Imagine that an atheist walks into a gathering of Christians. He says, “I hold in my hand a pamphlet that will rock your worldview. In fact, it will almost surely change your worldview. I have shown this to several hundred Christians of many denominations, and shortly after they read it, 90% admitted that their faith in Christianity was pretty much gone.

“Now—who wants a copy?”

How many Christians would take the challenge? How many would risk their worldview for a chance at a more correct worldview?

My guess is very few. My guess is that most Christians already have had pangs of doubt and don’t like them. They don’t want the boat rocked—it’s rocking enough as it is. They suppress their own doubt and they avoid any “opportunity” to increase that doubt.

But now turn that experiment thought around. Imagine that a Christian speaks to the atheists at a conference and says, “I hold in my hand a pamphlet that will rock your worldview. It has insights and arguments that you probably don’t know about. I have shown this to hundreds of atheists, and shortly after they read it, 90% went down on their knees and accepted the truth of the gospel message and asked Jesus into their hearts. Now—who wants a copy?”

How many atheists would take the challenge? My guess is many. My guess is that most atheists came to their position because of evidence, not because of suppressing it, and that they’re eager to find the most correct worldview. They hold on to atheism because they think it’s the truth, not because it’s convenient or pleasing, and they follow the evidence where it leads.

What would you do? And what does this say about the truth of the Christian and atheist positions and the role of evidence in those worldviews?

Related post: “I Used to be an Atheist, Just Like You”.

God is an ever-receding pocket of scientific ignorance

that’s getting smaller and smaller and smaller as time goes on.

— Neil deGrasse Tyson

Acknowledgement: Thanks to Keith B. for this insightful idea.

Photo credit: Brandeis Special Collections