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Why do you believe or not believe in god(s)? [1]

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Date: 2025-01-07

I do not believe in god(s), nor do I believe in the supernatural. Why? Because there is no good evidence for any of it. By good evidence, I mean the same kind of evidence that we use in every other aspect of our lives when trying to determine the truth of anything. By good evidence, I mean empirical evidence. It doesn’t have to be scientific, it just has to be observable. I think those who argue that the beliefs in god/the supernatural are a different kind of thing that demand a different kind of evidence on the face of it engage in special pleading. As one philosopher put it: “What difference is there between an undetectable gardener and no gardener at all?” And I think faith is a poor reason to believe anything, because no matter how you define it, you can believe anything on faith. Anything. And people do.

I do not disclaim the existence of something, anything, beyond the natural world. I just don’t believe it. That makes me an a-supernaturalist. To me, when faced with the theist claim “God is”, I do not accept it. That makes me an a-theist. For those who claim not to know, that makes you an atheist by this measure. If you don’t know, that means you do not believe in the positive claim “God is.”

I have never come across any good reason to believe in either the supernatural or the theistic claim. Again, I do not say those claims, in general, are not true;* I say we have no good reason to believe in them. I also know that any supernatural or god belief that asserts that such a force or forces specifically interact with nature (as we observe and explain it) has been debunked at every turn.

That’s what I think, and I am interested what you think. And I think it important to discuss it.

Why? Because the great divide in this country is not between the religious and the non-religious, nor amongst the various religions themselves. The divide is between those who respect our secular traditions and the legal preservation of the separation of religion from politics, and those who do not: the Christian Right. To most effectively fight against those in our country that attempt to force their religion on society, we must be unified in our resistance to them and fight together to maintain secularism and religious tolerance. United we stand. Divided we fall.

We must be united in our dedication to religious tolerance. That is a two-way street. To that that end, this diary means to promote a civil and good faith discussion on why we do or do not believe in god(s). I have participated in diaries about this topic more that a few times here and believe on good evidence that sometimes, not always, but sometimes, those who are in “my camp” do not express their opinions in a manner that promotes dialogue. Further, the same cannot be said of the faithful or the spiritual.

That is neither cool nor helpful. We who want to protect and defend our Constitution and the wall of separation between religion and politics either hang together, or we will most surely hang separately.

So, I request the following: Refrain from crude and crass attacks on “religion.” Tolerance demands it.

*There’s a strong case to be made that the triomni God of Christianity, eg. cannot be true.

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