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Bonus Post: An Eight Year Old Atheist
My son Josh is eight.
The other day, he said, “Should we be thankful to the Lord that doesn’t exist?” (He was being snide, and if you’re curious, we were discussing Thanksgiving, his and my favorite holiday; that was the context.)
I told him that I’d like to hear his reasons for not believing in “the Lord” beyond knowing that I didn’t believe. Here’s what he said:
“I’ve known I didn’t believe in God since I quite believing in Santa. It’s the exact same thing.”
Josh used this syllogism to dismiss Santa: 1) Magic is not real; 2) Santa is magic; 3) Therefore, there is no Santa. (His conflicting premise: “Mom and dad don’t lie to me” was resolved when he brought the syllogism for answers.)
I’m sure more specific criticisms will come in time, but he has the big picture. In the meantime, here is a lesson, a question, and a post for us to think about. (The post just might have an answer to the question.)
A Lesson: Josh is brilliant, but he’s eight years old. Atheism is not an intellectual endeavor. Science might be, but atheism is not.
A Question: If it’s clear to an 8-year old, why is it clear to so few otherwise clearheaded Americans?
A Post: God Is Real Because We Aren’t Relevant.
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I believe the answer to your question is indoctrination.
And I believe you’re correct. Unlike god, nobody tries to dissuade you from rejecting Santa belief.