Tag: humans
Are Atheists Right? Is It God’s Fault the World is a Terrible Place?
Posted on February 10, 2015 in Theology by Nathan Cherry
I’m fascinated by atheists. How can I not be fascinated by someone who spends a great deal of effort and energy refuting someone they don’t believe exists?
It would be as if I said “this chair I’m sitting in does not exist,” and then spent the next 2 hours lecturing you about why doesn’t exist, the silliness of believing it does exist, and all the whole pointing to the chair that I don’t believe exists. And yet this is, in my opinion, what many – if not all – atheists do.
Some of the world’s most brilliants atheists are also some of the most educated theologians. Though they seek to discredit the Bible and theology and prove that God doesn’t exist, they certainly know a lot. I can think of no other person that proves more clearly that knowledge does not equal wisdom or relationship than atheists.
A question being considered by some in our society is one of fundamental importance. The question is whether humans are exceptional among other living things. The belief in human exceptionalism was once a nearly universally held one. Recent attempts to elevate animals – to the detriment of some humans – have called the idea into question.
For centuries humans have occupied the prominent place as the dominant and most respected living creature on earth. This was first due to the special creation of mankind by God at the outset of human history (Gen 2). God further told man to “be fruitful and multiply” on the earth (Gen. 9:1) and that he would be “feared” by other living creatures as the blessed creation of God (Gen. 9:2).
This idea of human exceptionalism has been a foundational principle in our society for generations. Western civilization has fashioned laws around this idea and even attempted to convince other peoples of this idea in an effort to secure human rights. The belief that mankind is the greatest creature on earth is being threatened now by efforts of animal rights activists, among others, that want us to see animals as co-equals with mankind.