Being Rational

It's Rationalist Week at Leeds Uni this week. Which means, to me, that there'll be a tent of people sitting around not being productive. I've found that, of all the real "thinkers" in the world, atheists are the least open minded. Someone, named Paul, I met yesterday who believes himself to be a rational, humanist, atheist. In other words he believes that the only conclusions that can be drawn are scientific. Being 'intelligent' (his definition not mine) he thinks science is not compatible with God, and that faith is an end result to many evidences, as opposed to the beginning of any belief structure.

I have one big problem with his assumptions. I would have loved to tell him, but he wouldn't allow me to finish any of my sentences. Anyway, he believes he is right but won't say that it is based on faith. He says it's based on facts, he even said the textbook line "we've got the fossils." Fool. Fossils are, actually no indication of anything, and the very fact he couldn't understand any of the simple arguments of infinite regress, and positive mutations (which I conclude neither are possible), meant I couldn't make any progress because he used arguments that required these to be assumed as true, but he could explain why. I started on mutations, where the example of down's syndrome which is a negative mutation where an extra half chromosome appears from nowhere, came up. This didn't convince me that evolution on cross-species level was possible, because it's a NEGATIVE MUTATION. i.e. it doesn't actually move the species forward but backward. I think that makes it clear that another example is needed. He didn't have one.

I also tried to talk a bit about the Bible, but he would accept it as evidence for the existence of God. So I decided to refuse any scientific evidence he threw at me to show that it was a foolish move to make.

Interestingly, as a final point, it's irrational to deny the existence of God, so he's kind of a walking contradiction. Like most of us, I suppose. I know I am too. I sin, yet not a sinner, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice in my place. I'm more worried about my relationship with God than Paul's arguments against my faith, but I'll be praying for him none-the-less.

"We've got the fossils..."