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Looking for a counterexample to an argument for God (self.atheism)

submitted 1 year ago by arensb to c/atheism

27 comments fedilink hide all child comments

At some point, I ran across an argument along the lines of: "We hunger, and food exists. We thirst, and water exists. We feel horny, and sex is real. We yearn for God, and so I conclude that God exists."

Now, I can easily pick this apart a bunch of different ways, the easiest one being that just because you want some to exist doesn't mean that it really exists. But what I'm really hoping for is a couple of counterexamples: something like "Yes, well, we all want a unicorn, too, but unicorns don't exist."

This particular one doesn't work because wanting a unicorn isn't a universal desire the way food or sex are (even counting asexual people, we can still say that the vast majority of people want sex). But maybe some of you can think of something.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

A problem with finding a counterexample might be that any widespread desire for something that doesn't exist could make people think it exists, so any possible example seems likely to be disputed. There's a reason people are far more likely to believe in heaven than hell. People believe in what they want to believe in, and that desire isn't proof of anything but a construct in their brain that they think represents something real.

That said, I hope someone comes up with an example, because I've seen this type of rhetoric before (C.S. Lewis had a version of it), and while the logical problems with it are obvious, picking it apart would take a verbose argument that the kinds of people who like these kinds of fortune-cookie apologetics would have no problem tuning out. A quick example would be very convenient.

[–] Gradually_Adjusting 8 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It warrants little more than dismissiveness. "I yearn for quiet, yet here you are."

[–] arensb 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I admire the quippiness, but in this case, I heard the argument from Justin Brierley, explaining why, after ten years of hosting a podcast where believers (usually Christians) and unbelievers regularly engage in debate, he's still a Christian. I actually enjoyed his show, and he seems like a nice guy, so I wouldn't want to want to tell him to piss off.

But I did roll my eyes when I heard this particular argument. It's just evidence that smart people can believe very silly things, especially when it comes to religion.

[–] Gradually_Adjusting 1 points 1 year ago

That's good then. Don't be snide to anyone who doesn't have it coming.

I might be smart, and I definitely have dealt with a few stupid beliefs in my time. We're none of us perfect