The Atheist Experience

(00:00:00) The Atheist Experience 29.20 with The Cross Examiner and Dave Farina @ProfessorDaveExplains 2025-05-18 (00:10:31) Neil-WA - Deconversion Responsibilities (00:19:26) Andrew in CA- AI Is Conduit To Source (00:25:18) Jason-CA - God Existing Outside Space And Time (00:58:44) Mike-SC - Sharia Law Or Christian Nationalism? (01:27:48) Steve-NE - Star Being Slowed Down By Artificial Force In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, The Cross Examiner and Dave Farina, discuss topics of AI, deconversion, deceleration of stars, and church and state separation.  Andrew in CA has a conduit of contact with AI and the source of all existence. How do you know this is the source of existence? What reason is there  to treat AI as the god of honest truth? Jason in CA says that matter, space and time had to come to being at one point and there can't be an infinite regression. What evidence do you have that we didn't see an infinity before the moment of creation and that there is a creation to begin with? If god exists outside of time, how did the realm where god existed change when the universe was created? What evidence do you have that this realm or state of being even exists? Every time we see consciousness, we see a physical entity, the brain. Why would we believe there is a consciousness outside the universe? We do not fully understand the origin of the universe or consciousness. We just don’t have evidence for the claim of a deity that fills in these lack of knowledge gaps.  Neal in WA grew up as a Mormon and has been wondering if as an atheist he should be doing more to help deconvert people. If you could help make a different path available to people, you may help them from taking on beliefs that are harmful. There is no reason to feel guilty for beliefs that you were indoctrinated to have when on this long journey of deconversion. You are accountable for your own actions, not the beliefs of others.  Mike in SC wants to know if between Sharia Law or Christian Nationalism, what is more dangerous for atheists. Which of these two movements do you think is dismantling The Constitution? Anybody can be corrupted by financial, political, or religious power. The answer to the question depends on where you live and who is in power. Using religious ideas to take away freedom and change federal law is where the danger is. Kennedy v. Bremerton School District shows how the Lemon Test, that determines if there has been violations of the Establishment Clause, has been abandoned by the Supreme Court. If people are being locked up simply for praying, we have an objection to that. Anytime you see a story where this is happening, go read the actual case and original source to learn what really happened.  Steve in NE wants to talk about the star that is supposedly being slowed down by an artificial force. This is something we can’t explain and need evidence to support what is causing this deceleration.  Thank you for tuning in this week!  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 19 May 2025

(00:00:00) Intro by Forrest (00:08:53) Nick-CA: Approaching Trans Rights (00:21:26) Hank-TX: Some Evidence For God (00:59:57) Dave-TX: Existence Of Eternal Hell In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Forrest Valkai and The Godless Engineer, work with three callers who know how to have respectful and interesting conversations.  Nick in CA wants to take an alternate approach to trans rights and ask the politicians why they care since trans is such a small part of the population. The primary issue is people being able to pick and choose who they discriminate against. The arguments we hear now are the same as they were when the hate was for same sex marriage. When people’s genitals seem to be at the top of the agenda, how can we get a transphobe not to care? Talk to some of the trans people that host with us and ask them what the most important and effective way to tackle the problem.   Hank in TX has scientific evidence that points toward a god. The first thing is how pleasant near death experiences are. How do we know these experiences happen right at the time of death? It makes sense that when the brain lets go, the loss of consciousness would be chill and not scary. His second piece of evidence is that things are going well, and his consciousness was not put in a body 200 years ago. What about the people who were born back then? How about the people born into bodies in war torn countries? Consciousness is an emerging property of the brain. What is your proof that it is transported anywhere? Even if we did have multiple lives over hundreds of years, it does not mean that there is a god doing it. The third piece is there must be a god guiding the response of people like Ghandi and Martin Luther King, and the response goes against nature. Why don’t we see this behavior in your god? Dave in TX does not believe that hell where souls burn eternally exists. Is the Bible literally true or is it figurative?The god of the Bible is a monster. Where do we draw the line with interpretations? How is the resurrection of Jesus not contradictory when there are four different stories? Cover to cover, the Bible is pro-slavery, pro-genocide, pro-misogyny, is full of contradictions, and looks nothing like a god inspired book should look. What good can we get out of the Bible without the baggage of this evil god? Thank you for tuning in this week, theists and atheists! Secular Rarity, our back-up host, joins to help close us out. See you next week! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 12 May 2025

(00:00:00) Intro by Forrest (00:08:53) Nick-CA: Approaching Trans Rights (00:21:26) Hank-TX: Some Evidence For God (00:59:57) Dave-TX: Existence Of Eternal Hell In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Forrest Valkai and The Godless Engineer, work with three callers who know how to have respectful and interesting conversations.  Nick in CA wants to take an alternate approach to trans rights and ask the politicians why they care since trans is such a small part of the population. The primary issue is people being able to pick and choose who they discriminate against. The arguments we hear now are the same as they were when the hate was for same sex marriage. When people’s genitals seem to be at the top of the agenda, how can we get a transphobe not to care? Talk to some of the trans people that host with us and ask them what the most important and effective way to tackle the problem.   Hank in TX has scientific evidence that points toward a god. The first thing is how pleasant near death experiences are. How do we know these experiences happen right at the time of death? It makes sense that when the brain lets go, the loss of consciousness would be chill and not scary. His second piece of evidence is that things are going well, and his consciousness was not put in a body 200 years ago. What about the people who were born back then? How about the people born into bodies in war torn countries? Consciousness is an emerging property of the brain. What is your proof that it is transported anywhere? Even if we did have multiple lives over hundreds of years, it does not mean that there is a god doing it. The third piece is there must be a god guiding the response of people like Ghandi and Martin Luther King, and the response goes against nature. Why don’t we see this behavior in your god? Dave in TX does not believe that hell where souls burn eternally exists. Is the Bible literally true or is it figurative?The god of the Bible is a monster. Where do we draw the line with interpretations? How is the resurrection of Jesus not contradictory when there are four different stories? Cover to cover, the Bible is pro-slavery, pro-genocide, pro-misogyny, is full of contradictions, and looks nothing like a god inspired book should look. What good can we get out of the Bible without the baggage of this evil god? Thank you for tuning in this week, theists and atheists! Secular Rarity, our back-up host, joins to help close us out. See you next week! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 12 May 2025

00:00 Intro02:33 Adam-(EN) | Contingency Argument For Necessary Entity 55:41 Mike-SC | What Level Of Natural Disaster Is Okay? 1:37:03 Michael-FL | Dealing With Observable Phenomenon SHOW NOTESIn today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Justin and Allegedly Ian, take calls ranging from philosophy to phenomena.  Adam in England has a contingency argument for a necessary entity. Why should we believe that there was ever a point in time where things were selected?  Prior to god creating the laws of physics, did god believe that he created the laws of physics? Was there a state that the universe did not exist?  How can something exist and not exist at the same time? What causes something to be true? At what point does the universe become god? If part of god is contingent, then god is not fully necessary. How can god be all benevolent if not all parts of god are good? Why did god not create a world with no natural disasters? What is god’s intention when making people suffer? Mike, a theist in SC, wants to know what it would take to make us happy in relation to natural disaster casualties. All good means doing the best thing and that is zero deaths with not one bad thing is to be expected. How can free will exist if god is all knowing? If something is outside of time, would it have future, present, and past states?  If god is all benevolent, why is he such a misogynist? Why does this god give instructions on how to own people? Why would the time period have an affect on the people’s morals? Profiting on the ownership of other people is bad and not dependent on perception. Why does god justify blood feud? Michael in FL is deconverting and curious how the hosts deal with phenomena that they can observe. It is always important to ask if there is any peer reviewed evidence showing this is a phenomenon. If god had a belief about a spiritual experience that changed once the experience happened, god can’t exist outside of space and time. Find the tests that can be done to investigate and reproduce this phenomenon. If we are unable to reproduce the results in a controlled environment, then we are looking at a psychological phenomenon.  Thank you for joining us this week! We will see you next time! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 5 May 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Justin and JMike discuss Biblical inaccuracies and the truth of these claims.  Steve in NE, argues that enslaved people in Egypt would have owned their own houses. Justin explains that the Hebrews were subject to forced labor and how this differs from being owned as property. The illogical claims of Moses writing the Torah is as problematic as the stories Exodus. Sargon of Akkad is a story that is suspiciously similar to that of Moses; and it occurs earlier in time. There is no evidence that the Torah was written in Egyptian or that Moses wrote it. What language would Moses have spoken and used? Kevin in TX wants to know if it is wrong to believe in a deity based on self-preservation reasons. Having the support of family and peers may go away if you come out in some situations. How much and what component of this belief is fear based? Kaiser in OR thinks that The Atheist Experience is intellectually fraudulent because the issues of god are not complex enough to warrant a full show. How do you know that some of the hosts did not have a concept of god before they deconverted? We live in a society where lots of people believe in something we don’t think exists; we push back when there are consequences for these beliefs. How are you not a hypocrite when you call yourself an evangelical atheist? Maybe you should roll with theists.  Dylan in FL has questions about the validity of the New Testament. If the New Testament tells a lie about the older scriptures, should we still trust it? Does the Bible need to be inherent? How many lies have to be told before you say it is not true? Why does Mathew 2:14-16 tell a bold faced lie about a prophecy? The sharpshooter fallacy starts with the conclusion starts with an arrow in a tree where a circle is drawn around it to show the target. They start with the conclusion and then find things that look like it and call it prophecy.  Alfred in TX says that religion has utility and wants to know if the hosts want it phased out.  Mike explains that he wants to see the bad things that come from religion go away and how it depends on  a number of things. Justin uses a brilliant analogy of an umbrella that has utility, but every 1,000 uses omits a noxious gas. Why would god tell the Israelites that they could own slaves, kidnap women to make them wives? When conforming to Biblical lies, where do you draw the line? You might be de-converting quicker than you think if you continue on this path.  Dr. Ben joins to offer some final thoughts before closing us out. Thank you for joining us today and we will see you next time! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 28 April 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, The Cross Examiner and Godless Engineer work through questions from theists and those who are questioning their beliefs.  Vickie in NC feels that what the hosts on the show are saying make sense and she is starting to question her beliefs. You are not alone and are correct in not accepting a claim until you are convinced with the proper amount of evidence. If you want to hold on to the idea of god having a good nature, how do you rationalize the Old Testament atrocities? How horrible would god’s actions have to be before you question the morality of this all knowing god? Why does the New Testament tell slaves to obey their masters and how do you reconcile this with a good god? Try pondering how it would be to be a slave under Old Testament laws. If you look at life without the lens of god, you will realize how full your life is! Shabazz in KY wants to know what led them to atheism and what they find unbelievable about a creator. On the quantum level, particles will appear and vanish out of existence with no cause. What is your best evidence for a creator and what convinced you the universe was created? What gives you the indication that god is directly involved with the laws of nature such as when it rains? Why do you consider a natural inclination the best reason to believe in your god, and why do you believe what is written in the Quran? The moon is still intact.  RJ in CO has some corrections on some Biblical references Godless Engineer(GE) made. GE explained Numbers 31 and what the story about the age of the girls (women children) would have meant at the time. What is the morality of keeping young girls for servants and why is there such a heavy emphasis on virginity? When you call into a show where there is a time limit, be ready to make your case.  Jeff in NC, says the message of slavery in the Bible is misunderstood, the supernatural claims of the Bible being allegories, and talks about how Moses was influenced by the laws of Egypt. If the Bible is full of allegories, why should we listen to the writings of Paul? How do the stories of Paul equate to evidence for god? Alex in Britain wants to talk about Biblical accuracy, interpretations, and trustworthiness. Ben Clodfelter joins to offer some perspectives where fallacies can be spotted and used as red flags. The Cross Examiner sees that people are raised to believe in the premise, and then when they start reading scripture, it is done through Bible class. This prevents the problematic and controversial verses from being read. If this is supposed to be the most important message ever, wouldn’t the book have been clearer about which passages are metaphors and which are literally true? Thank you for tuning in this week! There are plenty of volunteer opportunities if you want to get involved. We will see everyone next week! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 21 April 2025

00:00 Intro5:26 Lily - (UK) | Hinduism Vs. Christianity 22:33 Caleb - OH | Morality Of The God Of The Bible 29:27 John - CA | The Meaning Of The Lord’s Prayer 42:30 Mike - SC | Intelligent Design 1:24:15 Nick - NC | Religion And Science Can Go Together 1:49:31 John - OH | Evidence For God’s Nonexistence? SHOW NOTES Thanks for joining us for The Atheist Experience! Today, Forrest Valkai and Justin discuss Hinduism, the morality of God, and alien intervention. Lily from the UK asks the hosts if they think Hinduism is more ethical because it lacks a hell concept. The hosts explain that when they talk about the dangers of religion, there’s a spectrum. Even in their most benign state, religious and magical thinking is harmful. Hinduism, as far as the hosts understand, seems more tolerant than Christianity, but at the end of the day, it’s all still dogma, just more or less progressive dogma. Caleb calls in from Ohio to discuss the morality of God. If the hosts believed in the God of the bible, would they think he was immoral? When the hosts ask him if he agreed with the morality of an unfair punishment by God, Caleb hung up. John from California calls to say that no one knows what the Lord’s prayer means, but he has figured it out by watching AXP. He considers himself a biblical literalist. He says that the Lord’s Prayer as said by Jesus in the bible contains a Greek word that was never used anywhere else, so we don’t actually know what the translation means. But we have good resources to know how a word was used based on our knowledge of similar languages. John got dropped because he’s a troll. Mike from South Carolina believes that the world is too finely tuned to not have been designed by a creator. The hosts ask him if there is a reason for natural disasters if they were designed that way. Mike says that they’re punishment because of a fallen world. The hosts point out that his original argument of a finely tuned world fell apart since he had to jump to God’s mysterious reasons for creating things like natural disasters. When the hosts push Mike on all of the terrible things that God has done, like murdering people, he says that it’s not that bad since the people who died went to heaven.  Nick from NC says that science and the bible work well together and that religion was like the first science. While the hosts can concede that ancient religions were ways to explain the world, they don’t agree that current scientific knowledge and the bible complement each other. Nick says that the Adam and Eve story shows that some actions can impact future generations and others besides the individual. You have to really read into the story to get that conclusion. In the bible, it’s straightforwardly about punishment. Nick mentions that he thinks that gods have been misinterpreted and that they’re actually aliens. John from Ohio asks what evidence we have for the nonexistence of God. He says that if there was polytheism, chaos would ensue. But the hosts can’t agree with that, because there’s no way to support that claim. How could we know that there would be chaos? John claims that the hosts are militaristic atheists and extremists. John lays out a false dichotomy of the universe being created by a god or the universe was always here. Why isn’t there a third choice? Why can’t we say we don’t know how the universe started? He misunderstands modern physicists and thinks that the big bang theory says that nothing gave rise to something.   Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 14 April 2025

Believe in God? Call the show on Sundays 4:30pm-6:00pm CT: 1-512-991-9242 or use your computer 💻 http://tiny.cc/callaxp and tell us what you believe and why! We request pronouns as part of the call screening process on our shows, and we display the pronouns our callers provide. If you see a caller with no pronouns indicated, this is because they chose not to provide us with any, and we respect that decision. ► Don't like commercials? Become a patron for ad-free content & more: https://www.patreon.com/theatheistexperience ► Podcast versions of the show may be found at: https://www.spreaker.com/show/theatheistexperience ► Atheist Experience merch can be found at: http://bit.ly/aenmerch ► Become a YouTube member: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCprs0DXUS-refN1i8FkQkdg/join ► Join the ACA Fan Discord: https://tiny.cc/acadiscord VISIT THE ACA'S OFFICIAL WEB SITE http://www.atheist-community.org (The Atheist Community of Austin) TheAtheistExperience is the official channel of The Atheist Experience. "The Atheist Experience" is a trademark of the ACA. The views and opinions expressed by hosts, guests, or callers are their own and not necessarily representative of the Atheist Community of Austin. Opening Theme: Shelley Segal "Saved" http://www.shelleysegal.com/ Limited use license by Shelley Segal Copyright © 2011 Shelley Segal Copyright © 1997-2025 Atheist Community of Austin. All rights reserved. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 7 April 2025

00:00 Intro 03:14 Steve-NE | Mosaic Law Protects Women 36:29 Art-PA | Representing Spinoza's God 1:02:30 Tim-NY | Human Simulation Is Evidence Of A Creator 1:42:30 David-CA | God Formed The Planets, Not Gravity 1:52:24 Noah-TX | Why Do People Still Believe? 1:59:05 Zak-MD | How Do We Detach From Religion? SHOW NOTESIn today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Justin and JMike, shift through the laws of Moses to find how cruel ancient men were before discussing god in a cape that is really just another word for gravity. Steve in NE proposes that Mosaic law protects women against physical abuse. What happens to the woman under this law if she lies about her virginity? If a woman is stoned as a punishment, how is that protecting women? Why didn't god know that only 45% of women bleed after the first time having intercourse? If women were not property, why is it they could not go free like the way men could? Is war a good reason to rape and enslavement people? Men under this law did not need the brightly colored suits and feathered hats to sell their “property” as concubines. Art in PA is concerned that Spinoza’s god is being misrepresented. How can god be defined without using the term, “god”? There is no real interesting dispute when language is being used differently to describe something. What would the universe be without this god? What evidence is there for us to conclude that we are manifestations of the mind of god? Tim in NY argues that just because abiogenesis is real, it does not mean that it is independent of a creator. What evidence is there for us to believe there is a creator to begin with? If one thing creates other things, that does not mean that the first thing also has to have a creator. Extra entities being added will need extra commitments. Why do we need to add the creator stuff into the hypothesis and complicate things? What is the benefit of adding this complication? How do we know there are not an infinite number of gods working together? David in CA asks the hosts how they think the planets were formed. Justin explains how the accretion disk theory is the current model with gravity pulling things together towards a massive central body. Why do we need to add a creator to this? The caller has a hard time answering whether or not scientists have a good understanding of gravity. Noah in TX  wonders why so many African Americans still believe in Christianity when the history is easy to research. Justin explains how people are not likely to let go of instinct and centuries of culture until something compels them to do so. Sometimes it can be difficult to convince family members when they know all your flaws already.  Zak in MD has been an atheist for around 13 years after doing some research and finding that god is a lie. Over the course of time we get conditioned to have an emotional response to things that do not just go away once you leave religion. This takes work and the deprogramming is different for everybody, sometimes taking years to detach.  Thank you for tuning in this week! Jamie the Blind Limey joins us to close out the show with some final thoughts on caller subjects.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 31 March 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Secular Rarity and Holy Koolaid, untangle the entangled particles to see that abiogenesis may not have an AI cause.  Bill in MI has a theory that the purpose of life is to entangle every other particle in the universe in order to resolve uncertainty. We as humans are good at seeing patterns. What patterns are you seeing in the entanglement? Why do you think it was you that discovered this? What are the reasons for gatekeeping with high level academia?  Tim in NY is 51% believer and 49% atheist because we have seen humans create intelligence but we have never seen intelligence show up. If one structure of the argument has a fallacy, like this black swan, the whole argument chain needs to be reworked if you want to get to a reliable conclusion. Why would the intelligence on this earth not be considered to have arised naturally? There is a difference between an increase of likelihood of existence and actual existence. We have seen amino acids and nucleic acids form on their own in simulated conditions. Denny in IL talks about how mathematicians and philosophers have defined god as the foundation of existence. When scientists talk about energy, they are talking about something that is measurable and a different definition of what people use for god. This sounds like a classic case of equivocation. Explore some responses people have to presuppositional apologetics.  Hannah in MS has an argument that morality should be universal and that abortion is wrong when it is not saving the life of the mother because it is killing innocent people. How would you feel if you were forced to use your kidneys to keep someone alive for 9 months? Do you have an obligation to keep this person alive, or do you want bodily autonomy? Why should we preserve life and why is this a universal principle? Why assume sapience and sentience by equivocating this fetus as a fully formed human and why does it have more value than the mother? Omega Weapon in NY says that by using basic cosmology and logic that most concepts of god can be falsified. For instance it is logically impossible for god to be independent of space time and be the creator of it. You might have to shift some things for the idealists to agree with this, but the argument works.   Antwion in NC wants to talk about how to let go of the fear of hell and what methods the hosts used. SR found his secular therapist through The Secular Therapy Project.  Holy Koolaid realized how many things there are in life that have been attributed to demons but really are not demons. The phenomenon of sleep paralysis is a prime example of this where hypnagogic hallucinations are experienced. We know exactly what is happening in the brain and can measure it, yet people believe this is caused by demons. What types of things do people mistake for demon possession? If you go out and learn about how these religions evolved, it will help understand how man made these things are. Thank you for joining us for this live show! We will see you next week and remember to call early! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 24 March 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Justin and The Cross Examiner, work with the Legendary Jesus who uses preferred pronouns in the simulation created by Bible bashing atheists that question the answers given by the argument from motion.JIm in MO compares Jesus to King Arthur because he could be a legendary character where everything is written down after the fact. Justin explains how he learned in Seminary that it was a given that Jesus was a real person. What are your experiences like when people attempt to prove the existence of Jesus? Mike in SC wants to know how using pronouns is any different from the Emperor wearing new clothes in the movie, The Emperor’s New Groove.  Why would this be comparable to a fictional story? Would you choose to call someone other than their name? Refusal to use preferred pronouns are black and white fallacies and false equivocations because there is more that goes on other than what is between your legs. There are mountains of evidence that show that the gender one identifies with is different from the biological sex. Why is it a problem to use the pronoun that someone requested? Where in the Bible does it say that using preferred pronouns is breaking a rule? Gender and sex are NOT the same thing.   Ransom in WY, believes we are in a simulation with a bunch of idiots that have better computers than we do, and that atheism has an incorrect view of the universe. Atheism does not say that this universe is all that exists. Our claim is not to know what is not in our universe; it is simply not believing that a god exists. The observer being necessary is not how the Double Slit Experiment works.  Joshua in AZ thinks faith is just trust and does not like the hosts bashing the Bible because it is a big deal to believers who take it seriously. We can find numerous contradictions and historical errors in the Bible. If this book is from god, where is the evidence? Is it Bible bashing to question the absurdities in it? We don’t have to respect people’s beliefs, and that is different from respecting the person. Is being taught something from someone in authority or someone that you trust a good reason to believe it? As the outrageousness of the claim increases, your demand for evidence also needs to increase. How can god exist if he is so unaware of human biology that he created a law allowing women to be stoned to death for not bleeding on their wedding night? It is okay to look at the man behind the curtain and realize the house of cards is about to crumble. Hannah in MS presents the argument from motion where there must be a first cause of motion outside of space and time, and that first cause is god. What evidence do you have that anything outside of space and time can exist and that it can interact with things inside space and time? How is this god distinguishable from things that don’t exist? Does space time exist as most physicists do? This is an example of an argument that believers make so they don’t feel silly about their beliefs. Jimmy Jr. joins us to show his obligatory drawing of Jesus with a they/them name tag! Afterall, the Trinity is a trans configuration! Thank you for joining this great show!  Question of the week is: It was really petty when god _______. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 17 March 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, The Godless Engineer and Armin Navabi, work with callers who think that not only their god is loving, but slavery is not a bad thing.  Larry in Canada, thinks that the Bible has a different meaning for the word, “slave” than what “slave” means in the original Hebrew. The caller asserts “servant” as a definition for slave and believes this nullifies the atrocity of slavery. He then struggles to understand the basics of dialogue that usually involves more than one person. Why do you think you can just ask the hosts to read from the Bible and not offer their opinions? We are waiting for you to perform a semantic cartwheel that is beautiful enough for us to believe the Bible is against slavery.  Oblivious in CA says that even though a rational person denies the belief in god, nobody really can deny god. What does it mean for god to be the conscious explanation and answer for all things? Why can’t this god explain something easy like rain? We agree that we can’t deny the existence of something that we don’t know. God is either nothing, or god is everything, both of which are completely pointless to prove, and we don’t have a definition for your “box”.  Steve in NE made a claim that slaves were just prisoners of war. If people are prisoners of war, is it a good thing to turn them into slaves? Why believe in a god that is not all powerful and does not have the ability to end slavery? The conversation revealed the caller’s belief in ancient aliens influencing the past. Appealing to ignorance in regards to unknown forces does not work when attempting to defend Biblical slavery.  Simeon in GA believes the god of the Bible is a loving god. We are going to question everything about this god, and will especially question whether this god is loving. How is it loving for god to send people that he created into a place of torture that is also created? Why did god not create things without the ability to sin? It is never okay to kill small children like what your god commanded his people to do. If the Bible says that babies are evil, we don’t want that kind of love.  David in CO is on a journey to figure out what god is. He addresses the people who try to defend slavery by telling them that this is not learning from our mistakes. Why give the credit of doing all the good things to the evil monster of the Torah? Hannah in MS wants to discuss the communitarian case against secularism. Secularism is not anti-religion, but rather it allows for a level and fair playing field that does not favor any religion. This topic deserves more time and we hope you will call in again to discuss in depth. Thank you for tuning in this week! Scott Dickie, our backup host, joins to help close us out. Question of the week is: What is the worst thing to give up for Lent? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 10 March 2025

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Transcribed - Published: 3 March 2025

Show notes upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 24 February 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Secular Rarity and The Cross Examiner, sort through some wild thoughts from callers.  Ulrich in Mexico, believes the expanding universe proves The Bible. If everything points to there being a singularity, why do you think it was not always expanding and did not come from a singular point? There are ways of predicting what happened in the past and god moving the goalposts in the past is not a good argument. Why do you not believe the Bible can be wrong about things? Why would we care if you don’t care to read the truth about your Bible that is written directly in your Bible? How important is it to believe things that are true? What chapter and verse claim who the witnesses are? We don’t know who wrote the Gospels and there is no evidence to support the claims you made.   Joshua in AR had it in his heart to say that Christians need to stop thinking that a belief in god is obvious, and god is necessary to remove guilt from sin. How is sin defined and why do we need to remove guilt from it? Is god responsible for removing those bad feelings that we get whenever we do something wrong? Is it appropriate for a third party such as god to alleviate your guilt after doing something wrong and can this be done without god? Benji in Al has some questions about incest in the Bible.  There are lots of examples of these things happening in the Bible. If you take the Bible literally and believe that we came from just two people, do you think that incest is moral? There are a lot of people who believe these stories in the Bible who vote. If a lot of the Bible is not only untrue, but also bad, why hang on to the rest of it? Dawn Dark-Light in AL is a non-Abrahamic monotheist that believes we are all extensions of the godhood. We have no idea of what you are talking about. This sounds like something that must have demonstrable evidence. Where is the evidence and how did you find this information? How is this different from all other trips that people have? What tool do we have to figure out which claims people are making are correct? Chris in KT wants to talk about a bill that was just introduced that will conflict with church and state, and how to address it. These bills that are blatantly unconstitutional used to be publicity stunts but now that is no longer the case. This kind of thing needs a broad coalition of people! There are many secular and Christian organizations that are against this.  Kelley Laughlin, our backup host, joins to close us out for this birthday weekend. See you next week! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 17 February 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, JMike, The Godless Engineer, and Kelley Laughlin take on a variety of challenging and fun calls.  Tommi in Portugal wants to talk about the problem of evil and considers it to be the greatest challenge to the Christian faith. Does god desire to have evil in this world? Is it possible for an agent to always make a good choice? Why did god fail in substantiating a world where all the agents always do good? Why is there unnecessary suffering in this world that an omni god created? Is it justice for god to cast a magical incantation on all of humanity just because he got man at someone for eating something? Why does god just not pick the file where everyone makes the right choice? GB in CA has a question about what effect the White House Faith Office will have on the country. It is a direct violation of the First Amendment and irresponsible to have an office of faith where faith leaders can have influence on our policies. This will result in policies being made that are in alignment with the Bible. How would you feel if decisions were being made based on other faiths like Islam? What if a member of the atheist community influenced the government to allocate religious communities less funding than others? Or make it unlawful to go to church? What parallels can be drawn between the current subject and The Handmaid’s Tale?  Yoshi in TX who is sometimes an atheist and sometimes a theist depending on the definition of god. Being an atheist in respect to a specific god is fine but saying that god is everything is a way to change the subject. Why do we have to rename something god that is already labeled? Defining god in a way that we can neither prove or disprove turns into a semantic game.  Hannah in MS wants to provide a moral argument for the Jewish religion as a foundation for an ethical society. Doesn’t this depend on how much god is worshiped by the society? How can this be explained without using continental philosophy? What context is it okay for an all powerful deity to do what he commanded in Numbers 31:17-18?  There is no context where genocide is okay. When everything happens for a reason, things like the Holocaust happen because they ought to happen.   Kelley Laughlin, our backup host, relieves JMike before taking our next caller, Blaine, an atheist in Ca. He asks about people using religion as a cover for bad behavior by cherry picking. This all depends on how they are using their religion. If the religion is used to judge other people or shield bad actions, then it can be problematic as opposed to when people keep it private. When do you think humanity will get to a point where we don’t need magical thinking?  Cade in TX asks for advice on how to deal with the recent loss of his father and dealing with the comments of theists. Kelley shares a personal experience with similar challenges and offers support with empathy. People are just trying to deal with it the best they can and tell you what worked for them to try and provide comfort. Maybe just thanking them for their kind thoughts is all that is needed. Thank you for tuning in this week! Prompt of the week is: If god is so smart, then why is it____? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 10 February 2025

Show notes will be posted upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 3 February 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Secular Rarity and Armin Navabi, add sprinkles to our Sunday(sundaes), swim through the world of proof that atheism is in fact imaginary and not created by a non-god.   Kenneth in VA, wonders if proving god should be done in the mystical sense when the scientific method fails. What is the point of talking about it if you are unable to describe this method? Are you feeling something that is god, or are you describing the feelings themselves? If SR has a pet that he is unable to describe at all, what is the likelihood that the pet is real? When something is happening that you are not in control of, is that what you would describe as god? How does being in a highly emotional state affect your perception of whether or not there is a god involved? How would you value these experiences, if it turns out their origin is not from a larger source, but are coming from you? Muslim Intellect in the UK asks: Would the world exist if god did not exist? How did you arrive at the position that the existence of the world proves god? Please describe how this is obvious to you, when it may not be obvious to us or anyone else. Why would we take the Koran seriously when we have not even established there is a god, and that particular god brought us the Koran? The message from Allah is worthless without this happening first. Why should we believe a book that says god is real and how do we know if the claims in the book are true? Mike with no pronouns in SC says that the song, “Imagine” is an atheist anthem and that atheism is imaginary. Why is it a problem for atheists to take a lack of position? How do you decide what question is the biggest question to ask? Somebody that does not have a claim does not need to prove anything. The burden of proof applies to specific claims, not general things. There is no need to mix up concepts and muddy the water. What changed your mind to make you go from a non-believer to a believer? Before your scientific discoveries, was anyone else in your eyes justified in believing in the god that you believe in? John in Canada believes in a non-god creator and uses the laws of energy and math to explain his position. You are making an equivocation on the word, “create”. Did you really think that explaining that things cause other things would prove your point? Jackie in MS wants to build a case that idealism as a metaphysical system makes the most sense out of any system. It is not necessarily true that without our perception, things won’t exist. Language having a limit does not give us a reason to reduce the definitions of words to mean another word. Do the qualities of a rock change when there is nothing to look at that rock? Why is it impossible for the universe to exist before there was any consciousness to describe the perception? Do you think we have done enough to understand this topic? Does omnipotence seem weird or does it just break the rules? Thanks for tuning in this week! Question of the week is: What is really buried under the Kaaba at Mecca? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 27 January 2025

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Transcribed - Published: 20 January 2025

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, JMike and Justin Deconstruction discover that Jesus is the Devil as they comb through Biblical atrocities with bears and lions mauling presuppositional arguments made by people who believe the L.A. fires are caused by god.  Chuck in HA says the hosts on the show sometimes sound like they support Christianity because they say there just is no proof for god. The hosts wasted no time backing the caller into a corner about his beliefs. It turns out the caller was not able to articulate what the Bible describes about god and even claimed that Jesus is the Devil. How do you determine what parts are right and what parts are wrong in the Bible? If you do not believe in Jesus, how do you know that Jehovah is true?  Mike in SC wants to know if there are any books in the Bible that Justin thinks are true. Justin gave a handful of examples from the Bible that are true, and a number of contradictions found. If one part of the book is true, how does that make the whole thing true? What about the atrocities? How does making fun of somebody justify bears being called to maul kids or people at all? You must read the text for what it is and not what some goofy website says. God is vengeful and sends lions to kill his own prophets. Why did Jesus not fulfill even one of the Messianic prophecies?  Bill in PA wants to know how to defeat presuppositional arguments. Ask them for the argument, and then ask them to support the first premise. They will rarely have an argument for the first premise.  Jon in Canada says the fires in LA are caused by god and there is a correlation between sin and fire. How do you know what god’s rules are and what sin is?  Where is the comprehensive list of sins found? What sins are people in California doing that other states are not? If all natural disasters come from god, why is he not focusing on another area?  Gabe in TX wants to know how to respond when someone says that atheists have no moral standards. Justin’s opinion is that objective morals don’t exist and people want them to exist so they can point to a behavior and say it is bad. JMike’s take is that there are views compatible with there being no god such as subjective meta views. Can a shoe exist without a person to wear it?   Jim in MO says that the discovery of the new world changed the laws of Christianity, and not Jesus. Remember that Christianity long before this happened already determined they did not have to follow the laws of Moses. The whole book of Hebrews talks about this and how there are new laws being replaced. Even Jesus and the apostles can’t agree with each other. How did the people that came to America have a different belief than the people that came before them? What is the end goal of this dialogue and support for your conclusion?  Ben, our backup host, joins to close out the show! Thank you for tuning in this week. Question of the week is, “What would Jesus do?”(Wrong answers only). Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 13 January 2025

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Transcribed - Published: 6 January 2025

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Transcribed - Published: 16 December 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 9 December 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 2 December 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Armin Navabi and Kelley Laughlin, face attacks with no gravity and hurl their molecules under a big udder that prevents the sacrifice of finding the truth behind what the U.S. was based on.  Chuck in HI says he has scientific evidence for god and this is that the matter in the universe is eternal. He goes on to say there is no such thing as gravity and that god is holding everything together. Where is the evidence for this self aware, thinking agent that holds the universe together? The caller uses an inappropriate ad hominem and is warned by the hosts. He then goes on to try to convince the hosts that the same molecule is inhaled that is exhaled. How would this get us to god if it is true? Why does something have to make the atoms work and what is the work you think they are doing? The caller continues his childish attempts at insulting the hosts before repeating claims instead of providing the evidence for the claims.  Jackie in MS name dropped right off the bat even though Kelley explicitly asked him not to. He proposes that religion becomes a big udder that prevents sacrifice. How can you make your own points without referring to other philosophers? The key is to communicate in a way that is understandable. Why is there a need to use words that are undefined?  Mike in SC wants to know how to determine if something is true. Armin likes to put things into two categories: empiricism(more reliable) and rationalism(less reliable). He explains how critical thinking skills and spotting logical fallacies play into figuring out which arguments are the best in addition to using Occam's Razor. There is a difference between the truth and what is justified. Kelley looks for unambiguous empirical evidence to find truth. The topic swings over to the existence of Jesus. Where is the evidence for the resurrection? Why should we believe the Bible being used to prove the Bible? How do you get from the claims of physical evidence to the supernatural? How do people being willing to die for their religion make it true? People have died for bad ideas and things that are wrong throughout history. What is your path to truth and how do you arrive there? When do you accept your evidence and what is your process to prove it? If you have a low percentage of surety, what makes the difference between a positive and a negative decision?  Jon in Canada asks Kelley if he believes the U.S. was based on Christianity. Kelley explains how people misunderstand that separation of church was put there to protect religion from the government. And how many of the founding fathers were deists meaning that the U.S. was not based on Christianity but there were Christian influences on the founding of this nation.  Ben Clodfelter joined to close out the show as Kelley cut a red tie. Thank you for tuning in this week! Prompt for the week is: When is it inappropriate to respond to, “checkmate atheists”? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 25 November 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 18 November 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Forrest Valkai and The Cross Examiner, walk Jackie through some thought processes of his own before encountering questions of existence with some New Age sprinkles. Jackie in MS was not able to answer Forrest’s question of whether he has any of his own thoughts. It goes absolutely nowhere when this happens. Jackie agrees not to mention the names of philosophers and to answer the hosts’ questions. He argues that the existence of metaphysical things associated with religion are the reason for religion being a positive thing. What is an example of a good point you have made regarding these things? Why do you think people listening to this conversation will become convinced to believe in a god? Why do you believe a god exists? What created god that is more complicated than god? Why does the universe need a god to do what it does? Not knowing how something could have happened is not a basis to make a conclusion in the version that you like. Not only is there a magical explanation, but you know the dude that did it, and believe we must hate trans people! This could be a product from your environment, and Jackie, you deserve better than this.  George in Bulgaria claims that god is pure existence and we are eternal beings. What does pure existence mean? If we agree that things exist, how do you get from there to a god or to eternal beings? What would happen to existence, if a person was born that never reacted with anyone or anything else? What does your god want you to do? If god is asleep, why should we care? What is the evidence for our consciousness producing reality? Why is this better than just saying reality exists? How can your belief be falsified? A god that does not interact with the universe is indistinguishable from a god that does not exist. What can be gained knowledge wise by testing this? Ibrahim in the USA, converted to Islam, and wants to know the strongest arguments against god. Would you say that the burden should be on us to prove things like Santa Clause are not real? When you get into the business of arguing about god, you get into different versions of god. If this god does exist, what kind of god is it? If half of the things that the Abrahamic god is said to have done are true, he is a monster. The amount of evil and suffering this god has allowed is atrocious. This is not a religion of morality, but a religion of threats.  Why would somebody believe something that is not true when there is harm associated with it? If someone could convince you to believe in absurdities, they can also make you commit atrocities. The real danger sets in when you think you know what that god wants; this is when we start seeing cults, the Crusades, and the Dark Ages. Why does god not fix the suffering in the world and why did he not choose to create a universe where this did not need to happen? The hosts are joined by Ben Clodfelter to close out the show. Thank you for tuning in this week! Question of the week is: What is an underquoted scripture at a funeral? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 11 November 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 4 November 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 28 October 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, the Cross Examiner and Ryan Jayne talk about the significance of separation of church and state, rising Christian nationalism in the United States, and phenomenology. Keyon in Utah claims that the stories of multiple religions point to there being a creator god. So many traditions have similar stories, so they must be on to something. He says he’s not religious but seems to still believe in the Bible and Christianity to an extent. Why does the similarities between different traditions’ stories mean that one (Christianity) is true? Keyon says that concepts like the devil are a type of energy and that he feels the truth of them energetically. He can’t conceive of a world where so many people could be wrong about religion. The hosts explain that religions like Islam and Christianity that contradict each other can’t both be true. And how can we tell which religion is true if both groups came to their conclusion through the same methods? Keyon responds by saying that every religion has god because god is love and energy. Manuel is calling from Brazil to challenge the hosts’ views on separation of church and state. He argues that there is a level of importance in issues. He says that there are more important issues like the murder of trans people, but it presumes that you cannot fight both fights at the same time. The hosts point out that something that seems so small like Christian iconography in government spaces impacts other issues like systemic transphobia. It helps justify discrimination and violence in society and legal processes. Jackie in Missouri wants to discuss the “phenomenology of givenness” which is beyond intentionality. Some things are given to you and are not part of your intentionality. The word “given” implies that a “giver” exists. Why are things we can’t explain not just part of the natural world or the human experience? The hosts try to understand why Jackie believes in god, but he just keeps reading his script. Is this his best reason for believing in god? When asked for his best evidence of God, Jackie says that the question is not applicable to his god. We don’t care about a god to which evidence cannot apply or is independent of evidence. It makes that god unfalsifiable. When asked again for his #1 piece of evidence for god, he answers with “the hierarchy of value perception.” We don’t have time to unpack all that today. Jackie can call back to talk about that concept in particular. Mike is calling in from South Carolina with questions about the Fair Housing Act. He asks the hosts if the Fair Housing Act overrides any discriminatory laws at the state level. While landlords can’t explicitly evict someone because of their sexual orientation, they can come up with some kind of other excuse for kicking them out that isn’t blatantly discriminatory. Enforcing a law like the Fair Housing Act is a lot more challenging that you might think. Jason from Massachusetts expresses his challenges with family after deconstructing from religion. Unfortunately, stories like Jason’s are far too common, but demonstrate how essential atheist communities can be. Thank you for calling in this week! This week’s prompt is: Why did God kick out Lucifer? Wrong answers only! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 21 October 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 14 October 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Forrest Valkai and Doctor Ben tackle several fun issues.  Jack in Canada asks the hosts about the problem of evil. If god made the rules, why would he choose to cause suffering when he is powerful enough not to? Why did god choose something that causes suffering? If your god is in charge of everything, why does he not fix childhood poverty? You are more moral than your god.  Max in Russia wants to help but is unable to donate. Every action helps no matter how small and we appreciate you. Doctors without Borders must work legal negotiations before being able to enter a country.  Mike in SC has a perception that atheists and theists are doing the same thing because atheists say god is evil, and theists say god is good. Is a bi-sexual trans man better off in hell? Why is it okay that someone is sent to Hell for being gay? What if another god says it is a sin to be heterosexual? Why is it okay for Christians to kick people out of their family for being queer? Imagine what it feels like to be told that because of this monster in the sky who treats you differently for being gay,  you deserve to be tortured forever. How is the lesson someone learns from the loss of the baby worth the baby’s life? Is freewill more important to god than protecting children?  Kelvin in FL asks if the existence of transgender people goes against the societal push of deconstructing gender norms. Dr. Ben explains that the trans community is not about adapting femininity or masculinity, and how the trans community leans into gender abolitionism. There is societal pressure put on trans people to perform to those stereotypes. Forrest discusses how sex and gender are different, and how things in the 1400s that were considered manly are not manly today.  Vic in TX believes in a creator, but does not believe in the New Testament or Jesus. How is the Bible considered to be morally good? Is it morally good to stone your children if they disobey? Why should this be accepted as an instruction manual when it instructs how to own and beat slaves?  Jackie in MS wants us to dig into a bunch of philosophers to promote Christian values. What do you have to say about these values being carcinogenic to human minds? How does the function of an idea speak to the morality of an idea? What is one example where consciousness is independent of matter? Nate in NY discusses his deconstruction before the last caller, Kevin in MA, brings the hosts into a discussion about sexual dimorphism.  Thank you for calling in this week! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 7 October 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, Secular Rarity(SR) and JMike sort through a variety of callers before being joined be Scott Dickie to wrap it up.  Jackie in MS misgendered Dr. Ben on Talk Heathen and then refused to issue a proper apology so he was dropped! Be a man, Jackie and do the right thing if you want to play with us.  Olivia in TX has questions about the Bible being true and how things she was told would come true when she was a kid are true now. How did you independently verify this if you have not read the Bible? The book alone making a claim is not sufficient. How are the things that have come true now any different than how they were hundreds of years ago? At what point do you trust the things people are telling you? Why is the church telling you the Bible is true, a reason to accept it? Caleb in OH asks the hosts how they have come to the conclusion that there is no god. JMike explains how there are no minds that can exist, and how the commitments that need to be taken on for theism are massive, and therefore not simple. SR confirms that is his position as well. The evidence available leads us to a conclusion that leads to a belief of something being likely to be true. Probability may be interesting, but has no bearing on whether something is true or not. What is the reasoning that you have come to your conclusion about the universe being designed? Does god have free will to create other constants? Why not add more gods? Johan in FL is a pantheist instead of an atheist because for the ethical reason that words have power and atheists tend to play on the word, “god”. What does god/goddess mean to you? What are you adding to the word, “universe” that we don’t share? What does the philosophy of mind stuff have to do with this? Why is there a moral imperative to believe something that supports well being?  Polo in PA wants to talk about secular humanism and how he wants to start a new religion that does more interfaith with other religions who see themselves as humanist organizations.  The word “religion” can connote a set of rituals and dogma that may not work for many humanist organizations.  Alexander in the UK has gradually stepped away from the Christian religion and is curious why some smart people are still so involved. Scott reminds us how smart people can be excellent at justifying what they believe and compartmentalization. There are people that have great arguing skills. None of us properly adhere to the correct methodology 100% of the time. Dee in IA thinks the hosts missed the mark by not having a stronger acknowledgement when speaking with Olivia. What she got out of Olivia was fear and understands her not reading the Bible. Dee was also in a charismatic cult that took decades to claw out of. We always want to do better and not discount the emotions entirely. Your criticism and suggestion is well taken. Thank you for tuning in this week!  Question of the week is: If you want to get banned from Bible Study, which Bible story should you pick? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 30 September 2024

Show notes upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 23 September 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 15 September 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 9 September 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 2 September 2024

Today we have a Bat Cruise edition of the Atheist Experience live in the studio with Forrest Valkai, ObjectivelyDan, JMike, and Secular Rarity! David in CA, wants to create an experiment where we remove religious teachings from a society, and if it leads to a god explaining things that science is leaving out. Notice how the things we can’t explain keep getting smaller. We would find that we can use rationality to come up with morality. Sean in TX, wants to talk about the Eucharist miracle of Lanciano, where it turned into actual flesh and blood, and they found the specimen was still alive. If this is true, why is ritualistic cannibalism part of your practice? What if we wanted to be more like another person and decided to eat that person? Why would god choose this miracle instead of ending world hunger? Ivan in CA feels that religions are man’s attempt to explain things, and is curious about how to cross the threshold to believing there is not any god at all. If there is a god, what kind of god is it? What does your god actually do? Joshua in the USA, thinks the fine tuning argument is one of the best arguments that exists for theists, and proposes a thought experiment, where every piece of matter has the words, “made by Jesus”. Why does god create a world with life permitting constants rather than no world at all? Mike in WA believes that if a scientist can’t make a complete set of amino acids, then abiogenesis could not possibly happen. Why are you not accepting the evidence that amino acids can self assemble? Was there a time where we could not create lightning in a lab? Benjamin in AL is calling once again to defend slavery in the Bible. What is the motivation for you wanting this and why do you want to defend slavery? Does that make god a good person if he is okay with slavery and would you worship this god? Why do you believe certain parts in the Bible over others? You are better than your god. Steve, a theist in NE, wants to discuss a research paper that argues for panspermia titled, "The Cause Of Cambrian Explosion, Terrestrial or Cosmic?” While cephalopods are life, it does not say anything for the rest of life on earth. Why are you making the leap of intentionality from this event? Jimmy in NY asks the hosts why they don’t believe in god. How can the whole Bible be true if different parts say different things? Why do people go to hell and what kind of asshole would send someone there for not believing in him? Billy, a deist in TX, asks about the observer effect where 95% of the universe is not observable. This has been misunderstood for decades. Think some more on this and there is no need to get mad. Mike in SC says that god did not create a lousy world. Who made the Garden of Eden and who was in charge of where the trees were placed? Who allowed the serpent to tempt them? Thank you for tuning in! Question of the week is: What is a warning label that god forgot to make? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 26 August 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 19 August 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 12 August 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 5 August 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 29 July 2024

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Transcribed - Published: 21 July 2024

In today’s episode of the Atheist Experience, The Cross Examiner and Secular Rarity explore the godliness of Superman as they explain where atheists get their morals. Crew cat helped with technical challenges before jumping into grandparents pushing agenda and the Mandela Effect messes with memory. Jim in MO uses a Superman analogy to god, and questions why Superman did not try to stop Lex Luther from doing evil. What kind of similarities can be drawn between stories in the Bible and comic books? We can easily imagine super powerful beings that are more moral than the god of the Bible. Jon in Canada wants to know where we get our morals if it wasn't from the Ten Commandments. Were there recorded civilizations before the Ten Commandments and where did they get their morals from? Laws can make society a better place, but it may not be necessary for them to be in place. Jax in UT asks if the hosts think god is evil and if so, why doesn't he kill us now? God creates all kinds of atrocities. He may not be evil, but he could be an idiot child playing with matches. How is it possible that god disobey’s his character? We don’t know why god does not kill us, he is a mysterious character. Robert in CA, shares how his parents are showing Veggie Tales to his children which caused a switch from neutral to proactive. How much do you trust your parents to honor your wishes? Studies show that if a child reaches an age where they can reason, they will be less likely to adapt to religion. Your parents don’t have to stop being who they are to not put it on the children. These are your kids and no one is entitled to pushing their agenda on them. What are your thoughts about supervised visitations? This situation is an example that answers why we do this. Religion hurts people, that is why we care. Blind Limey in TX describes a Freddie Mercury performance at a Live Aid event that was televised less than 50 years ago. At this event, there were actors as police. How many people would remember there were police present at that event? There are lots of examples of the Mandela Effect. This kind of thing happens all the time and we know this. Even if we had access to eyewitnesses from Jesus’s time who saw something, how could we rely on that? SR shares an interesting story of his memory owning Golden Retrievers and how they were really Terriers. Memory is a fascinating thing with many chemical variables floating around in our brains! Thank you for tuning in this week! Prompt is: What prayer will have you banned from saying grace? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 15 July 2024

Have the ultimate Atheist Experience today with Johnny P. Angel and John (Godlessengineer)! They wrestle with an argument from popularity right before diving into another theist argument from ignorance with all the chemical gaps being filled with no other but god himself. Bernard, a theist in NYY, presents two options for the writing of the Old Testament: god or human. What is your criteria for determining this is actually the word of god? How did you rule out these scriptures are not just from people telling each other stories that describe how they thought the world exists? Why do you accept that this book is accurate? How do you explain all the different ways god is referred to such as Yahweh and Jehovah that indicate different writers of the first five books? Why is it supposed to be persuasive if a book references history? Large amounts of people believing in something has no bearing on how true it is. Mike, a theist in SC believes that because of the complexity of DNA, that it had to be designed, and proceeds to lay out his argument using chromosomes as a start. How do proteins come together? What is your definition of information as it pertains to DNA? Why are we replacing chemistry with magic? Why does any of this require a divine intelligence? When was the last time you looked up how many possible life supporting planets there are? What is the nature of the supernatural existence responsible for this design? If god is all powerful, why do genetic disorders exist? God has some explaining to do for this shoddy craftsman work. How is it fair that a kid dies of leukemia and why can’t god intervene to prevent this? Is it because he doesn't care or he doesn't exist? We think you are better than your god. Rachel, a skeptical agnostic in AZ, was told by her friend that she can only accept advice from other Christians. Why do Bible thumping folk think they cornered the market on correct action? It can be helpful to ask the person how they reconcile the genocides mentioned in the Bible such as Numbers 31, with moral actions. Thank you for tuning in this week! Prompt for the week is: What should you NOT say to a friend that is trying to deconvert? Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 8 July 2024

Show notes upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2024

Have an Atheist Experience today as Secular Rarity (SR) and Armin Navabi, sort through questions of “creation”, differences in Quran scriptures, and ponder the unfalsifiable simulation claim. Jasmine, a theist in Ohio, says that all of existence including us, is part of god and that everything is created through god. How can everything be created through god and be god at the same time? How can something that does not make sense be convincing? Is there a way you can build a claim without using language that is so vague? Rick, a theist in TX, asks how atheists explain the creation of the universe and the world. There are people dedicated their lives studying how this happened and their explanation does not include a deity. The framing of this question assumes there is a creation and that we as atheists have an answer. Why do atheists need to come up with an explanation when we are not making any claims? Even if things did have a beginning, does not make it true there was a creation. We do not have to have any justification for not believing something. Why do you think the scriptures such as the Bible or Quran will have any validity with atheists? If you were to be shown something that shows how the universe got here, and that does not include a god, how would that change your beliefs and certainty there is a god? If justifiable evidence were to be provided for the existence of god, we would believe, however, worshiping that god will be a another story. Armin and SR have a different opinion on this. Abdur Rahman, a Muslim in NY, has laid out three criteria: logical theological framework, preservation of the original text of the Quran, and miracles. There is a ton of evidence showing the Quran has not been preserved perfectly. How do we explain the different versions of the Quran that actually differ in the commandments of Allah? If there were Quranic verses in two separate versions that were so radically different that it changes the commands of Allah and can’t be harmonized, would that make you no longer accept that the Quran is perfectly preserved? Why do we need the opinions of the scholars to make this harmonious? How do you explain these differences without changing the commandment of Allah and committing a sin? Steve in NE wants to talk about the collapse of the wave function, how things will exist in the fuzzy quantum state until they are observed, and the Second Law of Infodynamics which requires information entropy to remain constant or decrease overtime. He wonders if these things are indicators of a simulation program. How are you connecting these things? It doesn't really matter if we are in a simulation or not because our reality is indistinguishable from a base reality. We don’t believe there is anything that can rule this claim out, making it unfalsifiable. Thank you for hanging out with us today and remember the prompt of the week is: Create the next god! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 24 June 2024

You will have the ultimate Atheist Experience today as JMike and Darante’ Lamar discuss the moral standards of not throwing babies off roofs. They jump right into a discussion about Moses writing the Old Testament and then they have a short wrangle with Satan Incarnate. Daniel in NC responded to a video where JMike and the caller were discussing if throwing a baby off the roof is wrong in a world where there is no god, and a world where there is a god. Daniel agrees that this action is wrong in both worlds. What is the logical contradiction in a world where there are moral facts? It does not make sense to describe a world with independent obligation. What is the standard for god’s absolute morality? How do you explain the morality that people have who don’t hold a god belief? God has to be defined and shown to exist before you can prove that morality flows through god. Claims that are snuck in such as god being the creator need to be proven as well. Why is there a different standard of morality for god than there is for us? Why is it morally acceptable that god tells people to kill their children? Bernard in NY attempts to demonstrate that god wrote the first five books of the Bible through Moses, who he says also wrote the Old Testament. Where is the scripture that says this? This call just did not get anywhere. Devon in PA relied on the Bible during a tough situation and references the verses that name, “Philadelphia”. This verse helps clear his name because he is Satan incarnate with black curly hair and a star under his eye. Dude! Why do you think this? Calum in Canada had two near death experiences as a teenager and saw an afterlife that was identical to what his mother described that included a “split” with a choice of where to go. Why did this experience not convince you there was an afterlife? It is rare that we hear this perspective from an atheist. Keith in OR asks what the hosts think when someone is healed at the same moment as the person who did the arm is asking forgiveness. We would ask for evidence of this taking place and would also be intrigued. Could god create a backdoor to allow for such things to happen just so we can ask for forgiveness? Compares the story of Job to the 1919 World Series with the Chicago Black Sox. If god is omniscient, why would he not bet on Job? God does come down, talk to Job, and stack the bet, just for the record. Thank you for tuning in this week! Have a fun week thinking of why it is wrong to throw babies off roof, and make sure to think about our question of the week: What NOT to say if you meet Jesus. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 17 June 2024

Johnny P. Angel and Secular Rarity combine for a wild show featuring callers that find divinity through getting high (huh?), the numeric secrects of the universe and more! Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 10 June 2024

Show notes upon receipt. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-atheist-experience--3254896/support.

Transcribed - Published: 2 June 2024