Saturday 28 April 2012

What is the evidence against Christianity?

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There are 1001 lines of evidence against 'Christianity' - as I was well aware during the many years when I assumed the falsehood of Christianity.

Of course, as I now know, taken individually, examined one at a time, all these lines of evidence are shallow, weak, inconclusive and thus inadequate.

But my implicit assumption throughout the time I ignored Christianity was that 1001 pieces of individually inadequate evidence - when heaped-up together - was in total effect more-than-sufficient to refute Christianity.

One good argument is enough to refute a falsehood; 1001 bad arguments don't refute anything - even if they are repeated, and repeated. 

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2 comments:

Brandon said...

But what about the Nietzschean New Right critique of Christianity: that it bequeathed modernity, liberalism, and all it's unhealthy instincts, that it is 'slave morality' that it is incompatible with aristocratic (and thus illiberal) values, etc. How does one respond to this, Dr. Charlton? It's the one critique,which I,as a Christian, find hard to argue against.

Bruce Charlton said...

@Brandon - these were not intrinsic to Christianity but came from modernization.


The evidence is Byzantium - the most thoroughly Christian society ever, a fusion of Greek, Roman and Christian culture; which endured 1000 years and only ended because it was overwhelmed by superior force (not due to loss of confidence, self-loathing). They did not display a slave morality when the last battle came - but fought like tigers under the icon of the Virgin Mary.