corodin Posted January 18, 2015 Posted January 18, 2015 I have an interesting opportunity as an atheist living in a Christian household. The people at my church have no inclination as to my leanings towards atheism, and yet I have been asked to host an adult Bible study. It started out with just a teen Bible study, where we discussed the question of God's existence. We did a few weeks of preparation and study of both sides and then at the end concluded with a debate. I very much enjoyed this, as many of these people had never had any contact with the other side. It really highlighted how foolish it was to try and prove God's existence, and during the debate this became very clear. In any case, it seems my study was appreciated well enough that I have been asked to host an adult Bible study. It's an interesting opportunity for me. I have a chance to subtly demonstrate the flaws in Christianity and provide some interesting discussion that most Christians will never get otherwise. And again, none of them know that I am an atheist. What topic should I focus on for the next month? I have to start planning out my lesson plans and I was wondering if I could get suggestions, especially as to how I can provide a critical view of Christianity that might sway people while still being invited back to host the study. 1
WasatchMan Posted January 18, 2015 Posted January 18, 2015 While I don't see any moral issues with this (even though you are in a way defrauding people, you are defrauding people who have already admitted they don't care about truth or reality and are subjecting kids to ideas like hell) I would say to be careful with this. People may get pretty mad if they find out an atheist has been teaching them or their children about Christianity. With that aside, I would say one subtle "tactic" would be to take a historic perspective of the bible stories and trace the origins of the stories before they were incorporated into the bible. If done right, you will get them questioning some of their preconceived notions of the bible (like it being written by god) without even having to go there your self.
J. D. Stembal Posted January 18, 2015 Posted January 18, 2015 Why are you a church-going atheist? I do not understand your purpose. It appears that you are flying stealth in attempt to convert more local Christians to atheism. This strikes me as like trying to change politics from the inside by lying to your constituents. I'm not being critical of you. I just don't understand what going to church means to you. With that aside, I would say one subtle "tactic" would be to take a historic perspective of the bible stories and trace the origins of the stories before they were incorporated into the bible. If done right, you will get them questioning some of their preconceived notions of the bible (like it being written by god) without even having to go there your self. I was required to take a class like this. It was more a political science discussion based on the stories of the New Testament. It was interesting for me because I had never cracked a bible open before. I don't think this type of study helps anyone think in a more rational manner. If a bible study teacher attempted to pepper some actual philosophy into the mix, it might serve the purpose better. The adults in the class can decide whether or not his instruction is valuable or not.
WasatchMan Posted January 18, 2015 Posted January 18, 2015 I was required to take a class like this. It was more a political science discussion based on the stories of the New Testament. It was interesting for me because I had never cracked a bible open before. I don't think this type of study helps anyone think in a more rational manner. If a bible study teacher attempted to pepper some actual philosophy into the mix, it might serve the purpose better. The adults in the class can decide whether or not his instruction is valuable or not. I agree teaching objective philosophy would be the best, but remember the audience. My only point in the going into the historic origins of bible stories was to keep with the context of a "bible study class" while also eroding the supernatural origins premise a lot of Christians have about the bible.
Better Future Posted January 20, 2015 Posted January 20, 2015 The flat earth and geocentrism scriptures were always my favorite to point out. Ecclesiastes 1:5 (the sun hurries back to where it started) "The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises." Joshua 10:13 (God stops the sun) "The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day" Psalm 104:5 "He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved" Also, when reading scriptures, say "the sky" instead of "heaven". Heaven is the solid dome that God has spread out over the Earth. Stars are little lights that can fall down when God shakes them. More examples https://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/febible.htm I have come to the conclusion that religious people can't be helped, most of the time. Religion is dying a natural death as science spreads through the culture. My advice is not to waste your time, just enjoy the show. 1
amreed8 Posted February 2, 2015 Posted February 2, 2015 The flat earth and geocentrism scriptures were always my favorite to point out. Ecclesiastes 1:5 (the sun hurries back to where it started) "The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises." Joshua 10:13 (God stops the sun) "The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day" Psalm 104:5 "He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved" Also, when reading scriptures, say "the sky" instead of "heaven". Heaven is the solid dome that God has spread out over the Earth. Stars are little lights that can fall down when God shakes them. More examples https://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/febible.htm I have come to the conclusion that religious people can't be helped, most of the time. Religion is dying a natural death as science spreads through the culture. My advice is not to waste your time, just enjoy the show. They may have been geocentric, as was most societies, but remember, the ancient Hebrews knew that the world was round. http://biblehub.com/isaiah/40-22.htm
MrCapitalism Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 If you're an atheist, why are you going to church? Who asked you to hold this bible study, and why did you accept?
Libertus Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 I would suggest you watch all videos by and with Matt Dillahunty and the Atheist Experience on youtube. He addresses many common Theist objections.
Better Future Posted February 4, 2015 Posted February 4, 2015 They may have been geocentric, as was most societies, but remember, the ancient Hebrews knew that the world was round. http://biblehub.com/isaiah/40-22.htm Yes, a dome looks like a circle from above. The people look like grasshoppers from above and heaven (the sky) is spread out like a tent.
amreed8 Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 Yes, a dome looks like a circle from above. The people look like grasshoppers from above and heaven (the sky) is spread out like a tent. A semispherical bubble, eh?
Better Future Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 Can't blame them for thinking that, this is what the universe seems to be without further investigation. The Earth does seem to be flat and the sun does seem to move around us.
Devon Gibbons Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 Treatise on Morality - YouTube; or Pharmacratic Inquisition - YouTube.
jbass Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 Can't blame them for thinking that, this is what the universe seems to be without further investigation. The Earth does seem to be flat and the sun does seem to move around us. Yes, that's perfectly true, and that's the point. The authors of the bible didn't know anything of actual truth or value beyond what was comprehensible to a human. That supports the stance of the bible not being written by god, or the bible having any superior knowledge/content. Stef has a really good podcast about this matter.
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