old. Pastor needs a bigger house, better suits, expensive watches, and so much more. Then, there is a huge control aspect. The problem with theism is it is a broken system, from the top down, those in power, want more power, and they get that power by controlling as much as possible the lives of the sheep. The xtian religion held sway in this country for about 300 years, that is including the time of the colonies. In the past 30 years, that power has waned, and they have not adapted to the loss of power, so the push even harder to fill those pews, with more willing sheep to fleece. There is an excellent blog over on Patheos call Roll to Disbelieve: www.patheos.com/blogs/rolltodisbelieve/ Check it out, Capt. Cassidy is an excellent writer and describes in great detail how and why the fundigelical theism is broken, and what is happening because of it. There is a reason why nones now outnumber evangelicals, and the evangelicals are at a loss on how to stop the churn. Xtianity is dying in the west, and the loss of members, money, and control are the reasons why it is dying. I couldn't be happier.

[@japexican007]

all of man is evil, what does mans shortcomings have to do with God and his glory? causation is not correlation, yet every atheists does this

[@Zethneralith]

​@@japexican007 I'm not sure I'm following. What exactly are you saying (in this case) is correlated, but not a causal link?

[@japexican007]

@@Zethneralith God said man's heart is continually evil, you guys are saying Christians have selfish motives, why is that a case against Christianity when this proves what God says, you're correlating selfish Christians to Christianity which makes no sense, causation does not equal correlation, do you understand now?

[@a.d.6230]

My only regret is that I can only "👍" this video once. Powerful, gentle, and to the point.

[@Paulogia]

Thanks, AD! Means much.

[@taiwanisacountry]

Sending love from Shanghai, and no I am not Chinese, but Danish. But hey the edducation must go on. 👍 As always great work. Love it every time you make a video.

[@graveseeker]

Never would have guessed from your name. lol

[@jahipalmer8782]

My first domino was: as I read through the bible as an (moderately) intelligent youth, no one could explain to me why what the bible said didn't match up with the deacon's explainations. Later it became why what the bible said didn't match up with the scholars' interperetations of it. Eventually I wondered why god was hiding from me behind flawed men...

[@2fast2block]

It's YOU hiding from the evidence. How did you get around the first verses of the bible with God creating and giving life? Real science says nothing does nothing. Real science says if there was something there already it must fit with the evidence of what we know. We know the 1LT says there's a conservation of energy. It can change forms and neither can be created or destroyed. Creation cannot happen by natural means. The 2LT has various aspects, one being the universe is winding down, entropy. Usable energy is becoming less usable, so at one point usable energy was at its max. This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. When I read how it can happen otherwise, ALL the fools resort to science-fiction. Once a supernatural creation is accepted, then the next step is finding proof of what supernatural power did it. We KNOW these laws. We have NO doubts about them. We also KNOW that the laws of nature can't come about without a Lawgiver, God. So if you want to pretend to be smart, please give me the laugh by giving your science how creation really happened by natural means. Also, throw in how we got the laws of nature, naturally. Life only comes from life. Law of biogenesis. God is the reason for us and all we have. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJqwoq2ElL6Gjrc The odds are NOT there. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jWLCfHiMlqisl6M kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4icmJStr79_qc0 kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpXEooarqdlol9k

[@boink666]

I like the PureFlix commercials. I hope they pay you well, Paul. Earth Bless!

[@jamesdownard1510]

As usual, love your direct honesty and clarity, Paul. For contrast, I came from a secular family so had no faith to let go of, but my not becoming a Christian stemmed from a somewhat shorter path. First, reading the Bible in Sunday school (mom sent all us kids to one so we could decide for ourselves) ended up ruling out the Bible as a coherent candidate for being true. Too many contradictions. Years later I found William James had already summed things up better than I could: "I don't know how belief in the divine authorship of the Bible can survive the reading of it." The next step was that Resurrection matter (that virtually all apologists play as their main card). As I expressed it in my old TIP chapter, if the Resurrection happened, how come the Parousia didn't? Since it didn't, and given the aforementioned textual problems, it is more likely that the Resurrection tales are not as advertised after all. After all that, the "Origins or Bust" attempt to "slip God through customs without declaring him" (as Christopher Hitchens once put it in a debate with the ever-sanctimonious Dinesh D'Souza) means the whole anthropic fine tuning why is there something rather than nothing trick is irrelevant if none of the observable candidates are likely on their own merits. That's my path, anyway.

[@ElSnakeObwb]

Your story seems like a carbon copy of mine almost 40 years ago. Well done squeezing it into a handy easy to understand summary.

[@DBCisco]

Note that all an honest historian can say about "Paul's seven letters" is that they appear to be written by the same person. No date (first mention of the letters is attributed Marcion circa 130 AD) or authorship can be determined. Also, Acts was not written by "Paul" and is addressed to Theophilus of Antioch (Acts 1) who lived circa 180 AD.

[@michaelsommers2356]

It's addressed to someone named Theophilus. There is no way to tell which Theophilus. That name was not unique.

[@DBCisco]

@@michaelsommers2356 The name is very unique. If someone wrote to a Barack about Health Insurance, would you claim it could be anyone in the American Revolution. Please shove your religious bias up your ass.

[@kenchristiansen2080]

The main reason that I am an atheist is because God makes no sense. An all knowing God create a a universe that it knows in advance will be flawed. An all loving God allows people to be tortured for eternity for the most arbitrary reasons ever. An all powerful God can't or won't protect children. Matter of fact, it used children to hurt pharaoh after it hardened Pharaoh's heart so pharaoh couldn't do what God wanted.

[@graveseeker]

You're talking about the biblical god but...yeah. Why would an omni-god create such a fucked up Universe thereby making itself less omni? Makes no sense.

[@Boatman607]

Ken, God developed perfect Human beings. He gives the Human race free will. It is the sinfulness of Humans that create the ugliness of the world. It is a personal choice of each person to be sinful or not to be. God gives each individual the right to choose in a free world to choose His way of living or to choose other wise. This is a free choice. I am sure that a person who wishes to reject the teaching of Jesus Christ, that Heaven would be a living hell for them. I refer to 'The Hitch' for the ideology. Hell is described as existing outside of the presence of God which is freely and deliberately chosen. Jesus to be clear, God does not choose those this option for us or impose it on any soul. it is freely chosen. In fact God came among us to give us the way to Him. He desires the best for us. As for the Bible, it is made up of 76 different books, so its more like a library that just a book. It is an extremely complex and difficult book, which is often taken out of context.

[@graveseeker]

@@Boatman607 That is such idiotic drivel. The human body is not and never has been perfect. It is the mishmash of 100,000+ years of chromosomal changes produced by severe environments and by sociological pressures. If there is a creator god, it looks nothing like us and it is not as nice. There was no Adam and Eve, no Abraham, no Noah and no son. There was no creation (no flat Earth covered by a dome), no apple, no flood, no tablets, no snake, n fish, no donkey and no resurrection. The book you worship has no more reality between its covers than does The Lord of the Rings. There are no witches/sorcerers to kill nor is there any reason to kill infidels or apostates. Keeping slaves is immoral and no god would condone it...it would also have the decency to teach man to wash his hands before eating and that mosquitos carry deadly diseases. No god worth worshiping would create a carrot/stick system to keep fools in line nor would it send fallen, evil angels to this speck of rock in the Universe. Either read that book for understanding or burn it.

[@Boatman607]

@@graveseeker I think, therefore I am.......The Human race is unique, each individual is unique, each human mind is unique.......and perfect in their own right. In the entirety of the entire universe the human is unique. The uniqueness of our individual creativity give us to question our origins. To suggest that it just happened betrays our ability to analyse our origins. Christianity and Science are not in conflict. The Bible is made of 76 books, there are a variety of types of books contained within the 76. The Bible is intended to be read on a book by book basis rather that just referring to the Bible as a single book.

[@graveseeker]

@@Boatman607 I have no clue what you're talking about. How the hell do you know how the Bible is intended to be read? How do you know that you're interpreting correctly? How do you know that anything in it is from a god? A great deal of evil has been done in the name of that book, are you sure they're not interpreting it correctly? I think we're done here.

[@NotCapitalist]

It's crazy how closely your story parallels my own. Hard to believe you've only been at it for 3 years! Keep up the awesome work, man!

[@NonstopRam]

The story of Jephthah was the final hit that caused me to not be a Christian. Judges 11 is is his story. And Hebrews 11 verse 32 is his praise.

[@stylis666]

Happy are the ones who seize the little kids and dash their heads upon the rocks, happy are the ones who seize the little kids and dash their heads upon the rocks, happy are the ones who seize the little kids and dash their heads upon the rocks! Glory to The LOOOOORD! Glory, glory, halleluuuuuuyaaaaaa, etc. :p The sentence is too long, but it works out this way. Just try it :p If you count the beats, you'll get 11, which is pretty neat. I bet you never thought you could sing in 11/8ths :p ALSO!!! PRIME! :D Just for swag :p

[@alanw505]

For me I can sum up my deconversion as a fairly long process of asking the hard questions, not getting any satisfactory answers, then heavily suspecting something was seriously wrong. Once I had a working understanding of what science is, what it's not, how it works, and what its methods are my deconversion was accelerated. Today I completely understand that no one in human history came back to life after being dead for three consecutive days and then physically levitated into the clouds. Claims of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus are not evidence for a miracle, they are evidence of a big lie.

[@guest578]

I'd like to have a shot at answering your hard questions.

[@pjosephlthewonder5082]

At 13 I was removed from the Holy Roman Catholic Church in a former (families home not mine) town I grew up in. I was accused of heresy and attacks against the Almighty Word of God. What it was all about, still to this day I do not understand how four different almighty books about the same thing said four different things. The very next day I was ordered by my father to read the bible from cover to cover, other then homework from school I was to read nothing else. My mother gave me a pencil and note book to write down what I learned. By the end of the year, I discovered that even though it was the book of the almighty it was almighty wrong, contradicting and inaccurate in so many ways that I was even more convened Science was the answer. I went on living with them, and at eighteen I went into the USN, where I learned there are a lot of lies about the lies and the books of religion. I truly do not think I was anything other then a atheist to begin with, but feel that the illusion was better when I was not able to read then after. Peace

[@adm0iii]

My reasons are mostly based just on Paulogia's 1st: God is unnecessary. Science doesn't "deny" God, it just avoids anything supernatural, because studying the methods of supernatural events are counter-productive; we can't use those methods, _by definition._ Science must avoid anything supernatural to be useful. God is just one of countless supernatural methods that science drops as useless. And yet science remains useful, and becomes ever more useful with each passing year. God is not _just_ unnecessary, God is an active hindrance. You can personally believe in God if that gives you comfort -- just don't use God to rule your logic and reasoning.

[@MendTheWorld]

Bear Mro _nor_ to rule my country (a reliable way of making a country UN-GREAT).

[@Wistful77]

Great comment. 👏

[@MarkAhlquist]

​@Discipulus I made it about halfway through that sentence before it all went to shit.

[@YY4Me133]

@Discipulus Okay, how about this? There exists no credible evidence that supports your assertions.

[@boterlettersukkel]

@Discipulus Provide EVIDENCE for a god. ANY god will do. Just take your pick out of the 5000+ humans have invented. Remember EVIDENCE. no arguments. They are all flawed and debunked.

[@Oswlek]

I think we need to be careful about how the term "natural" is used in these discussions, because atheists often unwittingly concede robustness to the natural/supernatural divide that isn't really there. For instance, if we uncover souls tomorrow, would that be a discovery of the supernatural or "just" a heretofore undiscovered natural entity? How do we tell the difference? What characteristics distinguish each? A little pondering quickly exposes that it isn't definition or substance that excludes gods or souls from the "natural"; it's a convention drawn from experience. Had we been encountering them for the past few millennia, they would be considered just as natural as birds and trees. The problems remain if we use definitions that paint a stronger divide. In every other context not-natural involves some form of artifice, so we'll use that here. Well, guess what? If there is a theistic god and it created everything, then everything - including us - is supernatural. If there is no god, then everything is natural. So you end up with a tautological usage that does nothing to enhance communication. Only if there is a god and some things are out of its control does this distinction offer any value. I'm sure there are usages for "natural" and "supernatural" that are just fine, but they only work when describing differing aspects of reality, like classical and quantum. As far as I can tell, once you point those terms at reality itself, they all run into similar problems.

[@Marconius6]

We find that everything in natural obeys the same (natural) laws. If we found something that doesn't, we would call that supernatural. It's basically a categorical divide between "things that obey these laws" and everything else. Of course it's entirely possible there are things or areas or entities that follow different laws. We could gather all those into a different category, and call them something else, but we could still distinguish them.

[@areliablesource2848]

Paul, thank you for your "summary". I was nodding my head up and down agreeing with each and every point.

[@matthewchiapete2723]

I was born as a cradle Catholic and went to Sunday school up to the 5th grade. Then I had Protestant beliefs up to age 25, went New Age for about 3 to 4 years and was directed back to the Catholic Church. What directed me back to God, was adoration and experiencing the presence of God through the Holy Eucharist located in the monstrance. Today I am a Catholic and want to tell everyone that there is a God and he is very real. I encourage everyone reading this to at least go to an adoration chapel containing the Holy Eucharist inside of a monstrance for one hour.

[@christianfasy]

Lovely video. Honest and deeply felt as always. However, the term to use is "Rube Goldberg", not Goldbrick. Rube was a great and inventive American cartoonist whose work is imaginative and inspiring.

[@jamesneace5559]

Thank you for saying this better than I could. :)

[@bdf2718]

Hearth Robertson would disagree with you. :)

[@michaelgordon264]

He fixed that. Scroll up.

[@laurajarrell6187]

Pauogia, beautifully and succinctly put. And, I've always loved the music! A bit Celtic sounding. Though, of course, the hamm and aigs theme is perfect for those videos!, 👏💝☮️🎃

[@PartRobotmusic]

"I'm still waiting for solid evidence of a miracle that is somehow distinguishable from mere low probability" so.well.said 🤯

[@BitOBear]

My experience is the opposite of most. I woke up one morning to the thought "That doesn't make any sense" (actual first thought on waking in exact words). I went to sleep a devout "new covenant" christian and woke up to find it all re-filed as mythology. My joke is that I experienced a holy revelation that nothing holy existed to reveal things to anybody.

[@Emiliapocalypse]

BitOBear that’s fascinating. interesting what our subconscious minds get up to while we’re asleep 😴

[@42and19]

Ken Ham was my first domino as well. I sent him an email once about a legitimate question I had about an argument he put in one of his books. It was that a passage in Peter states that all suffering came to earth after Adam ate the apple and thus young-earth creationism is the only option. I pointed out that if that is true then wouldn't it also follow that salvation is available to all animals? That seemed to be how it reads or is the translation in error? He responded that I was going to hell if I didn't believe in a 6-day creation account.

[@barbiquearea]

Yep that's the Christian position. When in doubt always keep in mind that you're going to hell for doubting.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Sigh....

[@BAZZAROU812]

It's best not to engage the mentally ill..

[@JamesRichardWiley]

The Hebrew god Yahweh thought up the forbidden fruit sting operation against Adam and Eve. Then he dragged Satan out of hell and forced him to participate. Afterward he pretended he was the wounded victim. What a guy.

[@borttorbbq2556]

@@JamesRichardWiley huh? That's a weird

[@thehumanistisin9924]

I plan to make a similar video as to why I am no longer Christian. Yet I came to a slightly different result. The presentation of this video has helped me greatly. Thank you @Paulogia .

[@SnakeWasRight]

Why I'm not a Christian: if it were true it would already be science. Doesnt take 2,000 years to verify something that's supposedly already verifiable.

[@youtubeviewer7065]

christianity and the right wing are both cancer

[@roqsteady5290]

Yeah, after 2k years there isn't a single replicable observation of any deity - not a good sign.

[@SnakeWasRight]

@@youtubeviewer7065 and the left wing, and all religions

[@thinboxdictator6720]

that's weird. you want to have a discussion, yet you are not blocking comments.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Christian apologetics can't show the other side

[@bdf2718]

That's subtle. Harsh, but subtle. And the likes of WLC deserve every bit of your harshness.

[@Forest_Fifer]

Yup I guess hes definitely no longer a Christian

[@Paulogia]

ha ha ha ha ha

[@borttorbbq2556]

@@Paulogia hi paul

[@bartbuckel6714]

Never gets old watching this one.

[@__Andrew]

You really hit the nail on the head with one of my issues with religion. Preachers know, and even are taught, that some of the things in the bible are not true, yet they _NEVER_ let their congregation on to that information. They intentionally hide it, and we all know why. And at the very least it's disrespectful. A couple years back i had a conversation with a guy and i talked about how there is zero actual evidence for Exodus. The guy i was talking to denied the lack of evidence and even went to his preacher to talk about this. And to his surprise his preacher confessed to him that there was no evidence and it probably didn't happen. But never in the decades of going to church did that preacher _ever_ tell his congregation this _very_ important detail form the pulpit. Instead he hid it away. The dishonesty is disgusting.

[@Paulogia]

I'm not sure if I should be glad that I'm not alone or angry that it's so common. I'll go with angry.

[@__Andrew]

@@Paulogia Ya, this all goes back to how myself, and probably most people, were their most ignorant about the bible when they were Christians themselves. And it's at the fault most of the time of the priests and religious teachers (and us for taking the word of an authority without checking). Also there was another youtuber i think you knew about (i even want to say you linked to him at one point very early on for this video??), The Bearded Atheist, who actually had a video up where he talked to a priest and the priest basically said the same thing to him. That he did not actually believe everything in the bible but he taught it all the same on Sundays.

[@chrissonofpear1384]

Also, they seem really fine with how many differing interpretations churches have...

[@axer3515]

Most the former Christians turned atheist l have talked to tryed a couple different denominations before leaving faith behind.

[@roohif]

5:05 - When my oxygen saturation was about 75%, and the doctor asked me what my pain score was out of ten, I started explaining the nuances of high frequency trading, and minimising latency. They took me straight to ICU 🤣😂

[@Artifactsofmars]

Religion is a matter of faith, not reason.

[@fred_derf]

I'm an atheist for the same reason I'm an aSantaclauist and an aEasterBunnyist.

[@matthewlallinger9603]

-Christopher Hitchens

[@MarcCastellsBallesta]

"It's the only way to be sure." I love how you quoted Lt. Ripley!

[@SalisburyKarateClub]

For me the start of becoming an atheist started with a Religious teacher, who tried to teach us Christianity, I asked a number of question which she had trouble answering. She finally told me to ignore the Old Testament, and just concentrate on the New Testament. That floored me, why would you tell a kid to ignore a huge portion of your book.

[@Shadowkitty360]

For me I think the most compelling evidence against an afterlife is the fact that the soul doesn't seem to exist. I think the studies of split brian patients and studies on brain damage, as they affect things like personality, are very enlightening.

[@parkernelson3775]

Well, by definition the soul exists on a spiritual plane, one which science (which is study of the natural world) would by definition not be able to detect or study

[@myjciskate4]

It’s amazing how similar Paulogia’s story is to mine. I really appreciate these types of videos.

[@Israel_Vazquez]

Well this guy is actually full of crap so does that make you full of crap as well?

[@myjciskate4]

Israel Vazquez What?

[@Israel_Vazquez]

@@myjciskate4 well he made false assertions throughout the entire video. He's totally clueless about the origins of the Bible. He is totally clueless about the archaeological evidence that supports the Bible. He made false assertions about the Gospels. He isn't concerned with evidence he's only regurgitating the consensus of those who oppose Christianity. When somebody actually pours over the data and the evidence they will find that Christianity is the most verifiable faith in the world

[@myjciskate4]

Israel Vazquez How does any bit of archeology prove the claims in the Bible? That is an insane logical leap I’m not willing to make. Does the fact that New York exists prove the existence of Spider-Man, or the marvel universe? Also, every time Christians point me to “archeology that proves the Bible” it usually ends up being pseudo-archeology by people who don’t have any credentials in the field. What false assertions did he make about the gospels? Literally no amount of historical evidence can support making the logical leap of believing in things that don’t have an implicit empirical basis. What data and evidence?

[@Israel_Vazquez]

@@myjciskate4 I said archaeology not geography. Were you that desperate to make the all too common Spider-Man analogy? Geez bro be original.

[@karlrschneider]

"Faith": A piss poor substitute for thinking.

[@philosophilia3563]

Well said.

[@mildredmartinez8843]

You are such a great presenter. Calm, cool and collected. No hype, no anger, no swear words. Love your videos.

[@2fast2block]

And....not much thought used. How did you get around the first verses of the bible with God creating and giving life? Real science says nothing does nothing. Real science says if there was something there already it must fit with the evidence of what we know. We know the 1LT says there's a conservation of energy. It can change forms and neither can be created or destroyed. Creation cannot happen by natural means. The 2LT has various aspects, one being the universe is winding down, entropy. Usable energy is becoming less usable, so at one point usable energy was at its max. This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. When I read how it can happen otherwise, ALL the fools resort to science-fiction. Once a supernatural creation is accepted, then the next step is finding proof of what supernatural power did it. We KNOW these laws. We have NO doubts about them. We also KNOW that the laws of nature can't come about without a Lawgiver, God. So if you want to pretend to be smart, please give me the laugh by giving your science how creation really happened by natural means. Also, throw in how we got the laws of nature, naturally. Life only comes from life. Law of biogenesis. God is the reason for us and all we have. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJqwoq2ElL6Gjrc The odds are NOT there. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jWLCfHiMlqisl6M kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4icmJStr79_qc0 kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpXEooarqdlol9k

[@mildredmartinez8843]

@@2fast2block This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. "This all points to a ..... is not evidence. You can cite all you want but show no evidence. This all points... is not evidence. What you are saying is, science cannot answer where life came from... therefore god. Sorry, that does not cut it.

[@2fast2block]

@@mildredmartinez8843 I need to inform your doofus tiny brain that you gave nothing to prove me wrong as you are so afraid of it you totally ignored it. It's what ALL you nitwits do in your empty lives going nowhere but doom.

[@MrMason283]

Paul, this is by far, my favorite channel on the tube. I love your honesty, and the time you invest into each argument you make. The love you have for your kids and your dedication to keeping this a clean channel for them to one day view is awesome. I fell away from christianity yrs before you did, but our paths were very similar. Best wishes (magical enchantments) to you and ShannonQ. The two of you are amazing people and one hell of a secular power couple on youtube.✌ I totally dig my ham and aig hoodie and have finally gotten that damn jingle out of my head...till next vid that is.

[@Paulogia]

Thank you so much for the kind words. Means much!

[@barbiquearea]

Don't forget having reading books and listening to the arguments from more renowned and most likely (more reasoned) atheists such as Dawkins and Hitchens really helped me throw off Christianity.

[@borttorbbq2556]

Bill Nye debates are really bad so just ignore those. Mostly just because he's not used to Compulsive Liars he's used to genuinely honest people

[@simongiles9749]

Having visited a cathedral for the first time in a while (I like mediaeval art and architecture), I had the sudden realisation that Christian imagery can be... pretty disturbed. Let's depict somebody being tortured to death and claim it's a joyous thing. Are you *sure* about that? I mean, *really*?

[@DBCisco]

I was raised without any religion. I am sooooo lucky.

[@jam5533]

Same here

[@stephentaylor6726]

Are you??? Being born into a religion isn't necessarily something that would be a negative character trait...Paul was born into Christianity, as was I and we both have grown and become bettwe people as part of our journey out of the faith and into a place where we can embrace science and philosophy. Being born into faith isn't a bad thing...failing to ask the questions that such faith demands is...

[@DBCisco]

@@stephentaylor6726 I have no religious baggage to lose. I feel bad for those who do.

[@stephentaylor6726]

@@DBCisco don't feel bad for me...I'm a better person for having gone through what I did in leaving my faith. Won't speak for anyone else but I suspect that many others who were raised religious and became atheists would say the same. My journey has given me tools that I continue to use in my life and I'm grateful for that...

[@DBCisco]

@@stephentaylor6726 You are one of the lucky ones. That's good !

[@merbst]

I am not a Christian because I don't like liars. I have observed every advocate of Christianity to derive pleasure from knowingly misleading others. This behavior is detestable to me.

[@lynneshale7443]

Bible contradictions got me started down the path. Damn the internet! Btw ShannonQs a lucky girl!

[@youtubeviewer7065]

what contradictions are there?

[@LuciferAlmighty]

@@youtubeviewer7065 there are many, look them up.

[@youtubeviewer7065]

Lucifer Almighty i've looked them up and they're all tiny things taken out of context

[@graveseeker]

@@youtubeviewer7065 You're speaking from faith, not from intelligence. Knowing the history of the Salem Witch Trials, 'Thou shall not suffer a witch to live' was all I needed to take that book out back and burn it. God is evil.

[@stevem7945]

@@youtubeviewer7065 you didn't look hard enough

[@quantumrobin4627]

That was fantastic Paul, WLC only dreams of being that open and intellectually honest.

[@YY4Me133]

Oh, I don't think he does. I don't think he values honesty, at all. If he did, he wouldn't have said that he would dismiss any actual evidence that goes against what he believes.

[@stylis666]

@@YY4Me133 I hope he does :p Imagine his terror! :p

[@5harpy]

Waited a while for you to make a vid like this, good stuff.

[@brunozeigerts6379]

The Odyssey and the Illiad contain numerous physical places and real people... so Zeus and the other gods were real?

[@borttorbbq2556]

Don't know man I don't see any Frost trolls around and Odin said he'd get rid of them

[@protoborg]

Dude, your timing with the Ridley clip was impressive. It's hard to synch up two video that well. As for why I'm an atheist; well, I just never was convinced in the first place that any such being could exist.

[@boterlettersukkel]

The xenomorph has more credibility :)

[@HuxtableK]

I've been an atheist my whole life. My parents were both Christians of different denominations, and my extended family, at least on my father's side, are majority Christian of some form. I only really came to understand what God and Christianity was when I was a young teenager. The only times I have ever been to a church as an adult, and with an intent to actually go, were to avoid Sunday cleaning days for the barracks in my Army Basic Training. I got away from cleaning, and got a bagel out of it, as well as a bit of quiet introspection. In my few years of experiencing atheist KZbinr communities and videos, I've learned so much about what religious groups are saying, the propaganda and lying they're pushing out, as well as their weak, at best, arguments for their god-beliefs.

[@chadatchison145]

I stop believing when I was 12, the seeds of doubt were created from watching Richard Dawkins and Carl Sagan documentaries on PBS when I was 8. I couldn't tell anyone cos everyone I knew were Christians. I didn't meet my first openly atheist person till I was 17, so going to church was a frightening experience for me. I remember staying overnight at my catholic friends house on Saturday and having to go to his church the next morning and seeing a huge cross with Jesus nailed to it, that scared the sh*t out of me especially how people were venerating it, it was rather traumatizing to my 8 year old self.

[@bdf2718]

As Thomas Paine put it: “Any system of religion that shocks the mind of a child cannot be a true system.”

[@ronferrante2486]

@@bdf2718 His observations about "revelation" were particularly brilliant. Sample quote: Each of those churches show certain books, which they call revelation, or the word of God. The Jews say, that their word of God was given by God to Moses, face to face; the Christians say, that their word of God came by divine inspiration: and the Turks say, that their word of God (the Koran) was brought by an angel from Heaven. Each of those churches accuse the other of unbelief; and for my own part, I disbelieve them all."

[@jacoblee5796]

I was always some what skeptical. Then as I got older it just seemed blatantly obvious that all religions are man made.

[@dulcettones5536]

I can totally relate to this. Finding out that the sources are not what they are said to be led to me seeing the evolution of God. Men altered the facets of the divine over time and are still doing so today. This, for me, destroyed the idea that God is eternal and unchanging. For me the Bible is no more the word of God than The Hobbit is the history of Middle Earth.

[@GetMeThere1]

1:45 LOL. I like the visual reference to the "No true Scotsman" fallacy.

[@JenWith1N]

This is the first video I will point to when people ask me my I don’t believe, because I agree with this soooooooo much!

[@Paulogia]

High praise, Jen. thank you.

[@notwhatiwasraised2b]

I commend you on your language....convinced, compelling, etc. I have come to believe that we are all 'persuaded' to accept the conclusions we do, on good evidence/argument or bad. But why some of us endeavor to stay rationally open (don't let your brain fall out) to new information/evidence/argument, while some desperately cling to professed certainty, remains a mystery. Well, maybe not a total mystery given that I can appreciate that a false peace of mind may correlate with certainty, but I can't fathom how anyone can be so (dangerously?) arrogant as to claim to know anything about the existence, will or intentions of god(s). Isn't it rather telling how faith (indoctrination) typically aligns with the community one grows up in?

[@johnnastrom9400]

While some parts of your discussion are accurate, others are inaccurate in which you make assumptions that have not been proven (like consciousness emerging from chemicals in the brain cells). Your case would be much stronger if you did not claim that which you do not know as a scientific fact.

[@WintersunExtras]

It's not entirely an assumption, it's the most reasonable conclusion given our current information. The popular alternative is "God made it", which is completely an unfounded assumption.

[@behrensf84]

You missed something, the mic drop.

[@Paulogia]

Heh. Next time.

[@DonnyDump]

Well done Ken. Making a great contribution to the growth of reason

[@kweassa6204]

Congrats to awesome 3 years Paulogia. May your channel keep on blooming, and become an even brighter beacon for many people to come.

[@bigtimber]

I'm an atheist amputee. Let's see God grow my leg and arm back over night without medical help. I'll be the biggest advocate for that God on earth.

[@bigtimber]

@HappySmileyGuy :D sorry, I don't believe foolishness. Thanks anyway.

[@bigtimber]

@HappySmileyGuy :D no

[@bigtimber]

@HappySmileyGuy :D my mind was open to spirituality for years. I was a Christian most of my life. I've come to the conclusion that it's bullshit and nobody on that side can prove their point

[@legionleschyzophrene4929]

@HappySmileyGuy :D There is being open-minded, and there is being gullible. Spirituality makes you fall in the latter.

[@2fast2block]

Big Joke, you don't believe what is clear already so you'd think of some stoo-pid excuse no matter what. How did you get around the first verses of the bible with God creating and giving life? Real science says nothing does nothing. Real science says if there was something there already it must fit with the evidence of what we know. We know the 1LT says there's a conservation of energy. It can change forms and neither can be created or destroyed. Creation cannot happen by natural means. The 2LT has various aspects, one being the universe is winding down, entropy. Usable energy is becoming less usable, so at one point usable energy was at its max. This all points to a supernatural creation, by a supernatural creator at a certain point in which matter, space, and time were created. When I read how it can happen otherwise, ALL the fools resort to science-fiction. Once a supernatural creation is accepted, then the next step is finding proof of what supernatural power did it. We KNOW these laws. We have NO doubts about them. We also KNOW that the laws of nature can't come about without a Lawgiver, God. So if you want to pretend to be smart, please give me the laugh by giving your science how creation really happened by natural means. Also, throw in how we got the laws of nature, naturally. Life only comes from life. Law of biogenesis. God is the reason for us and all we have. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gJqwoq2ElL6Gjrc The odds are NOT there. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jWLCfHiMlqisl6M kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4icmJStr79_qc0 kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpXEooarqdlol9k

[@HutcH68]

Love the videos but the name is: Rube Goldberg...not Goldbrick...

[@michaelsommers2356]

I'm sure Goldberg goldbricked occasionally.

[@michaelgordon264]

Yeah he fixed that.

[@MendTheWorld]

1:45 Just wondering.... but are those guys _true Scotsmen_? They look like Canadians to me. Anyway, no true Scottish hill would be covered with trees like that. We'd be seeing grass and sheep instead.

[@John.0z]

Before I even hear your video - thank you for being so open about your history.

[@pscyking]

As someone who shares many aspects of your life story (anti-testimony? antestimony?), most of your apparent views, and every aspect of the ideology expressed in this video, I am very grateful to have found such a succinct and clear declaration, and I hope you don't mind when I inevitably use it to introduce myself in future.

[@ebonie200]

Yes, it does sound like a long string of assertions. However, you have clearly defended each of those assertions in other videos, one at a time. If people feel you don't support your claims, they can watch other videos to find a more comprehensive explanation of each point.

[@Paulogia]

Thanks, Marshall.

[@vlpreitauer]

OMG, loved the "no true Scotsman dance"! Excellent video.

[@Paulogia]

I like when people catch things.

[@soriac2357]

@@Paulogia I wonder if the dancers in that clip actually *were* from Scottland (believe it or not, you don't have to be scottish to dance like that). That would be a nice meta twist ;-)

[@EdwardHowton]

The intent behind making this video is laudable, but it's not like Billy Craig has ever shown even the remotest hint of an inkling of giving a damn about the actual facts. I mean, time and time again you see these kinds of personal stories, and it's always "I wanted to be the best christian I could be, so I looked into things, and now I'm an atheist because holy crap religion's garbage", but somehow that simple cause/effect relationship gets translated to "Devout evolatheist hates God because Satan told him to and just wants to keep sinning" in the... "minds" of people like Billy. For me it's even simpler: I was told about this magic man in the sky who really cared about how much I washed certain parts of myself while I was in the shower (not in those terms but it was definitely an easy inference to make from the nonsense I was _actually_ told) and I found the entire concept of a deity absolutely ridiculous and laughable. *_At an age where Santa Claus made sense._* This means, of course, that I'm 1.21 gigahitlers, because reasons, despite the fact that I don't lie to people for a living nor mentally torture them for kicks. I mean, I _am_ an asshole, but if you beat a dog often enough it'll bite, and I'm not a dumb domesticated animal who can't extrapolate a trend from consistent data. Nor a grade-school bully of a sheep, *Billy.*

[@sandakureva]

Very much this.

[@bdf2718]

Yeah, I believed in Santa for a couple of years after I stopped believing in God. Once a year there was objectively-verifiable evidence for Santa.

[@happyraver1958]

Much harm comes from believing without evidence.

[@laguanhayes214]

The first point carries weight in another pragmatic aspect. God is not necessary in as much as God doesn't provide any personal impetus or efficacy to do anything. It's always a given, for any believer, God is the underlying reason for all we do and why we do those things. For those who believe all we have to do is ask what comes of those that do not believe to dispense with notions of heaven, hell or the after life. My issue is plainly one of pure volition, the will to live and thrive. So, even if God were proven to exist, God still won't do my chores for me. Once you decide all the busy work is up to you everything else may as well be self-determined too. It would be hard to say everyone else isn't doing this despite having faith or belief or not. Which is to suggest I have yet to meet a Christian or adherent of Judaism that follows their religion to the letter or jot and tittle.