The Atheist Blogger

Back in secondary school (high school for you yanks), I had a friend called Tom. He was clever, funny, witty; the kind of friend you like talking to and having around. Tom was also a very smart guy, passed all his exams with flying colours, and is now attending Cambridge University reading Law.

On facebook recently, I noticed an addition to his information:

I am an evangelical (also called “heavy duty”) Christian! Christianity in a (sizeable) nutshell:

1) God created the world and it was very good. Humans were made in God’s own image to rule over the world and enjoy it. We are especially loved by God and therefore distinct from the animals. God’s relationship to us is one of a loving (but holy) Father.

2) The first humans (Adam and Eve) chose out of their free will to disobey God. As a result, they put distance between themselves and God and came under the so-called law of sin. Every human since has been born sinful, unable to avoid what their conscience tells them is wrong or to do what they know is right.

3) Each of us has inherited a sinful nature and we are all guilty of wrongdoing, even if we try to be and seem to be “pretty good” people by our own human standards.

4) Because of point 3, we are in very serious trouble. God’s standard is perfection - being “pretty good” will not do. The price for sin has to be paid in full and unfortunately for us, that means physical death followed by eternal spiritual death.

5) However (this is the good bit), a solution has been provided! The Son of God took on human flesh in the person of Jesus Christ and met God’s standard where we were unable to, living a sinless life despite temptations. Having lived without sinning, alone among humans, he died a death which he did not deserve when he was executed on the cross.

6) Because Jesus had not deserved death himself, he died as a substitute for all of us, taking God’s judgments against sin upon himself. As he was the infinite Son of God, his sufferings and death on the cross were fully adequate to pay the price for every human sin.

7) Having paid the price for sin, Jesus rose from the dead in a glorified body which can never die again. He is at work in the lives of Christians now as a “best friend,” and his glorified resurrection body is the pattern of the body which will be given to all those God raises to eternal life.

8) Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can be reconciled to God, enjoying a relationship with Him in this life and eternal life in the world to come. To do this, we must accept Jesus by faith as our lord and saviour. Faith is not something in the mind, but rather the same thing that happens when you sit down on a chair and trust it to hold you up rather than collapse. A rickety chair may let you down, but the one who trusts in Jesus will never be put to shame.

9) If you want a relationship with God followed by eternal life, call on the name of the resurrected Jesus Christ and ask him to come into your life. This may take a long time to happen - very rarely do people ever become Christians as an instantaneous event.

10) Anything more, ask me :)

It makes me sad to see such intelligence so corrupted by religion, especially when he responded to my inquiries with this BS.

The notion of seven short 24-hour days of creation is, in my opinion, a *spiritual* misunderstanding of Genesis 1. There is, however, no evidence for evolution.

I think the notion of believing there is no evidence for evolution is an *ignorant* misunderstanding of science.