In today’s episode of Talk Heathen, Student Doctor Ben and Richard Gilliver work with topics of miracles, Islamic claims, magical rituals, Ten Commandments, the second coming, and godfather issues.

First caller is Vaclav from the Czech Republic who wants to know what evidence we need to prove miracles have happened. If you could demonstrate causality then that could be convincing. How do you rule out a deity and deal with all the variables? When speaking of miracles, not only is it necessary to prove that a deity was the cause, but it also must be proven that the event happened at all. There are no situations that we can see where a supernatural event can be attributed to a god.

Phil from Barbados is next and has some questions about the claims of Islam. Richard explains how Islam has borrowed many arguments from Christianity. Now we see Christian apologists using some of the Islamic arguments such as the Kalam. When people try to define their supernatural claims, they tend to stack claim after claim on top of each other. Single lines will be taken from the Quran to show scientific prediction. These are post ad hoc fallacies and found among adherents of many religions.

Saul in MO brings up that we need better evidence than just the Ten Commandments. A theist might have a claim that god is just a recluse and does not want to deal with us. We need to be careful not to make the same problematic arguments that we see on the other side.

Lester in El Salvador feels that magical rituals are crazy, but the points of view of the practitioners are interesting. He asks if we are blocking ourselves from other forms of reality. If there is intervention with the physical realm, there will be something that is affected and therefore can be justified or measured. What would convince you that magic is real? How do you know if your belief is real?

Wesley in WV believes the Second Coming has happened on January 4, 2003 where Baal(Satan) imitated the words of Jesus and everyone felt a spiritual rain from the sky. He saw his body burned and as ashes during a vision one night when homeless in Chicago. What parts of this experience could have been influenced by other variables, such as hypothermia? We need evidence besides the experience for this.

Cameron, an atheist in MN, has been asked to be a godfather to a baby by a close friend. His friend insists that he is a believer. Is there a way to talk about core values that might overlap when asked to speak to the family about your role as a godfather? It would be good to take some time to think this through and sort out what you want to do. Recovering from Religion is an excellent resource for situations like this.

Thank you for tuning in this week, and always treat the essential workers well. See you next week!

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